Valve - PC Will Be The Gaming Platform Of The Future
June 30th 2008 01:21
It was the conference we had to have.
PC gaming looks to be in trouble on the surface, but according to Gabe Newell and the Valve team, looks can be deceiving. Coming from the makers of Steam and the Orange Box, we should be inclined to listen. And if they have their way, the PC will be the choice of a new gaming generation.
When you start to look at the figures they have every reason for optimism. It may be hard to believe, but statistics show there are 260 million online PC gamers. Sure, they're not all playing WoW, but even if you were to ignore the very casual gamers who are only playing scrabble, cards and the like, the number is still a console manufacturers dream.
It is this sort of information that has only come to light through the Valve PR work. 'There's a perception problem," says Newell. "The stories that are getting written are not reflecting what is really going on."
He continues, "If you look into the future, there's an important transition that's about to happen, and it's going to happen on the PC first."
The future Valve envisions revolves heavily around direct digital delivery of content. Steam has grown through great titles and features.
In fact Valve has seen 200% growth, where as retail store have felt a humble 10%. This looks to be more to do with consumers getting to grips with the new technology though, rather than retail sales disappearing.
The versatility of digital distribution allows a lot of flexibility for gamers. For one, you can't scratch a digital disk. If you have your code you can obtain another copy without extra cost. They are often cheaper too, without the middleman you can get your games at a wholesale price. This is where you could be suspicious of Valves motives. Being such a huge development studio to having the biggest PC distribution system will lead to massively increased profits. Still, there are real advantages to the gamer so things look to be good for everyone.
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