Pocket Change - Shopping Blog

I understand the need to revive the PC gaming. I understand that without a “cohesive” brand it is very hard to market PC games to the general public. I even understand that Microsoft is probably the best company around to take on this role. What I do not understand is why Microsoft has chosen to make the restrictions on games put out under the “Games for Windows” brand a complete hindrance to the vast majority of the gaming community.

I will start with an example. Then I will explain why every single gamer reading this should shed a single tear in morning the death of the “good old days.” The example that has brought this issue to my attention is . If you haven’t seen anything about this game you should really check it out. The game has been spoken about using words like, “better than counterstrike,” and “as fun as tribes.” You don’t just go and say things like that without some serious power to back it up. From nearly every review from beta testers, Shadowrun has more than lived up to its hype. This has the potential to be one of those must own games that really define the PC gaming market. Unfortunately, there is a massive and depressing catch.

Shadowrun is banded under the “games for windows” brand, and is available for both Xbox 360 and the PC. On one hand, this is an amazing development for gaming in general. For the first time ever, gamers using controllers will be playing against the mouse and keyboard types. This is going to create some great rivalries, and really show how this whole industry can come together. Too bad the vast majority of gamers will not be able to play Shadowrun unless they upgrade to Windows Vista.

Windows Vista is fantastic. It certainly has plenty of “wow,” and I’m sure that it will get all the adoption that it wants, and more. However, anyone that has checked lately knows that the cheapest (and most limited) version of Windows Vista runs in the $100 range. Not to mention, there are many people who are very nervous about upgrading to Vista in fear that their hardware drivers won’t be compatible. With these problems in mind, it is clear that now is probably not the best time to release “Vista Only” games.

If it all ended here, it would be somewhat acceptable. First person shooters have (in nearly all cases) included free online multiplayer. Now that games are being branded for “games for windows,” these games will require a Windows Live membership in order to play online. While the Windows Live Silver membership is free, it doesn’t offer many of the critical game features that the Gold membership does. The prime example of this is a friends list. If you want to be able to have any sort of online gamine experience you will need to upgrade (and pay for) a Live Gold membership.

That’s quite a bit of money to play a simple first person shooter.