Computer vs. the Console Direct downloads give PC games a boost

Deathsythe | June 18, 2008 | News | PC Playstation 2 Company Misc

Direct downloads from providers such as Steam can now provide direct content to the gamer without him or her ever having to leave their respective houses. There are many PC only games that have brought PC gaming back to the forefront, instead of the projected lingering behind consoles and dying out. Online PC gaming is also responsible for helping this growing trend.

It took just 10 days for video game maker Funcom Inc. to sell 400,000 copies of its newest title, Age of Conan, last month, making it one of the year's most successful debuts.

But for now, you can't play it on popular living-room consoles like Sony's PlayStation 3, Microsoft's Xbox 360, or Nintendo Wii. Age of Conan is available only on desktop computers that use Microsoft's Windows operating system. PC gamers say its success helps debunk a popular belief: That console games have crushed the PC platform.

"PC gaming is not only not in decline, it's alive and well and growing," said Roy Taylor, chief technical officer of the PC Gaming Alliance, a nonprofit trade group.

Taylor's confidence may seem puzzling, considering that most high-profile video games are made for consoles. For example, Grand Theft Auto IV - which sold more than 8 million copies in its first month - is compatible only with the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. And market research company NPD Group says that while North Americans spent $18.8 billion on game software in retail stores last year, just $910 million went to PC games, down from $970 million the year before.

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-2 thumbs!
slumpy monkey | June 18, 2008

See, And everyone is saying " Digital downloads are rubbish and will not work out"
-2 thumbs!
Existenz | June 18, 2008

They only work because there is choice, the only reason people are against the idea because Sony and Microsoft especially seem focused that their next consoles will be direct download only, and in that situation it is not viable. If there is still choice of disc as a medium the direct downloads will continue to be awesome.