X-Box Over PC
Raven Software’s John Scott has updated his .plan in reply to John Carmack’s speel on the X-Box. Scott has voiced hopes that the MS console will be forced to support OpenGL rather than just Direct 3D, and conceded the X-Box will take over from the PC as the primary format for games. If he’s right (and he almost certainly is), games developers will be writing for a minimum system spec equivalent to the XBox.
The moral is, if you’re running a machine more than a generation behind new technology you won’t be able to play the latest games. This in turn will mean the PC game market will be reduced to the dedicated few who are willing to run expensive systems. Since that is what we at BigKid already do, and what most of you probably do, we aren’t going to be affected much. My prediction is that since PC’s will always be ahead of consoles in development due to the much shorter turnaround of components (six months between video card generations for instance compared to 4 or 5 years for consoles), the PC game market will become more specialised. The only games that will sell well enough will be those worth playing.
What does all this mean? I’m guessing the ultimate result will only be good for PC gaming, and gaming in general. It may even open up opportunities for independent developers specialising in PC games, rather than removing them as some are predicting.
Webdog
posted by monty · at 7:00 am · filed under Site News