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[onQ123]

Btw here's a direct quote from the article.

"As promising as Epyllion's outlook is for PC gaming, it's worth noting that there isn't a universal consensus on who's got a bigger market share between consoles and PC. For example, in August 2023, Newzoo reported that console games had attracted $56.1 billion in consumer spending compared to around $40 billion for PC games". So how are pc games selling more than console games if the revenue gap is so much larger on console?

Free & cheap games

 

[onQ123]

I would say no.

It will if Sony don't clip it's wings like it did PS4.

PS5 is over 70 million as we speak & should hit 100 million after the next 2 holiday seasons & creep somewhere close to PS4 numbers in its twilight years

 

[TheUndeadGamer]

As soon as it said "lower entry price point" I laughed my ass off. A PC is NOT cheaper than a PS5 or Series X let alone a Switch or Series S no matter how you slice it.

Yes it is. Steam Deck LCD is cheaper than a PS5 and Series X. If you’re not talking handheld than yes you’re right.

 

[vaibhavpisal]

So the question is. Why did Sony and Microsoft stop doing true exclusives? What happened from XB1/PS4 to XBS/PS5 generation? What did Microsoft notice that got them starting? Was it low sales numbers on Xbox One? And why did Sony follow? Isn’t PS5 doing great?

It’s like there are some mystery statistics somewhere that they both look at or are concerned about that Nintendo clearly isn’t looking at.

Shareholders most likely. They don’t want to subsidise console hardware anymore. In which case both companies are preparing to sell less no of systems. So PC it is, to still have a sizeable install base.

It makes sense too. Smartphone sell a lot without subsidies. Same for PCs. If console is valuable to people, it should also sell without subsidies.

 

[LavitzSlambert]

but I think they go on to say it's mostly China. I know they said that about the increase in Steam users.

That being said ...it's obviously enjoy some kind of renaissance. Just a lot more pc peripherals out there.

Funny to me because I got out of it completely when the miners were buying up the gpus. And haven't been back. It's all console ports. The games started to be limited by consoles. And the extra power of the pc went to higher resolutions and frames and higher settings. But not to games that couldn't be played elsewhere. Which was why i was into pc gaming in the first place.

Not that I have swore off of it. I just haven't (been) wowed by anything. And have been satiated enough by Switch and other hobbies like occasionally posting on Neogaf.

I'm with you bud. It seems like corporate greed has made its way into PC gaming, it became very easy with resources like PCPP and every kid wants to be a professional streamer now. But is there really any big advantage when all these high end PCs can do is run poorly performing ports on overpriced hardware? There are very, very few PC exclusives nowadays.

 

[Three]

Yes it is. Steam Deck LCD is cheaper than a PS5 and Series X. If you’re not talking handheld than yes you’re right.

Why compare that low spec handheld as the entry point vs a PS5 or Series X? When you compare to consoles why not compare to a Switch or Series S?

 

[ArtHands]

Yes it is. Steam Deck LCD is cheaper than a PS5 and Series X. If you’re not talking handheld than yes you’re right.

not to mention the various budget laptops and PCs around

 

[S0ULZB0URNE]

It will if Sony don't clip it's wings like it did PS4.

PS5 is over 70 million as we speak & should hit 100 million after the next 2 holiday seasons & creep somewhere close to PS4 numbers in its twilight years

Yeah if they wait longer to release PS6 and still support 5 a year or two afterwards.

 

[onQ123]

Yeah if they wait longer to release PS6 and still support 5 a year or two afterwards.

PS5 really has at least 4 years left in it unless cheap gaming PCs flood the market & grab the young kids up who the twilight years PS5 would have been perfect for.

 

[Burger King]

They forgot to mention "free online"

 

[ArtHands]

If true I'm getting Atari console and C64 gaming crash vibes.

Don't worry, mobiles and PCs will sustain the industry.

 

[Pandawan]

This is only the begginig. PS5 is still selling on inertia, but we now know Sony went the same path as XBOX. Sony too releases all thie games on PC too now.
There is not much point in getting PS6 over PC. So yeah i seems like in 10 year consoles will be just devices to play your PC games on TV. And Nintendo cosoles to play Nintendo games. Ultraconservative Nintendo is mentally stuck in 1980th and it helps them not fall for this selfdestructing shit of abandoning exclusives.

 

[freemandos]

You love to see it. We've come a long way since the "PC gaming is dying" memes.

That's what I'm thinking, that narrative so insisted by journalists and some companies in the seventh gen. Of course it was more a convenience than a real fact. There were problems in that gen, but far from a "death" and not exclusive of PC.

 

[Three]

This is only the begginig. PS5 is still selling on inertia, but we now know Sony went the same path as XBOX. Sony too releases all thie games on PC too now.
There is not much point in getting PS6 over PC. So yeah i seems like in 10 year consoles will be just devices to play your PC games on TV. And Nintendo cosoles to play Nintendo games.

 

[DenchDeckard]

I think the writing has been on the wall for this entire generation that younger audiences are buying gaming PC's and passing up on consoles. The console market is shrinking and PC gaming is growing. This will continue. It's basically us old farts that are buying high end consoles and even many of us are moving to PC if they were just exclusive console players.

I know there are millions of us who have gamed on all platforms, for probably all of our lives. It seems that younger audiences just want a PC and Roblox / fortnite etc.

 

[Wildebeest]

It's kids playing Roblox, not you gray beard grognards buying a 4090 to play a very slightly visually upgraded version of Last of Us on your sofa.

 

[pudel]

It seems that younger audiences just want a PC and Roblox / fortnite etc.

I dont see that negative. Kids being in front of a PC is better than in front of a console. They can game and even learn a thing or two how tech works under the hood. Win Win!

 

[BlackTron]

I believe easily that PC is growing while console is shrinking on an # of users basis, while consoles still bring in more money.

Think critically for a moment. People have been talking up saving money on PC games for years...yet cannot reconcile these figures as being compatible.

 

[SHA]

This is good news. Op, are you saying this is bad news?

 

[DenchDeckard]

I dont see that negative. Kids being in front of a PC is better than in front of a console. They can game and even learn a thing or two how tech works under the hood. Win Win!

I completely agree, thats why my kids have had awesome PCs from a young age. They can do school work and then game.

My son, still likes his Xbox (i tried to get him into PS5) but my daughter who is 12 has no interest in consoles at all. Its all steam and horror games she watches Cory X Kenshin play.

 

[BacklashWave534]

Unless you want plug and play, nothing beats PC.

Cheaper games, free online multiplayer, endless backwards compatibility, and most importantly choice. You can make it as budget or as high end as you want. Just a little bit of common sense and effort is all you need.

After all, a console is basically a PC. Just in a heavily locked down custom platform.

With SteamOS releasing soon plug and play will be an option for PC as well. Also like to throw in the fact that we don’t have to rebuy are games every new generation. Stuff from the mid 90s still tends to run fine on Windows 11.

 

[TrebleShot]

With SteamOS releasing soon plug and play will be an option for PC as well. Also like to throw in the fact that we don’t have to rebuy are games every new generation. Stuff from the mid 90s still tends to run fine on Windows 11.

Steam OS and Nvidia? haha

 

[BacklashWave534]

Steam OS and Nvidia? haha

Don’t see why not. If they want to be competitive they will need Nvidia.

 

[Imtjnotu]

Am I tripping or did the article not state pc gaming is out selling the console marker.

Yes pc market is growing faster but still lags behind the console market in terms of dollars

 

[darrylgorn]

 

[Xyphie]

Am I tripping or did the article not state pc gaming is out selling the console marker.

Yes pc market is growing faster but still lags behind the console market in terms of dollars

It's right there in the slides linked in the OP. 53% vs 47% revenue of the non-mobile market.

 

[cormack12]

Now do the same with 'contemporary' games.

 

[rodrigolfp]

That is without including patreon for games on fapnation, f95zone, etc and mods. \o/

 

[Drake]

Backwards compatibility is a huge thing and generally why I avoid consoles other than Nintendo (and I probably won't even get Switch 2). I can pretty much play everything I want on PC. Sometimes you have to wait a bit longer for things to come out, but for me that's not an issue.

 

[lestar]

console games are getting insanly expensive

 

[StereoVsn]

This just isn't true:

Even counting from 2021, I do not see any evidence for a 20% revenue increase for PC or console.

GamesIndustry.biz presents… The Year In Numbers 2024

Tis the season to be jolly pouring over pie charts, bar graphs, tables and any other statistics we can throw at you.

www.gamesindustry.biz

Another fabricated "report".

How is revenue counted? Does it include hardware? And if so is that for both console and PC?

Also, it would make sense for console revenue to grow more considering games are generally more expensive and all new releases are $70+ (depending on the country) while on PC even launch games usually can be had for 20-30% off.

 

[StereoVsn]

Shareholders most likely. They don’t want to subsidise console hardware anymore. In which case both companies are preparing to sell less no of systems. So PC it is, to still have a sizeable install base.

It makes sense too. Smartphone sell a lot without subsidies. Same for PCs. If console is valuable to people, it should also sell without subsidies.

At least in US most people buy phones through the major carriers which absolutely subsidize phones on two or three year plans.

Samsung also gives you huge discounts for trade ins and preorder /BF sales.

 

[ArtHands]

Am I tripping or did the article not state pc gaming is out selling the console marker.

Yes pc market is growing faster but still lags behind the console market in terms of dollars

the slides

 

[Zacfoldor]

This just isn't true:

Even counting from 2021, I do not see any evidence for a 20% revenue increase for PC or console.

GamesIndustry.biz presents… The Year In Numbers 2024

Tis the season to be jolly pouring over pie charts, bar graphs, tables and any other statistics we can throw at you.

www.gamesindustry.biz

Another fabricated "report".

I agree with you. Seems like whoever generated the data in the OP really wanted to tell a story.

 

[HogIsland]

I think the writing has been on the wall for this entire generation that younger audiences are buying gaming PC's and passing up on consoles. The console market is shrinking and PC gaming is growing. This will continue. It's basically us old farts that are buying high end consoles and even many of us are moving to PC if they were just exclusive console players.

I know there are millions of us who have gamed on all platforms, for probably all of our lives. It seems that younger audiences just want a PC and Roblox / fortnite etc.

*chortle* @ "high end consoles"

I've been console + PC since Wolfenstein3D. This is the first time where consoles seem totally redundant. Now that Valve can make a PC that works like a console, Xbox+Playstation games come to PC, I only want to buy games on Steam.

When the SteamOS console inevitably happens, I don't think I'll buy Playstation hardware again.

 

[spookyfish]

What year is it? #19821983

 

[Brakum]

not surprising. It'll never go back either. PC is a much much larger market. Consoles were still leading in revenue because PC has a lot of players who only play free games, or even the same free game, for the last decade. The amount of console gamers not spending any money beyond the console purchase is zero. Even if they only play the same free 2 play game, they still pay for online. But it seems like the gap now is large enough that even with that in mind PC wins, and i only see the gap increasing so i dont think we'll ever see it go back but who knows maybe this year it'll actually do it depending on switch launch titles and gtav, but a year like that is gonna be an outlier in the future and soon not even that is gonna be enough.

 

[nemiroff]

No wonder. There are almost no reasons left to own a console these days.

 

[Fess]

Maybe Nintendo games are cheap enough to produce that the units sold can support them? Maybe PS5/XSX games are so expensive to make that no business model can finance them long term?

Yeah maybe. But so far I don’t think any sales numbers has shown that going multi is solving much. Might just move players instead of selling more games.

 

[DenchDeckard]

*chortle* @ "high end consoles"

I've been console + PC since Wolfenstein3D. This is the first time where consoles seem totally redundant. Now that Valve can make a PC that works like a console, Xbox+Playstation games come to PC, I only want to buy games on Steam.

When the SteamOS console inevitably happens, I don't think I'll buy Playstation hardware again.

Wolfenstein 3d on pc day 1 too my brother! I hear you!

 

[Wooxsvan]

people always aspire for the best, and as this hobby grows up (user base gets older and attains more wealth over time) we can afford the best. PC master race unite

 

[Filben]

Mobile portion of the chart makes me really sad.

There are some countries with hundreds of millions of people where everyone owns a smartphone but almost no one a video game console. This is a huge but separate market. Mobile games work fundamentally different than console/PC games. They're more like micro transaction portals with in-shop game.

 

[RoboCain]

The same game purchase can be used on handheld, desktop and TV. No paid online. Cheaper games. No propietary third party headsets.

What's left to discuss?

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

There are some countries with hundreds of millions of people where everyone owns a smartphone but almost no one a video game console. This is a huge but separate market. Mobile games work fundamentally different than console/PC games. They're more like micro transaction portals with in-shop game.

I understand that first point and agree with you - it's the second that I have trouble with. While it is a "separate market", it also bleeds into PC and console. All that money rolling in for nothing on mobile, combined with market share (despite the aforementioned being true), causes developers to take note and alter their products on PC and console to some degree. Don't you think there is influence?

 

[SHA]

It's right there in the slides linked in the OP. 53% vs 47% revenue of the non-mobile market.

The demographic is changing, unlike consoles.

 

[S0ULZB0URNE]

Don't worry, mobiles and PCs will sustain the industry.

No they wouldn't

 

[ResilientBanana]

But the steam numbers! But the 5090 has fake frames!
[Cries in empty pockets]

 

[Hudo]

I have 4 instances of Crysis running at the same time and a Youtube video going on my third monitor, I am compiling an app in the background and I am ssh'ing into a database server.

Do I need to do all that? No. But I can.

 

[FIREKNIGHT2029]

This just isn't true:

Even counting from 2021, I do not see any evidence for a 20% revenue increase for PC or console.

GamesIndustry.biz presents… The Year In Numbers 2024

Tis the season to be jolly pouring over pie charts, bar graphs, tables and any other statistics we can throw at you.

www.gamesindustry.biz

Another fabricated "report".

Thanks for posting this. The article the OP posted is really bullshit then. Both console and PC market are thriving the way I see it. Only thing that may be dragging consoles back this gen a bit is MS who can’t seem to get their act together.

 

[Optimus Lime]

I am desperate for a reason to buy a PS5 Pro, because I like new hardware. But, there just isn't one. My PC does absolutely everything I need - and better, cheaper, easier, and with more flexibility and freedom than a fixed spec, locked down console box.

This is the first time this has happened. There's always been a reason to buy a new piece of hardware until now. Compounding the problem is that Sony's hardware and software is now at a price point that I think is exploitative. I don't want to pay $1200AUD for a console, plus another $200AUD for a drive, plus another $100+AUD (minimum) for their 'subscription', plus $120-150AUD for a game. I just don't want to give them that money.

So, unless Sony pulls a rabbit out of a hat for the PS6, I guess that's where I'm at. All of my gaming money will go into the PC platform, unless Nintendo manages to wow me with the Switch 2, in which case, it'll be a 95%-5% split.

The point is - these numbers do not surprise me in the slightest. I don't think I'm alone in feeling this way.