It always saddens me when people spread FUD like "PC gaming is dying". No. It isn't.
I didn't mean that at all. My thesis was that customizable specs isn't a requirement for gaming platform success. I think that's rather obvious and I probably shouldn't have bothered with the argument, but yeah.
One problem that I have right now with games on all platforms is that they largely look the same to me. Most developers haven't been that creative with the tools they get and they end up using them in only the obvious ways. Obviously Valve games (and most major developers' games) are a bit of an exception, with Half Life 2 using pretty conservative use of mapping, compared to other games, and Team Fortress 2 which doesn't go for realism at all. Portal looks quite different as well, maybe just due to the environments.
I think the reason for this is partially due to things like Direct X. It gives artists a far, far easier way to make games that work on all platforms, but there are also limitations. If developers could access systems on a lower level, they could potentially be more creative while making big performance improvements. However, since every CPU and GPU is different, it's not realistic to try develop for each one specifically. This is the situation that Direct X solves, but with it's draw backs. But that's where consoles can come in, they provide a huge install base of customers with the same hardware configuration. Now you can painstakingly develop that brilliant game that only works on 1 CPU and actually be able to sell it to a decent sized audience.
I think Apple leverages hardware control in another way. They can focus on the limited hardware they have and release regular updates, whereas other OEM's might be spread thin, supporting multiple models and brands across their convoluted line-ups. I don't know if low-level development would be possible on Mac, but I do know all the 2011 Macbooks (except the 13") have the same GPU, and similar CPU's (all Sandy Bridge), so maybe it's a possibility.
I think consoles, Macs and iOS devices have met their potential as easy, works-out-of-the-box, hassle-free (somewhat) specialized devices, and customers have responded to it in droves. But they also have this hidden potential, if the manufacturers would just unlock it for the developers. And some are beginning to ask for it.
Those two are GAMING CONSOLES...not the best analogy
