Ken Levine: The Future of Gaming Is In the PC

[ilion]

Guys just read his full article on kotaku and then come back, the guy is obviously humble and supports every platform. Hes just saying the obvious, pc are the most modifiable and less restricted platform to develop new things.

 

[Cocamaster]

I thought the debate on thumb-sticks VS mouse was settled years ago when the first few games to have cross-platform multiplayer had a change of policy because the PC players were simple able to aim faster and more accurately?

Of course the mouse is more precise for aiming and anyone who denies that has not learned to use both.

But the argument is (or at least should be) what is better for "gaming", if a mouse or an analog stick.

The answer, as always is "depends". Action games, platformers and the like are better with a stick. FPSs, Sttrategy games and Sims are better with a mouse.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

What's the only platform that you can sit on the couch and play..... Consoles.
What's the only platform that can be operated by a monkey...... Consoles.

Really not helping your argument, you know.

It actually is. Consoles are far simpler and more convenient for the average dumbass like me.

So, as a defence against the PC Elitist argument...you're saying Consoles are better for dumbasses, like you?
Do we have to try and be more dense to keep up?

 

[Towowo2]

2D Platformers are almost always better with a D-Pad.

 

[zehydra]

Sure hope not. I don't really think you can say that "X is the future".

Lol, if they could, we (the US) wouldn't be in an economic recession right now.

 

[Adzma]

Uh aren't you the guys who snuffed the PC DLC for BioShock 2, and then only released it due to the negative backlash you received?

 

[QUINTIX]

What's the only platform that can be operated by a monkey...... Consoles.

I've probably been nija'd but...
From the guys behind the graphics of the Gamecube, Wii, and XBOX 360

 

[Irridium]

Well said. Now I wish Publishers and other developers would realize this and stop trying to kill it with DRM and crappy ports.

 

[Glademaster_v1legacy]

What's the only platform that can be operated by a monkey...... Consoles.

I've probably been nija'd but...
From the guys behind the graphics of the Gamecube, Wii, and XBOX 360

I'd also like to add a monkey can also play TC Hawx which is completely correct that game is a piece of piss even on the hardest setting once you get controls down.

The PC, though, still has the same interface. The mouse and keyboard might be the 500 pound gorilla of the industry, but it's a gorilla that won't move, only keep things as they are. Year after year, you can see the exact same setup almost anywhere. And that's not innovation, friend.

I know I am only taking a small segment out your argument but this is the bit I have a roblem with. Mostly the bold bit. Yes while innovation is good there is no reason fix what isn't broken. The keyboard is far superior to controller with inupt options adn the only thing that comes close to mouse for aiming is Wiimote which falls down with turning. The only thing that PC gaming could use for innovation on this side is some sort of analog for movement as that is the only thing a controller does better than a KB+M. Once again do not try fix something if it is not broken.

 

[Zer_]

Ahahahahahahahaha... good stuff.

What about Nintendo, Capcom, Square Enix, Sony Santa Monica, Naughty Dog, Rockstar, Insomniac, Atlus and Sega? Console developers first. But I guess they don't count because they don't fit into his argument.

This guy is talking out of his ass.

No, Rockstar made GTA 1/2 on the PC first.

Nintendo innovated the console platformer, but claiming they innovate today is ridiculous.

Sony + Innovation? bahahaha!

Square Enix? JRPGs aren't known for their innovation. Granted, there are some good JRPG titles out there, but they were never my cup of tea.

Naughty Dog's developers started on the Apple II

Insomniac's first game was an FPS on the Playstation released in 1994. It did well, but it was no Goldeneye.

Capcom started their gaming legacy with Arcade titles. They had very little to do with consoles until the NES.

Atlus made Shin Megami Tensei, which was a Super Famicom game (NES). Eventually ported to the TurbograFX-16.

For the most part, your developers started as PC devs.

 

[crazypsyko666]

The mouse keyboard combo is intended for navigating files and typing. It's not a comfortable or intuitive control mechanism.

Minecraft and all the other indi devs are on pc, atleast 98% those that can't afford there games to get microsoft.
And thats where Innovvation comes from.

Ahahahahahahahaha... good stuff.

What about Nintendo, Capcom, Square Enix, Sony Santa Monica, Naughty Dog, Rockstar, Insomniac, Atlus and Sega? Console developers first. But I guess they don't count because they don't fit into his argument.

This guy is talking out of his ass.

Nintendo innovative? For every innovative game you get 10 itterations.

Nintendo is easily one of the most innovative major developer out there in both hardware and software.

OT: The keyboard mouse combo is intended for navigating files and typing. While it works well as a controller, something about using it makes games less fun for me. Having to contort your left hand awkwardly to reach buttons on the keyboard and a complete lack of apposable thumb use make the layout uncomfortable and easily improvable.
I suppose there are available peripherals that can help....

We have ways of fixing that problem.

 

[monkey_man]

i think he's right
pc games is the most smooth ( in shooters and games with precision. fck off wii)
i prefer some games, like hack and slash games on my ps3 though
bu for the most immersive gaming experience, i choose pc

The answer is very simple: where does games on consoles are made from? PC's !

What's the only platform that delivers Mods for FREE: PC's !

i don't need to go further...

What's the only platform that you can sit on the couch and play..... Consoles.

What's the only platform that can be operated by a monkey...... Consoles.

OP: Wasn't BioShock only on 360?

i got a bioshock PC copy, don't know if it was there from the beginning though.
and my pc chair is waaaay more comfy then my itchy couch
also, monkeys can learn to play games on the computer too. we just need to push them more

Spoiler

 

[Delusibeta]

Uh aren't you the guys who snuffed the PC DLC for BioShock 2, and then only released it due to the negative backlash you received?

Nah, that was 2K Marin. The Irrational guys were too busy developing Bioshock Infinite (the *proper* sequel to Bioshock).

 

[Delusibeta]

I don't know about you, but the argument of "game developers train on PC and therefore PC drives innovation" seems weak and not well thought through. (1)

The main problem I have with Mr. Levine's argument is that he's grouping everyone who develops games based on the tools they use to do so. That, to me, is a fallacy. Consoles resemble PCs more than ever before, as do mobile phones and portables, but developing games for one isn?t necessarily analogous to another.
Someone who learns to develop console games on a PC isn't suddenly a PC game developer. There are many design decisions that are implicitly tied to your target platform, no matter what your tools are.
Then there's the audience. Does your game development philosophy better match the likes and dislikes of PC gamers or console gamers?
Innovation comes from many areas in game development. We have seen console design advancements seep to the PC and vice versa.

And then there's the sheer numbers. If game are the driving force of innovation in the industry, and you assume that 2 thirds of all console games are crap and somehow only 1 third of PC games are, there would still be more average to great games on consoles, so statistically speaking console games have a higher chance of influencing game design than PC games. This is an oversimplification, obviously, but it's done to drive a point. (2)

Just think about it this way, the single most important innovation in gaming this generation was digital distribution. Talk about Steam all you want, but the one that brought it to the mainstream, and the model that everyone is following, comes from the iPhone. Let that sink in for a second.(3)

(1) Misconception of what he said. He meant that you can make anything: anything, and put it out on the web and you will find an audience. With consoles, you have to go through certification. Therefore, the start-up costs are lower, and you can take more risks with the PC. Sure, you might make a game that's better suited to a console, but on the PC, you can get it out there with little fussing over licenses, and once the money rolling in then you can start talking about bringing the game to console. With the PC, you're free to take risks and try new stuff that's not possible on the consoles.
(2) Numbers are irrelevant, especially considering the large quantity of Realistic Man Shooters that are released on all formats. That said, the number of PC games released every month dwarf the number of console games, it's just that the proportion of AAA PC games are far smaller than consoles.
(3) This is because of three things. (a) It is tied to the most popular music downloading service. (b) The vast majority of the stuff on there is no more than 99p. (c) The games on it are incomparable to Steam's. The vast majority of iPhone games are still overglorified Flash games, and while I recognise that some Flash games are good enough to retail (step forward VVVVVV), the vast majority of iPhone games aren't worth more than the 99p, much less the £3.50 I can buy Bioshock off Steam for.

 

[Cocamaster]

No, I don't just mean the games that I consider the best. I mean the games that are universally considered the best games for the Wii.

Gotta' love subjectiveness. Do you mean "best" as in "best reviews" or best as in "most sold" or best as in "people talk about it all the time."

Does it count if it's the "best" for critics but not users? Or does it have to be the "best" for both? ...because that leaves a very small number of games across the board.

What's the criteria? Is a game among the "best" if it scores an 8? 8.5? 9? And again, scored by whom? Or is it an average?

And since when do you need to be the "best" to be good? And isn't "best" by definition a curve? Meaning if you have one great game 2 average ones and 5 bad ones, the "best" 3 would include the average ones?

And how many "best" game slots are there? 5? 10? 20?

A bit of a silly argument when you think about it, this "best games" thing, isn't it?

I'd hardly call Kirby's Epic Yarn a "hardcore" game, now would you?

Ah, but people did, multiple times in fact. It was heralded as part of "Nintendo's return to the hardcore". But that wasn't even the point.

But it's still a great game. One which makes nearly no use of motion controls. No More Heroes, Zelda: TP, etc etc. All of the Wii's games which have any sort of acclaim attached to them tend to make very little use of motion controls.

Again, acclaim by whom?

I've owned every Nintendo console including the Wii. And none of them has had anywhere near the amount of shovelware released on them that the Wii has.

You're in for a surprise: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_Super_Nintendo_Entertainment_System_games

Yes, the PC has had the most shovelware, because the PC is a gaming platform that has been around since 1987 or so. There's nothing to compare it to. But if we compare the Wii to any other console with a standard console shelf-life, it has had by far the most shovelware released per year.

Myth.

The PS2 had 3 times as many games released per year as the Wii and most of them were shovelware. So did the PSX before it. As it stands, the Wii is on par with the SuperNES in terms of games published per year, and that one had as much shovelware as the Wii.

The PC's amount of shovelware per year is, literally, immeasurable because it lacks a defined publishing system since it's an unrestricted platform, but it is there. Amply paraphrasing Mr. Levine?s own words, most of the Wii, PS2/3 and Xbox/360 shovelware "was born on the PC".

And that's because Nintendo knows the customer base they're dealing with. People who don't have a lot of experience with traditional gaming, and therefore will buy whatever looks decent on impulse. And now Sony and Microsoft are trying to grab a slice of that non-gamer demographic.

Is that why Nintendo's releases are consistently top-rated? Nice contradiction.

 

[SageRuffin]

Well I'm glad I recently bought a nice new gaming pc then.

Seconded. I'll still stick to consoles for their accessibility and ease of use, but it is nice to have a PC more than capable of handling games (like Dragon Age).