A recent blog post by Brandon LeBlanc over at the Microsoft Windows Experience Blog details the improvements to the Games for Windows platform. Games for Windows is not exclusive for Windows 7 but will take advantage of features of the new operating system. The system has been revamped by Microsoft including new “technical guidelines, self-certification options and a set of 22 technical requirements which are designed to:”
Create an easier game installation experience.
Support both 32-bit and 64-bit Platforms.
Support Ratings and Parental Controls in Windows 7.
Game titles populated in the Game Explorer.
Enhanced game update notifications for game titles.
Stability, security and compatibility against commonly known issues.
The main question on the other hand is if this will be enough to convince game companies and publishers to make their games compatible with the Games for Windows platform. We all know that only a handful of games were released so far that made use of it. The number of games certainly picked up in the last twelve months but it was still only a minority of games that supported the platform.
The main reason why many developer’s have not joined the program yet is the money, time and additional work that is involved in the process.
While the Games for Windows platform certainly offers benefits to Windows users (like better manageability thanks to the Game Explorer) it lacks support by many popular game developers and causes concern by some gamers who fear that Microsoft is planning a subscription based model similar to the one offered on their Xbox gaming system once a critical mass of supported games has been reached.
What’s your opinion on the issue? Will Games for Windows take off in Windows 7? Do you share the concern of some users or think that the benefits outweigh the disadvantages?
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