Microsoft and Nvidia Quit PC Gaming Alliance - UPDATED

[TiefBlau]

How the hell does Nvidia bail on the PCGA when they're the biggest manufacturer of desktop graphics cards? I guess the PCGA isn't very representative of PC gaming as a whole, eh?

Nvidia makes the graphics cards for PS3. Previously, they made them for the original XBox.

It's kinda like how ATI's not even there. They make GPUs for the Wii and 360, so it's easier to vouch for the stable income faucet than the more customizable one.

Of course, Microsoft's out because they really, really like money.

 

[saruman31]

No biggy. AMD and ATI sell the same stuff for much lower prices.

 

[Darth_Dude]

My roommate: "Did they go join the PC Gaming Horde?"

Haha, good one!

 

[Dana22]

Nothing of this really matters.

Microsoft will still make Windowses (except now we know that next one, labeled as "pc gaming revival system and whatnot" will be pos).
nVidia will still be making graphic cards, because thats what they do.

 

[unacomn]

The PCGA has been a joke ever since it started. Not only were some of the members blatantly not interesting in helping develop a larger market share for PC Gaming, but they've done didly-squat to actually help the existing market.
Who did you have?

Capcom- Resident Evil 4: oh, PC's have mouse support,hmm, I guess it's a fad, we'll let it wait a while and see
SonyDAC- That's SecuRom people, SECUROM.
Epic- They have a much larger market share on consoles, and haven't produced a good PC game since 2004
Harware manufacturers- higher specs=more money no matter what, they get publicity from the PCGA, but nVidia already has the largest market share in video cards, so why bother.
Microsoft- they made Games for Windows Live,Vista and were hoping to get a foothold in digital distribution, but they failed for the most part
Gamestop- Since most DRM prevents reselling PC games, I'm surprised they haven't quit yet

With a membership fee of 5k-30K a year, it's more of a ponzi scheme.


Heck, Stardock did more with the Gamer's bill of rights, even thought they themselves made a mess of it with the release version of Elemental.

In fact, why do you think you don't see PC devs and publishers in there? No Valve, no Paradox, no Stardock, no 1C, no actual publishers that actually have a say in what crappy DRM gets rammed down our throat, what limitations, what prices, what time we have to wait until we actually get to play games that have been released on consoles ages ago.

Again, The PC Gaming Alliance is a joke.

 

[1337mokro]

This makes perfect sense for M$ especially after their hollow promise to bring more games the PC, which they immediately followed up by announcing Fable 3 for the Xbox and a PC version coming out somewhere in the void. Their platform of M$live failed miserably because they forgot that for such a platform to work you need content and the 5 things you could buy were all Fallout 3 DLC, what a joke. Some idiot in marketing probably forgot that you actually need stuff to sell for a store to function.

But Nvidia leaving? Your entire business model depends on PC's. Without PC's who the bloody hell wants to buy your overpriced, overheating and power draining cards? What you going to stick one of those in an Xbox? The thing already has heat issues and your going to put one of your cards in it, that would make it a viable explosive.

The PC gaming Alliance was a joke anyway, I only heard of it once before and that was in an article mocking the PC gaming Alliance with Activision focussing mainly on cheaply produced, high priced DLC.

 

[TriggerHappyAngel]

My roommate: "Did they go join the PC Gaming Horde?"

Thank your roommate for me, that made me lol

OT: big deal, why do we need that alliance again?

 

[ComicsAreWeird]

i didnt even know that a pcga existed...

 

[Vohn_exel]

I have no idea who these people are, but they sound stuck up and useless. I don't PC game that often, but something tells me that it'll be just fine.

 

[TheMadDoctorsCat]

As a regular but non-serious PC-only gamer and long-time reader of the Escapist, I can honestly say that I've never heard of the "PC Gaming Alliance". I have no idea what they do or why they exist. If this group has anything to do with publicity then the fact that someone in my particular demographic has no idea who they are is probably a very bad thing.

EDIT: And it seems that I'm not alone, looking at some of the recent comments.

 

[Souplex]

Have people not been paying attention to the writing on the walls? This collapse has been in the works since 06.

 

[Centrophy]

The home-page short title is "Good-bye, PC Gaming"

Only reason I read the article was because of that.

Yep, that's sensationalism for you

Fixed for you. Seriously, Escapist editors/contributors really need to tone down their headlines.

 

[Sennz0r]

Then can M$ pleeeeaase drop the GFWL requirements for certain games? I don't want to use that crap. I feel like it may try to bend me over like XBL did.

EDIT: Honestly, did you have to go all The Sun on the homepage's headline, though?

 

[Jewky]

MS have their Xbox, so concerning platforms, they'd probably want to sell m0ar of that and therefore want less gaming on PC. Nvidia, well, I was never a fan of the casings/boxes of the game reading stuff like : This game runs better on Nvidia/Intel/ATI/AMD, so not such a devastating blow in my opinion

 

[Gabanuka]

No Mass Effect 3 for PC I reckon?

Well since Biowere have a record for making the PC ports of their games the best I dont think so.

 

[Asehujiko]

....what the hell is the PC Gaming Alliance? Seriously, why is this the first time I've heard this thing even existed. And as a relatively avid PC gamer, me not even knowing who the hell they are just shows what a bang-up job they're doing!

Their main "contribution" is having all the DRM license sellers among their members and cartel-ling the license cost of them all the way into the sky.

You might remember their press release last week loudly proclaiming that developers should add more DRM to the game.

 

[somonels]

What was Microsoft doing there in the first place? Still, a nice move, after announcing that Win 8 will be a capable gaming platform.

 

[Sneaklemming]

Oh yes Microsoft, the Giants of PC gaming, with the outstanding and award winning Games for Windows Live. It stands as a pillar of gaming standards; and without which the PC gaming world would surely die away.

Microsoft who with windows have built-in irreplaceable utilities for gamers into the OS.

Microsoft, the world-renowned publisher if the acclaimed Age of Empires II and Flight Sim X. Modern greats unsurpassed in technology and scope.

Yes, it is clear that Microsoft are the real heavy hitters in todays PC gaming environment...

 

[syndicated44]

Dumb question, what exactly does the PCGA do..?