The video game industry as we know it, is on a plummeting decline. What I mean by that is, that almost every aspect of the hobby is either horribly overpriced, in an unhealthy state, or just lacking what made the hobby great to begin with.
Let’s begin with the most important part of the hobby.
Console or PC?
That is the age old debate that people have ended friendships over. Affordability vs performance is what is at stake, but in a time where everything is expensive, and people are chasing the best of the best, is it really worth it to buy a new gen console. I’m still weighing the options.
The original price of the Xbox was $299.99 back in 2001 when it was released. With the new Xbox having a price tag of $1200 on release, people are outraged; especially since it won’t be released until 2027. The “PC-Console Hybrid” is sparking a large backlash for going against what consoles originally aimed for. Reliability, and affordability.
Xbox being a Microsoft owned brand is now aiming to make the new Xbox fill a sort of in-between void between the two mediums.
The size, aesthetics and controller (supposedly partnering with Asus for a new controller), with the operating system closer to that of a PC, allowing more access to PC games.
At that point, if you’re going to drop $1200 dollars on a “Kinda-PC” just buy a PC for that price that’ll blow the Xbox out of the water.
Also, over the last few years, the price of video games has shot up in price. What used to be a standard $59.99 price tag for new releases has now shifted closer to $69.99, and sometimes even higher for special editions.
What also irks me is that, while it is convenient when I want to play with other people, the popular ability of “Crossplay” is also driving up the price of video games. It’s also a reason why consoles are straying further away from the casual aspect of gaming. Because they have to perform better to keep up with PC’s
The higher processing power of PC’s allows them to get better graphics, and faster frame rate.
While consoles are often choked at 60fps. They are treating consoles as though they can run at 140fps like a PC. they are not built to do that.
It’s idiotic, and quite frankly, a cash grab that has a death grip on the industry.
While my PS5 can run at 120 frames, my television is choked at 60fps. And I do not want to have to spend over $150 on a new monitor/TV, just to have my $500 console make games look just a little prettier.
Overall it just seems like unless something major is changed with the way things are heading in the world of gaming it’ll just keep getting more and more expensive and eventually edge people out of the hobby with the price of new gaming hardware.
