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Nvidia: PC To Beat Consoles In Game Sales By 2014

firefly2003firefly2003 Member UncommonPosts: 2,527

The future is looking bright for PC gaming, according to graphics card producer Nvidia. In a recent conference call, the company stated that it believes PC game sales will surpass that of consoles by 2014. Put on your rose-tinted glasses and keep reading to hear the company's explanation.

Techgage has a comprehensive breakdown of Nvidia's claims, but the thought process goes something like this: the longer the lifespan of each console generation gets, the more attractive PC gaming will become to consumers. Why, you ask? Because while the technology in the console on your entertainment stand will remain the same for 5+ years, PC technology is constantly evolving - you could upgrade your graphics card with something newer and better every year, if you are so inclined (and have the cash to do so).

While I can see some logic in the argument (being able to adapt quickly to new technology is never a bad thing), it also assumes that graphical processing power is the most important selling point to consumers (Nintendo Wii?), and overlooks the fact that most gamers are happy that the lifespan of consoles are increasing. After all, PC games have always looked better - some gamers just don't want to pay an arm and a leg for cutting edge technology when they can sit back on their couch, grab a controller, and play something that still looks pretty darn good.

That didn't stop Nvidia from putting together this nifty graph that predicts gaming sales out to 2015:

The rest of the article posits some other interesting ideas, including the importance of digital distribution and free-to-play games, so even if you doubt Nvidia's prophetic claims, it's worth checking out.

[via Destructoid]


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Comments

  • Loke666Loke666 Member EpicPosts: 21,441

    It is good news if they are right. PC gaming have been declining the last 10 years and a new boom would be nice.

  • maskedweaselmaskedweasel Member LegendaryPosts: 12,173

    I'm more worried about what kind of "boom" we're looking for.  Game sales might be greater... but what kind of games are we looking at -- as many of the highest selling games are very, very casual -- and with cash shop models getting increasingly popular for the casual crowd,  what are we really going to look forward to?

     

    I mean,  right now,  the same titles launching  on all platforms,  PC is still the lowest in regards of sales in most cases.  How that will translate in 2014... who knows?



  • jinxxed0jinxxed0 Member UncommonPosts: 841

    geez, I hope this just means gaming rigs are becoming more affordable. I don't want my PC games becoming consolified. *sits on porch with rifle while chewing tobaco*

  • trash656trash656 Member UncommonPosts: 361

    Originally posted by Loke666

    It is good news if they are right. PC gaming have been declining the last 10 years and a new boom would be nice.

    wha? No that can't be right, I don't see how PC Gaming would be declining. More people are connected to the internet now more then ever, even in PC gaming, and social media. And on top of that Computers are going for a Song in computer stores. I mean really really cheap! I bought a whole new pc with windows 7, 10 gigs of ram, and a really fast video card for only 800$! if I ever bought that in a computer store 6 years ago it would of cost me at least 1,200$ There are more people now playing games and MMO's then there was 7 years ago as well. Especially with the asian market. PC gaming is so frigging affordable now even a person with a steady /crackheroin addiction can play. LOL

  • Z3R01Z3R01 Member UncommonPosts: 2,425

    PC gaming is on the upswing.

    With games like BF3 showing players that PC versions are the definative versions of those games more gamers are flocking to the PC gamer market.

    Digital distributors like Steam, D2d and Gamestops Impulse are huge right now.

    What we are seeing is the console kids from mid 2000 finally growing up, they have jobs now and can afford to buy all the fancy tech to play games the way they were ment to be played.

    Playing: Nothing

    Looking forward to: Nothing 


  • fenistilfenistil Member Posts: 3,005

    Not to mention that consoles are totally dominating pc's in US and Japan.   In EU consoles have good position but not as good as in US , pc is stronger in eu than in us.   Most of other markets like Russia , Brazil, China , western europe ,etc are usually dominated by PC and there is still big room for PC sales there.

     

    Not to mention other countries that maybe in future when /if they stabilize a bit or /and gllobal economy start dig out of crisis , may be great PC markets - like f.e Mexico , Argentina & other South Americca countries , middle east , etc

     

    That is why PC gaming has bright future.

    Many companies neglected f.e. Russia cause of big piracy ,but other frequntly local companies shown that despite piracy you can sell alot of legitimate copies and get alot of profit if you adjust your prices and not try to sell in poorer counties games at same prices like in wealthy countries.

  • Kaijin2k3Kaijin2k3 Member Posts: 558

    Not all games sell better on consoles than PC. Valvie did announce that Portal 2 did better on PC than consoles (source), and a few indie studios have said that their PC sales have been much better than their console sales (source). But outside of company announcements, we have no idea what other PC game have sold better (especially since no one can track digital sales).

    And of course, not all console games sell very well. Particularly, only the big AAA franchises tend to sell well on consoles, while the less known and especially non-shooter games (Enslaved, Valkyria Chronicles) can flop very hard.

    But I won't deny that the big name and multiplatform games do sell better on the consoles, specifically the 360 as I don't believe PS3 game sells tend to be as impressive.

  • WarmakerWarmaker Member UncommonPosts: 2,246

    Originally posted by Kaijin2k3

    Not all games sell better on consoles than PC. Valvie did announce that Portal 2 did better on PC than consoles (source), and a few indie studios have said that their PC sales have been much better than their console sales (source). But outside of company announcements, we have no idea what other PC game have sold better (especially since no one can track digital sales).

    And of course, not all console games sell very well. Particularly, only the big AAA franchises tend to sell well on consoles, while the less known and especially non-shooter games (Enslaved, Valkyria Chronicles) can flop very hard.

    But I won't deny that the big name and multiplatform games do sell better on the consoles, specifically the 360 as I don't believe PS3 game sells tend to be as impressive.

    Heh, Valkyria Chronicles on the PS3 is actually a pretty damn good game.  Too bad.

    Still, I think it'll be funny watching some of the developers who burned their bridges with the PC crowd trying to climb back in bed with them.

    "I have only two out of my company and 20 out of some other company. We need support, but it is almost suicide to try to get it here as we are swept by machine gun fire and a constant barrage is on us. I have no one on my left and only a few on my right. I will hold." (First Lieutenant Clifton B. Cates, US Marine Corps, Soissons, 19 July 1918)

  • KhrymsonKhrymson Member UncommonPosts: 3,090

     

     

    I'd just like to see the hard evidence that 'PC Gaming is Dying', that gets tossed around on every forum.  Its been just as strong and has as many new games releases as console every year, of course with ifs fair share of trash, but there are quite a few gems out there that consoles never recieve.

     

  • QuizzicalQuizzical Member LegendaryPosts: 25,347

    Nvidia had better hope so, considering that rumors say it's unlikely that the next generation of consoles will have Nvidia anything.

  • Squirrelz248Squirrelz248 Member Posts: 45

    Originally posted by Loke666

    It is good news if they are right. PC gaming have been declining the last 10 years and a new boom would be nice.

     

    Uhhh that nifty graph says otherwise? In the past 3 years (2008 - 2011), it has been on the increase.

  • ThomasN7ThomasN7 87.18.7.148Member CommonPosts: 6,690

    Sorry but they'll never beat out console sales. Consoles started the gaming genre and it will end with consoles still on top. Consoles just have better and more games available to players.  

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  • RidelynnRidelynn Member EpicPosts: 7,383

    Makes me wonder if nVidia is even bothering to speculate on this because AMD/ATI graphics chips have been rumored to be selected for all 3 next-gen consoles.

  • Lord.BachusLord.Bachus Member RarePosts: 9,686

    Originally posted by SaintViktor

    Sorry but they'll never beat out console sales. Consoles started the gaming genre and it will end with consoles still on top. Consoles just have better and more games available to players.  

    Not in the long run... as soon as the current (quite old) consoles are replaced by ones that compete again with PC's the console sales will pick up again, untill then the PC will rise...

     

    On top of that.... FPS shooters and MMO's are more suited for PC and probably the 2 best selling genres in the long run.

    Best MMO experiences : EQ(PvE), DAoC(PvP), WoW(total package) LOTRO (worldfeel) GW2 (Artstyle and animations and worlddesign) SWTOR (Story immersion) TSW (story) ESO (character advancement)

  • username509username509 Member CommonPosts: 635

    The average PC gamer always had better hardware then console gamers.    Xbox360 and ps3 graphics looks like someone smeared greese all over every game.  

     

    Never trust a screenshot or a youtube video without a version stamp!

  • ThomasN7ThomasN7 87.18.7.148Member CommonPosts: 6,690

    Originally posted by Lord.Bachus

    Originally posted by SaintViktor

    Sorry but they'll never beat out console sales. Consoles started the gaming genre and it will end with consoles still on top. Consoles just have better and more games available to players.  

    Not in the long run... as soon as the current (quite old) consoles are replaced by ones that compete again with PC's the console sales will pick up again, untill then the PC will rise...

     

    On top of that.... FPS shooters and MMO's are more suited for PC and probably the 2 best selling genres in the long run.

    This is probably more wishful thinking than anything. Console games sell a ton more than pc games do, its a fact. Zelda, COD, Modern Warfare, and Mario all crush pc game sales not to mention most  developers for both the pc and console. There is no way pc games will ever be as popular as console gaming. Not to mention mmos will be coming to consoles very soon.

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  • AIMonsterAIMonster Member UncommonPosts: 2,059

    I'm willing to bet one of the reasons PC gaming is doing so well is digital distributors like Steam picking up more and more Indie titles which are especially great for the casual audience (the biggest group of gamers) looking for a cheap generally quick game.  They also tend to have a more diversity than AAA titles.

    On the other hand, Indie distribution on consoles is fairly lackluster.  XBLIG is bogged down with restrictions and a lack of advertising for their Indie titles.  Digital distributors like Steam, Impulse, and Gamer's Gate on the other hand have far less restrictions and will tend to pick up a title as long as it they think it will generate sales on their service.  The most important difference though, is that digital distributors on the PC tend to give Indie titles just as much advertising as they do with their AAA.  You'll never see a XBLIG top the sales chart over AAA, but you'll regularly see Indie games on Steam top sales on a daily basis due to great advertising presence.

    I think it's a bit silly for Nvidia to assume graphical processing power is a huge selling point for most consumers though.  A lot of the extremely popular games on PC don't require a lot of graphic's processing power.  Desktop games like Solitaire, World of Warcraft, The Sims, etc. aren't exactly pushing more polygons than Crysis series, whose sales actually were a disappointment to the developers.

  • FadedbombFadedbomb Member Posts: 2,081

    Originally posted by maskedweasel

    I'm more worried about what kind of "boom" we're looking for.  Game sales might be greater... but what kind of games are we looking at -- as many of the highest selling games are very, very casual -- and with cash shop models getting increasingly popular for the casual crowd,  what are we really going to look forward to?

     

    I mean,  right now,  the same titles launching  on all platforms,  PC is still the lowest in regards of sales in most cases.  How that will translate in 2014... who knows?

    PC sales for Battlefield 3 are 3x higher than for consoles. Quite simply, Consoles do NOT have the punching power in terms of hardware that PC's DO.

     

    Consoles will NEVER beat PCs out like console kids would love to assume. PC's will always be better, because they're fully upgradable and modular.

     

    The day Consoles because as upgradable and user friendly as PC's do (including the precision that a mouse & keyboard give) is the day PC's & Consoles merge into better PC's. Since the moment a console can do what a PC can do it Becomes a PC :)!

    The Theory of Conservative Conservation of Ignorant Stupidity:
    Having a different opinion must mean you're a troll.

  • pierthpierth Member UncommonPosts: 1,494

    Originally posted by SaintViktor

    Sorry but they'll never beat out console sales. Consoles started the gaming genre and it will end with consoles still on top. Consoles just have better and more games available to players.  

    I'm sure that's what was said about arcade coin-ops as well.

     

    I don't doubt that consoles will go the way of the dodo. Smartphones are rapidly catching up to take the place of handhelds and with more and more people becoming somewhat computer savvy I don't see them choosing to have a computer as well as a lobotomized com- erm, console. As for your last statement, I humbly disagree- it's like saying video stores have more and better movies than the internet.

  • KillyoxKillyox Member CommonPosts: 424

    Originally posted by SaintViktor

    Sorry but they'll never beat out console sales. Consoles started the gaming genre and it will end with consoles still on top. Consoles just have better and more games available to players.  

    Are you 10 or what? PCs started gaming first efore there was even any console. I still remember my Rambo console then nintendo, sega, PSX etc. But to say consoles started it is false.

  • GravargGravarg Member UncommonPosts: 3,424

    I hardly ever touch my consoles anymore.  I have all 3 and my 360 is really the only one that I play regularly, because I just got dead island.  PC is far superior to consoles, since they're fully upgradable.  Consoles do upgrade, but in order to upgrade you have to shell out full price for a newer model...hey that sounds like the way apple does business...good riddens to them too lol

  • ThomasN7ThomasN7 87.18.7.148Member CommonPosts: 6,690

    Originally posted by wojtekpl

    Originally posted by SaintViktor

    Sorry but they'll never beat out console sales. Consoles started the gaming genre and it will end with consoles still on top. Consoles just have better and more games available to players.  

    Are you 10 or what? PCs started gaming first efore there was even any console. I still remember my Rambo console then nintendo, sega, PSX etc. But to say consoles started it is false.

    Guess you don't remeber the atari 2600, intellivision , colecovision. PCs were primarily used for business back in the day. Perhaps you are too young enough to remember that. So I'll ask, are you 10 ?

     

    Source: http://www.slipperybrick.com/2009/03/atari-vcs-2600/ 

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  • CacophanistCacophanist Member Posts: 100

    Originally posted by SaintViktor

    Originally posted by wojtekpl


    Originally posted by SaintViktor

    Sorry but they'll never beat out console sales. Consoles started the gaming genre and it will end with consoles still on top. Consoles just have better and more games available to players.  

    Are you 10 or what? PCs started gaming first efore there was even any console. I still remember my Rambo console then nintendo, sega, PSX etc. But to say consoles started it is false.

    Guess you don't remeber the atari 2600, intellivision , colecovision. PCs were primarily used for business back in the day. Perhaps yuou are too young enough to remember that.

     

    Source: http://www.slipperybrick.com/2009/03/atari-vcs-2600/ 

    Sorry Wojtekpl (what fing stupid name btw) but SaintViktor is right. If you were alive in the late 70's / early 80's then you would know this.

    However there is some greyness here as things like text based games and MUDS came out on computers rather than consoles. But still arcade games were played on console type machines. It all started with a shitty tennis type game with 2 lines ...

  • Kaynos1972Kaynos1972 Member Posts: 2,316

    Console are doomed to have declining sales as the console ages.  The Xbox 360 and PS3 have reached their limit, recent games prove that.   Until Microsoft and Sony launch the next generation of console it will keep declining to PC.  But when the new console will launch (should be before 2014) console gaming should climb back on top.

  • DiSpLiFFDiSpLiFF Member UncommonPosts: 602

    if they mean pc gaming as in facebook etc games then I guess I can agree. A lot of non-typical people are now playing those games like farmville, bejewelled etc 

     

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