WE MOURN THIS DEATH
(In response to David Sydiongco’s Sept. 12 column, “Razer misses the point with PC gaming.”)
PC gaming is pretty much dead to me.
I started out playing Doom II, starting out online with Quake Deathmatch, followed by Quake TF, and on and on and on with many different games in many different genres.
I agree that most gamers (or simply PC enthusiasts) prefer to build their own systems.
There is an elitist factor to it and the often-held misperception that you somehow save money by building your own system, as if buying individual components somehow competes with the bulk prices PC manufacturers receive for components.
The only way you really come close to saving money is if you pirate your operating system (or, which everyone should do anyway, use a free distribution of Linux).
That being said, $2,800 for the Razer is not too bad of a price point for a gaming laptop, especially as people buy or build computers not just for gaming but also to have a computer.
There are also those unnecessary expenses in PC builds that so many fall victim to, such as gaudy, excessive, expensive cases with neon lights and windows.
I don’t think the console market really has much to do with the decline in PC gaming. What does is the expense of hardware and the insane, ever increasing hardware requirements for games.
Couple this with too much focus on profits and not enough on developing quality games with lasting appeal and PC gaming holds even less appeal.
The console market does, however, offer an alternative to those fed up PC gaming and continually upgrading their systems.
Cliff Koehler
Statepress.com reader
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