Hardware Analysis Community Forums http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/ 2008-12-02T16:28:28-05:00 http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/ http://media.hardwareanalysis.com/halogo.gif text/html 2007-02-10T18:52:42-05:00 John Ingram http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/?o=20#475836 Yes, and the record industry said the same when record sales were going UP! Give gamers what they want and sales go up. It's just as easy to pirate casual games, so why are casual game sales so way up? And of course, you can pirate the Sims just as easy as say Oblivion, and yet we have one million Oblivion PC sales and four million Sims sales (excluding add-ons!). And of course that has nothing to do with the Sims running on most home PC's and Oblivion practically running on none is it? It's all about piracy! I think not!<br /> <br /> Most people that pirate games don't buy them any way, so very seldom is a sale 'lost', others may pirate the game as a 'demo' and then buy the game anyway. So just like with the record business, piracy is never as big a deal as people make out, and it's an industry way of copping out about quality of product! You might as well say CD single sales are falling so it takes fewer singles to get in the charts and that's all about piracy and nothing to do with manufactured bands, reality TV show that generate a short-lived singer/group, and the general lacklustre we now get in the singles charts all having nothing to do with it! text/html 2007-02-10T17:46:09-05:00 Bitmap http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/?o=20#475825 John Ingram said: <div class="quote">Let me guess, MCFly, those same or different gamers back in 2000 were just little angels, and in just 7 years have become devils?! Don't think so!</div><br /> <br /> Why not? Piracy wasn't really an issue in the year 2000, and now with torrents, IRC, newsgroups and warez sites, software piracy is at an all-time high, and the anti-piracy efforts aren't slowing it down one bit. Whether games are pirated most or least isn't a factor. McFly's right. The reason PC game purchases have gone down is because of the rise in piracy.<br /> text/html 2007-02-10T16:28:37-05:00 Alex-E-C-396 http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/?o=20#475814 I guess I am an ignorant fool and I do not no anything as you have all noted. I guess I just miss outdated hardware that does not work or something. Long live the Amiga. To bad Commodore went bankrupt. I love how internet message boards hide personal conversion / statement awareness. I also like how I do not stay on the mainstream and I only pay attention to stuff that makes it to me with out paying any attention to anything. I am also glad that I ignorantly do not posses the ability to speak/post appropriatly on these message boards. text/html 2007-02-10T14:30:09-05:00 Beavis Khan http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/?o=20#475802 McFly said: <div class="quote">Why, you ask, can't they afford to legitmately purchase these titles? Because they're up all night gaming!<br /> <br /> So I submit that gamers are more hardcore now than ever. <img src="http://media.hardwareanalysis.com/smilies/smile8.gif" width="14" height="14" border="0" alt=":_)" title=":_)"></div><br /> <br /> If by &quot;hardcore&quot;, you mean &quot;leeches on the veins of society&quot;, then I'd agree with you wholeheartedly!<br /> text/html 2007-02-10T13:20:07-05:00 John Ingram http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/?o=20#475800 Let me guess, MCFly, those same or different gamers back in 2000 were just little angels, and in just 7 years have become devils?! Don't think so! Audio CD's and movies are pirated way more than PC games,. and there sales are up, and in many cases way up! So it's way more than pirating my friend. Sorry to say. text/html 2007-02-10T11:07:19-05:00 McFly http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/?o=20#475794 <div class="quote"><b>John Ingram</b> <i>Feb 07, 2007, 06:11 PM</i><br /> Hardcore gamers are not anywhere near the numbers they used to be. And their not even as hardcore. A PC gamer in 2000 bought 10 games a year, last year it was 6!</div><br /> Well duh. That's because now they're just <i>pirating</i> the other 4 (plus 35 other games). Why, you ask, can't they afford to legitmately purchase these titles? Because they're up all night gaming!<br /> <br /> So I submit that gamers are more hardcore now than ever. <img src="http://media.hardwareanalysis.com/smilies/smile8.gif" width="14" height="14" border="0" alt=":_)" title=":_)"> text/html 2007-02-07T23:11:13-05:00 John Ingram http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/?o=20#475264 Alex - problem is that even hardcore gamers with hardcore hardware are not getting hardcore games any more, so even they are having second thoughts! I mean Oblivion was dumbed down, most RPG's are becoming 'action rpg's' and action games are becoming 'action rpg's' and you don't get wargames or flight sims or anything that is hardcore any more - so why not save money and go console is what even hardcore gamers are saying, and on the side, thanks to DOSBox and VDMSound and much better free emulators, it is easier than ever to just play the DOS/Win95/Win98 games you were playing 5, 10 or 15 years ago, which patently more PC gamers are doing!<br /> <br /> Hardcore gamers are not anywhere near the numbers they used to be. And their not even as hardcore. A PC gamer in 2000 bought 10 games a year, last year it was 6! I repeat the fact that a hardcore PC game 'Neverwinter Nights 2' was only in the U.S. PC game charts for a mere 9 weeks before being thrown out by a Re-Entry of a 2D puzzle game which had been out for 16 weeks! So now, a casual game after 16 weeks can outsell a hardcore game of 11 weeks. The first Neverwinter Nights spent 15 weeks in the top 10 and no puzzle game back then would ever sell enough to get in the top 10! <br /> <br /> The market is changing, and I am not sure the industry really understands it all, which is why when asked one of the Crysis developers said that 'genre merging' would be good for PC gaming's future!!! text/html 2007-02-07T22:39:48-05:00 ian elliott http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/#475255 Alex-E-C-396 said: <div class="quote">If you buy a computer strictly for games then you have an ignorant purchase. Go buy one of those bloody game machines, PS-3, X-BOX 360, WII etc. A computer is a serious work machine it just happens top be able to play games which are all very nice games. .</div><br /> <br /> Serious Hardcore Gamers WILL buy a computer strictly for games. Look at the hardware out there for Gamers. 8800GTX and 8800GTS and R600 are not just for casual gamers ,these are High end hardware directed towards the hardcore gamer. text/html 2007-02-07T14:54:41-05:00 John Ingram http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/#475150 Your last PC game may have been Diablo, but I think your story is being repeated a lot nowadays, except others would say 'my last PC game was Far Cry', or my last PC game was 'Oblivion', as opposed to your 'Diablo'. The end result is the same, fewer people playing PC games and lots of people not getting Vista for at least a year. text/html 2007-02-07T14:47:26-05:00 Stuart K http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/#475147 Just to add a data point here...<br /> <br /> I played some games like Wizardry and Castle Wolfenstein on the Apple ][, then Commander Keen on the PC. I also played Diablo briefly when my brother first bought a copy years ago. <br /> <br /> Other than that, I don't use computers for games. (I don't own or use a Playstation or anything like that either.)<br /> <br /> It's just not my cup of tea. <img src="http://media.hardwareanalysis.com/smilies/smile1.gif" width="14" height="14" border="0" alt=":-)" title=":-)"><br /> <br /> This may give me a bit different viewpoint when evaluating Vista. (I also work in IT, so that shapes my opinions too.)<br /> <br /> I plan to wait until I buy my next computer before getting Vista. It's likely to be a couple of years. In the meantime, the account I normally use on XP is not an admin account. <img src="http://media.hardwareanalysis.com/smilies/smile1.gif" width="14" height="14" border="0" alt=":-)" title=":-)"><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> text/html 2007-02-07T01:28:36-05:00 Super XP http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/#475065 That said, PC gaming will always be better then any console gaming. PC's are so upgradable &amp; expandable. <br /> <br /> The only reason why Console gaming is popular is because of there ease of use. Just plug &amp; play, nothing to install. They are light &amp; compact, and can easily be transportable anywhere you like. But they will also have graphical limitations which is the downside.<br /> <br /> Example, the Playstation 3 suck big time. text/html 2007-02-06T22:18:40-05:00 John Ingram http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/#475014 Bobby, I wish you were right, as a 20 year PC gamer, I wish you were, but PC gaming is now 50% down roughly since 2000, so there's a trend, not just one bad year. And home PC sales have been down 2 years running (at least here in the UK) and we had a pretty good PC year the years PS2 and X-box came out, at least in comparison, so a) it's not about just one year and b) it's not about new consoles, as that has happened before with different results to this time. text/html 2007-02-06T21:55:18-05:00 Bitmap http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/#475009 John, the popularity of games comes in surges. The primary reason PC sales were down is because of the recent release of 3 new consoles. So the consoles are in right now, but they fade, since PCs can be perpetually upgraded, and consoles are static. However, with time, PC will regain popularity, and then it will fall again with the newer consoles in about 3-4 years. It's just a series of surges. 2006 wasn't the best year for PC games also, because the developers were focusing on getting ready for the newest consoles. Think about it. Unless the company focuses solely on PC games (Valve and id) the games are going to suffer because the company has its eyes set on the new console. text/html 2007-02-06T21:34:40-05:00 CrAsHnBuRnXp http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/#475006 <div class="quote">And of course the PS3 and 360 are going down that same multi-function route - hence the price increases and the success of the Wii!!!</div><br /> <br /> And look at how many people are hurting themselves with the Wii.<br /> <br /> <div class="quote">PC gaming sales are down, 2006 saw the fewest number of PC game releases, Computer Gaming World, the No.1 PC gaming magazine closing it's doors last November and more and more gamers refusing to buy into the ever increasing cost of being a PC gamer.</div><br /> <br /> Yeah, the year 2006 was not a good year for PC games, but look at all the great titles that are coming out this year. HL2 Episode 2, Halo 2, Crysis, Spore, GRAW 2, C&amp;C 3, Resident Evil 4, Alan Wake, UT3, and Time Shift just to name a few.<br /> <br /> <div class="quote">Oh, and I buy the best I can afford whenIi buy a new PC or upgrade, and I have never been able to keep the same PC for 4 years playing the new PC games! I think my 286, which I had for 6 years without upgrading was the last PC that I got that played practically all games for that amount of time. Maybe not the Wing Commanders of this world, but the X-Com's and the Railroad Tycoons and the gold box RPG's and the SSI wargames and RPG's etc, etc. If the average gamer really thought they could buy a PC that would last 4 years without having to touch it (as long as it wasn't $4,000!) i don't think you'd be seeing the PC games sales decline we have seen for the last 3 years and at the same time the growth in retro gaming and emulation gaming on the PC. Heck, go to Lemon64, a Commodore 64 website and the forums are as busy as here! And <a href="/action/r/http://www.ebay.com/">eBay</a> wouldn't habve set up a retro gaming section on it's site unless it believes it's going to get a lot of commission from a lot of sales!</div><br /> Now that video graphics for games are pretty much out of the way and have multiple options for CPU's, you could probably get away with keeping a PC for 4 years with little upgrades. Sure a part may die on you here and there and if you have the money, get something better. We all do it. I could probably get by with my dual core and 8800GTS for that length of time. All I need is another 2GB of RAM for gaming on Vista and Im set. text/html 2007-02-06T21:16:42-05:00 John Ingram http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/65088/#475002 And of course the PS3 and 360 are going down that same multi-function route - hence the price increases and the success of the Wii!!!<br /> <br /> PC gaming sales are down, 2006 saw the fewest number of PC game releases, Computer Gaming World, the No.1 PC gaming magazine closing it's doors last November and more and more gamers refusing to buy into the ever increasing cost of being a PC gamer. <br /> <br /> Oh, and I buy the best I can afford whenIi buy a new PC or upgrade, and I have never been able to keep the same PC for 4 years playing the new PC games! I think my 286, which I had for 6 years without upgrading was the last PC that I got that played practically all games for that amount of time. Maybe not the Wing Commanders of this world, but the X-Com's and the Railroad Tycoons and the gold box RPG's and the SSI wargames and RPG's etc, etc. If the average gamer really thought they could buy a PC that would last 4 years without having to touch it (as long as it wasn't $4,000!) i don't think you'd be seeing the PC games sales decline we have seen for the last 3 years and at the same time the growth in retro gaming and emulation gaming on the PC. Heck, go to Lemon64, a Commodore 64 website and the forums are as busy as here! And <a href="/action/r/http://www.ebay.com/">eBay</a> wouldn't habve set up a retro gaming section on it's site unless it believes it's going to get a lot of commission from a lot of sales!