🚀 go-pugleaf

nobody (nob...@csufresno.edu) wrote:
:    The PC gaming has made incredible advances since 1993, when DOOM  
:   started current PC gaming craze, coupled with an explosion of PC sales 
:   to consumers. For the first time in PC gaming history, there are one   
:   million copy sellers like Wing Commander 3 and Doom2. Though this   
:   number is small compared to 7 million+ copy sales of console games like 
:   Donkey Kong Country, MK2&3, Street Fighter 2, Killer Instinct, and   
:   Sonic, it does tell that PC gaming is gaining a mainstream acceptance. 
:   But the future of PC gaming is not as bright as it seems.
:   

On the contrary, now that companies have seen the PC as a viable 
entertainment market, the spread of gaming hardware and software 
into the computer industry will only accelerate.  We knew 
this was coming :).  

Also, I noticed that you've only mentioned action games.  PC
games encompass a myriad of game styles (action, adventure,
strategy, rpg, sports, simulation).  Consoles can only play a 
couple of game types, for obvious reasons.

[CPU info stuff deleted, with costs, and changing market forces 
(i.e. Microsoft Windows) completely ignored...]

Anyone who buys a PC *just* for games is wasting money.  The gaming
aspect is an added bonus (a very nice bonus).  Spreadsheet on a PSX
or Saturn anyone?    

:    Then there is the problem with PC polygon graphics accelerator cards.
:   The newer consoles from Sega and Sony blow away even the fastest PCs 
:   when rendering texture mapped polygons, and the Pentium PCs need 
:   polygon cards in order to compete with Sega/Sony machine. But there are 
:   some problems; There are no industry standard polygon processor. 
:   Second, such cards cost more than Sega/Sony's whole machines, hence not 
:   very cost effective. By the time the polygon cards are in widespead 
:   use, newer Sega/Sony machines that once again blow away anything 
:   available on the PC will emerge, so it is back to square one.

Sheaa...whatever.  There is an operating system called Windows
95 that provides a standard interface for 3d-games development,
but I'm sure you've never heard of it...Moreover, you fail to mention 
the game companies who have already made commitments to producing
games that support these new 3d-cards (I believe Quake is one
such game).  

As to your cost-effective premise, most of these new boards will
cost the same as current video cards (and will provide additional
benefits, such as mpeg compression).  
  
Console manufacturers have to cut corners on a lot of things to 
keep prices down.  How much memory do the new consoles come with?
Can they be expanded?  How much will the games cost to subsidize
the hardware?  PCs don't have these problems, because most
computer companies design their machines with the concept of 
modularity (if you can't afford it now, upgrade it later).  This  
philosophy has been very successful.  

And if the x86 platform has reached its performance ceiling, then it's 
time to move on to something better!  I'm not an MS advocate, but
Win95 software (most of the PC market) is more or less compatible with 
Win NT, which is platform independent.  So...this means that
all the new Win95 games will run on NT...by the time we reach
this point, most people (like me) will have the power to run it.  

:    Then there is a problem with novice userd using PC. Even with Win95, 
:   the PC is still harder to use than a Mac. To millions of public who 
:   can't even program their own VCRs, the PC still remains as "a 
:   impossible   to use" machine. With the consoles, it is as easy as 
:   "1.Put in the CD into the machine. 2.Press Play button"  

This is under the assumption that 1) People will buy PCs only for games,
2) People are lazy and unwilling to learn new ideas, 3) People actually 
care about programming their VCRs...

:     I am just posting my opinion of why the future of PC gaming is not as 
:    bright as it seems. You are welcome to criticize.

Thanks, and the same applies here.

Regards,

Inder.