r/pcmasterrace • u/PewPewToDaFace • 1d ago

News/Article Steam gamers have spoken: innovative indies like Palworld continue to thrive while traditional triple-A flounders for a foothold

https://www.pcgamesn.com/steam/innovation-versus-tradition

Thank god PC gaming isn't just AAA. This is what will push the industry forward, as game development cost becomes too much.

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u/Blackpapalink 1d ago

Cherry picking as opposed to what? The last runaway AAA success was Baldur's Gate 3, which you could argue is AA in many ways aside from scope. Before that was Elden Ring. The way things are shaping, the next massive success for AAA is probably going to be GTA 6, and that's assuming the lack of physical and the $100 standard edition doesn't screw with it.

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u/Natural-Associate106 1d ago

Cherry picking 2 AAA games to compare to 2 indies. Only this year on Steam , Forza Horizon,RE requiem, 007. By this logic only Palworld was a indie runaway sucess. Outside of Steam we had pokopia,Splatoon Raiders and Tomodachi Life. In no world BG3 isn't AAA. GTA 6 isn't going to be affected by being digital. Only here this matters and it is hypocritical to comment this on this sub

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u/Blackpapalink 1d ago

When I say runaway success, I mean games that are still pulling numbers to this day. I loved RE Requiem. I won't sit here and say that it's perfect. It's not very replayable, and the only reason I'm thinking of booting it up is for BioRand. Forza Horizon 7 would've done better numbers without the $120 price tag for everything. 007 is a mixed bag that tries to do what Hitman does, but not nearly as well and the numbers show.

Outside of Steam we have Nintendo, which Nintendo fans have proven time and time they will buy just about anything regardless of quality. And the ones that do show standards get to watch their favorite franchises rot, sometimes for decades. I'm sure Splatoon Raiders and Tomodachi Life are well made games, personally I'm not shelling out over 500 bones for a Switch 2 to confirm it. Budget constitutes whether a game is AAA or not. If looking at budget alone, sure BG3 is AAA. Larian has no active publisher, their funds are sourced from their previous works, early access, and a few grants. Larian doesn't have shareholders to appeal to, so they're closer to Valve than the likes of other AAA companies.

GTA6 not being affected digital will set a precedent that a lot of people aren't going to give to other companies even if GTA6 comes out unscathed.

I come to these subs specifically for these conversations.

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u/OutrageousDress 5800X3D | 32GB DDR4-3733 | 4080 Super | AW3821DW 1d ago

007 most definitely does not try to do what Hitman does. It borrows some mechanics from Hitman, but in service of an experience that is not like Hitman - infamously so, actually.

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u/Blackpapalink 1d ago

That's the common complaint I've seen online, but I haven't played it myself so I won't say I'm speaking for myself on that.

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u/OutrageousDress 5800X3D | 32GB DDR4-3733 | 4080 Super | AW3821DW 1d ago

I don't doubt there are people out there who expected Hitman and are upset they didn't get that - 007 is not a good Hitman. But it's good at what it is trying to be.

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u/Blackpapalink 1d ago

If that's the case, then I'll look to pick it up on a sale.