PC Games Are Dead....Again?

Oh boy! Here we go again. Analysts across the board are making this outlandish claim, as they do year after year - particularly within the E3 timeframe, but while consoles are certainly the "gorilla in the room" PC gaming is far from dead. Dan Morris, former EiC at PC Gamer support this theory in a recent article on Next-Gen.

Relying on NPD’s number blinds one to the ongoing evolution of PC game distribution. The key insight, as summarized in a new report from IM Consulting (the market-intelligence unit at Ignited Minds), is that "the PC game software market is much more robust than a cursory glance at the data suggests…

He goes on to say:

If we were to set apart the three biggest genres in PC gaming – first-person shooter, real-time strategy, and RPG (including MMOs) – and consider them as a market unto themselves, we would see a market that is in fact growing.

I would have to concur with Dan. PC games are often driving the industry in these key categories. Why else would Microsoft be scrambling to get an MMO signed on to their X360 platform? No, PC games aren't dead - we may well see convergence one day replace what we think of as our PC only desktop device. But the simple fact that the hardware can so easily step ahead of the console curve within mere months after a console's release ensure that the PC platform will continue - for the time being - to define the leading edge playground of interactive developers.