Don't forget that putting games on consoles means paying big fees to Sony and Microsoft, and the royalties they have to MS/Sony per copy of their game sold is much higher than Steam or GOG. I think I heard somewhere that MS gets 70% of profits from indies on Xbox 360.

On PC they can launch the game on Steam/GOG/Humble/wherever and not have to pay a huge fee. So the fact that PC is an open platform definitely is attracting more and more developers to the scene.

Praise lord Gaben!

It's because no one want to be a console peasant any longer and everyone wants to belong to the PC-gamer masterrace.

=D

The lower upkeep cost of PC gaming has certainly helped; with the last generation any good dual-core was enough and that right there makes upgrading significantly cheaper. The new consoles' x86 CPUs are a step up compared to the last generation but aren't high-end in PC terms, so it's looking like it a strong i5 or equivalent quad-core should be sufficient for at least part of the new generation.

We're also going to see an ever larger percentage of console games being ported to the PC. Porting is easier than ever before now that everything is x86, and with budgets at an all-time high publishers want all the money they can get.

Consoles are becoming increasingly complex while PCs during that time have become more resilient, accessible and controller-friendly (Windows 8, Steam Big Picture, HDMI out on everything, etc.)

Both Microsoft and Sony will want to stretch this new generation to almost a decade if possible (just like last time) but PCs don't stand still during that time, so the later someone switches to PC gaming the cheaper and more impressive it will be.

People keep mentioning money but I'm not so sure. It seems like I just got my PC and already there is tons of stuff here I can't play on my OS. Ultimately I guess the PC route is cheaper because an update here and there is a few hundred every other year or so while keeping up with consoles can be $1000 every other year or so, so yes there is a monetary difference but we aren't talking about a major difference.

kind of ninjad by Arkose there. :D

What do you call PC Gaming?
All balance sheets are saying that there are less games sold than the year before.
Only the casual game apps have a plus.
Or have i missed something?
Aren't companies closing several studios and other just gone bankrupt?
Isn't even Dell firing employees because the selling of PCs is rocketing downwards?

Interesting question. I admit my opinion is strongly subjective. For example, [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:2009_video_games]PC games released in 2009[/url] left my wallet closed. A lot of FPS, casuals, MMOs, and other generic stuff. In comparsion, I have followed and have bought many games full price or close to full price in 2012 and 2013.
There was simply a time gap where even if I wanted to pay for something fresh and new, there wasn't anything. Until recently.

And I don't think PC sales and PC games sales are that connected. I purchased a new PC two years ago and right now I am considering buying only SSD in future because specs are enough.

You mean because of Windows XP? Games started requiring DirectX 10+ in 2009 and it's only just now becoming an expected requirement for new releases. You're now three Windows versions behind so you've had plenty of time to upgrade. :)

Microsoft won't change the display driver model again like that for a long time yet, so future deprecation would be when an OS moves from mainstream to extended support.

I'm referring to video cards and processors. You can download DirectX, that's no problem, it's the hardware that can get to be a pain.

Hardcore console gamers that I know are buying gaming computers or thinking about it and according to them it's mainly for two reasons.

1: Technology. They see comparisons between console and PC versions of the games and want the more good looking PC version. Strangely enough they are buying PCs now even though new console generations are going to get released soon.

2: Game prices. They're tired of paying more for inferior console versions of games. This is related to my first point. They are paying a lot for new computers now but are getting some of the money back because PC games are cheaper.

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In my experience PCs and Consoles have always gone up and down in hardware and game sales. The biggest reason I think simply is about good games. Sometimes there is a lull in quality games getting released. It might be over saturation of one or two genres, game developer policies about what games to make, game developers getting out of business and a lot of other reasons. Gamers don't like most of new games on a platform they migrate to another platform.

I don't think PC games went anywhere (not at an alarming rate, at least), but I do think there is a perception bias about how the markets effect each other. People make the errant assumption that because consoles, tablets, smart devices, etc are selling (or even outselling) PCs, that the PC market is dying. Once you step back and look at the bigger picture its easy to see that people are finding ways to supplement their PC, not replace it. The PC games market will have its ups and downs based on world events like it always has. Expect it to sag with each console release. Expect it to "resurge" 2 - 5 years after that.

It just occurred to me, right now I'm posting in here, playing STARS!, checking sports scores, and downloading porn all at the same time on the SAME machine. Find me a console that can do that. :D

Two console generations down the road you can probably do that. Consoles are way ahead of PCs in realising many consumers want a one machine media centre solution that is easy to use.

Id say All the indie bundles have helped a lot as well.

I mean look at the EA one atm for just under $5 you can get all those titles and you probably would only be able to get one of those 2nd hand on a console for the same price.