When did the PC hardware scene get so crazy and stressful?

[Richdog]

Forward note: when I say "stressful" it is all in the context of a hobby. This isn't life or death or something that I spend my time worrying about and this is more of an amusing reaction to what I've seen over the last few months.

I am generally a patient man and have sat back throughout all of this FOMO hype crap of the last months leading up to the new generation of GPU and CPU reveals without pulling the trigger on anything. However, now that everything is finally revealed from both the Nvidia and AMD camps, does anyone else just want to get this all over with and start enjoying their games again? I mean seriously, when did generational hardware reveals become this draining?

The manufacturers are so desperate to sell, and users are so desperate to buy, that in their haste to be first at all costs, some manufacturers are almost purposefully screwing up their precious launches and many users are purposefully whipping themselves up into a frenzy by checking rumour sites 5x per day and attention-seeking techtubers 5x per day. Then on top of that people are torturing themselves by pre-ordering at crazy gouging prices and then literally waiting for weeks, or even months, to get their products. Amongst all this we then of course have the forum ****-posting that we all somehow seem to get drawn into to some degree, some more 'passionately' than others. I mean yeah, we always had fanboys to some degree, but now it's like a nerdy version of football hooligans.

I have spent the last or so years out of the desktop PC hardware race as I have been gaming mostly on laptops, so I reduced my demands accordingly. I remember that even when I was at the bleeding edge of PC upgrading, that it used to be a comparatively relaxing and harmonious as far as hobbies went, you just waited for a release and then bought it. Now, it seems to have turned into a stress-inducing ****-show for many people and the level of impatience, compulsion and FOMO I have seen are often veering towards the irrational.

Am I looking back at previous generational hardware launches with rose-tinted glasses, or have things really got so bat-**** crazy over the last 5-10 years?

 

[Richdog]

@Richdog this is currently the worst I remember it.

Suspect it's become an easy focus for everyone's attention given the current crescendo for politics & pandemic driven socio environmental economic pressures.

That's a lot of voices and personalities to accommodate.

My approach is a gaming laptop for the PC RTS/Sim/Strategy genres + back catalogue and a 2060/2070s copes perfectly. Benefits of portability too.

Then Xbox Series X or PS5 for the 4k gaming experience.

Whilst on paper the latest gen of GPU & CPU out perform consoles by a few percentage points in benchmarks, the real world image quality and gaming experience of the consoles looks like they will hold their own for a long time this gen.

The above sidesteps the current stresses nicely and it's an interesting perspective looking in on it all from a different foundation.

You make some good points that I didn't consider when I posted... the world at the time of this hardware release is a lot more stressful than it was in most previous ones, what with COVID lockdowns, deaths and job losses, Brexit uncertainty, US elections and extreme environmental concerns all adding (whether consciously or subconsciously) to peoples general levels of tension and delivered to us in daily levels of alarmist doses by the various media outlets.

I think the rest is mainly due how we are (de)evolving as consumers and how the tech media has developed a parasitic symbiosis with manufacturers, working in concert to create all of this crazy hype and FOMO months in advance of a release. Add to that general declining levels of business ethics in the PC and gaming industry, and all of the impressionable PC enthusiasts are certainly ripe targets for having their minds influenced and wallets plundered.

And then I guess you just have the people for whom their PC is their primary means of entertainment and means of socializing, even before the lockdown, who have become even more dependent on it in the last months of confinement, further inflaming their passions.

God knows what madness the next hardware generational release is going to be like in 2 years.

Its why I'm getting out of PC gaming, TBH. I'll be getting rid of my current rig in the new year.

This hobby has become populated with morons who seemingly have more money than brains & common sense, who are willing to throw absurd amounts of money at it, just to be able to say they have a new shiny toy on day one.

Normally I wouldn't care what idiots like that do, in any walk of life, but their stupidity affects everyone else's purchasing options, by creating the current situation we find ourselves in.

I mean, there are posters in the 3070 thread who have paid nearly £700 for one...£700!!! for a 70 class card and the worst part is they are actually grateful that they got one at that price. Complete morons.

Yeah, people paying that level of price gouging is really sad, but as long as you stay sensible then it's still a worthwhile platform to game on, especially if you are into modded games. To be honest, mods are half of what keeps me gaming on PC despite all of the industry drama.

I tell you why. This ones easy.

Too much demand, too little stock. It’s as simple as that.

People want the status of “I’ve got the best hardware than anyone on this planet”. So they rush to be the first to get it.

Supply and demand causes chaos.

I dont know why people are in such a rush to hand over their money. Its not like game requirements have changed for years.

Im not going to upgrade my vega64 until I actually need to.

FOMO, yo!

 

[Richdog]

The PC scene started becoming stressful when people wanted lights on everything.

Yeah it's really interesting how PC's have gone from something kept out of sight and mind under your desk, to a bedroom ornament. The last thing I want to see in my peripheral vision while gaming or working is a load of multi-coloured lights from any other source than my monitor.

I’ve been looking at building a new PC for first time in ~10 years...Not seen any of this stress/craziness!
Just the usual ‘might be better waiting x months until x comes out’....that seems to be the case any time I’ve looked in to new hardware

Well yeah, sensible people just look at what's available for their budget and do some research to make an informed decision. I think really the OP is just describing what happens if you hang out in tech forums too much.

Hah yes... basically this.

 

[Richdog]

Errrr...you reckon?!

I specifically meant with waiting for and buying things... thought that would be obvious from the context.

 

[Richdog]

If you're referring to the gpu scene (and I think you are)

It specifically says so in the first sentence dude: "FOMO hype crap of the last months leading up to the new generation of GPU and CPU reveals".

 

[Richdog]

And this stops you from enjoying PC gaming how?

If you somehow weren't able to grasp the message of his post, it's that he is annoyed with people willingly paying silly money (above MSRP) for hardware and so fuelling ever-higher prices of hardware which then presumably further impacts his wallet when he wants to upgrade. It's reasonable assume that he is going to console-world where hardware prices are more predictable.

 

[Richdog]

Felt bummed out having bought a 2070 Super this year for £470 and the 3070 released last week at the same price but in reality it would appear that whilst the 3070 is better, it's not so much better that I'll want to sell my current card and add the rest for a 3070... Let alone find one of the 15 or so allocated UK stock units in stock (lol).

I guess the main thing going for me is I don't game at 4K with masses of AA in games but instead 1440p 21:9 and low AA settings where available meaning performance is often really good anyway. Next gen games are changing things though with raytracing making realistic lighting effect more compelling but luckily my card handles that fine too for now so until I come across a total challenge for the card I think I will keep as is and not get drawn into the supermarket sweep currently created.

I am one of those that do prefer ultra settings in games though. Having a big 34" UWA screen means games often look more immersive with the higher settings. HBAO is more obvious, shadows, lighting effects etc even when engrossed in the game. You do not need the most expensive cards to realise them though, certainly don't need 4K!

It's a shame, but if you bought it earlier in the year then you couldn't really have known.

Again, that impacts his enjoyment how? It's still possible to enjoy the thousands of games that ostensibly do not require up to date hardware in the slightest.

The context of what he meant is obvious and you are interpreting it far too literally.

 

[Richdog]

I'm not sure it has much of a negative impact on him or the rest of us tbh... In fact it potentially has a positive impact..

It's not about what impact you think it has on him, it's what impact he thinks it has on him. His view of it negatively impacting his enjoyment and his wallet is perfectly valid and if it means he is getting out of PC gaming then that's his choice and consoles are likely a better fit for him at this point.

 

[Richdog]

That's just a perception issue tbh... I mean complaining about a problem that only exists if you allow it it, no one is forcing anyone to upgrade immediately and if you don't then you get plenty of value/benefit off the back of the people who do.

Main concern should be do you have sufficient hardwear to play the games you want to play... answer would tend to be yes... and that's quite easily achievable without having to go for the latest top of the range hardwear.

Same logic applies as before, that's your opinion not his. Sometimes (actually, a lot of the time in life) you just have to agree to disagree with people and accept they have different views. I do get the root where he is coming from, because the PC hardware and gaming industry and the FOMO mentality surrounding it has only been getting more ridiculous over the last few years.

 

[Richdog]

I'm not disagreeing with his feelings etc.. I'm just saying it is a perception issue. It isn't an opinion to state that R&D is funded by the ability to sell these cards etc.. that's just fact.

I hear you and in the end I am sure we can look to justify the problems with the PC hardware and gaming industry in many similar ways.

 

[Richdog]

Of course, but that only matters if you're one of the people desperate to get in the latest cards ASAP. If you're just interested in having a machine for gaming then it doesn't need affect you, you get the benefit of either second hand prices dropping like a stone on previous top of the range cards that are still more than enough for your needs or just picking up a mid range card that is as good as the top of the range one from the last series... something that you're able to do in part because of the cash everyone else is willing to spend.

And the price of everything still goes up generation by generation, whether low-end, high-end, mid-range, used or otherwise; fuelled to a large degree by the MANY people desperate to get the latest cards ASAP.

 

[Richdog]

Not really, these are new products. Prices of 2080ti should probably take quite a hit for example. You wouldn't have this tech available at this price if it wasn't for so many people funding it via their purchases.

If you had a smaller market then perhaps the best Nvidia could have developed at this point would be something equivalent to say a 1080ti... and at the cost of say a current 3080... instead you can buy one second hand now and/or buy a brand new mid range card that has insanely good performance.

Larger the market for this stuff and the more they can sell the better available improved GPU tech is for everyone and at a better price than we'd otherwise be paying, this stuff is literally driving the R&D efforts in this area, everyone who wants to take advantage of GPUs benefits from that.

Lets just agree to disagree on this particular topic, no need for extended circular arguments and I think we have both made our thoughts clear.

 

[Richdog]

I think the AMD Zen3 launch certainly added to my stress levels today... it was in stock for around 30 seconds in my area. These BS semi-paper launches with such limited availability are just not on.

 

[Richdog]

Well, I think the 6800 launch is a final **** you to the consumer in 2020. Every major launch this year has been terrible. Instead of just a hit to the wallet, consumers now face a hit to the dignity and self-respect in the process of trying to get one. You sit there refreshing a page , put something in your basket, hope you are quicker than someone else... only to find you weren't and it went to someone else instead? That's the new normal... intense feelings of frustration for hundreds of thousands of people when truing to part with their money for what should be a mass-produced product releases with the proper stock and supply to at least stay in stock for more than 15 minutes? We are not talking about an exclusive Rolex or a rare car here... it's a damn piece of PC hardware.

Add in all of the dodgy stuff such as price gouging and employer-grabbing of stock from unscrupulous webshops and sellers and I think I will never buy a product at launch again unless large stocks are guaranteed and well publicized in advance.

 

[Richdog]

In other words, I'm getting too old for this sh**

Hah maybe so... definitely less tolerant to being screwed around with things like this! it saps a lot of the fun out of a hobby, especially when it's the time you really planned on upgrading.

 

[Richdog]

pepper thy angus.

It's only gonna get worse.

Can it actually get worse than the 2020 launches? Serious question.

 

[Richdog]

Forward note: when I say "stressful" it is all in the context of a hobby. This isn't life or death or something that I spend my time worrying about and this is more of an amusing reaction to what I've seen over the last few months.

Think the op needs to put down his monster / relentless / red bull / sunny d if it's stressing himself out so much. Bigger things in the world to stress about.

yea its quite pathetic.

Do you guys suffer from any particular reading difficulties? Or it a more of a general IQ thing.

 

[Richdog]

Tiny font right at the top makes the eye skip right over it tbh

Ahh, the challenges life throws at us...

 

[Richdog]

It's not stressful at all - Simply sit back and watch the people buying day 1 get bent over. Smiling safe in the knowledge you can buy slightly down the line at a nice reduced price. Economics doing its thing!

I would argue that the statement "it's not stressful at all", in the specific context of these PC hardware launches, is patently false.

I was really, really looking forward to upgrading at launch due to building my first desktop in years. While I have quite a few hobbies to keep me happy both indoors and outdoors, seeing and experiencing the palaver to try and get something at launch was definitely an eye-opener! I have never experienced this kind of launch shennanigans before, it was both hilarious in its absurdity and of course a bit disappointing in seeing how cynical companies are nowadays with this stuff vs the last time I upgraded like this.

Probably couldn't afford to buy the new one without selling the old one, which does make me wonder if they can really afford it in the first place.

What kind of crappy comment is this? It's no business of yours what people can or can't afford without selling their old stuff... some people are on a very tight budget and the PC is one of their primary sources of entertainment, especially during a pandemic.

 

[Richdog]

Its still a very enjoyable hobby for me, i really do enjoy reading about new hardware and seeing peoples builds, and youtube videos. But i have learnt to be very patient over the years, and while i do plan on getting a 5950x with a 3080/6800xt i am happy to wait another 12 months for it.

Patience is indeed a virtue, but I am currently stuck with a 1660 Super and to carry on gaming how I want to for the next 12-18 months I really want to stick a 6800XT or similar in my desktop and then forget about it.