PC gaming in 2011
January 27, 2011
Comments 26
As various pundits make their predictions for the year ahead, opinions will be sharply divided on the future of PC gaming.

Optimists will argue that the PC remains the home of significant innovation from indie developers.

PC gaming also continues to command significant revenue, with the likes of World of Warcraft at one end of the spectrum and the myriad of Facebook and other casual games at the other.

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The PC also has a robust and ever-growing digital distribution platform in Steam in addition to countless other content delivery mechanisms.

But pessimists will point out that the few PC games that are released by major publishers these days are typically lazy ports and there is precious little software variety. They will highlight that even once dominant genres like first-person shooters have all-but deserted the PC in favour of consoles.

If I asked Screen Play readers whether they are planning to upgrade their gaming PC or invest in a new gaming rig in 2011, I expect there would be few replying in the affirmative. Unfortunately, there are few compelling reasons to justify the expense.

It can be argued that the PC is now comfortably a generation ahead in terms of technology compared to the current generation consoles. Yet there is precious little software to show off that significant advantage that the latest PC hardware now has over the PS3 and Xbox 360.

It's hard to blame today's publishing heads for deserting the PC format. You need to deliver a game to the biggest possible audience when investing the significant sums required to make a current generation blockbuster game. That audience is now playing with a joypad in front of their televisions in their living room.

It's also hardly a situation that has only just recently occurred. It's now three years since the PC Gaming Alliance was formed by companies such as Intel, AMD, Microsoft, Dell and Activision to try to halt PC gaming's decline, and five years since Microsoft acknowledged that PC gaming had an image problem and released its Games for Windows branding.

It would seem that Microsoft would be one of the biggest beneficiaries of a resurgent PC gaming scene, but there are plenty of detractors keen to criticise Redmond for focusing their attention and resources on the Xbox 360 to the detriment of Windows gaming. The Games for Windows Live has been little short of a disaster.

As we gaze into our crystal balls to try to see what is ahead in 2011 and beyond, it is difficult to see any new advance that might significantly change PC gaming's fortunes.

I'm sure some PC games will despair, while others will simply shrug their shoulders and go back to enjoying Cataclysm and Minecraft.

How much of your gaming time in 2011 will be spent on the PC? Is there a game on the horizon that could encourage you to upgrade your PC? Let us know in the comments section below.