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Budget (including currency): CAD 500 - CAD 820 Country: Canada Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: Indie Games and the occasional AAA titles like Forza Horizon 5 or Deathloop. Other details (existing parts lists, whether any peripherals are needed, what you're upgrading from, when you're going to buy, what resolution and refresh rate you want to play at, etc): I'm just wandering if I should just get the lowest tier Steam Deck (the 64gb version) since I won't be playing high end games since I prefer to play those on a mouse and keyboard. I just want a handheld that I can use on my bed or on the couch. Or should I just save up my money to get the highest tier version (the 512gb Version) since it has the nvme drive and the anti-glare coating on it.

Preface I recognize that the suggestions I will make here are neither innovative nor timely, however it is not until several events have materialized that I am moved to compose this list. The first of these is the realization that the current supply conditions of computer hardware will not improve in considerable time, as many may be aware by now. This has led me to reflect on what it is that I truly expect from video games; what are the things I enjoy more from the games I play? Of course, many have already suggested/declared that they may look into their "backlog" of video games and play those until the time when the market conditions allow them to upgrade their systems. These thoughts are not of my own design and I take no credit for having created them. However, it is the following two considerations that warrant this list. The first is that there are undoubtedly people that do not have a so-called "backlog" of games to fall unto and may just as well give up on PC gaming because of it (a series of events nobody should wish for in this forum, surely). Those that, for whatever reason, cannot afford the devices they want/need, should not be dissuaded from partaking in our common hobby simply because of conditions beyond their control. The second consideration is as well a current obstacle that this list will hopefully overcome; there exists little in what I have seen in this forum directing the promotion of "great" games towards those who have extremely limited hardware (dual-core CPUs, ancient/non-existent GPUs, etc.). I understand that there are topics dedicated to just that and if this were the only issue this particular topic would not exist. However, I strongly believe it is important to give greater visibility to these games now and rather than create endless threads of how one should not buy something now we should be motivating the community to explore and recommend games that need not the highest frame-rates and bring forth the best of PC gaming. I suggest in replacing the perspective of a lack of hardware with a preponderance of software, and so it is to this end that I make these personalized recommendations. Disclaimer: I have no stake in any of the developers, publishers, or parent companies that hold any title to any of the games mentioned whatsoever and stand to gain nothing from their success. These recommendations are made in the interest of PC gaming and entertainment. Darkest Dungeon: This game is as fun as it is punishing, utilizing roguelike and RPG elements to manage a dungeon-crawling team. The Gothic atmosphere and art design are (imo) second to none and the sidescroller design creates tons of tension when exploring the monster-infested dungeons. Gameplay consists of slight micro-managing and critical decision-making; every detail is important and every expense spared is paid for in blood. Best of all, it can run on any PC as long as it has a x86/x64 architecture; that's it, that's all you need for this game. It is totally worth it at the $24.99 retail but can be frequently found for less than half that price. Pros: System requirements are literally "potato", gameplay is addictive, can be played with controller/kb+m and even just the mouse, no microtransactions, excellent (and creepy) soundtrack. Cons: Your team will die. A lot. GRIS: This is the epitome of what it means to be an "artsy-game". It's a 2D platforming puzzle(ish) game with an abstract yet heart-moving story, but by far the best thing is the art style. Playing the game is, in a way, interacting with a canvas. You'd have to play the game because I don't want to spoil too much about the game, the story is really that special (at least to me). None of the puzzles are irritatingly hard or boringly simple, with every "stage" representing a perfect amount of difficulty. As long as you have a dual-core, integrated graphics and $17 you are ready for GRIS. Pros: Music by Berlinist (the good stuff), also available on Mac OS if that's your thing, great and (possibly) relatable story, doesn't need high-end hardware to hit 60 wallpapers-per-second. Cons: Relatively short, not a lot of replay value except for getting great screenshots. Hades: Ok, you've probably already heard of this game to death so I'll keep it brief. Son of Hades wants to break out of Hell and the gods help him along the way with different abilities, boss fights and excellent characters in a roguelike action game. Honestly it's pretty cool and as long as you have 8GB of system RAM and a dedicated GPU it is a good buy at $25. Pros: Great gameplay and soundtrack, stylish character designs, lots of replay value. Cons: It can be a little hard to figure out at first, trial-and-error learning can be frustrating late-game. Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak: This prequel to the beloved Homeworld series brings the best elements of the 4X genre to the ground-based RTS genre. It's a great place to start if one is unfamiliar with the RTS genre and has an amazing campaign to boot (with a great plot-twist if you've played the previous games). Instead of the traditional base-building mechanics these are supplemented with the carrier mobile bases that tread along the vast desert planet. The maps are on the smaller side of what is customary for RTS games but this means fights are not prone to getting needlessly long and the campaign is still plenty long. It is a bit steep in price ($49.99 retail) but on sale it is definitely worth the buy and can run well on anything above a low-end Maxwell GPU and a dual-core CPU. Pros: Amazing story (and not just for an RTS), combat feels impactful and good strategy is rewarded, level design is surprisingly varied for a desert. Cons: Some missions are a bit overzealous with the enemy spawn rate, might want to stay away if you don't like sand. Hyper Light Drifter: A 16-bit style game with the high-octane action of a AAA title, this game is more of a love-letter to the classic Zelda games but with the difficulty cranked up to 11. The art style is really charming and the soundtrack (by Disasterpeace) is worthy of a disk release. It has a fun variety of weapons and skins (cloaks) to change playstyle and lots of hidden areas and achievements for (possibly) hundreds of hours of entertainment. I comes in all flavors too; Windows, Mac and Linux. LINUX! Pros: Fast-paced gameplay, dashing>>>running, epic boss fights, replay value for weeks, all for 20 bucks. Cons: Can be difficult in the beginning, best played with a gamepad; kb+m work but..., still haven't 800 dash (◕︵◕). Star Wars: Battlefront 2 (2005): The man, the Myth, The LEGEND. This game runs on anything with DirectX 9 support and to this day plays just like the simulations. Chances are you've played this game at some point, but have you played it with... mods? The graphics mods, gameplay and map overhauls put this game up there with the best today and it still has a substantial playerbase. Also, since it is a really old and lacks any type of competitive scene the general toxicity is virtually nil. For ten bucks (or $5 on sale) it's a great game to just sit down, set 'em up and knock 'em down. Pros: Runs buttery smooth, mods galore, Heroes vs. Villains is illegal amounts of fun, The Force will be with you, always. Cons: Looks dated without graphics mods, you didn't watch those wrist rockets ᇂﮌᇂ). VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action: Cyberpunk! Bartender! Action! For the visual novel fans this is a must-play. It's surprisingly mature for its anime-esque appearance and quirky characters but is extremely engaging. Instead of choosing a dialogue option, you interact with characters through the drinks you serve them. You can serve drinks based on what they ask you or what you think they really want/need. It's a perfect game for relaxing and staying comfy indoors. Runs on potatoes, costs as much as a bag of potatoes, infinite playtime. Pros: Branching storylines, hilarious characters, EveryDayIsNight.wav, DOROTHYNQUISITION. Cons: If you don't like visual novels, I guess... These are my suggestions for those that are still undecided between yielding to a scalper or looking for other games to play. Chances are, your computer can run these games and if you do not have them I encourage you to try them out. My hope is that these events turn the masses of PC gamers to give more renown for less-flashy games and perhaps even create a collective consciousness behind what games we, as a community, like to play and what we want from them. I would love to hear your own suggestions on what "low-spec" games you like to play and would like others (and me) to try.

I have been thinking of games which work on GT210 and still looked gorgeous, still worth checking out in 2022, not many games did that I think. Or the game companies, or devs...not sure which was the problem really to not try to make a game that works on most commonly available hardware instead of aiming for latest and greatest for best quality at 30fps. Maybe its a philosophy problem, not sure. I want to think of games are made for fun and more people have it its better, right? It is true that not every hardware will perform the same and the game engine designer will have to set some constraints for ram and other things to give a basic, NORMAL SETTINGS game play. But even after all that will it be easier to just put the CD on the old DELL and run a game? maybe gamers are never satisfied with graphics and so its not useful to make a game that everyone enjoys but only for enthusiasts who know what is the difference between 8K textures and HD textures, or who can define what is Nanites properly...I am going way too tangentially at this point. I spent some time last night thinking of games and other game events like E3 and how far this has got us, I wanted to find games which were critically rewarded and were worth every penny. And games which most people probably missed, which ran beautifully at 30fps and still looked like something which screams QAULITY, any come to your mind yet?

Raji- An Ancient Epic is an RPG with a very different art style to anythng you'd have seen before. They plan to release it on 15th October for PC on Steam (there's a demo which you can download and play for free). They've already released it on Nintendo (linked below) and if you have a switch, I think you should take a look. They also released the gameplay of the first 7 minutes. I played the Alpha version of this game two years ago and I'm really excited to play this whien it will come out on Steam. Nintendo Store link: https://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/raji-an-ancient-epic-switch/ Steam link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/730390/Raji_An_Ancient_Epic/ 7-minute gameplay:

Hello everyone I'm just wondering what games are able to run at 60 fps on integrated graphics (I'm talking about HD 6100 or 620). Would it be able to play, for example, terraria at 1080p or higher? Are the integrated graphics even powerful enough to play any game smooth at 2560 x 1600 and 50/60 fps?

http://www.engadget.com/2015/02/26/temperature-price-snowman-indie-game/ Thought this was a cool idea. The price of the game is apparently based off of the current temperature in London in degrees Celcius. What do you think of the generic idea of basing the price of your new indie game off of some ever changing statistic?

A lot of people, including me, like the Last of us. It's a good game. But how the developers come up with the story? Neil Druckmann,Writer and co-director of the zombie epic, said his inspirations is from other indie titles. In an interview with GamesIndustry, Druckmann predicted that more AAA titles will have more bold storylines in the games in the coming future. He also praised several indie games like Going Home and Papers Please, said he was “blown away” by how these indie games delivered their stories. http://vr-zone.com/articles/last-us-writer-looking-indie-games-inspiration/56591.html?utm_source=feedly