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According to this article I found on HEXUS.net

http://hexus.net/gaming/news/industry/69141-global-pc-games-market-revenue-overtakes-consoles/

We finally matter again! Publishers will have to recognize this and stop giving us crappy console ports. At least, one will hope.

Anybody dare speculate what this statistic means for the future?
This seems to include crap like microtransactions and subscriptions, sadly.
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vulchor: We finally matter again! Publishers will have to recognize this and stop giving us crappy console ports. At least, one will hope.
Overtaking consoles isn't enough. The console market would have to become niche for the PC to see AAA titles that weren't designed to be mulitplatform. Multiplatform titles are mediocre on PCs because they're designed to be playable with a gamepad while using a display that's 10ft away. Any tabletop environment, mouse and keyboard PC gaming targeted features or customizations that make it into multiplatform games are an afterthought, not part of the core design.
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vulchor: We finally matter again! Publishers will have to recognize this and stop giving us crappy console ports. At least, one will hope.
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Snickersnack: Overtaking consoles isn't enough. The console market would have to become niche for the PC to see AAA titles that weren't designed to be mulitplatform. Multiplatform titles are mediocre on PCs because they're designed to be playable with a gamepad while using a display that's 10ft away. Any tabletop environment, mouse and keyboard PC gaming targeted features or customizations that make it into multiplatform games are an afterthought, not part of the core design.
Multiplatform is not necessarily the same thing as a console port, thankfully. In many cases it is, and, in fact, over the past 10+ years, it certainly has been the same thing. There have been those rare gems, like Dragon Age Origins, KOTOR, the Batman Arkham series, and the Elder Scrolls games, to name a few, that have been multiplatform but had PC versions that felt like they were made for PC gamers alone in most respects (Skyrim's original interface is one of the exceptions).

What I'm hoping is that, because of this statistic, we see a growing trend of this. I'm not going to hold my breath, because, as Stout rightfully pointed out, FtP and Microtransactionbullshit is included in these numbers. However, this bit of news has made me a teeny bit more hopeful. I'd dare say that it still does qualify as good news. =)
So including giant Steam sales and micro-transactions and such the PC market has a higher revenue?
Not surprising and it doesn't seem like a very good benchmark to me.
Still, it's an indicator the games market is doing well and that's good.
Good. Now to ensure the DRM-free revolution increases their market share..

Incidentally, does anyone have any sales statistics comparing DRM with DRM-free games?
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pigdog: Good. Now to ensure the DRM-free revolution increases their market share..

Incidentally, does anyone have any sales statistics comparing DRM with DRM-free games?
I haven't seen any, but I wouldn't be very optimistic about the results, since Steam is DRM. It may be bunches better than it was in 2009, but not nearly as good as it was in the mid-nineties, which is what I would really like to see it go back to.
In my opinion, the sad story is that Free to Play with ingame money graves, Facebook browser games, subscription based games and the like are the true "Saviour" of PC gaming. So one could say, not Steam is the Saviour of PC gaming as Brian Fargo thought in the recent other thread. Nothing that interests me in the least.

I am not sure if we - we as PC gamers - will benefit much from such a development. I mean if the multi-million Dollar AAA productions will mainly be made for consoles because they sell well there for the $60 price tag while on the PC these games may barely cut an average of $20 price in one of the many predictable 75% off sales, what do you think the publishers strategy will be? More F2P stuff and all the other shallow game experiences and mini games for the PC in the first place and then occasionally deliver a cheap console port or release a multiplatform title some weeks later after the consoles had their releases first sales high. Business as usual!
Post edited May 02, 2014 by Quasebarth
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pigdog: Good. Now to ensure the DRM-free revolution increases their market share..

Incidentally, does anyone have any sales statistics comparing DRM with DRM-free games?
Only for some individual games like Defenders Quest : http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/186940/defenders_quest_by_the_numbers_.php
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Quasebarth: In my opinion, the sad story is that Free to Play with ingame money graves, Facebook browser games, subscription based games and the like are the true "Saviour" of PC gaming. So one could say, not Steam is the Saviour of PC gaming as Brian Fargo thought in the recent other thread. Nothing that interests me in the least.

I am not sure if we - we as PC gamers - will benefit much from such a development. I mean if the multi-million Dollar AAA productions will mainly be made for consoles because they sell well there for the $60 price tag while on the PC these games may barely cut an average of $20 price in one of the many predictable 75% off sales, what do you think the publishers strategy will be? More F2P stuff and all the other shallow game experiences and mini games for the PC in the first place and then occasionally deliver a cheap console port or release a multiplatform title some weeks later after the consoles had their releases first sales high. Business as usual!
From what I've heard around the net, though, is that slightly more than 50% or PC game sales is retail. I haven't seen that number sourced anywhere, however, but it is what it is. That has always seemed too high, but then again I live in the US, and much of the retail space in other countries is fairly to significantly different than here. Maybe that's just over 50% for retail of AAA titles, maybe that includes the console market, I don't know.

I do agree with your assessment on where most of the money for PC games is coming from, or at least that's where the most amount of growth in the industry is at the moment. And that market share is one that I am certainly NOT a part of. That's the cancer of my beloved hobby.
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pigdog: Good. Now to ensure the DRM-free revolution increases their market share..

Incidentally, does anyone have any sales statistics comparing DRM with DRM-free games?
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amok: Only for some individual games like Defenders Quest : http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/186940/defenders_quest_by_the_numbers_.php
Wow, this was really eye-opening. I am going to assume that when selling direct they do not include DRM (that's the trend I've seen with the few small developers selling direct that also have a DRM free version in the market), so GOG and Direct sales combined equals approx. 32.5% of the market. That is a huge win for DRM-Free in my book, if my assumption is true. Also, that's over HALF of Steam's "stranglehold" on the market. Fair competition is chipping away at the stone giant!
Post edited May 02, 2014 by vulchor
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pigdog: Good. Now to ensure the DRM-free revolution increases their market share..

Incidentally, does anyone have any sales statistics comparing DRM with DRM-free games?
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vulchor: I haven't seen any, but I wouldn't be very optimistic about the results, since Steam is DRM. It may be bunches better than it was in 2009, but not nearly as good as it was in the mid-nineties, which is what I would really like to see it go back to.
Agreed.

I could actually see big publishers blaming second-hand sales on consoles for the current situation which would only really entrench them even deeper into DRM and Always-Online.
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vulchor: I haven't seen any, but I wouldn't be very optimistic about the results, since Steam is DRM. It may be bunches better than it was in 2009, but not nearly as good as it was in the mid-nineties, which is what I would really like to see it go back to.
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Cormoran: Agreed.

I could actually see big publishers blaming second-hand sales on consoles for the current situation which would only really entrench them even deeper into DRM and Always-Online.
Yuck, I see your point. Then I stay even further away from main stream AAA games and maybe burn down a walmart.
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Quasebarth: In my opinion, the sad story is that Free to Play with ingame money graves, Facebook browser games, subscription based games and the like are the true "Saviour" of PC gaming. So one could say, not Steam is the Saviour of PC gaming as Brian Fargo thought in the recent other thread. Nothing that interests me in the least.

I am not sure if we - we as PC gamers - will benefit much from such a development. I mean if the multi-million Dollar AAA productions will mainly be made for consoles because they sell well there for the $60 price tag while on the PC these games may barely cut an average of $20 price in one of the many predictable 75% off sales, what do you think the publishers strategy will be? More F2P stuff and all the other shallow game experiences and mini games for the PC in the first place and then occasionally deliver a cheap console port or release a multiplatform title some weeks later after the consoles had their releases first sales high. Business as usual!
avatar
vulchor: From what I've heard around the net, though, is that slightly more than 50% or PC game sales is retail. I haven't seen that number sourced anywhere, however, but it is what it is. That has always seemed too high, but then again I live in the US, and much of the retail space in other countries is fairly to significantly different than here. Maybe that's just over 50% for retail of AAA titles, maybe that includes the console market, I don't know.

I do agree with your assessment on where most of the money for PC games is coming from, or at least that's where the most amount of growth in the industry is at the moment. And that market share is one that I am certainly NOT a part of. That's the cancer of my beloved hobby.
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amok: Only for some individual games like Defenders Quest : http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/186940/defenders_quest_by_the_numbers_.php
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vulchor: Wow, this was really eye-opening. I am going to assume that when selling direct they do not include DRM (that's the trend I've seen with the few small developers selling direct that also have a DRM free version in the market), so GOG and Direct sales combined equals approx. 32.5% of the market. That is a huge win for DRM-Free in my book, if my assumption is true. Also, that's over HALF of Steam's "stranglehold" on the market. Fair competition is chipping away at the stone giant!
it is also very skewed, as by the time that snapshot was taken they had sold direct for over a year before gOg, and several months on gOg before Steam.

The only venue that promotes DRM free is gOg, direct sale did not mention it at all. So take it as you want.
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vulchor: According to this article I found on HEXUS.net

http://hexus.net/gaming/news/industry/69141-global-pc-games-market-revenue-overtakes-consoles/

We finally matter again! Publishers will have to recognize this and stop giving us crappy console ports. At least, one will hope.
*party popper pop* *part popper pop* *party popper pop*

I brought water crackers, anyone have any cheese?