High-End Gaming PCs Are More Expensive Than Ever, But You Don't Actually Need One

It’s nary concealed that PC components are rather costly close now. Even though I’ve seen RAM prices starting to inch (and I mean inch) down, gathering a caller PC is mode much costly than it should be. And portion that sucks for anyone wanting to physique a rig for a crippled similar Crimson Desert, oregon different AAA crippled with beauteous lighting effects, PC gaming is much accessible than it’s ever been.

There tends to beryllium this misconception that PC gaming is exclusively these large towers connected our desks oregon dense laptops that request a 5-pound powerfulness brick, but acknowledgment to however bully APUs person go lately – looking astatine you Panther Lake – determination is overmuch much to it than that.

Handheld gaming PCs and much almighty laptop APUs mean that you don’t request to put successful a high-end instrumentality to play the champion PC games. And, successful fact, galore of the champion games you tin play connected PC tin tally connected a veritable potato.

Hardware Is More Expensive Than Ever, And That Sucks

I’m not going to beryllium present and unreal that things don’t suck for anyone that doesn’t already person immoderate benignant of PC that tin play games. Right now, getting into PC gaming is much costly than ever, with adjacent entry-level graphics cards similar the RTX 5060 costing astir $360, alternatively than their $299 starting price.

Things are adjacent much dire with much mid-ranged hardware, with the RTX 5070 starting astir $650, which is $100 much than its intended starting price. And don’t adjacent get maine started connected RAM and SSDs, which are inactive mode excessively expensive, adjacent if determination are signs that prices volition commencement lowering soon.

I don’t envy anyone that needs to commencement their PC gaming travel from zero close now, but if you person adjacent a mediocre PC oregon laptop close now, you mightiness not really person to, arsenic agelong arsenic you temper your expectations a bit.

This year, we’ve already seen however good games person been scaling. Both Resident Evil Requiem and Crimson Desert tally beauteous good crossed a wide scope of PC hardware, arsenic agelong arsenic you’re consenting to crook down immoderate of the settings. But adjacent beyond the AAA world, the existent magic of PC gaming lies successful games that tin tally connected highly low-end hardware.

PC Gaming Is More Than Just Ray Tracing

A batch of radical person this representation of PC gaming successful their caput that it’s thing but super-expensive hardware, rainbow lights and ray tracing. And, astatine the high-end, that’s not adjacent inaccurate. But astir of the games that propulsion graphics exertion guardant – your Cyberpunks, your Alan Wake 2s – they’re playable connected crippled consoles arsenic well.

Instead, I’d reason that PC gaming’s existent individuality lies successful the games that you can’t truly find connected consoles. Whether that means thing similar World of Warcraft oregon thing similar Lethal Company, PC is afloat of games that conscionable don’t beryllium anyplace else, and usually these games aren’t packed with each the oculus candy that makes high-end hardware sweat.

In fact, a batch of these games are straight-up ugly, with blocky quality models and low-resolution textures. Instead, much accent is enactment connected making the crippled fun alternatively than serving double-duty arsenic a tech demo. No substance however overmuch I bask exploring a immense unfastened satellite similar Crimson Desert, thing rather beats the amusive I person logging onto Discord with friends and playing R.E.P.O., and I’m beauteous definite my GPU fans don’t adjacent rotation up erstwhile that crippled is running.

So, yeah, possibly you bash request a high-end gaming PC to play the latest AAA games with each the settings cranked, but that’s honestly conscionable the aboveground level of PC gaming. Even if you can’t upgrade your PC, oregon if you’re conscionable playing games connected the aforesaid laptop you usage for work, determination are a ton of astonishing games that volition tally conscionable fine. They won’t person ray tracing oregon DLSS 5 moving connected top, but does that adjacent matter?

There’s a Reason Linux Gaming Is Growing

The latest Steam Hardware Survey came retired past week, and portion a batch of the information falls successful enactment with worldly I’ve seen successful the past, the Linux instal basal has been increasing incredibly quickly. In March 2026, Linux users made up for 5.33% of Steam users, which is up 3% implicit past month. In the aforesaid clip frame, Windows users dropped by 4.28% and MacOS users went up by 1.19%.

If you interruption down the versions of Linux that are growing, it’s not astonishing that the Arch Linux, the distro down SteamOS (and the Steam Deck) is driving a batch of this growth.

Both the Steam Deck and the Lenovo Legion Go S are mode much affordable than a fully-fledged gaming PC, and they’re conscionable almighty capable that they tin tally astir games astatine low-medium settings. And that’s conscionable AAA games. For the indies and RPGs that truly marque PC gaming special, handheld gaming PCs are arguably the perfect mode to play close now.

Handhelds are portable, which makes it easier to instrumentality your games connected the go, and adjacent erstwhile you bash request to plug successful a keyboard and rodent to play a strategy game, you tin just, like, do that. In fact, the full crushed Valve decided to marque the Steam Machine successful the archetypal spot was due to the fact that it got information that a ton of radical were doing precisely that.

And arsenic gaming hardware continues to get much expensive, utilizing a somewhat low-powered Linux instrumentality – beryllium it a handheld oregon Valve’s gaming cube – is lone going to go much common.

Friendslop Is The Future

While rising prices does mean that gaming is successful a, well, a weird spot close now, I uncertainty the mean is going to spell away. Instead, a batch of the big-budget blockbuster slop that we’re utilized to seeing during the summertime showcases is going to get a spot little popular. In their place, lower-budget games that are conscionable fun to play are going to rise, and it’s already started.

Maybe it’s conscionable the radical that I bent retired with, but usually erstwhile I perceive my friends talking astir immoderate caller crippled they’re playing, large AAA games are becoming much uncommon by the day. Instead, I perceive a batch astir immoderate weird caller roguelike, oregon different caller cozy crippled with immoderate silly twist. I mean, conscionable instrumentality a speedy look astatine the top-selling games connected Steam close now, and Raccoin, a raccoon-themed coin-pusher roguelike, is sitting astatine fig 4, outselling Resident Evil Requiem. And that’s 1 of the ‘biggest’ games of the twelvemonth truthful far.

Sure, a batch of this astir apt comes down to the terms of the games. After all, conscionable looking astatine Raccoin versus the crippled that features Raccoon City, and the erstwhile costs $10 close now, compared to $70. But, if anything, that lone proves that gathering radical astatine a terms tag that makes consciousness for the infinitesimal is simply a look for success, adjacent if you person a precise silly and amusive game. And I don’t spot that happening anyplace but PC close now.

Jackie Thomas is the Hardware and Buying Guides Editor astatine IGN and the PC components queen. You tin travel her @Jackiecobra