MGS Europe: Simultaneous 360/PC releases like shooting ourselves in the foot
by Ludwig Kietzmann 
{ Jul 1st 2008 at 10:54AM }
"On a global scale the Windows Vista business is as important as our Xbox 360 business. But in Germany for example, we want more gamers to buy our Xbox 360," Zetterberg said. "If we launch a game that is on 360 and PC simultaneously, we basically shoot ourselves in the foot by allowing the German market to choose to play the PC version – because they are more likely to buy that than spend their money on the Xbox 360."
Though the absence of immediate consumer choice is always regrettable, the sharing of exclusives between two platforms will inevitably put the least popular one at a disadvantage. After all, why would you purchase an Xbox 360 if the game you want would work just fine, if not better, on your Vista PC? Microsoft isn't just leaving the PC with leftovers, though, as Zetterberg adds that the publisher is always looking to tweak its business model to allow for a "multitude" of independent titles "under an MGS flag." Kinda like PC Live Arcade ... hey, whatever happened to that?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
arrrgh @ Jul 1st 2008 10:59AM
then stop releasing so many 360/pc ports you dumb mother fucks.
Stop trying to justify your greed and then complaining when you cant have your cake and eat it too
Mr.ESC @ Jul 1st 2008 11:00AM
The cake is a lie.
DangerMouse @ Jul 1st 2008 11:08AM
Yeah, seriously. I almost bought a 360, then i realized that most of the games I'm interested in come out on the PC later on. While I'm probably one of the few, it's still quite a loss on potential sales. Also, PC games price decreases much quicker than console games as well.
Tiptup300 @ Jul 1st 2008 1:02PM
I've heard multiple times that designing games for the Xbox 360 is setup so that porting it to the pc is as easy as pie.
Heh @ Jul 1st 2008 1:08PM
Dangermouse
I did the same thing. Decided the price of the 360 would buy me a nice CPU and mobo, pitched in some more money for a nice 8800, and I was good to go (already had 3GB of ram). Plus, my PC can be useful for other things..like watching pr0n.
arrrgh @ Jul 1st 2008 1:46PM
you can stream pr0n to teh xbox :)
DangerMouse @ Jul 1st 2008 4:05PM
ok, but how well can you maneuver the 360 gamepad with one hand :-p
Mr.ESC @ Jul 1st 2008 10:59AM
I accidentally read MGS release on Xbox 360 and PC.Wishful thinking I guess.
343 Guilty Fart @ Jul 1st 2008 12:16PM
Funny enough the tag for MGS in the first sentence is for MGS4.
squeevi @ Jul 1st 2008 12:22PM
I noticed the link was wrong too.
ssuk @ Jul 1st 2008 12:31PM
Ever think it was done purposefully to fool/mislead us?
pavs @ Jul 1st 2008 11:01AM
Hehe, thats the reason why I still dont have a 360
I played Bioshock, Gears, Mass Effect on PC, plus I can also play Crysis, MMORPGs, and a ton of other games with an upgrade that costs less than 360 Elite. So whats the point of buying a system? Halo 3... no f'ing way.
Marty @ Jul 1st 2008 11:01AM
So you can play those games a year earlier... with lots of people online?
pavs @ Jul 1st 2008 11:10AM
Bioshock came out at the same time for 360/PC.
Mass Effect wait was only about six month, which is nothing, (I've already been waiting for over a year for Starcraft II)
And Gears was a year wait, but PC got better graphics, extra levels and a Boss Fight.
Though I'm usually the kinda guy who waits infront of Gamestop on the day the game is released, I have no problem at all waiting for months, or years, for a game to come out. And as far as the online with people thing, I can do that for free on almost every PC game, and if I feel like paying for something, I resume my subscription to LOTROnline.
But don't worry, I am probably buying a 360 this fall for Star Ocean 4, unless Square Enix makes up its mind and releases it on PS3.
GuardedMarman @ Jul 1st 2008 11:19AM
Plus when it comes out for the PC online is active since it just came out for the PC so...ya.
Marty @ Jul 1st 2008 11:33AM
Well I'm the same kind of guy - I got these games for my 360, and some for my PC as well. The waiting doesn't bother me much.
But that doesn't negate the reasons I gave for owning a console. Wanting to play the games first, with a larger group of people, and all on the same playing field (less hackers, same system config, etc) just makes some games more enjoyable to me.
Vcize @ Jul 1st 2008 11:41AM
Gears online with the PC was a joke compared to playing it on the 360 with people that actually had mics and with a reasonably sized online community.
arrrgh @ Jul 1st 2008 12:03PM
+1 gears online for PC is a joke. fucking clown shoes
GenBanks @ Jul 1st 2008 1:11PM
The only reason Gears online for PC was such a joke is that
A) GFW Live service was a pain the arse compared to other PC games, so lots of people probably just gave up on it (like me... I tried to play coop campaign with a friend and got bogged down in website registrations etc so I just said 'screw you MS'.
B) There is strong competition from the likes of CS:S, WoW and TF2 and strategy games. So less of an incentive to play GoW on PC than on 360. Many people would rather play a mulitplayer-only game than the multiplayer component of a single player game.
Marty @ Jul 1st 2008 11:00AM
Well, duh.
FOXHOUND @ Jul 1st 2008 11:01AM
And now to wait and see how many get thrown off by the "MGS" acronym in this article... >:]
natels @ Jul 1st 2008 11:02AM
Well in reality, especially now with the price drop, a 360, or PS3 is most likely less than a high performance PC that can run games like GOW2, MSG4, Bioshock, etc. So I still see a market for releasing both simultaneously.
WhoMe @ Jul 1st 2008 11:02AM
This post is not relevant to my interests.
But hey Ludwig, is your avatar Dr. Orpheus?
Ninjakamster (PS360 FTW!) @ Jul 1st 2008 11:04AM
And this is why my brother wants me to keep my 360, to play GOW2 way before it comes to PC, if it even does. : /
JoeTheBlow @ Jul 1st 2008 11:15AM
Yeah, right, like i'm really going to buy a whole friggin console for one or two games.
They really are living right up their own arse over at Microsoft.
360 vs PC? @ Jul 1st 2008 11:28AM
The lack of a sales boost from GTA IV for the 360 could mean many PC gamers have decided not to ditch PC gaming for the 360 as they did in 2005-07. Now that really powerful video cards are $200 (Radeon 4850) there's not as much incentive to choose the 360 over the PC.
Marty @ Jul 1st 2008 11:35AM
I think you're really over-estimating how comfortable people are with changing out video cards, and how capable the rest of their computer is.
People buy consoles because they are quick and easy. And they'll always be easier than PC gaming, since there is so much more that can go wrong with the PC.
Jeffrey Morgan @ Jul 1st 2008 11:33AM
I am still waiting for Vista Uno!
Dwag @ Jul 1st 2008 11:33AM
Well as long as they don't do the Gears thing I have no problem I mean when it says exclusive for 360 it should really be exclusive especially if it says so right on the box.
Halo 3 looks as if its the only game that will stay Exclusive for 360(maybe not Halo 2 got ported) cause we all know Gears 2 is most likely getting ported(come on Cliff you can't hide the facts)
natels @ Jul 1st 2008 11:34AM
You would be surprised at how many people solely bought the 360 for Halo3, and the PS3 for MSG4.
Ninjakamster (PS360 FTW!) @ Jul 1st 2008 12:38PM
Its not really solely, but the main game for them to buy the console. They beat the game and then discover the console's other games, other features and so on and so forth.
Haggard @ Jul 1st 2008 11:36AM
I don't believe he literally just said "we don't release games at the same time on the PC because we want to force PC gamers to buy a 360."
Dwag @ Jul 1st 2008 11:47AM
Of course he did he's from M$ obviously he's only gonna have those infamous $$$$$$ signs in his eyes.
Why do these guys care so much about PC gamers I mean there studios are mainly making 360 games?
Gears 2 port coming in 09.
Marty @ Jul 1st 2008 11:55AM
And other companies, like Sony and Nintendo, are just in the games business out of the goodness of their hearts, right?
All three companies are out for your dollar. If you think otherwise, you just might be an idiot.
Haggard @ Jul 1st 2008 11:56AM
Perhaps the company who designed your avatar think differently?
Haggard @ Jul 1st 2008 11:59AM
Perhaps the company who designed your avatar would disagree?
Obviously MS are out for our money, but for their spokesman to say "yeah, we're trying to kill PC gaming, so what?" is a little bit contrary to the idea of public relations.
Vegeta (aka Ska Oreo) @ Jul 1st 2008 12:03PM
Did you hear that, that's the sound of me punching a wall through my god damn wall. That's how hard I raged. BECAUSE ONLY MICROSOFT ARE GREEDY BASTARDS THAT ONLY CARE ABOUT OUR MONEY. LUCKILY SONY AND NINTENDO AREN'T LIKE THAT. NOPE. THEY CARE ABOUT THEIR CUSTOMERS!!!!
Sheppy (of the Fidlious Clan of Wong) @ Jul 1st 2008 12:15PM
Okay, before you snap on the MS rant, keep this in mind.
2 1/2 years ago, Microsoft pushed the Games for Windows initiative. They unified Vista as a gaming platform. All Games For Windows titles could even accept 360 controllers. They upped advertising and basically stated "PC gaming is declining because it lacks a unified voice."
Now imagine if you watched that line of bullshit, thought "finally, the devs are going to try their ass off to remain competitive" and watched as Valve and Blizzard lead the charge to keep PC gaming viable. Watch these big fancy words mean nothing as Games For Windows magazine is cancelled despite the phenominal job they were doing (actually became one of the better gaming mags).
Now flash forward to right now, this statement. Games For Windows was attempting to sabotage PC gaming to force them onto 360s? Okay, yeah, swell. I'm sure all the publishers which bought this line are REALLY pleased right now as Valve rubs thir hands together menacingly and says "at last, the final shoe has fallen. The circle is complete."
Dingobloo @ Jul 1st 2008 11:52AM
Huzzah for consumer choice!
dark_inchworm @ Jul 1st 2008 11:55AM
I think they meant they can't go shooting all over their foot by blowing their bonus-content load all at once.
Vegeta (aka Ska Oreo) @ Jul 1st 2008 12:10PM
Pretty much. And while yeah, most of the 360 exclusives will probably end up on a PC, I'd rather have my Gears of Wars and Mass Effect first instead of waiting months for it.
Dwag @ Jul 1st 2008 12:23PM
Still don't get how they are gonna justify giving 360 exclusives to PC gamers I mean they could just make an entirely different game for the PC instead of months and years of porting console exclusives to PC platforms and I bet the PC gamers won't really be all that mad I mean they get an original game and MS will be happy cause they make people buy the 360(come on PC gamers you spend money to update those PCs take a couple hundred out of the fund and buy a console) and the world ends up be a happy place for console gamers and PC gamers(at a cost).
Haggard @ Jul 1st 2008 4:59PM
But I don't want to play games on a console just Microsoft says it be so. Besides, the graphics card I bought for £100 almost two years ago is still getting max settings on current games, and, as long as most PC games are 360 ports, it will continue to do so till 2012.
Besides, I'd have to buy a HD telly too, and even then I'd get lower graphics than what I currently get.
natetk @ Jul 1st 2008 12:33PM
I hate when they put it on a console and make PC users wait so long. My friend has a 360 and by the time these games get on PC I won't usually buy it because I have played it to death on the 360. It's like watching a movie on dvd a million times and then watching it on Blu-ray. Yes it's a lot better, but it's still the same thing. Plus, half the ports suck.
Maverick Saturn @ Jul 1st 2008 12:58PM
Thats the only good thing about it.
Just doing it to suck more money out of us.
Maverick Saturn @ Jul 1st 2008 12:56PM
What pisses me off is the fact that most of the time the PC version is better. And while gamers may say its a pointless argument because not many people have the PC to handle that, BUT I DO, I DO have the PC to handle that, and it ticks me off when I know I've spent money on a game, for there to be a better version released on my PC later. So what I've started doing is not bothering to buy games as quickly as I used to. Either prices will drop, or a better version will be out on the opposite console or on PC.
Maverick Saturn @ Jul 1st 2008 1:02PM
XBL or PSN I must admit is a MAJOR killer of the PC version. This often being the only reason I remain chuffed having bought my console version
Heh @ Jul 1st 2008 1:30PM
Just stick to PC gaming, man. Between all that we can do on a PC vs a console, plus adding something like Steam if you just HAVE to have the "xbl"-esque setup, makes it far better. So we wait for a few months. Most of the time it's worth it. Why? Because, while we wait a few months to use kb+m on gears, 360 owners will NEVER be able to do that out of the box.
Vcize @ Jul 1st 2008 1:41PM
Gears sucks with a KB/mouse compared to a controller. It wasn't designed for it, and it doesn't translate over well to it.
Even if you're playing it on the PC, you should be using a 360 controller. It's very rare that things work out this way (KB/mouse is better 99% of the time), but Gears was definitely a bad example as it falls into that 1% that works better with the controller.
Heh @ Jul 1st 2008 1:44PM
I actually found it perfectly fine to play, but perhaps that's just me. If you want a better example, sure: Half Life 2, Bioshock, TF2, etc etc. Like you said, pretty much anything.