Written by: Bob Mandel

Despite the unprecedented explosion of blockbuster retail releases this holiday season, the casual computer games market — largely operating through Internet downloads rather than boxed products in stores — continues to flourish. These titles generally sell for a lower price, with lower system requirements and lower minimum time commitment to learn how to play, and they arguably provide more bang for the buck then their retail counterparts. Reflecting the imagination of small independent developers, these modest products may also evidence more creativity and whimsy than many of the “me-too” releases from major corporate publishers.

So for the eighth year in a row, while other game sites focus on conventional retail offerings, I unearth for your playing pleasure the very best hidden treasures casual gaming has to offer. To select the 12 award winners for 2007, I spent many hours scouring hundreds of titles developed in countries all over the world, playing through the full registered versions to get a solid sense of their overall value. One of the pleasures of doing this is meeting some of the nicest and most imaginative people on the planet. Because of intrusive and annoying copy protection schemes, along with many gamers owning offline computers which they frequently upgrade, I tested only offerings where it is possible to register and play the single-player mode on a non-Internet-connected computer.

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Written by: Bob Mandel

In recent years, personal gaming computers have penetrated everyday life in unprecedented ways. Because of extraordinary hardware developments facilitating dramatically expanded capabilities, the market has been decisively segmented: large, impersonal hardware companies sell low-end gaming computers to mass consumers for as little as $500 to $700, while small, personal boutique firms sell loaded units costing over ten times that much to high-end hardcore users. Recently, however, a fascinating merging of efforts has occurred between these two types of companies. This article analyzes the intriguing implications for PC gamers, utilizing extensive interview responses from key visionaries at the pivotal companies involved: Rahul Sood, chief technology officer at HP Gaming, and Susan Kittleson, director of global gaming strategy at Dell.

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Written by: Bob Mandel

During the last month, the world of computer gaming has been abuzz over the blockbuster release of BioShock, developed with loving attention to detail by 2K Boston and 2K Australia and published by 2K Games. Eagerly anticipated for months, this title received universally rave reviews for its story, gameplay, graphics, audio and overall quality, exceeding even the existing high expectations. The offering constitutes a fresh and creative contribution to the competitive first-person shooter genre. Prior to its release, many observers hoped it would revive the sagging PC gaming industry (even though it also appeared on the Xbox 360).

However, instead of this anticipated boost, the actual repercussions have gone in the opposite direction. Blogs and forum rants proliferated, revealing a huge range of complaints about technical glitches on certain computers and about inability of legitimate purchasers to run the game due to copy protection issues. Praise for the incredible nature of the offering itself was virtually lost in the shuffle. A dark cloud began to hang over the release, with many purchasers so frustrated by the experience that they vowed never to buy any PC game ever again. Drawing from this experience, this article will explore the long-term implications for PC game developers and consumers.

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