BioShock Roundtable: the price of convenience

A roundtable! This time Brice, Luis and Russell talk BioShock for Mac.

Against a dark sky with the news that eight out of ten Mac owners also own a PC and that many users game via Boot Camp, what does this mean for Mac gaming?

The three brave Mac gamers, collectively known as BLR, tackle this great question and more, deviating somewhat to consider Meatloaf, but getting back on track with intimate gaming (ooo!), the price of convenience and why there really needs to be a Mac gaming community.

Onward!

Brice Unland: I think it is important that you both know that for the entirety of this roundtable I will be listening to Meatloaf. Just putting that out there.

Luis Sosa: I seriously wish you hadn’t said that, I’d gained such respect for you based on your teaching and now it’s GONE!

Brice: Wishing it away won’t help… It’s been said.

Luis: Unless you’re listening to Objects in the Rearview Mirror, in which case I can let it slide. Here’s a point to start: (http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2009/09/5-bioshock-direct2drive-sale-features-amazing-deals.ars). BioShock for $5, with some caveats and on PC.

Brice: $5 for PC and $50 for Mac.

Luis: Which begs the question – why bother? What sort of Mac will you need to play BioShock?

Russell Marsh: Mac Pro or hefty iMac for high settings, I assume. Which is $1.5k and up, correct? [Ed: BioShock runs on first-generation Intel iMacs and MacBooks with the 9400M, too.]

Luis: I’d assume the same. And so, these machines can be loaded comfortably with Windows and BioShock played in Boot Camp.

Russell: Preferably Boot Camp (I use VMWare for less intensive games).

Luis: Anyone who could buy BioShock for Mac could also get a $5 copy and play in Windows via Boot Camp, and a ton of other good games to boot. The only obstacle is if you don’t have Windows.

Brice: I thought a lot about the “why bother” thing? I figured that certainly it seems foolish. But then again, it would to us “core” gamers as we will have already played it on another system. I don’t think you can be a real die hard (Mac) gamer without owning another system (console, PC, or Boot Camp). With that said, if we have already played it, who is this release aimed at? My guess is the “casual” Mac Gamer (Note: this is not the same as the “casual Wii gamer”, I am referring to someone who doesn’t read blogs, game sites, and so on). They see the game, haven’t played it yet, heard it was good, and ultimately they don’t know that it is two years old, or care.

Luis: That’s an interesting argument, Brice.

Russell: Though at least it’s available on the Mac, else we would be arguing for equal play. Anyway, what’s our incentive for buying the Mac version? Is it really aimed at such a small swath of users?

Luis: It’s a fairly hardcore shooter, beautiful too.

Brice: I really don’t believe it is meant to satisfy us. Because it doesn’t / won’t.

Luis: Is there a casual Mac gamer who plays a FPS like BioShock but hasn’t bothered with a console or running a copy of Windows via Boot Camp? A casual enough gamer that he doesn’t have an xBox 360, or Windows via Boot Camp, but who wants something more than Plants vs. Zombies or Peggle on his Mac?

Brice: That is where I am little stuck… it is a hardcore shooter. But that is why when I say the casual gamer it is not the same as the casual gamer that is talked about so much in reference to the Wii’s simplistic games.

Russell: The market isn’t large enough to be supported by the self-pacing gamer. It wouldn’t be cost effective, so there must be a larger target.

Luis: Then why would Feral bother?

Brice: I think they do exist. It seems foreign to us, because we aren’t them. But how many Mac gamers aren’t aware of Rome: Total War, but will be when Feral releases it and they see it in the Apple Store?

Luis: That’s a good point. I can think of a dozen graphic designer friends who aren’t console gamers but might be compelled to buy a game they see at the Apple Store.

Brice: I can’t imagine that they are making a killing, but certainly they must have done their market research and know from previous releases that it works.

Russell: Brice, correct. They wouldn’t do it without calculating the risk.

Luis: What does Feral know about the Mac gamer market that we are blissfully unaware of?

Russell: I think the more practical question points back to: why game from OSX’s GUI instead of Boot Camp? Is it just the ease of use? Is that the most attractive feature?

Luis: I know for me it is.

Russell: Same here. I don’t like the time overhead in rebooting between my work environment and play.

Luis: I’m treading into gray territory here but I bought Prey for PC when it came out and played it via Boot Camp. When Prey for Mac was released I went ahead and borrowed a friends copy and installed, just so I didn’t have to reboot.

Luis: I think Apple should figure out a way to do a fast OS switching, like fast user switching.

Russell: Which would ensure the death of Mac gaming…

Brice: I think our issue is that we see it as a blatant slap in the face. But this game is not marketed at us at this point in time. We think it should be, because it’s BioShock, but Feral must know we’ve already played it and couldn’t care less. Our outrage, I believe, is similar to when Nintendo started ignoring it’s “hardcore” fan base and started pumping out all sorts of “casual” crap. I know because I was one of them. But, Nintendo is doing what is best for them, selling millions of copies of casual crap, rather than selling fewer copies of a hardcore title (because there is a smaller marker of diehards than casuals). So it is with Feral. They could have spent the money and time to release BioShock day and date with the other versions, but economically they can take their time now (and guessing less money to license it) and still appeal to a huge swath of Mac gamers.

Luis: Or, Russell, just erase the line enough so we don’t care…

Russell: True, Luis.

Luis: I agree with your basic argument, Brice. It’s like Fable – it was released four years later on the Mac. Four years!

Brice: To be honest, I don’t know why anyone would game on a Mac! I rarely do. Bootcamp is a hassle. So I also own a PS3, a 360, and Wii to get my gaming done. I will use my Mac for games when I can (as I agree that booting into Windows is less than ideal). But ultimately I own my Mac for reasons other than gaming. It’s just a nice bonus when I can play a game I like without having to go downstairs or reboot (such as Civilization IV).

Luis: Yeah, I agree. Same here.

Russell: Brice, I like your words “we think it should be” because it highlights our natural bias as gamers and critics. Perhaps these ports target those who don’t want the mental overhead of installing Boot Camp nor the time constraints of constant rebooting. I rarely have large blocks of time to play, so I’m always between a game and work.

Luis: Is $50 worth the practicality, to have the game without a reboot?

Russell: If you haven’t played it, I think so.

Brice: I wish we could have Feral’s retail numbers for Fable. Maybe Feral is the last of their kind. Look at MacSoft, where Aspyr is, where Mac Play went.

Luis: So Feral are really aiming at a different market, who hasn’t played the game?

Brice: Yes. Like Russell says, if you haven’t played it, it’s worth it. If I didn’t already own it, I would dish out $50 for the convenience, even though I know I could get it for as low $5 on another platform.

Luis: I realize these are different studios, but I really do think that part of the licensing agreement should be a sort of cross platform price. Maybe if you have the xBox 360 version and you want to buy the Mac version you can get it for $10 off the retail price.

Russell: What you’re buying is established intellectual property and tech that will shortly be hurdled on its native, competing platform. You’re paying for the work to port, too. And I know that’s harder work than I can presently imagine.

Luis: Sort of like buying the new Beatles re-mastered albums. I just wish it had some extra content, anything to justify the price. At least Fable included the expansion.

Russell: Perhaps extra content is key. Didn’t the PS3 have extra levels? Perhaps exclusive Mac content could help justify our purchase.

Brice: Being able to play on my platform of choice is worth the money and time to me (assuming it hasn’t been years). As an example, I hate my 360 with a passion, so I will wait for their “timed exclusives” to be released on the PS3 before buying. By the time they come out on the PS3, I could get it cheaper for my 360, but again, I prefer my PS3, and so the time and money is worth it.

Luis: Why do you hate it? How many RROD have you had?

Brice: Just one… but I know another will come, and now it’s out of warranty, so I refuse to buy into a system that is going to cost me more money in the future.

Luis: Would we recommend wholeheartedly that a Mac gamer install Windows via Boot Camp?

Brice: Yes!

Russell: Luis, yes — it’s practical. Brice, can your 360 mentality also apply to Mac? Since it isn’t truly scalable (in the PC sense of the word), is there a natural hesitation with buying games for that platform?

Luis: So given that recommendation as hardcore gamers, what do we “expect” from games developed for the Mac?

Brice: It is not our job to help support the Mac game industry. It our job to report and discuss it. Boot Camp is part of that.

Russell: In an ideal world I’d love exclusive titles, but I also think that could further fragment gaming because it promotes this multi-system culture. We obviously don’t have many Mac-exclusive titles because there isn’t the demand. And platform exclusivity also allows the player to either group by platform (thus shunning others) or forces them to buy into several instead. What I’m saying is that my suggested exclusivity seems a shot in the arm for the health of Mac games, but its effect could be short-lived. I know some of us could say to hell with inclusion, but doesn’t that mentality also somehow exclude the gamer who owns a Mac? Boot Camp, even with the overhead of a reboot, at least helps erode this line, which is something Luis alluded to earlier.

Luis: If I did not have a console and heard about BioShock, I’d use Boot Camp. Now here’s a thought: my next purchase is Batman Arkham Asylum –

Brice: — great game! –

Luis: – now I should probably buy it for the PS3, but, and here’s the odd thing, I have some sort of “emotional investment” to how many points I have associated with my xBox live account because my friends have xBox live. I know that if I buy Batman for the xBox 360 I’ll get achievement points.

Russell: Which is a brilliant marketing strategy on MS’s front.

Luis: I think in order for a Mac game that’s already had a release on every other platform to have value for me, there needs to be a gamer equivalent to the xBox live points. In that way I’d be compelled to play it on a Mac. I’m not sure how that could be implemented except by Apple so that it could apply across all games. It would be a cheap way to give value to the Mac gaming idea, even though Apple clearly doesn’t really give a shit.

Russell: Or some equivalent incentive, Luis. Something like an over-arching community interface to distribute games, allow voice and text, allow content posting, etc.  Steam-like but without the need for CrossOver.

Luis: Yes, exactly!

Brice: Despite the fact that I could always buy the PC version cheaper than the PS3 version (and play the PC version via Boot Camp) I will always buy the PS3 Version because it is “no hassle”. Playing games via Boot Camp or just via PC is a complete and utter joke. It boils down to being Windows: install this, update this, patch this, turn off the virus software for this, turn it on for this, and so on. My PS3 just works. More expensive game, but it just works. The same can be said for the Mac. I would much prefer to play on my Mac for that reason. But to get back to the BioShock question, for me, in this case, two years is asking too much dedication on my part. Had it not been on consoles, I, as core gamer, would have broke down and put up with Windows to play it by now. Now had you announced it would be out six months after the PC and consoles, I would have waited.

Luis: Yeah, exactly. There’s a margin of patience. I love that EA does hybrid discs with Cider.

Brice: Russell, community is right. I think if there was that community it would make it worth it, to buy it again and play it on the Mac to participate in that community.

Russell: I like Luis’s “a margin of patience.” It suggests a certain level of commitment to the brand without a direct disregard for personal enjoyment.

Luis: Most old school Mac users have that sense of community and commitment to the platform. It’s been diluted as Apple gains more popularity. But there’s still a sense that Mac is just less of a hassle. I installed Windows 7 RC two days ago to play World in Conflict and I got seriously uneasy having to deal with Windows.

Brice: The community thing has been tried and has failed, look at Game Ranger.

Luis: There’s that Mac App Bodega, which is trying to replicate the success of the App Store on the Mac.

Russell: Would you say there’s community to iTunes?

Luis: Tricky to say. I mean with reviews and stuff, it has a central repository. I think the main issue with Mac gaming is the fragmentation you mentioned, Russell. There is zero consensus. Zero community.

Russell: I can admit I’m not involved with any communal, Mac-centric discussion outside TMG, and even though I’m not heavily involved with similar circles for the PC, I can name several off the top of my head, which is more than I can do for the Mac. PC gaming seems more self-promoting.

Luis: So, BioShock for Mac. Who should buy it? Who would buy it? Clearly not console gamers. And not students with MacBooks. since it won’t run well on their laptops.

Brice: The guy that owns neither a console or “gaming PC” and just bought a Mac because he wants to get into that sort of thing. He played Doom and Wolfenstein back in the day and wouldn’t mind trying out a “new” game for his new computer. That’s one person.

Russell: It’s Frank. I know him.

Luis: [laughs] It’s also for the walk in, the guy that strolls into the Apple Store and buys CoD4 because it looks cool and he never heard about it on other consoles.

Russell: It most assuredly isn’t the hard-core gamer, unless that gamer just wants to support the platform. I’d say for most of us, time is more precious than money. We’re willing to shell cash for a fun, memorable experience. Yet I would rarely watch a movie twice or revisit an RPG unless it truly called me back, which is rare. That said, I haven’t played BioShock yet.

Luis: You should, great fucking game! Where will you play it Russ? Perfect case-study.

Russell: Well I’ll be reviewing it, so…

Luis: [laughs]

Russell: If I were to buy it, I’d probably shoot for the 360 version simply because my console setup is much nicer, more comfortable. More intimate in terms of location in my house. Hey, maybe Feral can ship a house with intimacy for each purchase.

Brice: I’ll gladly pay $25 or $30 on the console, vs. $5 on the PC, solely for ease of use. But that also reflects that I would buy it for the console for what you were saying Luis, community. If I play it on Mac or PC, once I am done, that is it. On the consoles, there is “more”.

Russell: Correct. On the 360 I could voice chat with my friends while playing BioShock. There’s a feeling of community when I can look over my friend’s achievements and compare them against what I am doing. Still effective in single player.

Luis: I concur. In the end it doesn’t boil down to money, or it being cheaper on PC, it boils down to community. Apple should push it. Just look at how hard they are pushing the iPod touch for gaming. Apple could implement a Mac gaming community feature, maybe as part of Mobile Me.

Russell: So many people complain about Mobile Me; this could be a feather in the hat for Apple.