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News PC game sales constitute 14 percent of total sales

Discussion in 'Article Discussion' started by Tim S, 30 Jan 2008.

  1. impar

    impar Minimodder

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    Greetings!
    After Panzer General II was there any other TBS worth playing?
    Depends on how many PC games those $900M need to get shared.

    An interesting article about game costs. Some quotes:
     
  2. naokaji

    naokaji whatever

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    seconded
     
  3. cjmUK

    cjmUK Old git.

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    Check out Matrix Games
     
  4. DXR_13KE

    DXR_13KE BananaModder

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    my philosophy is: "innovate or die....." i don't see valve in a tight squeeze......

    i will respond with another question: what is better?

    A) have 100 customers go into the shop, buy the game, go home, play it, realize it is has a big flaw that you cant live with it, 90 people return it, put it into the corner of shame (like i did with games i did not "try out" and did try use the demo to see the quality and the store showed me the middle finger) or sell it second hand and never buy a game from the company in question and then put bad reviews everywhere out of rage (i wish i could pirate that darn tv card before i got it....... 125€ down the drain and i will never touch anything pinnacle again).

    B) have 100 people download the game and have 10 go buy it and become regular customers while the other may or may not buy the next game the company creates and still have the cash in the pocket to buy another game from the same or other company.


    i consider that a gaming graphics card these days is something from 8600gt upwards, i see very few of those 84 million graphic cards sold in the christmas quarter being a gaming class graphic card..... here i see people buying the most insane popular craptacular setups (i remember one having a nice C2D 2 gigs of ram, vista basic, 500Gb hard drive and a 6200 and it was quite popular).....

    hurray for captain obvious..... i was only implying that a 14% share of this huge market is a very nice share for pc gaming... and considering that they were "serious" enough with this study that they left out one of the market segments that has been growing like a mushroom.......

    i agree that FWAE is helping the demise of the gaming industry, but there are bigger players here...... but FWAE is easier to blame right?
    the only kind of pirate i hate is the one that sells the games he pirates..... that is sick.

    edit: about the costs of the production of games and the low or negative income i only have the next to say: "streamline and evolve"
     
  5. fathazza

    fathazza Freed on Probation

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    that just points to a flawed business model tbh....
     
  6. Bladestorm

    Bladestorm What's a Dremel?

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    I have to pimp Armageddon Empires now after the last few posts :) cool turn based strategy game from an independent developer : http://www.crypticcomet.com/ :thumb:

    Funnily enough, only available via a digital download ;)
     
  7. Da Dego

    Da Dego Brett Thomas

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    I honestly see a lot wrong with this study, but it's already been covered. However, I need to strongly repeat to anyone who conducts such studies:
    It is ASININE to do a study on game sales on the PC and yet ignore its PRIMARY method of content delivery.

    Do we determine the current users of Windows based on how many people buy upgrade discs? NO! Why? Because people don't buy upgrade discs. They go online and click 'Windows Update.' It's the PC's biggest strength - content delivery is automatic. How many web-based games did people play, subsidised by advertising? Did we measure the sudokus, bejeweleds, etc.? Of course not...those somehow don't count, despite being both revenue producing and PC games. Do we count Steam? No, of course not. How about indie games that may not be released in retail form? Nope. Indie games at all? Maybe...but I'd bet not (would need to read more on the study itself).

    I find it positively laughable that the industry can pretend to track the impact of piracy (all digitally delivered) on sales so well, but can't bother to determine the legal digital sales. I think it's very telling where their minds are.

    And as to innovation, I second whoever corrected that to variety. Crysis is a HUGE FPS innovation - graphics and physics are primary to this sort of game, therefore it's innovative. Destructible environments mean more realism, which is what the genre needs.

    However, that doesn't help the other genres, which ARE genuinely choking under the FPS weight. People want an excuse to see what that new hardware unleashed - they're not going to pay for crappy graphics. I'm not an FPS gamer, and I still can't blame them. Therefore, for genres that don't use graphics as a strong point, the work needs to be that much more focused on innovative and varied gameplay.

    I think too many design houses are giving up too easily, saying "if we just make an FPS, the graphics are a large part API - meaning easier development." Their thought needed can cut down. Which is why it's that much more a slap in the face when an FPS development house like Valve can wipe the floor with pretty much any game out there for story and gameplay, STILL cramming it into an FPS. It becomes who's lazy and who isn't. It's not a stranglehold of gamers playing only FPS games, it's development houses being able to devote more money (or pocket more money) when making them. It's dollars and cents - licensing something already good is always cheaper than writing a new one yourself - be it engines or even stories.
     
    Last edited: 31 Jan 2008
  8. angusfraser

    angusfraser What's a Dremel?

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    MMO's

    Sorry if somebody has already made this point... But do the figures show subscription sales(it didnt take into account digital sales) for PC games such as world of warcraft and eve online? They would have huge sales figures.
     
  9. Woodstock

    Woodstock So Say We All

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    the thing i never understood about piracy who would give away to anyone who wants it, something that they have had to pay for
     
  10. Cthippo

    Cthippo Can't mod my way out of a paper bag

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    Admittedly I'm theorizing here, but I think there are several reasons. One might be that a game sucks, and the buyer feels cheated because they can't return it. Fine, let everyone have it then.

    Another is that there is probably a certin cachet or honor to being the first to torrent a game.

    It also seems likley that it's a display of your geek prowess to overcome the DRM and if you can't share it, who eill ever know what a geek god you are?

    Finally, giving away a game online doesn't mean you no longer have it to play. Much like any other digital property, just because you give it to someone else doesn't deprive you of enjoying it. Digital media is infinitly reproducible and so there is no downside except legal to sharing it.
     
  11. Veles

    Veles DUR HUR

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    If that were all true then gaming would be dead. Those kind of costs are for an AAA title, those sell way more than 1 million units usually.
     
  12. naokaji

    naokaji whatever

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    nice shop, thx for the link, bookmarked.

    theres even a mac version avalaible:thumb: going to d/l the demo and if its good the full version will end up on my ibook.
     
  13. Lepermessiah

    Lepermessiah What's a Dremel?

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    Terrible journalisim, totally inaccurate, and mis-leading. If you include digital distribution, and the fact that outside the consolized US, Pc games sell much better, PC gaming is doing very well. I am appauled a PC centric site like Bit-Tech is doing the same type of sensationalist reporting other more console centric sites are.
     
  14. Veles

    Veles DUR HUR

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    TBS and the like haven't died out really, they are still around, it's just they're not as mainstream anymore because they don't really need to be "nextgenified" that much. Mainly because the people who play them aren't idiots and know graphics aren't everything, and also because they don't really need to be photorealistic. Did I like the graphical improvements of M2: TW? Yeah. Did I really notice them when I got lost in the game? No. Some games get a lot from uber graphics, some games don't get much once they reach a certain level.
     
  15. impar

    impar Minimodder

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    Greetings!
    If 10 out of the 100 go and buy a game after having played through it, I applaud their integrity.
    Well, nVidia and AMD/ATi should announce 2007 numbers in the coming weeks, sometimes some sites do break the numbers in performance categories. Keep an eye open.
    ... and I was implying that 14%, considering the user base, is too low a share.
    Its subjective. To me, playing through a game with a pirated/P2Ped copy is immoral.
    Considering the demands gamers have, especially on graphical side, dont see any streamlining in the future. At least not in AAA titles.
    If in any business you have a part of your potential clients that get the goods without paying for it, the business is flawed.
    Agree that legitimate digital distribution should be included, however, its not the primary method of content delivery. And if the digital distribution price follows the CoD4 path ($69,95 via Steam), I doubt it will ever be.
    Good point there.
    That would be a AAA game in a "conservative or very conservative figures. We generally took the lower end of answers to avoid the risks of exaggeration.".
    Crysis (love or hate it, its a AAA) hit only 1 million units.
     
  16. Lepermessiah

    Lepermessiah What's a Dremel?

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    COD4 69.99 on steam? What planet? Check your facts bro, digital distribution is not the main, but it is a MAJOR part of Pc sales, and increases significanylt every year. You would be surprised just how large a portion of pc sales are digital.

    http://www.steampowered.com/v/index.php?area=game&AppId=7940&cc=CA

    COD4 is 49.95 on steam, was never higher then that

    Digital distribution is the future, is already a major part of PC sales.

    Only 1 million units for crysis? In 2 months, and a game that is aimed at the hardcore segemnt with steep requirements is outstanding, Pc games sell slower, but continue to sell over time, Crysis will continue to sell as more people upgrade. Your argument is flawed. That is 50 million in profit in 2 months for a hardcore Pc title. That is excellent however you slice it.
     
    Last edited: 7 Feb 2008
  17. impar

    impar Minimodder

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    Greetings!
    Not $69,99, $69,95. On most of western europe:
    Dont Buy COD4 From Steam If you Live in Europe

    It seems that if you want to buy Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare on Steam and live in the USA it will cost you $49.95, but in Europe that price is $69.95. It’s also worth noting that users from Europe are also charged tax on top of their Steam purchase, bringing the price even higher.

    No idea about the added tax but the image I posted above is a screenshot from my own Steam account.
    One million units sold, over the initial two month sales period, for a full hyped AAA PC game is nothing to be impressed about.
    Not profit, revenue. There is a substantial difference between the two.
     
  18. Lepermessiah

    Lepermessiah What's a Dremel?

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    Sorry, you can't compre Pc sales to consoles, PC gaming requires Pc know how, and more money, 1 million for a game thatr equires a beast to run is outstanding, i think you don't understand the Pc market at all. It is a Niche market, not main stream liek the consoles. 1 million in 2 months is outstanding for a game that requires the latest tech to run. That number will incresee as more People upgrade. do yuo actually expect a PC only title to sell 4-5 million copies in 1-2 months? Where the hell have you been? Pc sales have always been where they are. Did you actually expect a game that only people with the latest hardware sell any faster? I don't think you understand the market at all. Pc games sell slower, but more steadily as people upgrade, 1 million for crysis in 2 months is better then most even expected with its steep requirements. Many people have PC's, only a smaller portion have PC's capable of gaming with games like crysis.

    Boxed games are more expensice in Europe are they not? But anyway, I live in north America, COD4 veiong 69 or 49 is irrelevant, digital distribution is growing at a significant rate and is already a nig part of Pc sales.

    I realise there is a diference between profit and revenue, I mis-worded it, lets not get tacky,.
     
  19. steveo_mcg

    steveo_mcg What's a Dremel?

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    COD:4 costs £30 delivered in Britain so really about the same as your $50 when you include tax. So on steam its a complete rip off, tbf steam has been more expensive of late, i ended up buying the orange box from amazon as it was a £ or two cheaper.
     
  20. Lepermessiah

    Lepermessiah What's a Dremel?

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    Well, that is too bad for europe, don't understand that, but in North America no such issue.
     
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