What is really going on with pc games sales?

So PC games are not selling as well as they did 5, 10, 15 years ago?

Sales =! quality. Diablo sells 5 million, Planescape Torment 400,000. Diablo's a hack and slash game, PST is more focused on story and characterisation. Ergo, people can't appreciate a game with depth, hence the popularity of console titles. :p
 
That just shows that girls don't pirate PC games like boys do :p

A very large portion of PC game sales are now via digital distribution because most high street stores have such pitiful PC game selections its the only really viable choice, unless of course you use the likes of several large online retailers.

I know the 2 local game stores to me (purple shirt and station one) have very few PC games, barely a shelf dedicated to the PC.
 
Problem is Pc games have staying power.

You can't pump out a new version every year like activison want.


those dirty modders, community fixes and mappers keep the pesky things going for ages.
 
With all the various consoles and other gaming devices available there is so much choice now, more than ever.

I think PC games still have their place but its more of a niche market now.
 
I never really knew PC games to be expensive over the years, despite you will get the odd ridiculously priced PC game like MW2.
 
Sick of these threads. One pops up every 2 seconds and everyone has different opinions, fights, argues and it lasts several pages. Learn to live with the fact developers make more creating for XBOX>PS3>PC. End of thread.

Bored.
 
I never really knew PC games to be expensive over the years, despite you will get the odd ridiculously priced PC game like MW2.

not the only one, these pay monthly games are bad as well I mean what £20 per month to play a damm game, wtf?
 
Not going to post any evidence for that? just made it up in your head and that's good enough to go on? btw if you post even anything remotely related to NPD (whos methods of which data they deem relevant range from incompetently bad to bat **** insane) pack your bags and leave the interwebs.

(tip: PC games sales today dwarf those of ye olde)

man i'm not going to post about sth that is common knowledge these days. have you been hiding under a rock or something? if you want 100% accurate evidence go and read financial reports from publishers/developers to see for yourself.
 
pc gaming will never die but the sales of pc games are in an all time low. psp games sell even worse but psp is not dead.

It's low because of our current economy, people don't just go out and buy games without thinking. Unless they have lots of disposable income.
Gaming on the PC is also considered more luxurious, each compenent will cost you at least half of the console if not more. This factor also contributes to the poor sales.
 
It's low because of our current economy, people don't just go out and buy games without thinking. Unless they have lots of disposable income.
Gaming on the PC is also considered more luxurious, each compenent will cost you at least half of the console if not more. This factor also contributes to the poor sales.

If this were true then people would shop around for the best deals and the best deals are certainly *not* in the high street. Saying its because the PC is expensive is meaningless, games on consoles cost more and overtime that adds up to more than a decent computer.
 
If this were true then people would shop around for the best deals and the best deals are certainly *not* in the high street. Saying its because the PC is expensive is meaningless, games on consoles cost more and overtime that adds up to more than a decent computer.

Which means adults would be the ones buying the games as they will most likely be paying with their credit cards. As for the PC being expensive, it is not meaningless, how many parents would actually go out and splash up to a grand for their kids just to play games? They will more likely buy them a console instead.
 
Which means adults would be the ones buying the games as they will most likely be paying with their credit cards. As for the PC being expensive, it is not meaningless, how many parents would actually go out and splash up to a grand for their kids just to play games? They will more likely buy them a console instead.

Thats because unfortunately the average IQ of parents seems to be dropping these days, as does there age.

"Splashing out upto a grand" for a pc? Sure if you get a fairly powerful system. The ones available on OcUK could easily meet requirements for games in this generation and down the line. This pc cost me £500 a few years ago, and since then i've spent maybe £120 on a couple of upgrades, nothing serious. Theres a huge difference between top of the range and what is required, unlike consoles where there is only 1 choice.

A few £100 on the console + a few games, then theres the £5-15 extra on each game you buy, then theres the severe lack of access to older games, it adds up, a smart parent could do the math. Consoles are just good for plug n play when you have friends round.
 
Thats because unfortunately the average IQ of parents seems to be dropping these days, as does there age.

"Splashing out upto a grand" for a pc? Sure if you get a fairly powerful system. The ones available on OcUK could easily meet requirements for games in this generation and down the line. This pc cost me £500 a few years ago, and since then i've spent maybe £120 on a couple of upgrades, nothing serious. Theres a huge difference between top of the range and what is required, unlike consoles where there is only 1 choice.

That isn't an IQ issue, it's a hassle issue.
Savvy parents know that they'll have problems with the occasional games, and they'll have to upgrade the PC every now and then which they may not want or have the confidence to do. They'll know the console is (in theory) hassle free, and will not need to be changed for its entire lifetime (which will be longer than "till the next generation comes around" - still plenty of PS2's around now).
 
That isn't an IQ issue, it's a hassle issue.
Savvy parents know that they'll have problems with the occasional games, and they'll have to upgrade the PC every now and then which they may not want or have the confidence to do. They'll know the console is (in theory) hassle free, and will not need to be changed for its entire lifetime (which will be longer than "till the next generation comes around" - still plenty of PS2's around now).

No the hastle issue is between going down to the shops and buying it, ordering it, shopping around before you order it and, in the case of a pc, putting it together yourself. But IQ still plays its part. Its a recession, so i'm told, yet these ridiculously overpriced shops like Game and HMV are still packed. There are indeed plenty of PS2s around, i have 1 of them, i also know its running slow as hell these days, and an Xbox360 is even less reliable in the long run (or the short run).

But theres a difference. I can't change the controller port or stick a new processor into a console when the original wears out, i have to get a new console. If the PCs graphics card is knackered or the RAM could use improving its not that expensive to get a better 1.
 
No the hastle issue is between going down to the shops and buying it, ordering it, shopping around before you order it and, in the case of a pc, putting it together yourself. But IQ still plays its part. Its a recession, so i'm told, yet these ridiculously overpriced shops like Game and HMV are still packed. There are indeed plenty of PS2s around, i have 1 of them, i also know its running slow as hell these days, and an Xbox360 is even less reliable in the long run (or the short run).

But theres a difference. I can't change the controller port or stick a new processor into a console when the original wears out, i have to get a new console. If the PCs graphics card is knackered or the RAM could use improving its not that expensive to get a better 1.

They can simply buy it from the shop and return it if they have problems with it thus avoiding the need to wait and then send the pc back if something happens to it.
Most parents will buy them a console and only get them the occassional games on special occassions, unless the sale is on or they might pick up traded in games if they are cheap.

They wouldn't want to spend a huge amount on a PC, then worry about the internet security and then the games and upgrades that comes after that. I would say Money and Hassle plays a major part in their decision making. In their mind, this is what they call a hassle, and if they can avoid all that, they would.
 
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consoles are just so much more easier to use....buy the kid a game or give him the money(not your credit card) to go and buy it and he can stick the disk in and play, makes life easy for a parent.
they dont need to sit there and install the game then configure controls and graphics settings, which they would probably have to do if their kid wasnt very good with computers.

took me 40 minutes to get gta 4 working today.....having to go sign up to a @live.co.uk account then rockstar social group....then create a gamer tag which i had no idea where at because it crashed so i was a bit lost....then when i finally created that i had to link the accounts. only then i could play the game properly(with saves).

thats before i even configured the settings.
 
took me 10 minutes only cos its slow than patching etc, gahhh!!!!! live is horrible ! I feel sorry for 360 users :(
 
Unless Steam, EA downloader, and the other digital distribution systems are included in PC games sale stats then we don't really have a complete picture. Not even sure if Play.coms sales are included?
This topic has now turned into a consoles vs pc argument rather than a discussion about preposterous statements such as
i think its pretty much common knowledge that the majority of pc games sell quite poorly these days with countless of examples.
What countless examples? Not Game and Gamestation's sales figures.. please!
 
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