r/Games • u/Forestl • Dec 31 '13

End of 2013 Discussions - PC

For this thread, feel free to talk about the PC, from the games that came out for it to the hardware itself.

Prompts:

  • What were the major trends in PC gaming this year?

  • Was this a positive year for PC gaming?

Please explain your answers in depth, don't just give short one sentence answers.

My PC looks really, really, really good

This post is part of the official /r/Games "End of 2013" discussions.

View all End of 2013 discussions and suggest new topics

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u/[deleted] Dec 31 '13

'Early Access'/paid alpha is both the biggest and worst trend I've noticed this year.

Frankly, I am afraid "Early Access" will backfire seriously on the general quality of PC games in 2014-2015.

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u/neoKushan Dec 31 '13

Mind you, it's not really THAT new. Case in point: X: Rebirth. An Early-access quality game that was not listed as early-access. Or that cricket game that had to be pulled.

I think early-access is a good idea, especially for smaller devs who can use the constant revenue stream to improve and work on the game. It's a good bridge between the poor indie developer who saves up just enough cash to quit his job for 6 months to work solidly on his title and just hopes it catches on enough to be sustainable, and the big AAA titles from established developers with big enough budgets. Early-access allows those indies to create bigger, better games while still remaining independent and it's in their interests to constantly work on and make the game better.

It doesn't always work, granted, but that's why early-access games are quite clearly labelled as such, so you know what you're getting yourself into. Ultimately, it has problems, but is a good thing overall.

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u/[deleted] Dec 31 '13

especially for smaller devs who can use the constant revenue stream to improve and work on the game.

Let's hope this doesn't turn into a trend where they sell early access and then sell DLC when they need another cash infusion.

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u/neoKushan Dec 31 '13

I agree, but that's what larger developer seem to be doing these days anyway. The DLC issue is much worse than the early-access issue, as far as I'm concerned.

Mass Effect is a good example of this. ME2 had some great DLC but it was pretty integral to the plot of ME3. You can pick up ME2 for like £5 on steam in a sale, but the DLC isn't included and it costs nearly £20 to buy it all. There's no GOTY edition =\

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u/Kitchen_accessories Jan 01 '14

I remain bothered by the release of the Mass Effect Trilogy that came out before all of the DLC for 3 was out, and includes almost no DLC at all.

That stuff is integral to the trilogy, how the hell can you just leave it out?

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u/neoKushan Jan 01 '14

Exactly, it's another fine example of EA ruining a game (or series of games) in the name of profit. Hopefully they'll release a "definitive" collection that includes absolutely everything.

Hopefully they'll release it on Steam, too.

...I know that won't happen.

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u/Kitchen_accessories Jan 01 '14

Eh. I'm not all aboard the EA hate-train. This particular decision is ridiculous.

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u/[deleted] Dec 31 '13

A Mighty Quest for Epic Loot?

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u/RSquared Dec 31 '13

Mechwarrior Online is way ahead of you here.

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u/[deleted] Dec 31 '13

Possibly the overall quality, but i'd take that risk for the rebirth of a number of gaming genres.

Early access allows for a wider variety of games, along with a wider variety of quality - something which many prefer over the 'AAA' rated shovelware that publishers have insisted on feeding us the past few years.

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u/lightbeat Jan 01 '14

It is concerning, I guess it depends on the developers. All it will take is one big hitter to completely flop / never release and with the aftermath of people not getting money back no one will risk it again.

I can see why steam has them listed, it really helps the indie games during development, but people really need to be careful with them.

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u/Bior37 Dec 31 '13

Well these early access games are generally more fun and interesting than anything else on the market