PC gaming is going to get bigger than ever according to a new report by industry researchers PwC (via CNet). By the end of 2016 it is predicted that the value of PC games sold will eclipse the value of console games sold. This change has been many years in the making.
Looking at the figures from PwC, worldwide PC games sales are supposed to add up to $29 billion, while console games sales should reach $28 billion by the end of 2016. In terms of DLCs, PC users expected to vastly outspend console gamers at $21.8 billion compared to $2.4 billion. The market researchers say the spending differences will widen in favour of the PC over the next few years thanks in part to the PC-dominated gaming scenes in India and China. The growing e-sports trend also relies on PCs as the platform of choice.
PC games easily offer the most depth, configuration options and best audio/visual experience. If a gamer wants to play the best looking and performing version of a game they will usually choose to play the PC version. However some publishers are a bit stuck in the past and are still putting consoles first.
A year ago on HEXUS we noted that PC hardware sales revenue accounted for more than double that of the console gaming market. With the PC being at the cutting edge of hardware it can only get better if VR takes off. There are a number of competing platforms for VR, most of them will combine with the muscle of a modern PC to offer the fastest, slickest virtual reality experience to consumers.
CNet thinks that a major driver of PC success is the Steam games market and platform. With "three out of every four" PC games sold being via Steam now, it's hard to argue with that assertion. A timely report, published by MCV today, brings home the growth of Steam's popularity. It thinks that users have been spurred by the now traditional Summer Sale to go online buy and play more PC games than ever. On Sunday Steam broke through its previous record of 9.5m concurrent users to broach the 10m milestone.
