sixstring wrote:
Misery wrote:
Quote:
"My preference for PC was in part was the variety of games" I find that pretty weird considering PC has the least variety in genres of any platform.
I'm sorry, I have to ask, but where in the world did you get that idea?
Whut? I don't know any good exclusive JRPG on PC. Not one good exclusive platformer. Not one good exclusive racer. Not one good exclusive beat-em-up. Not one game in the likes of Journey, ICO, Shadow of the Colossus. Not one good party game like Guitar Hero.
The vast majority of indie games that are actually worth your money, are also available on PSN/XBL. Consoles provide 90% of the games you can find on PC... And a ton of games PC doesn't have.
Aye, and the reason for that is that you dont know where to LOOK.
Like I said... research. It's the one big downside to PC gaming. These games will NOT come to you. They absolutely will not. The ones on PSN/XBLA? Yeah, they do, because the guys in charge want you to spend on them big time, so they'll shove the things at you like so many others. But on PC? No. Steam will do it SOMETIMES. Maybe. Sort of. But it's usually brief and very unintrusive. And actually the vast majority of indie games that are worth the money.... or outright FREE (and yet still better than ones that ARE costly) are on PC. There's simply more of them. So freaking many more. And I say this as someone that's actually familiar with the selection on PSN and XBLA (this sort of thing being the only other use for my 360, I actually have some 150+ games on there from the indie grouping; I just dont count them when talking about the 360 because they're non-retail, so to many people they dont even exist, sigh. I dont do the PSN ones so much these days though because that damn thing has space issues). And heck, even XBLA's indie stuff isnt without it's major problems: I'm familiar with those, and here's the thing about them: You PAY for those on there.... but games at that same level, on PC? Usually free. Because PC gamers tend to EXPECT it.
But as for the game types you mentioned, on PC:
1. Platformers: Trine (I forget if this one is exclusive or not) Dustforce, Blocks that Matter, Gish, Giana Sisters (the recent one), Super House of Dead Ninjas (holy heck I love that one), Tobe's Vertical Adventure, VVVVVV, Cave Story... There are COUNTLESS PC-only platformers out there. This includes both 2D and 3D types; my personal favorite style is 2D, thus my listing here. But seriously, there's a batshit insane number of these out there that are PC only, everything from retro-styled to "modern" types. The fact that you DONT think there's alot of these is what shows me that you simply dont know much (and I dont mean that in a bad way, mind you, no offense meant). It's actually one of the easiest genres to find on PC.
2. Racing: Trackmania series (this is a BIG one), GTR series, F1 series, RaceRoom, some damn silly number of "simulation" type driving/racing games. I only have so many of these because setting up the damn wheel every time is annoying and I'm low on patience. But this is another "big on PC" genre and is one reason why steering-wheel controllers for PC are actually common.
3. Beat-em-ups: These are a little mindless to me, so I honestly dont bother with them. Not a fan. But they're a popular style of indie game, and there are lots of them. But you'd have to look that one up yourself.
4. RPGs: I dont do the Japanese ones specifically, so I wont list them here: I haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaate the brainmelting storytelling style used in most of them and cant stand cutscenes. Still, I like a good RPG, but they're not the "J" sort. Unless games like Recettear count (look it up), which actually is a Japanese styled RPG-ish game, just not a turn-based one, and more of an action RPG (and with less of the ZOMG SHINY CUTSCENES sort of thing); if you dont HAVE to have them be Squaresoft-style, there actually are alot of the "J" type out there. Again though, I dont play them so I wont list them (because I'll get the names wrong or something).
But, some that I do like, that are NOT Japanese styled: Legend of Grimrock, Avernum series, Might & Magic series, System Shock, Jagged Alliance, and QUITE a lot of games that are done in the first-person style of Skyrim and that sort; that type originated on PC, not on console; even things like Skyrim are generally ports, and are usually DRAMATICALLY better on PC (particularly with mods). Now, again, that's not to say that there ARENT pure J-RPG styled games on here; it's just that I, personally, ignore them utterly, so I'm not going to try to list them. Note also that RPGs on PC are very, very different from console types in general. The definition of "RPG" is often a bit more broad here and less stale.
5. "Environmental" games like Ico and all of them..... actually, there's alot of these. Or that's what I'm calling that sort, anyway. The sort that uses things like atmosphere and exploration and things like that to tell a story and immerse the player in the world, usually in a "calm" sort of gameplay. You dont see that many of these on console for one reason: Because the big publishers think they are risky. But on PC? No such restriction. These are actually some of the easiest sorts to find, because they tend to stick out. I, personally, do not play them. Something like "Element4l", Papo & Yo, Kairo, are along the lines of what I think of when I think of games like Ico. Again though, I'm no expert on these as I lack the patience. But yeah, you better believe there are plenty of devs out there that tried their hand at THAT style of game, particularly after Ico and such came along.
6. Party games: Look that one up yourself. I tend to really dislike these, so I'm going to ignore this one rather than try to strain my screwed up memory trying to recall things from a genre I actually dont like much.
And these are just the genres you mentioned. I could do REALLY big listings for certain other genres that I have a strong interest in, such as shmups, or Roguelikes. And there are some genres that are very weak on console.... such as the strategy genre.... yet bloody HUGE on PC (again, strategy is the best example). I'm not going to try to list those; I've been on a major strategy game kick lately and it'd take forever. But a couple of specific favorites are Elemental: Fallen Enchantress, Anno 2070 (and omigod is that one freaking GORGEOUS; but it'll MELT weaker PCs), and Eador: Masters of the Broken World. Anno being my number one favorite; bloody brilliant game, that, and a PERFECT example of the sort of thing that WOULD NOT hit consoles, because publishers. And there are games that are seriously difficult.... or outright impossible.... to fit into a genre. That's one thing about console titles: They almost always will fit quite snugly into a genre description. PC? No. They can, and they do sometimes, but plenty of times.... they dont. Mount & Blade is a favorite of mine; this one is bloody hard to fit into a genre, it really seriously is. That type of game would never come out on console. But I'm aware of a good number of games like it. This is one of the most central reasons why I do PC games: Because of the sheer creativity, and the lack of rules and restrictions on content. That game is only one out of thousands of examples. I actually play quite a ton of this sort, but I could not possibly recommend specific ones unless it's to someone that I know pretty well, so that I'd know WHICH to recommend that they might like.
And all of these games? Pretty much JUST offa Steam.... which is actually NOT the best place to look for these (not even close). It's a "good starting point sort of" but that's about it. All of these are games that I myself have some familiarity with (except for the "Environmental" grouping), and are generally games I own, taken offa my own list. And THIS list was written up quickly. Some actual research and searching and time can get you long, long lists of games of every genre. But yeah, these are all off of MY listing only, and I am a very picky individual.... think of what you might find if you ARENT as picky as I am. And these are games of all levels, as far as technical whatsits go; some of them are very graphically impressive and require powerful machines; others are simpler, more of a "retro" style, or perhaps just a bit minimalist; I like that sort quite a bit.
Oh, and yes; these are all either very recent, or fairly recent games, with the possible exception of System Shock. Even if you were to ONLY look into games released within the last 2 years, the list would be seriously huge.
But again..... research. It *has* to be done here. My own non-Steam collection is dramatically larger than the Steam one, but you absolutely will NOT just find out about those easily, because the developers tend to simply not give a fart about advertising and jumping in your face with them like console ones do. Literally all of my absolute-favorite games are in this category. *ALL* of them. I wont go into THAT here though because I know myself well enough to know that I *will* end up rambling about them, so I'll save your sanity.
My point though is: It's worth giving the PC more of a go, if you've got the resources. A couple years back, I was like you; I thought there wasnt ANYTHING good on PC. Nothing special, nothing interesting. But the consoles were getting so BAD, and it was driving me up the wall, so..... to PC I went, wether I liked it or not, out of sheer obsessiveness and a desire for something NEW. And boy am I bloody glad I did it. Wont go back. EVER. Best gaming-related decision I've ever made, period.
HOWEVER. This isnt something to do if you dont have a good amount of free time, because this can seriously take awhile, to look all of these up, and to keep track of new things as they come out (which is pretty much daily).
And really? If it really were actually true that I could "get all of this on consoles".... or even get HALF of it on consoles.... I would go and in fact do so. Why? Because I'm lazy, and computers in general can be nothing but trouble. Always with the blasted problems. You dont have to put up with it on consoles, that sort of thing. The fact that I focus so heavily on these irritating machines for gaming speaks volumes, because I wouldnt do so if the selection werent bloody SPECTACULAR. And I buy games *frequenly*. Like, every couple of days, sort of frequently. My financial situation (and the fact that I literally have nothing but free time, all the time) basically means that I can just do whatever I want when it comes to this sort of thing, so.... I do. I dont have the restrictions that most gamers do. All the more reason I do PC: because on PC, I dont run out of new games that I want. Because they just. Keep. COMING.
07 Jun 2013, 5:51 pm
