Year of the PC//GamesIndustry.biz

[Evo]

A really good article here called Year of the PC on GamesIndustry.biz

Those simple facts set the stage for 2007 to be an interesting year for PC gaming. Unlike console developers, PC developers have no transition period to struggle with - they are used to aiming at a moving target in terms of PC specifications, after all - and unlike publishing on a console, PC games are not subject to the whim of a single platform holder who can delay launches or provide insufficient hardware, rendering your product commercially inviable in a single swoop. In a year when the console market is likely to suffer a significant hangover from the uncertainty which defined 2006, the PC - laden as it is with disparate hardware and software configurations, intense difficulty in calculating installed base or potential market figures, and the ages-old problems of drivers, patches and so on - looks like a rock of stability, and a bloody good platform to invest in.

Hence EA's astonishingly strong PC line-up for the year - a release schedule which is arguably more impressive, creatively, than anything the industry's publishing behemoth has planned for the console platforms. Crytek's visually stunning Crysis and Will Wright's supremely imaginative Spore headline the list, of course, and both are games which any publisher would love to have in their portfolio. In EA's case, they nestle alongside the likes of Command And Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars, Medal of Honor Airborne and co-publishing duties on Hellgate London - another three of the most exciting games for the PC platform in the coming year. THQ, meanwhile, shows no sign of dropping its commitment to the PC, and plans to follow up an astonishingly strong 2006 (Company of Heroes was a particular highlight) with games like Supreme Commander and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. in 2007.

Well worth a read i must say

Oh and yes, i put the quote with EA in for a reasons, they may be nutjobs who are just out for $$$ but looking at their PC lineup for the year and

But anyway, gonna be a great year for the PC :E

 

[Dalamari]

But anyway, gonna be a great year for the PC :E

I hear that every year, and every single year I get let down

 

[Evo]

2004 should have been year of the PC
It wasn't .... and 2007 doesn't promise anything better

But what about the games mentioned in the article!

Oh ye of little faith!


:dozey:

 

[Dalamari]

Crysis = same old shooter with AMAZING graphics, and that won't carry the game

Spore = I'd expect this to be brilliant

Command And Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars = Well, if you like C&C you will like this, I personally don't

Medal of Honor Airborne = WW2 game, will sell like crazy, be forgotten in a few months

Hellgate London = I've yet to see anything interesting regarding this game

S.T.A.L.K.E.R = If it comes out, I can see this being good

 

[Gorgon]

UT2007 and BoiSHOCK

and the wheelman

 

[jondy]

Alan Wake!

 

[DigiQ8]

Episode Two ;(

 

[VictimOfScience]

2007 will be the year of gaming in general, with loads of incredible games coming out for all platforms. The PC has much to look forward to, as do the PS3, 360, and Wii. Its just going to be an incredible year for gaming in general and I can't wait!!!

 

[Tamer17]

I hate it when people talk about how good 04 was , they mention Doom3 with all the other games. Far Cry was better and Crysis , while i have my doubts , should be at the very lest be worth a playing.

2007 does look good , even for adventure titles.

 

[Dalamari]

'04 was a good year for gaming only because it was a step-up in technology with better graphics and all

 

[<RJMC>]

dont count the chickens before the eggs hatch

 

[Evo]

Bear in mind the article fails to mention anything on Valve in '07!

 

[Qhartb]

Umm... I'm gonna have to disagree with this. Now, I'm definately a PC gamer, so I'd love for 2007 to be the Year of the PC, but I don't see it happening.

I do, however, see it being a great year overall for both PC and console gaming.

The PC has some great titles lined up, definately. It has the hardware advantage on the high end, as that article pointed out, but the other edge of that blade is that software needs to scale back to run on lower-end rigs. It'll be fun.

The 360 has done well so far, but is still a very young machine. I think a lot of developers have had time to become more comfortable with working with it and with its base capabilities, and that we'll see the hardware being pushed harder this year. I'm looking forward to what's going to happen on this console on the non-shooter non-sandbox-game front.

Everyone seems to like the Wii so far. It's inexpensive and selling very well, so it'll be a good market. But first and foremost, it's opened new gameplay possibilities and now that people have had a chance to see both a straightforward game going the obvious direction with the controller (Wii Sports) and seen it used creatively in a more complex game (Twilight Princess), people are going to be having a lot of ideas with what would be cool on that console. Some of those people will be developers, leading to cool games. And given the de-emphasis of graphics on that console, developement is likely to be faster than on the other platforms.

And finally the so-far-underwhelming PS3. It seems that PS's are plagued with crummy launch titles. I'm guessing that maybe half way through 2007 there'll be a price drop on the console, and the batch of consistently good games won't come out until late 2007. Sony will do what it has to to stay in the game, so hopefully there'll be a few good titles released in the meantime. The Cell processor is powerful, but it's definately the hardest to take advantage of of the next-gen hardware.

IMHO, I'm most looking forward to what the Wii's going to be doing in 6 month (even though I don't have any plans to buy a Wii in that time).