PC gaming gets a bad rap. High-end game rigs cost thousands of dollars. Hardware and driver conflicts plague players. It's too much work just to have some fun. AMD agrees. So do Intel, Nvidia, Microsoft, Dell, Acer, Alienware, and a number of software developers that are finally sitting down at the same table to form the PC Gaming Alliance. Question is: can they do the job?
This nonprofit organization has noble intentions: To give a common voice and common goals to a huge and hugely disorganized platform. Industry forecasters say $2.67 billion in PC games sold in 2007. That discounts all those casual games that suck up your midday doldrums. For 2008, projections peak in the $9.6 billion range. About 263 million folks around the world play computer games.
But who are these people? "If you asked one of us the breakdown of who was playing these games right now, you'd get different answers from each company. It's tough getting a straight answer," says Kevin Unangst, senior global director of Games for Windows. "Going forward we're sharing data and trying to solve problems together instead of on our own."
Microsoft knows all about going it alone. Its Games for Windows initiative has made some progress in the year since it launched, educating the masses and trying to create a unified player experience. But the road got lonely and sometimes rocky as Vista launched. Microsoft had to foot the bill for a whole marketing campaign to push a platform. Now, with a membership behind it, the PCGA hopes to tackle real issues. Eventually.
What can they hit first? Piracy and online security? The PCGA isn't providing software tools or enforcing laws. "We are NOT going to become the RIAA," says Randy Stude, director of the Gaming Program Office at Intel. While some of the people on the panel look to digital distribution, Mark Rein of Epic Games (developer of titles such as Gears of War and Unreal Tournament 3) says shrink-wrapped boxes aren't going away--it's pricing that's the issue. Pirates won't pay no matter what. Stude suggests it may be time to consider the free-to-play models that have exploded in Asian markets. The point? There is no one, simple solution.
OK, here's another obvious problem: setting a baseline for hardware requirements. Where is that sweet spot for gamers? Intel's Stude is quick to point out that many current games have incredibly high system requirements-- beyond those of most people who want to play games. Rein jabs back at Intel: "If I buy a $3000 notebook, it should be able to provide some sort of gaming experience. It's not difficult to get a good graphics solution, is it?"
As playful and good-natured as the conversation was, it still underscores a very real issue: the industry recognizes the problem and wants to address it. Right now, the bar is too high, requiring players to purchase discrete graphics cards just to get any sort of gaming experience. That instantly weeds out people who just bought a new computer and discover it won't play many games. Would Intel consider an integrated Nvidia graphics card or shared technology to solve the problem? Intel's Stude instantly shuts down the idea. "[The PCGA] isn't about sharing corporate roadmaps," he says. Well, that's going to make progress tougher. People may sit at the table, but aren't prepared to take action.
While some companies can't sign up fast enough, others are stepping back with a wait-and-see approach. At least one PC vendor is "happy to sit on the fence for now." The insider notes that the PCGA "is asking for a big chunk of money to join, but I wonder how much they can accomplish. Maybe we'll join at some point."
The fledgling organization doesn't really have a powerbase. Oh, sure, the membership roster is mighty, but this is an organization of volunteers who don't set policies for the platform, but only suggest a course. The PCGA won't have a strict set of rules. Members will share information. They hope to educate consumers. They'd like to tell us about a concrete plan for the future, but have none yet. They promise that they are on the case, making progress . . . check back in a couple months.
Many different organizations are coming together here with the same goals. It's the means that could trip them. God forbid Apple joins the PCGA and adds to the confusion with its own sets of concerns. If handled poorly this might be as effective as an interim government.
Don't get me wrong: the PC Gaming Alliance has great intentions to get the PC gaming market back on track. But might I suggest a velvet glove to help lead the way and nudge developers, hardware makers, and consumers in the right direction? Oh, yeah, and will you please do something about integrated graphics?
PC gaming rocks. I say this as someone that has been computer gaming since the TRS-80 and the Atari-2600.
For variety (anyone can write something for a PC) to depth (the keyboard/mouse/... interface controls allow more than the traditional console controller), PCs allow an unparallelled experience.
I have found drivers/hardware issues getting better and better. Part of that may be because I custom build my machine with standard components, but I think it is the general truth. Intitiatives, standardized APIs, and even standardized hardware (how many people use graphic chipsets other than NVidia or ATI?).
That said, I've been watching my selection at the local software shop dwindling, so perhaps something needs to be done.
If the PCGA focuses on piracy, they are doomed to failure. It will do nothing to increase the popularity of PC Games. Focusing on standards, cost, compatibility,... that's the way to go.
This is definitely a step in the right direction. Consoles continue to claim more and more of the gaming market each day for the very reasons this article mentions.
Please check out my article on a related subject at PC Games Junction and leave your comments for further discussion.
http://thegamejunction.blogpsot.com
Great article Darren, I think GFW radio needs ya more than anything right now! Shawn's off on a tear on 1up Yours finally giving the PC a voice. Of course you already know that, but it's good see your back to writing.
I have to say, I think this is a good thing for PC Gaming in general. Gaming journalism, besides PC centric magazines, are in large part ignorant of PC game sales and as a result, the PC never gets the respect it deserves. Having an organization that will funnel statistics and important information about that side of the industry is crucial, not that sales should be overly emphasized, but it's good for PR for the platform. This is huge, and it's like having the a marketing department for PC Gaming, finally. It's also good to see the Alliance came out and said they will NOT be the RIAA of PC Gaming. Advertising and educating the masses about the platform will garner more attention. Let's hope this works out.
Dozer! Thanks for the kind words and, yeah, all kinds of craziness at the old joint. Maybe I should commando raid a podcast. ;p
But about the topic at hand: I think that having proper representation for the space is key. The only information people know to track is NPD sales data. And that's about as accurate as trying to dowse for water. (no flames from dowsing readers, please). So you wind up with people reporting misconceptions. Now, if they exercised just a BIT of dictatorial control, maybe we'd get a remotely unified experience. As bad as driver issues are now, raise your hand if you remember life before DirectX?
Will the PCGA work? fingers crossed.
Total nonsequiter: Check out www.igf.com for some of the Indie Game competitors there's a LOT of great stuff you can play right now and it'll run on just about any computer.
Oh, and have a great weekend!
Darren: I do remember those days, playing on a 386 with MSDOS 6.22...Messing with autoexec.bat and config.sys and (as an 8 year old) crying with frustration trying to get games working.
The question is: What needs compatibility most badly?