2026 Is Great For PC Gaming If You Already Have Hardware

It's nary concealed that 2026 has been atrocious for trying to bargain PC hardware. Even backmost successful January, RAM prices had already skyrocketed, and things person lone gotten worse since. Back then, I was proceeding that the AI-caused RAM situation would past into 2027, and now, 6 months later, it feels similar that was the optimistic take.

Now it feels intolerable to physique oregon bargain a decent gaming PC astatine a bully price. Even the Steam Machine, with its entry-level hardware, costs much than a 1000 bucks. That's a hard terms to swallow, for sure, but that's conscionable the mode hardware is going close now. But, if you were fortunate capable to get decent hardware earlier information centers caused prices to spell into the stratosphere, PC gaming really feels unthinkable close now.

Things Are Only Getting More Expensive

Last month, erstwhile the Steam Machine came out, its $1049 terms tag without a controller deed similar whiplash for a batch of folks, but that terms wasn’t particularly surprising. Hardware crossed the PC scenery has been getting much costly each year, and it’s adjacent deed consoles, which person traditionally been immune from this benignant of memory-induced terms increase. The worst part? It’s lone truly getting started.

Over the past weekend, Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier sat down with Valve engineers, who told him that the RAM situation isn’t slowing down immoderate clip soon, and that it’s, successful fact, worse than it seems. Engineer Yazan Aldehayyat said "Just successful lawsuit radical are not aware. What radical are seeing connected retail shelves close now, from our observations, is lagging what we’re seeing from a bulk proviso by astatine slightest 3 to six months."

Valve isn’t alone. Even Microsoft is feeling the unit from the precocious representation prices, with CEO Asha Sharma claiming that the costs to manufacture Xbox consoles volition extremity up astir 5 times higher than they were by the extremity of 2027. And, if you use the three-to-six period hold that Aldehayyat was talking about, it’s wholly imaginable that the Xbox Series X ends up costing conscionable arsenic overmuch arsenic the Steam Machine by the extremity of the year. After all, the 1TB exemplary conscionable went up to $800.

Right now, it’s hard to person immoderate benignant of optimism that gaming hardware volition ever beryllium affordable again. There are a fewer agleam spots present and there, with a Class Action suit being filed successful California against the large 3 RAM manufacturers (Micron, Samsung, SK Hynix) accusing them of terms fixing – thing that has happened before, by the way. There’s a accidental that suit ends up doing something to the existent proviso crisis, but adjacent if it does, it’ll astir apt beryllium a fewer years earlier we spot immoderate benignant of interaction from it.

In the past, my proposal would beryllium to conscionable thrust retired this shortage. Usually, erstwhile determination was a RAM shortage oregon a GPU shortage oregon immoderate else, you could upgrade different parts of your physique until things got backmost to normal. But with the mode the AI golden unreserved has caused prices connected everything from RAM and SSDs to CPUs and GPUs to spell up, it mightiness beryllium a portion earlier anyone tin get a reasonably priced upgrade.

Really, my proposal is to conscionable instrumentality with the hardware you already have. If you already person a decent gaming PC, handheld oregon console, it mightiness beryllium the champion determination to conscionable support playing games determination until this is each implicit – nary substance however agelong it takes. Now, that mightiness mean that you won’t beryllium capable to crook up each the oculus candy successful the latest games, but I’ve been amazed astatine however good caller games tally connected low-to-mid-range hardware this year.

PC Gaming Actually Feels Good Right Now

Over the past six months, I’ve spent a batch of clip trying to tinker with games more, seeking retired the optimal graphics settings to get them to tally good connected lower-end hardware. What I’ve recovered is that the biggest PC games this twelvemonth person been amazingly good optimized. Even Crimson Desert, which wouldn’t adjacent tally connected Intel graphics cards astatine launch, ran highly smoothly connected beauteous overmuch everything I ran it on, adjacent if it had immoderate weird ocular glitches.

The aforesaid tin beryllium said for games similar Pragmata, Forza Horizon 6 and the caller Black Flag remake that conscionable came out. I haven’t truly had immoderate problems getting games to tally connected lower-end hardware, and that, astatine least, is simply a invited respite successful an situation wherever everything is much expensive.

From the outside, it makes a batch of sense, too. After all, it doesn’t instrumentality a precise keen oculus to announcement that hardware prices person gone mode up implicit the past six months, and I’m definite crippled developers person noticed that folks are playing games connected older hardware. At slightest until prices normalize – if they ever bash – it conscionable seems astute for devs to optimize games to tally connected much attainable systems.

I’m definite determination volition beryllium immoderate games implicit the adjacent twelvemonth that are going to punish lower-end hardware. For instance, the strategy requirements for The Blood of Dawnwalker are incredibly steep, and I’m definite Metro 2039 volition person brutal requirements too. However, I’d emotion to spot much games that tin tally conscionable arsenic good connected a handheld arsenic connected a full-fledged gaming PC. And I haven’t been disappointed truthful acold this year.

I don’t cognize if I’d urge anyone really get into PC gaming close now, conscionable due to the fact that hardware is truthful expensive. But, determination are plentifulness of radical who already person immoderate benignant of gaming PC handy. If that’s you, my proposal is to instrumentality attraction of your rig and support it moving smoothly. It seems similar PC games are getting easier to tally arsenic the existent procreation of consoles starts entering its elder years. So, if you tin already tally games beauteous good close now, you’ll astir apt beryllium capable to marque it a fewer much years earlier you truly request to upgrade.

And deliberation astir it this way: portion of the magic of PC gaming is tweaking your games to get them moving conscionable close for your hardware. Right now, that’s easier to bash than ever, arsenic much developers adhd much robust graphics options to their games. As agelong arsenic the inclination of well-optimized games continues this year, and I anticipation it does, immoderate airy tweaking is going to spell a agelong way.

Jackie Thomas is the Hardware and Buying Guides Editor astatine IGN and the PC components queen. You tin travel her @Jackiecobra