I'm all for EA putting it's weight behind the PC format. It is here to stay and there needs to be more united support for it from within the games industry, especially from publishers and retailers alike.

After phones PCs are the most common gaming platform. So they are well worth developing for. The problem is a business model that sees your game available for free by bit torrent before you even ship. Presumably EA are getting round this with in game advertising and micropayments.

Gotta be said that EA are making an effort nowadays. Never thought I'd say that...

With Bruce on this one,

The decline of the PC as a gaming platform seems to be intrinsicly linked to the rise of torrent sites. Being an ex-dyed-in-blue PC gamer, I have seen it slowly die as developers and publishers jump ship for something more profitable in the form of next-gen consoles. Not the only reason of course, I like the fact my 360 (and maybe one day PS3, once the price comes down to something more realistic and has a game that actually shows off the much vaunted power) doesn't need expensive hardware upgrades and the developers "make do" with what they have.

Cant help but think though this just means the PC will just get a slew of console conversions (GTA 4 a year down the line once the real profits have been made on consoles, for instance) and MMORPGS that developers know they can get a return on investment from subscription. Microsoft's "games for windows" push wasn't exactly brilliant was it? Even the much vaunted STEAMs products can be cracked and regularly haunt torrent sites.

I would love what i call (for my generation at least) the golden age of PC gaming when Half-Life 2 was released to return, but im not holding my breath.

plkay game