Start your engines ATV fans because Climax's latest title in the long-running series, ATV Offroad Fury Pro, has hit the dirt speeding on the PlayStation Portable.
THQ has claimed that the price of video games will drop in future - and could even go free-to-play - as publishers release less content on-disc.
Bad news for those with poor interenet connections, it's just like the whole Blu-ray vs digital download, the network infastructure is just not there yet to supply enough people with the necessary speed/bandwidth.
Also this would make reviewing a game quite complicated, do you review just the content on the disc or with all/some of the DLC? I get the feeling that people won't let go of their full production on one disc quite yet.
Reviews would become less relevant surely? If the game is free, albeit lacking some content, people could play it without the need to read a review first.
Ah very true, did't think of it like that. So what would gaming websites and magazines do with their time? I suppose they could review the paid parts of games but again that would be convoluted.
Not really, I get tons of free mangas but I only read the ones I enjoy reading. I don't waste time on things I don't enjoy.
Gamers should NOT believe this BS.
Am I the only person who still remembers developers saying "downloadable is great! It cuts out the middleman! Games will be cheaper!"?
Yeah right. Downloadable games are as expensive - if not more expensive - than their retail copies.
Actually that is totally false. Reviews would still be just as relevent. People don't want to waste their time on bad games. I know I sure don't.
Also a game might be bad for the first few hours, and then turn into a great game. So you would still need a reviews to know this.
Bwahahahahaha... that's NEVER going to happen, Why any company or whatever will miss the opportunity to get money? duh... better read the whole thingy... :P anyways, people like to talk about how DD is the future and stuff, but DD will be like games split in hundreds of chapters and so on and will be like a total rip-off more than anything....
It really depends upon what system you're talking about.
If you're talking PC, then D2D, GoG, and especially Steam offer across the board cheaper prices and fairly constant sales that provide games at the least possible expense. I particularly love that because, unlike buying used or renting, it still supports the developer.
Console downloading hasn't caught up because there's comparatively little available. At the moment they're caught up in re-releasing classic games and smaller indy-type projects. Isn't Infamous one of the only current-gen full games available for direct download?
Case in point: last Christmas, I picked up Crysis+Crysis: Warhead for $14 on Steam. A few months ago, I bought Dragon Age: Origins and Mass Effect 2 for about $25 each. Several months ago, I picked up Arkham Asylum for $22, and they threw in Just Cause for free. Interestingly enough, it was actually cheaper to buy the two together than just Arkham Asylum by itself.
The real problem lies within retail stores. If most content is digital, then they're not going to want to push the low-profit margin consoles because, in theory, they'll have less software.
Of course, that doesn't negate the possibility of disc-based DLC (oxy-moronic as it is). It'll still be hard to shake the feeling of direct ownership resulting from having a physical copy.
I will not go for a F2P infrastructure in my standalone games. These companies will just milk us for more money with content rather than guaranteeing a set length and specific gameplay. I do not want this as the future. I'd rather they sell us a game that is complete and try and win us over with some new DLC rather than give us an incomplete game digitally and force us to buy into it with more digital hoopla.
Agreed, it will aslo act as an even greater deterrent for companies to create new IPs once they have found one that they can milk. As well as possibly create a rich-poor divide in multiplayer/co-op games and open an even bigger door to in-game advertisements.
@MrMccormo
Agreed I paid £30 for Dragon age: awakening from PSN cos it wasn't available on disc here. it was cheaper on disc for the 360. Downloadable games are a rip of Its effectively a license I can't do anything with when I've finished playing with no case, disc or manual and it costs me more!!
No f*cking way all-you-can-eat free-to-play subscription based business models will support recouping the investment on titles comparable to current AAA titles. But that's just a sensational headline anyway he just mentioned "free to play" in passing as he was discussing his company's new approach: the standard release a half finished game on disc and then rape the customer with DLC approach. At least they're goping to lower the base price... I guess.
I'm doubtful that this will become a reality in the near future, especially since network infrastructure is the major limiting factor (not only in the developed world, but certainly in the developing world), but if this is truly the future of gaming, then I'll be getting off the gaming bus, and become a vocal and active retrogamer (come to think of it, there are a couple of old titles that I still need to finish).
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The Guardian's Nick Gillett previews both 'ATV Offroad Fury' and 'Buzz! Master Quiz' for the PSP.
Gamers Universe: "Offroad Fury Pro is pretty damn solid – far from spectacular or particularly original, but a satisfying substitute for tearing up the grit in reality. Not that we've ever done that.
Much of this is down to the staggeringly comprehensive feature set. Climax has packed in 64 fully fleshed-out tracks and over 30 vehicles, ranging from the titular ATVs to snowmobiles, trucks and bikes. If you grow weary of the presets, there's a user-friendly track creator – though you'll soon exhaust the options available."
ATV offroad , MotoGP and Sly Cooper are just some of the games I wanted to see on the PS3.