Written by: David Laprad

For a while now, the PC game has been lying in intensive care, its slowing heartbeat upsetting diehard PC gamers the world over. If we could, we’d send flowers, but those of us who resisted buying a WiiFit don’t have anything left after spending our loose cash on Xbox Live Arcade, so all we’ve got to offer is our sympathy. We’re sure the PC will understand, though, as it draws its last breath and then flatlines. “We’ll always have DOOM” (or whatever game drew us to the PC in the first place), we’ll say as we wipe a tear from our cheeks.

But is the PC game really dying or is it just undergoing a transformation? During an interview with Ron Taylor, NVIDIA’s vice president of content business development, Web site Eurogamer asked the right question: Is the PC game dying? Taylor’s answer didn’t cater to the doomsday mentality of many PC enthusiasts, who have felt left out as the number of retail games appearing exclusively on their platform of choice have dwindled to a scant few. Rather, he says PC games are becoming less like the boxed software products on which we were weaned and more like online services. “You’re going to start out with a basic service, which is the game, and then increase the value of that service through patches, mod packs, expansions, maps and so on. That’s the direction it’s going, because the pirates are killing the developers,” Taylor said.

The VP also said PC gamers have to face the facts: the value of consoles is such that in the future, no one will be making games just for the PC. Citing Gears of War from developer Epic Games, he noted how the game came out on the Xbox 360 first and then the PC, with the latter version containing enhanced features and more content. “The PC version was better. That’s something people need to get their heads around: the console is a baseline, while the PC is going to be an improved version. That’s an exciting future, and that’s why I don’t see anything threatening about console,” said Taylor.

Still, PC gamers have felt increasingly panicked as the creative force of the industry has shifted over to the consoles. But what did they expect? There’s more money to be made on the Xbox, PS3, Wii, DS, et al; supporting a non-standardized platform can be an expensive and resource-sucking pain in the rear; and so on — you’ve heard these arguments before. But we need a voice of reason in these trying times, and it’s good to see someone who has a vested interest in the survival of the PC gaming industry breathing easy and sounding relaxed.

Taylor is essentially saying the only thing that’s really changing is how we get our PC games and what we can do with them. And really, what are we missing out on? Driving to the store and lugging home a huge bag containing a few small disks? Going through loops to get a patch? Finishing a game and putting it on a shelf? Not me. I can sit at my computer, pay online to download just about any game, grab a patch moments after it’s released and redesign, reprogram and refit the sucker to my heart’s content.

I do disagree with Taylor on two fronts: one, it’s unlikely the makeover of PC gaming is solely the responsibility of software thieves, although making things harder on pirates is one of the benefits of doing business online. True, there are plenty of pirates out there who have no qualms about ripping off people who have spent a year or more bringing a creative effort to the computer, only to have the meat stolen off the plates of their children, but that’s not the only reason we’re seeing the PC game morph into something we could only imagine 15 years ago. The Internet is simply allowing developers and publishers to interact with customers in new ways.

And two, there are still plenty of PC exclusive games out there — you just have to look for them. In fact, many of the best ones have the grassroots appeal that infused the PC gaming industry with so much geeky excitement early on.

Really, there’s no need to say PC gaming is on its deathbed. Its sluggish vitals merely mean that, like a caterpillar, it’s undergoing a transmutation. It’s survived plenty of other paradigm shifts, as those who made it through the switch from 3.5″ discs to CD-ROMs, or from no video cards to expensive add-on hardware, can attest. Besides, if PC gaming ever does appear to be on the verge of giving up the ghost, you have the power to keep it alive in your wallet or purse.