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(Serious) Where does our hobby go from here?

A 3k 5080 build will last you a good few years. If you are earning 150k then I don't see the issue unless you are up to the eyeballs in debt.

It's not like you are buying one every year.
Pretty much.

In the past 20 years I've built a grand total of 3 systems. I've never had to go below medium settings with high+ mixed in. I plan to use my current one well into the 30's.
 
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Backlog & Emulation for me. I already have enough games to last a lifetime, plus with most of the modern audience slop that's coming out today it's not the end of the world if that side of it is reduced.

Gaming 20 years ago was much better than it is today in just about every aspect imo.

I'll never, ever endorse cloud gaming no matter how much it's shoved down my throat. If it comes to a point where that's the only option going forward, then I'm out.
 
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Why though? Of cloud can keep advancing and offer the same experience as local would you still feel this way? I know alot of you love collecting physical and I get it, but it seems that even those games need patches anymore. It's not like cartridge or cd days.

Also I'm with you on retro, I just wish there was a way to modernize them for today's TV's without ruining them
We've already seen the enshittification of every other streaming service out there. It's just the Epstein class trying to turn our entire lives into subscriptions and monetizing our data, and they can keep their shit frankly. Honestly it's more just a matter of principle at this point. I'm sure it will make bank with people who are growing up used to subscribing to every facet of their life.
 
Why though? Of cloud can keep advancing and offer the same experience as local would you still feel this way? I know alot of you love collecting physical and I get it, but it seems that even those games need patches anymore. It's not like cartridge or cd days.

Also I'm with you on retro, I just wish there was a way to modernize them for today's TV's without ruining them
I don't care if the "cloud" can make me a sandwich and do my laundry while I play, I'm not paying a subscription to play my freaking games, ever.
 
it gonna be like IRL
there is huge gap between low class, middle and upper. particularly between middle and upper.

the gaming hardware affordability not really reflect this before as people could still saving up and bought it after some times but going foward if situation doesnt change, it might gonna reflect actual IRL income class lol

that said, people still somehow can buy expensive phones disregard the background of the users. so who know? but i hope it wont end up where taking debt to own one become a norm like phones in future. it sucks if thats the case.

i just hope pc parts manufacturer and console would give more effort to ensure their hardware would last longer since parts upgrade wont be feasible budget wise as before.
 
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I am still rocking my RX 6600 that i paid $250 dollars 3 years ago and enjoying Crimson desert at mostly 60fps at 1080p.
Looking forward to FSR4 in 2027.

PC gaming does not have to be expensive.
 
I have given up hope of ever buying a x80 card. It's not like I can't buy it but it wouldn't be a wise financial decision.

Will probably get a budget 1440p card for a 1080p60 gaming that would last me another 6-8 years. Or better that I quit gaming altogether, that would be the best case scenario.
 
If you'd like to save money while still playing the latest games, personally I would either invest in a handheld PC or a Steam Deck. It will be less powerful than the current and next generations, but it's cheaper and you'll also save money on games.

The Nintendo Switch 2 is my personal top recommendation.

Edit : Second hand gaming laptop could get you far too.
 
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it gonna be like IRL
there is huge gap between low class, middle and upper. particularly between middle and upper.

the gaming hardware affordability not really reflect this before as people could still saving up and bought it after some times but going foward if situation doesnt change, it might gonna reflect actual IRL income class lol

that said, people still somehow can buy expensive phones disregard the background of the users. so who know? but i hope it wont end up where taking debt to own one become a norm like phones in future. it sucks if thats the case.

i just hope pc parts manufacturer and console would give more effort to ensure their hardware would last longer since parts upgrade wont be feasible budget wise as before.
I'll just stick with my PS5 and Asus if it becomes too expensive for the next PC handheld.

I always owned every console I could, but with the shit direction both Sony and MS are going, I'll probably just stick to a mid or even low tier gaming PC or the next PC handheld for next gen. If so, I'll mostly stick to only playing Asian AAA games or, cheaper, random indie games on Steam which is basically my spending habits now.
 
I'm planning to use android handhelds for retro and older/indie steam games using Gamenative for the next few years. I have an Odin 2 right now that I'm very satisfied with.

I'm not paying these fuckwit prices for AAA games that are now largely complete trash.
 
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My guy if you're making 150K and can't find 3K every 3 years (which should be utterly inconsequential at your income level, that's about $80/month) you got much bigger problems than the price of GPU's.

You gotta pay that $5500/month house mortgage and $1200/month car payment and all the friggen other bills another $1500/month, plus college is like $200k/year now, and those 5 kids are all about ready to hit colleges.

Being an adult and paying for stuff sucks! lol
 
Games will always be made for the hardware that people own. If high-end hardware explodes in cost then games will simply be made for the cheaper hardware.

I'll never touch cloud gaming though. If push came to shove then there are thousands of older games that run on very modest hardware.

That's fine. To be fair I can barely see the difference between Forza as a launch title on Xbox One and the recently released one. Graphics haven't improved much since Xbox One and PS4 released.
 
Really sucks right now, but prices will come back down. This kind of shock has has happened before. 2011 Thailand floods caused hard drives to double, 2013 Hynix fire caused RAM to double. Crypto boom 10 years ago caused high end GPUs to double. Even back to the 80s, trade war with Japan caused RAM prices to quadruple.
 
If you consider yourself priced out with the salary, imagine what the rest of the world will think...

I wonder how all the game studios will stay afloat when the market for their games shrinks to a fraction of its size because most people can't afford it anymore and given the choice will most certainly rather choose to upgrade their phone.
 
Don't know where my hobby goes.

Only thing I know Is that I won't be playing GTAVI at 30fps.

The other thing I know Is that the PS5 Line up is definitely the worst in Playstation history(got all Playstation systems😉).

If the next Playstation has no disc drive I'm gonne switch to PC.

But it's not making really sense to build a new gaming PC just for one game.(GTAVI)🤷🏼‍♂️
 
Its also good for kids to be introduce to gaming not just sports and music. Studies shows it is also good for mental development and health like for example problem solving and studies even shows that 1st person shooters are helpful in minimizing the risk of dementia and alzheimer disease.

Yeah that and all the psychedelics I took lmao.

I actually think gaming, particularly competitive fps games like Counter Strike and Halo, had a profound effect on my ability to meditate.

Being able to project your sense of self into an external 3D space viewed through a 2D window/display where I have to be aware of things "behind me" or in other rooms or parts of the map, whilst tracking the timing of patterns of behavior, etc. When I'm meditating I'm doing the same thing bringing my awareness to things that sometimes exist in weird abstract, conceptual, and imaginary ways that are mapped onto my body or sense of self.

I think people take for granted what a skill that is. Great for sports too like Soccer or Basketball where you have to be aware of people around you outside of your field of view and anticipate their behaviour.
 
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Secret salary bragging thread?

If you make 150K you can afford a 1000$ console every 4 years, counting the mid gen refresh in.

Neither the console cost or the subscription for online play are what should worry you.
Charging 85-90€ for games like Mario Kart and Pokopia is the real problem for me.
 
Maybe I should buy some FPGA hardware in the near future.
Get a MiSTer and a decent CRT. Legitimately one of the best gaming purchases I've ever made.
 
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