i hate "gamer" as an identity so much
Submitted by twovests in killallgames
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twovests wrote
Your bytes are good and valuable.
Yeahhh, tbh people who argue that PC gaming is cheaper... They're hella wrong?? I'd never be able to justify this just for gaming -- this is also going to be a pretty nice workstation for machine learning, 3D modelling, etc. I can;t imagine it filling the same area as hangin out on the couch with friends playing Nintendo
Moonside wrote
Honestly, this all just starts making library card a hecking steal in comparison and they even have games nowadays! I have a museum card that let's me visit over 200 museums for free in my country.
I can imagine PC gaming being cheaper if your tastes run a bit left field, like if you primarily emulate, play older games, indie games or a specific genre such as visual novels. But then you're clearly outside of the "gamer" culture and it's also clear that even this isn't going to be cheaper than being really into music, film, TV, podcasts or books. And you're likely using the machine to do work, pay the bills etc. which kind of ruins relaxation. Different things and places, different moods, at least for me.
Moonside wrote
TBH what reallys grinds my gears is just how much money you need to spend to be an Apex Gamer and I suspect lots of other ills in the culture directly flow from this. It doesn't help for how many of the loud mouthed gamers the hobby is financed by someone else, like parents. Music, books and movies are so ultra affordable in comparison. (I wonder if the problems in comics culture derive from similar constraints. It's a kind of a bulky media and expensive for the amount of time you spend and piracy is less convenient.)
To really play the newest and the hypest games The Real Way (according to Gamers), you need a solid PC and peripherals. This is the reason why I dropped out of the gaming mainstream when I was 13. I had such old computers (that were full of pirated garbage not installed by me) to work with as a teen it was impossible to keep up with the Culture. And I had no TV and thus no desire to get a console either, but that seems to make you a second class citizen in gaming anyways.
The second thing might be that for many, a laptop/desktop is a tool for work. If I want to relax at home, I sure as hell won't be keen on sitting in a work chair and lighting up a work machine. So a person would probably get a TV before a computer screen for gaming. It just becomes a matter of degrees of formality, really. I don't want wear white tie at home and honestly having a dedicated place for a gaming PC, peripherals and a chair would feel kind of same.
A lot gamer culture is centered around people whose hobby is financed by someone else. You can see it in "git gud" discussions. Playing difficult games for the challenge would be more appealing if the skill practice was subvented by my parents as it was as a kid.
Yeah a long screed, but bytes are cheap so no matter!