The PC is treated as a second-class citizen among hardcore gaming platforms. Often, the big blockbuster games are optimized for console systems and frequently launch earlier on consoles than on the PC.
Experiencing lag or frame drops is almost non-existent on console games. A lot of complaints from PC gamers is that even if they have a top-of-the-line high-end gaming rig, they will still experience slowdowns on many games, usually when they are first released.
Hardcore PC gamers usually own computers that are more powerful than the latest consoles. It is, therefore, unbelievable how consoles can run games, at launch, much smoother than the more powerful PCs.
"Dishonored 2" has received good reviews for the PS4 and Xbox. The PC version of the game though has received a lot of criticism from PC gamers.
Players complained about the slow performance of the game on their PCs. This would happen even if they would play the game on low settings.
According to gaming website PC Gamer, only high-end PC setups could run the game smoothly. Players who owned anything less would often experience framerate drops and mouse stuttering.
Patches have resolved most of the issues. The fact however that players had a bad experience at launch has given them a dim view of the game's publisher and developer.
Bethesda and Arkane Studios have long way to go in winning back the trust of PC gamers. The first step is in admitting their shortcomings.
Gaming website Destructoid reported that Arkane co-creative director Rafael Colantonio was interviewed recently by Game Informer. He said that the studio had learned its lesson and that their next game won't suffer the same fate as Dishonored 2.
Colantonio admitted that the studio had a rough launch on the PC with Dishonored 2. He gave the excuse that they couldn't predict the performance of the PC version due to the many different PC configurations.
The creative director stressed that Prey will not have the same PC performance issues at launch. He promised that Arkane would pay double attention to make sure that the upcoming game will be flawless on the PC on its release.
To avoid any launch disappointments with Prey, Colantonio said that they would push more QA on the game. The studio will also be using a different engine, the proven CryEngine, instead of the idTech engine.
Arkane is nevertheless aware of all the perfomance issues even though they were caught by surprise with the extent of the problem. This time though, they are definitely paying more attention.
Given the issues surrounding the launch of Dishonored 2, PC gamers would likely be cautious in accepting the word of Arkane Studios. The only way the developer can regain the trust of players is if they make good on their promise and ship a smoothly performing PC version of Prey.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
