Why do devs still release bad PC ports?

[ksn0va]

Why waste the effort? Why not just cancel the damn game? I mean, they know how bad it is, what makes them think that we can just look past their shortcomings and still enjoy the game? If they're really trying to convince us that consoles are better, why don't they just leave the PC market instead of making an abomination of a AAA title? Like Epic for example, instead of butchering GOW 2 they decided to just not make it. But if they only did not blame their departure on piracy I would not have hated them as much.

 

[Theo Samaritan]

Money. 'tis that simple. If a port is bad its the publisher that suffers - the developer has already been paid most of their income for it simply to make the thing.

To be fair though, not all ports are bad. Some are performance hogs (GTAIV) and some are indeed really shit (SR2) but a fair few are also more than reasonable.

 

[Untamed Waters]

>_> To not ruin it for the console gaming master race. <_<

Seriously though? I dunno. Go ask a dev.

 

[curlycrouton]

>_> To not ruin it for the console gaming master race. <_<

Seriously though? I dunno. Go ask a dev.

...DOWN WITH CONSOLE GAMERS! WE WILL TAKE THE SYMBOL OF THE HOLY MOUSE AND MOUNT IT ON OUR FLAGS, NEXT TO THEIR HEADS!
...Sorry, fanboy moment.

We have a club for people like us, you know. Meet at the abandoned warehouse, midnight. And come alone.

 

[Untamed Waters]

>_> To not ruin it for the console gaming master race. <_<

Seriously though? I dunno. Go ask a dev.

If you don't know why do you post? I think your avatar suits you.

ksn0va, the problem here is that no matter how bad a port is, developers will always make some money out of it due to initial interest in the game. PC gamers who envied the console gamers playing Saints Row 2 will run to the shop on the first day to buy it no matter what people say.

Keyword: Money.

Wow, that was pretty douchey of you. It's ok, I'm sure it makes your balls feel big to insult people. (on the internet no less)

 

[Jandau]

If they can make a cheap port, they'll refund their investment no matter how bad it is, especially if the console version got good reviews.

In all honesty, not all ports are bad. Dead Space and Prince of Persia are two recent ports that I haven't really found anything wrong with.

 

[Art Axiv]

In all honesty, not all ports are bad. Dead Space and Prince of Persia are two recent ports that I haven't really found anything wrong with.

Prince of Persia was like Sonic to me >_>

 

[Dommyboy]

>_> To not ruin it for the console gaming master race. <_<

Seriously though? I dunno. Go ask a dev.

...DOWN WITH CONSOLE GAMERS! WE WILL TAKE THE SYMBOL OF THE HOLY MOUSE AND MOUNT IT ON OUR FLAGS, NEXT TO THEIR HEADS!
...Sorry, fanboy moment.

We have a club for people like us, you know. Meet at the abandoned warehouse, midnight. And come alone.

Abandon warhouse? Pfft.

Just get in our highly advanced dreadnought spaceship and lets watch the console monkeys fight at each other trying to decide which console is better.

The abandoned warehouse contains the stationing bay for our dreadnought. Little do the console players know that it is not abandoned at all! Mwahaha!

Erhem, anyway. It seems badly made PC games are quite common now anyway. A lot of games need a patch or two to get going alright. Even STALKER a PC only game was like a dogs breakfast. Luckily there are still a few good PC developers like Relic and Stardock.

 

[Jandau]

In all honesty, not all ports are bad. Dead Space and Prince of Persia are two recent ports that I haven't really found anything wrong with.

Prince of Persia was like Sonic to me >_>

The game itself is of debatable quality, but the port was smooth. Controls were good and I never felt like I needed a gamepad (I'm looking at you, DMC4), the graphics were smooth and ran fast, etc. The port itself was well done and on that front I have no complaints.

 

[Iampringles]

There is a much larger market for console gaming.

Devs realise that larger market = more money, so are more likely to take the cheapskate option when it comes to PC ports.

 

[curlycrouton]

>_> To not ruin it for the console gaming master race. <_<

Seriously though? I dunno. Go ask a dev.

...DOWN WITH CONSOLE GAMERS! WE WILL TAKE THE SYMBOL OF THE HOLY MOUSE AND MOUNT IT ON OUR FLAGS, NEXT TO THEIR HEADS!
...Sorry, fanboy moment.

We have a club for people like us, you know. Meet at the abandoned warehouse, midnight. And come alone.

Abandon warhouse? Pfft.

Just get in our highly advanced dreadnought spaceship and lets watch the console monkeys fight at each other trying to decide which console is better.

Shhh, you'll give away the master plan.....

 

[Aurora219]

I've been playing Mercenaries 2 myself. And my god, if I'd paid for it I'd be pissed. Just glad I borrowed it off someone else instead of paying for it, because it in itself plays like a bad crack. The resolutions are off, the QTEs (cry) are all using silly little icons that have so little meaning you're sat there mashing the keyboard hoping for some response, and the basic mouse controls are so blatantly designed for thumbsticks that I might as well just go get my 360 controller and plug it into my PC..

 

[Ace of Spades]

After I played GTA IV on my PC, I said "This is what I get for waiting so long. A game that I have to turn the graphics down to as low as possible to get it to run even though my PC can run Crysis on Very High. Not fucking fair." That's why I no longer play PC games.

 

[Aardvark]

I remember a time, not too long ago, when the PC game was the flagship product, with console ports being an afterthought.

Then again, I remember a time, not too long ago, when PC gaming for most people didn't involve grinding instances for epic loot.

 

[FURY_007]

meh, id like to pay once to play over the internet, plus mouse/keyboard > controller

 

[Vlane]

After I played GTA IV on my PC, I said "This is what I get for waiting so long. A game that I have to turn the graphics down to as low as possible to get it to run even though my PC can run Crysis on Very High. Not fucking fair." That's why I no longer play PC games.

Not playing PC games is not an option for me. Until consoles offer keyboard/mouse support, the control system will always be, in my professional opinion, fucked.

Consoles do offer keyboard and mouse support (at least the PS3). You just have to buy either a specific mouse/keyboard or something like this http://www.xcm.cc/xfps_rateup_adapter_for_ps_3.htm

 

[blank0000]

My guess is they made the game once, they don't really want to try and remake it to be compatible with a wide variety of systems

 

[N-Sef]

Most of the time the ports are done on an extremely low budget and as quickly as possible to maximize sales of the game. Capcom are pros at doing this, while their ports run really well for the most part they just don't put any thought into them.

 

[mark_n_b]

Devs don't release games, publishers do.

The reason that bad PC ports come out is because of the insistence by puritan PC gamers that their way of gaming is the best to the point that they refuse to consider consoles.

That is a notable population, though it often has more to with justifying the finances and time split than any inherit superiority (which does not exist)

The challenges of a fan community.

 

[sirdanrhodes]

Mass Effect was better on the PC port than it was on the 360.