Piracy, Not Consoles, Killed the PC Exclusive

[Aeonknight]

Serious discussions do happen - on this very site. But not as a result of your 'news'.

Piracy is douchebag behaviour. That's not opinion, that's fact. It's a sense of entitlement run wild: I can't afford this game, or I'm not sure if I'll like this game, or I don't know if it's worth the money, BUT I have some god-given right to play it, so I'll take it without paying for it.

Serious conversations come from serious people who are willing to think and speak seriously. People who opt for silly rationalizations get what they get.

And if you don't care for my "news" - quote unquote - stay away from it.

I'm gonna go with this fellow.

We're on the internet for fuck's sake. There is absolutely no justification for using piracy to "demo" a game anymore. You can find plenty of reviews, screenshots, system specs, gameplay video/trailers, etc. all over the place. If you made an ignorant purchasing decision, it's no one's fault but your own.

 

[Andy of Comix Inc]

I blame piracy for a lot of things. I don't blame it for lazy developers, though. That's on their heads. They can justify their reasoning however they want, but nothing "caused" lack of PC exclusives. Especially seeing as we're still getting quite a lot of high-budget, wholly successful titles anyway. Slowed to a trickle, sure, but they've not disappeared.

And, is it really so bad that there aren't that many AAA exclusives for PC anymore? I dare say PC gaming is richer and more varied because of the breadth of unique exclusives that have come out for it. Titles like S.T.A.L.K.E.R. have shaped modern PC gaming into less than just a home of first-person shooters and strategy games, but the home of truly special pieces of software. I'd rather share the majority of games with console; it makes "true" PC games that much more worthwhile. Serious Sam 3, for example. That was such a true PC game! And it resonated well with PC gamers for that very reason. It makes the bad seem worse and the good seem great, and that's a good thing, as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Eve Charm]

It isn't piracy that killed the pc exclusive, it's cost of making the game vs gain from selling it on just one platform, It's why console exclusives don't hit the top of sales vs a crappy shooter coming out on every platform.

There is no way to fully fight piracy, in this day and age, and right now it's a given. There are plenty of ways around it to still make money though. Online passes, DLC, Expansions, stores.

Facebook games make millions, League of Legends, free games that sold characters and skins 25 million as of 2010 and still going. Wow and other mmo's. If you can't find a way to make money, then put someone in charge that can.

 

[dantoddd]

piracy is big issue for PC exclusive games but the real problem is the console market. Given the number of consoles out there it's absurd for us to expect many PC exclusives.

 

[Bostur]

And, is it really so bad that there aren't that many AAA exclusives for PC anymore? I dare say PC gaming is richer and more varied because of the breadth of unique exclusives that have come out for it. Titles like S.T.A.L.K.E.R. have shaped modern PC gaming into less than just a home of first-person shooters and strategy games, but the home of truly special pieces of software. I'd rather share the majority of games with console; it makes "true" PC games that much more worthwhile. Serious Sam 3, for example. That was such a true PC game! And it resonated well with PC gamers for that very reason. It makes the bad seem worse and the good seem great, and that's a good thing, as far as I'm concerned.

I had a similar thought as well. 'Exclusive' is not a quality in itself. A lot of games can be ported well, and should be IMO to widen the market.

Most exclusives happens for a good reason. For instance games with control schemes that are hard to port to a different platform, or because the game is meant for a niche audience.

Another issue is that extremely high production costs can make any game a risky gamble, meaning it has to be successful on a wide range of platforms to cover the cost. Piracy of course have an impact in this case too, but theres a wide range of other reasons why AAA games may have a hard time covering their cost.

 

[wintercoat]

Piracy is douchebag behaviour. That's not opinion, that's fact.

I miss when journalistic integrity was considered a strong force, when the phrase "that's not opinion, that's fact" would never have been thought to be uttered in regards to such a statement. As a news contributor, you should be ashamed. Your job is supposed to be about presenting facts, not coloring facts to suit your needs. Today's media is sickening.

 

[Dys]

It sounds a lot like an asshole DRM system was the difference between success and failure for his company....

No PC exclusive games? Relic/THQ, Valve, Blizzard, The Creative Assembly and all the other AAA PC exclusive developers I couldn't spring off the top of my head seem to have missed that memo...

Piracy is douchebag behaviour. That's not opinion, that's fact. It's a sense of entitlement run wild: I can't afford this game, or I'm not sure if I'll like this game, or I don't know if it's worth the money, BUT I have some god-given right to play it, so I'll take it without paying for it.

Or there's the other option of wanting to play the game they paid hard earned money for without having to install the unwanted, hindering DRM software bundled......

...But hey, let's not let actual facts get in the way of your outrage, I'm sure that it's just the small group of people that I personally know who have a habit of pirating games after they've paid for a copy of the game are totally unique and that such habits don't exist elsewhere.

 

[Akisa]

Serious discussions do happen - on this very site. But not as a result of your 'news'.

Piracy is douchebag behaviour. That's not opinion, that's fact. It's a sense of entitlement run wild: I can't afford this game, or I'm not sure if I'll like this game, or I don't know if it's worth the money, BUT I have some god-given right to play it, so I'll take it without paying for it.

Serious conversations come from serious people who are willing to think and speak seriously. People who opt for silly rationalizations get what they get.

And if you don't care for my "news" - quote unquote - stay away from it.

Except most of the talk about privacy in this thread is not about pirating for a "demo", it's about drm and why it's more attractive to by pass it through privacy. Your argument is like yelling at someone for taking grapes from produce as free sample, but the person complained that anti theft system of the store is really annoying and better off going down the block where jimmy is giving it for free.

 

[mrhappy1489]

I'd make a list of upcoming PC Exclusives, but someone already did [http://pc.ign.com/articles/121/1216513p1.html]. Enjoy the impossibilities!

Ehh, they look alright, nothing to lose my pants over.

 

[Ligisttomten]

I don't know, good games sell. I played the Kingdoms of Amalur demo and shut it off after 20 minutes. :/

 

[TheGauntman]

Serious discussions do happen - on this very site. But not as a result of your 'news'.

Piracy is douchebag behaviour. That's not opinion, that's fact. It's a sense of entitlement run wild: I can't afford this game, or I'm not sure if I'll like this game, or I don't know if it's worth the money, BUT I have some god-given right to play it, so I'll take it without paying for it.

Serious conversations come from serious people who are willing to think and speak seriously. People who opt for silly rationalizations get what they get.

And if you don't care for my "news" - quote unquote - stay away from it.

I dig that you feel strongly about the issue of piracy. I really do. But statements like 'piracy is douchebag behaviour' and 'if you don't care for my "news" - quote unquote - stay away from it' don't exactly promote the idea of serious conversations. At the very least, it's dismissive of the people you are trying to engage in dialogue.

 

[Treblaine]

It's really, really hard to be profitable by concentrating only on PC," he said. "Unless you're an MMO.

Whoa whoa whoa... why? What is so special about MMOs?

What about games like:
-Serious Sam series
-Dawn of War series
-Total War series
-Starcraft II
-Killing Floor
-Pretty much every single Valve Game.
-Minecraft
-Amnesia: Dark Descent

Could it just be that Titan Quest had very little exposure, was mistaken for a mere diablo rip-off and it was not more loudly proclaimed that these "bugs" were purely caused by piracy?

 

[PingoBlack]

The whole concept of exclusives is completely outdated relic of licencing model that doesn't work any more in world where consoles are too similar to PCs.

But hey, lets claim piracy is the problem and not the outdated "exculsive" products they sell.
Visionary! /facepalm

BTW, as far as Blizzard is hinting, Diablo 3 will also get released on console of some sort.

 

[weker]

I am starting to think that PC gaming is not the best to focus on, unless you make really really good games.
I mean after all there must be a reason why the big ones sell like Skyrim, The Witcher and Deus Ex if I recall correctly. I am starting to think that PC gaming sales is more dependent on the quality of your product, rather then how much advertising gets shoved in your face.
Maybe PC gamers don't take as many TV adverts in as they watch it all online, so maybe they go more by word of mouth or something... This is a vague theory XD

The whole concept of exclusives is completely outdated relic of licencing model that doesn't work any more in world where consoles are too similar to PCs.

Agreed there is no point to exclusives excluding the money backing if paid, I feel games like resistance would have less sway if not exclusive and such, but still exclusives shrink your audience and a game developed on PC are close enough to be exclusive to me. I don't care if others don't get the game but I do like to see the PC platform being used to a decent degree.

 

[TehMadness]

I dunno, I thought this had been the obvious answer for a long time now.

 

[J Tyran]

So Iron Lore closing had nothing to do with the fact that they didn't make good games? (Looks at Titan Quest and Dawn of War: Soulstorm)

OK.

 

[zefiris]

Piracy is douchebag behaviour. That's not opinion, that's fact.

pirate: " i have no interest in this game what so ever, i would never buy this not even in a sale down the line"

pirates friend: "so your not getting it then"

pirate:"pirated it"

Why is buying a game, then downloading the pirated copy to play it without a hassle "douchebag behavior" or "bad"?

Explain that, you people.

What I'm talking about happens a LOT, most of my friends avoid DRM-nonsense like that. They still buy the game, but they feel they have a right to play the game without hassle if they do so, and if the game does not allow them to do so non-pirated, why exactly should they not fix it this way?

It's sad that pirated versions usually are superior for the customer, it should be the other way round. This is contributing directly to high downloads and yet cost no sales whatsoever.

Seriously, the industry acts as if wanting to play a game without a hassle is a bad thing. This is a big reason why I avoid next-gen gaming completely these days and stick to (bought) games for my DS or to (bought) Indy games.

At least these treat me like a customer, not a criminal for daring to want to play a game in peace without DRM spyware.

 

[Chaos Marine]

Having played the demo and been thoroughly umimpressed by what is largely a singleplayer MMO, I have to say that is all of a reason why I won't be touching the game.

As an aside, the reason why Titan Quest didn't sell so well was because the initial release of the game was wrongly touted as being too buggy and unstable and people didn't buy it. It was incredibly stable and it worked fabulously. People who pirated it and complained in the forums were told that pirated versions were supposed to be buggy and pointed out to have pirated the games. The problem was, people only remembered the negative 'it's buggy' and not the fact that it was designed to be buggy for people who pirated it. A form of DRM that's currently being praised but for being inventive when way back when TQ first came out, it unfortunately killed the game.