What do Crysis and Unreal Tournament III have in common?

[Zenien]

Crysis and Unreal Tournament 3 were two of the most anticipated first-person shooters of the year for the PC, but you wouldn’t know that from their lackluster sales figures. According to research firm NPD Group, Crytek’s critically lauded FPS Crysis sold just 86,633 units last month, while the PC version of Epic's Unreal Tournament III fared poorly too, selling just 33,995 units.

By comparison, Call of Duty 4 for the Xbox 360 shifted a massive 1.57 million units on November. This could spell bad news for PC gamers as the incentive for developers to make PC games instead of console ones largely depends on the ability to actually make money from them.

Both games managed to score highly with critics, but the steep hardware requirements (especially with Crysis) often needed to run PC games at acceptable frame rates suggest that the bestselling titles are those that can be available to a wider market by having lower hardware requirements.

http://www.techspot.com/news/28270-crysis-ut3-sales-disappoint-developers.html

 

[GoldenAgeHero]

pc gaming is teh dying.

 

[WhatsHisFace]

Crysis coming to consoles confirmed.

 

[Smirnoff]

I don't care. Crysis is absolutely amazing, and runs perfectly on my ultimate best ever PC. t:

 

[GFreeman]

There's a reason why Valve and Blizzard make games that are smash successes, and Crysis and Unreal fall on their faces. You can't make a game that only 1% of the PC gamer population can play and still expect to make money. People aren't upgrading for one game.

 

[Jerry!]

Yeah I've heard of the money that some people have put out to upgrade their already pretty good gaming PC. It's ridiculous. It is like a chain reaction that will never stop. A few years from now when the next mega graphically enhanced game(s )come out, these same people who spent the money to upgrade for Crysis will be paying to upgrade again. Hundreds, maybe thousands of dollars every few years for one game? Forget it.

 

[XtromaniaK]

Indeed. Though this doesn't matter to me anymore considering that my new system is pretty much set for the next 5-6 years.

 

[Capt Throbberson]

Considering they both cost $3000, this is no surprise.

 

[Barney Stinson]

You're right. This isn't a surprise. Developers need to understand that not everyone has super high spec machines to play their high spec games. Forking out tonnes of dough just to upgrade so said game can be played makes no sense. That money would be better spent on something else. Expecting a huge turn over was overly ambitious and somewhat foolish. A basic principle of marketing is to give the consumer what they want...within moderate reach.

 

[GoldenAgeHero]

Indeed. Though this doesn't matter to me anymore considering that my new system is pretty much set for the next 5-6 years.

i wouldnt be so sure about that.

 

[terry78]

Basically if you want to play Crysis you have to ****ing break into the DoD, locate their server, and then hook up your monitor to it. Only to find out that they just barely meet the requirements.

 

[Fenrir]

Basically if you want to play Crysis you have to ****ing break into the DoD, locate their server, and then hook up your monitor to it. Only to find out that they just barely meet the requirements.

Yeah, that's about right. But even then, it's totally worth it. I'd go so far as saying Crysis could easily be my top choice for GOTY 2007 and one of the best first person shooters of all time, and there have been some pretty damn fine games last year. It's a sandbox shooter that does pretty much everything right - from the excellent shooting mechanics, massive lush environments to customizable weapons, cool suit powers that have a very broad and creative application, challenging A.I, an engaging plot, vehicular action with jeeps, tanks, planes, aliens...Crytek threw everything plus the bloody kitchen sink in this game. I've finished the campaign about three times now and it still manages to stay fresh!

 

[Jerry!]

It'd have to be Game of the Century for me to to shell out the that kind of money for one game.

 

[WhatsHisFace]

Yeah, that's about right. But even then, it's totally worth it. I'd go so far as saying Crysis could easily be my top choice for GOTY 2007 and one of the best first person shooters of all time, and there have been some pretty damn fine games last year. It's a sandbox shooter that does pretty much everything right - from the excellent shooting mechanics, massive lush environments to customizable weapons, cool suit powers that have a very broad and creative application, challenging A.I, an engaging plot, vehicular action with jeeps, tanks, planes, aliens...Crytek threw everything plus the bloody kitchen sink in this game. I've finished the campaign about three times now and it still manages to stay fresh!

I couldn't even get through the demo. It felt so much like Farcry I couldn't bear it.

 

[Kalit]

Maybe they should try making good FPS games for computer.

 

[WhatsHisFace]

Roffle

 

[Hudson]

Step A: Do NOT import more Halo games onto the PC, it's backlogged with **** enough as it is.

 

[WhatsHisFace]

Are you suggesting that they just don't make FPSs unless they know they can make a good one?

I think that's a good idea. TimeShift, Turok and all those FPS games can just disappear for a few years and let the FPS genre be left to companies like Valve (though I hate Half-Life 2 and the episodes) and Gearbox to let people begin to desire FPS games again.

I really hope an underused genre emerges victorious one day. Platformers and Adventure games need to make a comeback.

 

[Hudson]

haha, I love you, WHF in a totally butt-****ing kind of way, :heart:

 

[WhatsHisFace]

I'm pretty sure you're high and drunk again so huzzah for Hudson!

 

[Hudson]

Nah, ever smoked the ganja, I could be drunk but alas I am not. I just tried figuring out the most disturbing response I could.

Huzzah anyway?

 

[WhatsHisFace]

Huzzah x2 for you because weed is dirty and xXxwolverinexXx does it. It gets in your hair whereas alcohol will kindly leave your body.

 

[Hudson]

except the beer belly

 

[WhatsHisFace]

Khaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!

 

[TheCorpulent1]

I think a part of the problem with PC games is that they're the easiest to pirate. Why pay for PC games when you could just exercise some L337 haXX0rz skillz? Or let someone else do it and then download it via torrents.