the end of pc gaming is near?

[deadrats]

i think pc gaming is destined to go the way of the dodo and that right soon:

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/AMD-XBox-720-Xbox-720-Avatar-Graphics-Neal-Robison,13095.html

We've already heard talk of DirectX 11 and an E3 2012 launch for the newest Xbox console and now AMD is adding that the console will be capable of producing graphics with Avatar-levels of detail.

Aside from stunning graphics, Robison is quoted as saying that the next-generation console from Microsoft will boast A.I. and physics capabilities that will allow for every pedestrian in a games like Grand Theft Auto or Saints Row 'to have a totally individual mentality'. That means no more of the mob mentality that sees everyone just running away screaming, each character will do something different.

if this is true, and the cost of such a system is in the $200-$300 range, i don't see how pc gaming can survive.

[El Heggunte]

Personally I've never cared about PC gaming. Nor about gaming consoles.
I still miss the days when the ARCADES ruled.

[sambat]

Last game played was 'Parsec' on a TI-99/4a.

[yoda313]

Unfortunately "projected" specs never pan out. Look at the wild speculations about the WII U from earlier this year.

Who knows what the 2014 launches for the ps4 and xbox 720 will be??

I seriously doubt pc gaming would "die out".

Have they yet made a clone of world of warcraft that works for the 360 or ps3? If they can do that on a console than I might agree.

But there will always be gaming styles that work infinitely better on a keyboard and mouse then with a controller.

Only time will tell but I wouldn't count anything out.


------------------------

By the way the Assassins Creed series almost feels the way the description above reads on current consoles. Granted its not totally high powered realism for every character but its hard not to get lost in the world and feel like the people in front of you are real.

edit - and that cost isn't right either. Remember the ps3 was 600.00 at launch! I don't remember what the xbox 360 was at launch. Yes it will drop to 300.00 or so in its life cycle but consoles generally launch relatively high since they always lose money on hardware sales early in a consoles life cycle. The nintendo Wii being a major exception since they used what I would term substandard parts. Not in terms of build quality but spec quality. THey wanted to reel in production costs so much without hd graphics or any type of dvd or bluray ability that its really a crippled piece of hardware.

[stiltman]

PC gaming will just move to tablets....I mean I'm addicted to Star Blitz
I was really never a gamer, even though I have a Wii.
Though soon as I got my ipad...well most of my apps are games LOL

[Computer Nerd Kev]

if this is true, and the cost of such a system is in the $200-$300 range, i don't see how pc gaming can survive.

Now I should point out that I know very little about current video gaming trends. However it strikes me as very likely that most people in ownership of a video gaming console would already own a PC, and likely one that's fairly up to date.

This means that $200-$300 is on top of the cost of the existing PC. Plus seeing as PC technology appears to be leveling off, a PC, which can be upgraded (unlike consoles) may last a couple of console generations. This way you may be saved from buying a second console when the almighty electronics overlords decide it's time to kick their engineers in the backside and get them to produce a replacement video game machine.

Of course one major problem with PCs when it comes to video games is that a user must know whether a program will run on their machine. This requires knowledge of what is inside that big box on their desk with the strange orange light that keeps flashing all the time.

This is where I can't help but talk of how home computers of the eighties dealt with this whole business so much better. The famous Commodore 64 (which is where I get my kicks) for example has a cartridge slot sitting proudly next to all the connections you need to hook it up to your TV. However next to that, there is a serial connection for a floppy disk drive, and on top is a keyboard.

This way, a person can go into a video game store knowing only that they have a C64, and come out with a game which they know will work without a doubt on their computer. Furthermore, when they realise that the game they bought isn't worth the wear on their joystick, they can type up a letter to the game's publisher complaining about their loss of $10, using the same machine. Hell if they kept it 30 years, they could even browse the internet on it. Finally, the Commodore 64 lasted over 10 years, which made it great value for the $200 price range which it was sold at for most of it's life.

In my opinion, those electronics overlords could learn quite a bit from the very world they grew out of. Oh, and no I don't think Apple fill this spot, the last thing the world needs is a fashion accessory with a computer built in.

[yoda313]

the last thing the world needs is a fashion accessory with a computer built in.

Brilliant line! I love it.

[deadrats]

By the way the Assassins Creed series almost feels the way the description above reads on current consoles. Granted its not totally high powered realism for every character but its hard not to get lost in the world and feel like the people in front of you are real.

i absolutely agree with you on AC, i remember playing the first one on my PS3 and being amazed by the AI, if you killed a bystander and NPC's saw you they would react in fear, they would have different looks of horror on their faces and some would run, some would beg you not to kill them; if no one saw you kill a NPC but they happened on the body they would gather around the body and talk about how "this is dark times we're living in" and "there's been a murder", perhaps the best AI i have ever seen.

btw, new rumors about the xbox 720 won't be powered by a cell processor as originally thought but rather an AMD fusion bulldozer variant apu.

if this is true maybe i should pick up some AMD stock.

[lordsmurf]

The overhead of running x86/x64 hardware with full bloat OS/etc was ridiculous anyway.
Custom hardware always has, and always will be, ideal for games.

The only computer games I play are little silly Flash games here and there.
Chrome store has some fun time wasters.

[yoda313]

The overhead of running x86/x64 hardware with full bloat OS/etc was ridiculous anyway.
Custom hardware always has, and always will be, ideal for games.

Funny isn't how microsoft actually has made good game consoles? I guess the big thing is microsoft hasn't been a hardware manufacturer, they've been software. So they leave the hardware to somebody else (or a different team in-house) and actually deliver a quality system.

[TheFamilyMan]

No console will ever be able to run a hardcore flight sim, and that genre is still alive and kicking. MS is working on their next flight sim, and FS titles such as FSX, Rise of Flight and IL-2 Cliffs of Dover absolutely require heavy i7 metal to run well.

Here's flying over where I live. Anyone recognize this location?

[johns0]

People said that about the original xbox saying it would take over pc games,never happened.I still like updating my pc and putting in better and
newer parts when i feel like.