1C Games: 'Retail is forcing PC games out'

Russian publisher 1C Games is the latest in a long line to declare that the PC games market is dying, and its international publishing director Darryl Still tells MCV that retailers are holding the murder weapon. Still says that the drive to digital distribution these days isn't just due to gamer preference, it's due to the fact that retailers aren't supporting PC games the way they should. "You just have to head into a games store and look for their PC titles," he says, "and you'll see there is no focus, listings or promotions for them."

Still says that he predicts the PC market will be completely digital as soon as 2011, two years ahead of estimates that say 50% of PC games sold in 2013 will be digitally delivered. He says that there's more profit to be made with PC games at retail, but that with all of the different providers aiming to release PC titles digitally, retailers very soon won't bother carrying them at all. We're torn -- for every treasured cloth map in a retail box, there are good reasons to stick with digital as well.