Game Girl » Miscellaneous

SEGA’s Scorn For PC Gamers

Kurina — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 17:43:34 +0000

It is no secret that console gaming is where a majority of the money is for the industry. What does surprise me is the contempt developers have for the PC platform to start with. Instead of communicating with gamers and looking to offer quality products to appeal to potential consumers, companies release half-assed products or very poor ports. When sales are low due to these actions, they blame piracy and refuse to take a look at their own actions.

SEGA is the latest publisher in the anti-PC gamer club. The company is bringing Sonic: All Stars Racing to the PC, but without one major feature, online support. Instead, the company is releasing local splitscreen multiplayer only. As fans became upset and the company was questioned about this, SEGA had some very interesting comments to add.

“Truth is we did look at online support, be it GFW or some other method,” Lycett said. “When we looked into the cost vs the projected sales, the two didn’t add up. So as a result the feature wasn’t added to the game. One of the main reasons is that on PC people will steal it rather than buy it.”

So clearly, SEGA has generalized the entire PC market and dubbed us as thieves. I am not ignorant to the fact a great deal of piracy does exist, but so do a great deal of legitimate consumers if you provide a quality product. Had I actually been interested in this title, I would have no incentive to buy it now. Why buy a substandard port with features missing? While I do not condone such acts, I imagine their ignorance will lead to a higher rate of piracy for their products.

Video Game Soundtracks

Kurina — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 05:07:36 +0000

In an ongoing effort to clean up my music library, I began to notice a distinct lack of video game soundtracks, or new epic music in general. I originally had quite a large collection. However, a majority of it has been lost over the years, or deleted if I discovered it was a rip off an official soundtrack I did not pay for.

To remedy this, I went on a hunt for video game soundtracks that have been released by developers at no cost for our enjoyment. Here is what I have found so far. If you know of any other free soundtracks to add to the list, please tell. I am a sucker for this kind of stuff.

Also note, not all these are approved by me as quality tracks. I am simply listing all I have found.

Digital Distribution Review

Kurina — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 20:29:09 +0000

Clearly, there is some craziness going on here that needs to be explained. Nearly one year ago, I started a blog titled Digital Distribution Review. The goal of this blog was to inform consumers about the digital distribution of PC games, and to correct a great deal of misinformation that is floating around online. Surprisingly, the blog was a success. It attracted regular visitors, as well as opened up some interesting opportunities for myself.

I was a wholehearted supporter of these services at the start. However, the further I delved into my research and talked with members of the industry, that support quickly waned. To put it simply, I discovered this is not a world I wanted to be a part of. I found it difficult to continue writing for Digital Distribution Review without letting personal bias take over.

I feel further explanation of my reasons are of little value at this point. I have learned it is impossible to reason with a majority of gamers on the topic, and they will simply have to discover issues for themselves. Even reasoning with certain developers became quite a task, who will often avoid any challenging question and continue pushing gamers to use these services.

My initial reaction was to delete the blog and just be done with it, but a friend convinced me it was important not to. The information still needed to be there for others to read. After some consideration, I agreed and have now merged many of those posts into my personal blog, removing only the general news pieces that had no place here.

If you came here through Digital Distribution Review in search of an article, my apologies for taking you on this detour. The article likely still exists, you will just need to search for it again through the upper right hand search box, or Digital Distribution category. If you came here for the price debate charts, they likely will not make a reappearance due to the work involved. All you need to know is that you are probably paying too much if you live in Europe or the United States.

My apologies as well to those who were so willing to help me, and gave me a great deal of information that I am still processing. I am deeply grateful for all your help, and I will not forget it.

The Uncertainties of PC Gaming

Kurina — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 06:04:48 +0000

The PC has always had some major benefits that consoles do not. Some of these benefits include better visuals, an active mod community, excellent multiplayer features, cheaper games, and an amazing independent developer community. Although I have enjoyed consoles from time to time (Intellivision through PS2), I could not pass up the advantages the PC offered to gamers. I loved having the ability to tweak files, change the game up, and enjoy some crazy online games at no additional cost. The problem is, many of these benefits are disappearing, and I find myself wondering if it is still worth the investment.

As I was writing reviews for Bad Company 2 and Bioshock 2, I realized many of my complaints can be applied to a majority of releases over the past few years. My primary complaint is the increase of titles with watered down gameplay. The PC has always excelled in the FPS genre, and has produced some very challenging titles over the years. One example being Counter Strike, a game which requires a great deal of speed and dexterity to be successful. It has provided a consistent challenge over the years for players, and is one of the top competitive FPS games in the world.

However, if you compare it to recent releases in the genre, you will recognize how simplified games have become. What used to be considered normal is now limited to “hardcore” modes if the developer even bothers providing that as an option. The normal mode for these games has become nothing more than a friendly, recoil free, Rambo-like experience. Two games contributing to the downfall of the FPS genre is Modern Warfare 2 and Battlefield: Bad Company 2. On the other hand, and oddly enough, MAG on the PS3 contains more “old school” FPS features than any recent titles on the PC.

Another worrisome trend is the continual lack of mod support for games. This is by far one of the largest benefits of PC gaming, and the mod community has produced some great titles over the years. Yet, with the intense push to market and sell DLC, many developers are no longer releasing the necessary tools to modify games. DICE, creators of Bad Company 2, have stated they will not release mod tools because they are too “complex.” After the success of mods like Project Reality, this is surprising. The reasoning behind this decision became obvious a few weeks later, when it was announced a store would be built into the client to purchase DLC maps, class kits, and more. Clearly, the company does not want modders interfering with their business. The developers of Supreme Commander 2 and the Total War series have also denied any future releases of map or modding tools, and there are a variety of recently released titles that claim tools are too complex as well. Considering the talent of many modders, I find this unlikely.

Poor console ports are nothing new to the PC, but the amount of these ports is increasing at a rapid pace. The most recent example is Bioshock 2. While I had little trouble starting and playing the game, I was still forced to tweak quite a few settings to improve performance, functionality, and gameplay mechanics. Additionally, the visual quality seems little improved, and the textures are very unimpressive. There have been a variety of other recent games I have had to tweak a good deal due to poor or missing settings, with Borderlands being by far the worst culprit.

Additional symptoms of bad ports are the lack of multiplayer features. Matchmaking services appear to be increasing, and access to server browsers is decreasing. There is absolutely nothing good that can come with matchmaking, as decent results are rarely consistent. Server browsers allow players to find games with the lowest ping, preferred custom settings, amount of players, and more. I do not want a game trying to decide the best experience for me, as I am capable of doing this myself.

Then there is digital distribution, the supposed savior of PC gaming. An increasing amount of developers are forcing consumers to attach their games to Steam whether they want to or not. In turn, gamers lose all rights to the games they purchase and are required to use a very restrictive form of DRM. Ubisoft is following suit by creating an even more restrictive service, forcing gamers to stay online at all times if they want to play anything. It is depressing to see what these companies are doing to consumers, and I have no desire to use either of these services.

This may seem like a weird complaint, as consoles are also tied to a specific service (LIVE and PSN). The difference lies in the fact that console gamers are not being forced to tie games to the service, and still own what they purchase. They are able to freely trade games amongst friends or resell them. PC gamers on the other hand deal with harsh DRM, little control over their games, and all their products tied to one account that can be disabled at any point with Steam. As PC gaming moves more towards becoming a service, the more willing I become to leave it all together.

There are some exceptions to the above, but they are no longer the norm. Instead, PC gaming is losing many of the characteristics that made it so unique and exceptional. So now I am at a crossroad. I was hoping to upgrade my three year old PC this year, but I have now put my plans on hold while I decide where to go next. I am not abandoning the platform, but I am debating whether I should make the move to a Playstation 3 and make the PC my secondary choice. The 360 is not an option. I previously won one, and after a month of use, I dropped it off at a pawn shop. I had no intention of paying extra fees to play with friends, it was very noisy, and I did not like the constant fear of system failure that is so common with the console.

To summarize my thoughts, I am simply very disappointed with the PC, recent releases, and how publishers are treating the platform. There is very little to look forward to, as many of the games coming out are either forcing Steam upon the consumer, removed community/mod support, or have been watered down with many features removed.

So, which of the two is the lesser evil, and provides the more quality overall experience? At this point in time, I feel as though it is the PS3, but we will see how this year plays out first.

What Is Going On?

Kurina — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 21:32:03 +0000

Finally! Ever since I started this blog, I have had a difficult time deciding whether to use Blogspot or Wordpress. Both systems are great, and each have their own strengths and weaknesses. However, as time went on, I began to miss some of the key features Wordpress provided for my other blogs. With help from my friend providing me with space on his server, I finally moved to Wordpress and found a halfway decent template to use.

My gaming has come to a slight standstill, as things have been pretty crazy around here. I have been doing work around the house, and keeping busy over the weekends. This past weekend was especially exciting as my family and I watched the Super Bowl. While I was cheering for the Colts, I am also glad to see the Saints win their first big game, and revive their city after the horrors that took place there during the hurricane.

Things are finally settling down though, and it is time to get back to gaming. After recently formatting my PC, I slimmed down what games I had installed in favor of a select few that I am determined to finish (or that I simply enjoy playing). The games that made the cut are:

Counter Strike (obviously)
Battlefield 2 w/ Project Reality
Resident Evil 5
Red Faction Guerrilla
Medieval II: Total War
Torchlight
Defense Grid: The Awakening
Trine (never got around to finishing)

Additionally, Blizzchicks.org has asked me to write some articles for the upcoming site. While I was hesitant at first due to my own schedule and never playing World of Warcraft, I agreed and I look forward to helping the site out. I rewrote an older article I had written elsewhere regarding Battle.Net, and now I am currently tossing around ideas for other things to write about. If you have any ideas, feel free to share!

So on that note, it is time to get back to playing games and ranting about them.

Google Analytics

Kurina — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 03:51:00 +0000

A little over a week ago, some close friends were discussing the statistics of their websites according to Google Analytics. Although I have used the service before, I felt it was not really needed for my personal blog. The goal for this site is not to grow into anything big, but to simply write about something I am very passionate about. However, with the continual talk of Analytics and my competitive nature, I caved to temptation and included it here.

I checked the results for the first time yesterday, and I must say I am pleasantly surprised at the results. Thus far, I assumed my visitors were primarily my friends and the few people who follow me on Twitter. Instead, people were coming to me from the oddest places, as well as some major networking sites. The viewers from Linkedin surprised me the most, and now I am intensely curious as to who is discussing my little blog there. Additionally, it appears my post on digital distribution has received quite a bit of activity, leading me to believe I hit some nerves on the topic. I only wish more would stay and discuss it.

So to all the newcomers who are finding their way here, welcome! Feel free to follow me on Twitter (@pcgamegirl), or email me if you feel the need to for some reason. I am always curious to hear what others think.

Sunday Ramblings

Kurina — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 03:54:00 +0000

Today I did a little shopping with my mother and sister, as we decided to have a fun “girls day out.” It was definitely a fun trip, as we had some excellent Mexican food for lunch, and ended the day with some Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream while driving along the coast heading home.

During our trip, I naturally had to hit up Half Price Books. This has become one of my new favorite places to shop, despite not being a big book reader. They have a ton of recent and older PC games that typically run $6, so it is hard not to go crazy and buy everything there. I behaved myself today, and only grabbed Devil May Cry 4 for $6. My friend mentioned it was well worth it at that price, so I guess I will find out! So far, I am becoming quite impressed with Capcom games, and how well they look and run on my aging PC. I just hope the game play holds up as well!

However, no time to start with DMC4 just yet. As curious as I am to see how it plays out, I am still a bit addicted to Resident Evil 5. Despite some wonky controls at times, co-op is still a blast, and I am loving the Mercenary mode. Jill is quite the bad ass if I may say so.