[*NEW*: Want new players, revenue for your online game? Check out our Game Advertising Online network - 2 billion ads per month at inexpensive CPC rates!]

« Idea City And Metaversatility Partner For In-World Market Research | Main | Mabinogi Sees Official Launch »

Monday, March 31, 2008

DICE's Cousins: Huge Opportunity For PC Game Growth

-Talking as part of an in-depth new interview at Worlds in Motion sister site Gamasutra, Battlefield Heroes senior producer Ben Cousins has called the death of PC gaming "a crazy idea", suggesting that "hundreds of millions" of game-compatible PCs mean a bright future on the platform.

The Electronic Arts-published Battlefield Heroes, which will debut later this year, is a free to play title that is funded by in-menu/website ads and microtransactions.

When discussing the hypothesis that consoles are a 'niche market' in some ways, Cousins explained:

"If you look at the amount of PCs that are out there, we're talking hundreds and hundreds of millions; if you look at the amount of PS3s and 360s, we're talking tens of millions, barely. So, absolutely, people think that the PC is dying, but that's a crazy idea...

I think we're going to continue to see high-end packaged good games on the PC. But I think they're going to, as you say, have an element of connectivity; they're going to have an element of persistence which you need to be connected online to do; and they're going to be, probably, more multiplayer focused."

Further on in the interview, Cousins expanded on the possibilities for worldwide growth of games, both on and off consoles - and especially internationally, explaining:

"I think you saw a huge growth in the industry when the NES came out, and then again when the PlayStation came out. I mean, people didn't realize that -- people felt that all of the growth had been done, but it really feels like, to me, that we're on the cusp of another expansive period of growth, between the DS and the Wii audiences, and there's also an opportunity on the PC now.

PCs are everywhere -- there are hundreds of thousands of internet cafes in India, and this is a poor country that soon will have a completely global, online connected world, for which games will be completely different."

You can now read the full Gamasutra interview with Cousins for a more in-depth look at his views, including much more on the ad/microtransaction powered whimsical take on the Battlefield franchise he's currently working on.

[]
Posted by Leigh Alexander on March 31, 2008 12:02 PM |

Post a comment


If you enjoy reading GameSetWatch.com, you might also want to check out these CMP Game Group sites:

Gamasutra (the 'art and business of games'.)

Game Career Guide (for student game developers.)

Indie Games (for independent game players/developers.)

Finger Gaming (news, reviews, and analysis on iPhone and iPod Touch games.)

GamerBytes (for the latest console digital download news.)

Worlds In Motion (discussing the business of online worlds.)

Weekly Archive

WorldsInMotion.biz [Twitter / RSS feed] discusses the business of connected games - from social gaming through free to play games to core MMOs and beyond - and is created by the folks behind:



Copyright © 2008 Think Services