1up’s Mark Whiting has written up a nice little story about how PC games only make up 14% of all the units sold in 2007, according to the NPD. So, what does all this mean? As Mark says, it means PC gaming has to change in order to survive. He also correctly points out that the NPD numbers do not cover sales of digitally distributed media–such as Valve’s Steam–so the reality is that the 14% of the NPD totals that PC gaming took up was solely retail box copies. It is actually quite difficult to tell what state PC gaming is really in.

However, one thing has been made remarkably clear this last year: piracy is hurting PC gaming…badly. Crysis has only sold 87,000 units to date, yet I remember hearing around the 1up offices that it had an absurd amount of seeds on various BitTorrent sites; Call of Duty 4 on PC has also suffered from lots of piracy.

PC gaming needs to change. Whether it is a change that focuses on making all games solely available through digital distribution, or by offering games for free and then selling additional content or advanced subscriptions–see the March 2008 GFW #16 to see an example of the latter–PC games have to find a way to increase their profit margin. Perhaps it could be done through making games less complex, and focusing on making games that need less powerful hardware…I guess I really don’t know.

I sincerely doubt that PC gaming is ever going to “die,” but I think that it needs a new direction to regain momentum.

Chufmoney

For anyone paying attention to next-gen game development, this should come as very, very little surprise:

God of War III won’t be released on PlayStation 3 for at least another two years. A reliable Sony source has told us that we shouldn’t expect to see Kratos blowing his fuse until around Christmas 2009 at the earliest, scotching rumours of a winter 2008 release. That really gets our goat!

Oh, a goat joke. I get it.

This isn’t surprising, because the development cycle on major games has gone through the roof, and lest you forget, God of War II hasn’t even been out for a year. Anticipating a late 2009 release for the title almost seems optimistic through that lens. If I had to bet money, I might even say Spring of 2010, unless of course Sony continues on the path it’s been on for the last 14 months. Sony needs Big Games on the platform, and really, God of War might be their biggest.

However, this:

Barlog also reckoned God of War III would be playable in 1080p and would feature Sixaxis functionality, including rumble support. Too bad we won’t see it for a looooong time.

…is laughable. Except for the rumble support. That we’ll definitely see.

-Aegies

When the guys at Penny-Arcade announced that they were releasing a game based on their personas, there was a mix of excitement and trepidation across their fanbase. Penny-Arcade is an enterprise founded on dick jokes, video game humor, and, well, integrity. You get the feeling reading both the comic and their regular musings that they The Guys Who Will Play It Straight with you, the ones who are willing to look ridiculous or be proven wrong if it’s the right thing to do. This, combined with their self deprecating charm, has taken them from gaming schlubs to internet icons over the course of more than 8 years. The announcement that they would enter an arena that has been the source of years of scorn and comic material would put more than a few questions on the tip of any reasonable tongue.

And yet, for months, I’ve felt as though the situation is a tightrope they’ve walked gracefully. They don’t pimp the game on their page very often, save for when they’ve reached a substantive milestone, and they generally let the game speak for itself. I’ve defended them in private and on the nets, as I’ve felt that they’ve earned some leeway to try to make this thing that they care about without charges of sellout or hypocrite. Unfortunately, they’ve officially done quite a bit today to lose a lot of that respect from me.

Read the rest of this entry »

Here are various reviews and previews I have done recently at 1up.com. Check ‘em out if they are about any games that interest you:

Medal of Honor Heroes 2 Review (Wii)

The Simpsons Game Review (DS)

The Sims: Castaway Review (PSP/PS2)

Dawn of War: SoulStorm Expansion Preview

Frontlines: Fuel of War Hands-on Multiplayer Preview (360)

The above is only a portion of the work I have been doing. I have also been working on several strategy guides, but choose not to post about them here. However, should you desire a link to a game guide, just shoot me a message or a comment telling me which game, and I’ll see what I can do.

Chufmoney

p.s.-Before anyone goes hating on my MoHH2 review–anymore than it already has been hated on–please realize that the score I gave means it is average–not bad.