PC Gaming is Falling Apart!
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"You need to think differently about what types of games can be developed [for the PC]," said Johnson. Indeed, the PC currently has freer and better Internet access. It features keyboards and mice. It's more open to social gaming.
Capps, who has worked on Unreal Tournament titles as well as Gears of War, was bleak: "PC Gaming is really falling apart. It killed us to make Unreal Tournament 3 cross-platform, but Epic had to do it to [recap its investment in the production costs]."
Part of the problem is piracy. Big titles get stolen by cyber thieves, and it hurts revenue. "The market," said Capps, "that would buy a $600 video card knows how Bittorrent works."
And then there's Next Generation and Joystiq's coverage of a "The Videogame Piracy Problem: Fifteen Men on a Dead Man's Chest" speech given by id Software's Todd Hollenshead:
During his speech, Hollenshead revealed that, although they are still primarily a PC developer, id Software had begun to look at console game releases as a way to financially combat piracy.
"Piracy has pushed id as being multiplatform," Hollenshead said, noting that the current project Enemy Territory: Quake Wars is being scheduled for release on PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Hollenshead's rationale is that console piracy is, by a large factor, minimal relative to the rampant PC piracy.
What I don't understand is why more PC games don't feature a strong multiplayer component to provide an extra incentive for would-be pirates to purchase the game. If you want to experience a Diablo, Neverwinter Nights, Half-Life, Battlefield, or any massively multiplayer title online, you have to buy the game.
