Following what was arguably the most exciting year for PC gaming in the last decade, the industry looked pretty optimistic going into 2017. Industry experts predicted new installments of long-term fan-favorite series like Ghost Recon: Wildlands and Resident Evil 7: Biohazard to take center stage, new hardware to hit the shelves, and virtual reality to achieve near-mainstream success.
We’re now halfway through the year, and although significant strides have been made, a lot remains undone.
Below are some of the major shifts that have shaped up the 2017 PC gaming scene thus far.
1. Cryptocurrency and the Graphics Card Shortage
Graphics card manufacturers may owe their success solely to the gaming industry, but there’s more to this highly sought-after piece of hardware than rendering games. Among the several other uses of graphics cards besides gaming is mining cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum.
This year, in particular, has seen cryptocurrencies massively regain their popularity, with millions of people seeking to mine, trade and invest. But, although financial experts are welcoming this trend with open arms, the gaming market has seemingly suffered a great deal.
If you’ve been recently planning to build or upgrade your gaming rig, you’ve probably noticed that graphics cards are now unusually pricey. Mid-range GPUs are the most popular to use in mining, and a typical mining setup can run anywhere between a few and dozens of cards.
With the thirst for digital currencies rising steadily, mid-tier GPUs like the AMD RX 580
On the bright side, NVIDIA and AMD are reportedly working towards manufacturing GPUs specifically tailored for mining. These new cards will presumably hit the shelves later in the year, and will hopefully ease the shortage.
2. The VR Go-Slow
VR made major advances last year, thanks to inspiring hardware from pacesetters like HTC and Oculus, as well as thoroughly impressive video games like The Climb, Chronos, and Eve: Valkyrie.
This year, however, virtual reality gaming seems to have taken a rather mellow tone. As industry players ostensibly come to terms with the fact that the tech may be too expensive for recreational use, the tide now seems to be shifting away from consumer VR.
Many game studios that were focusing primarily on virtual reality development are now turning to more commercially promising avenues like real estate, medicine, and engineering. VR is undoubtedly the future of PC gaming, but it’ll take us a few more years to get there.
Nevertheless, as 2017 wanes on, we’ll likely make some steps towards achieving the immersive gaming experience of tomorrow. Microsoft’s new Windows-based standard for VR headsets, for instance, is a great attempt at realizing solid, reasonably-priced headsets for PC gamers. Lenovo, Dell, ASUS, and Acer are all reportedly working on affordable VR headsets based on this standard, whose retail prices will start at $299-$799
3. New Games and Titles
The first half of 2017 has been admirably bountiful with PC game releases. While high-profile titles like Mass Effect: Andromeda haven’t quite lived up to the hype, we’ve seen some instant classics – Prey, Nier: Automata, Thimbleweed Park, and Night in the Woods. Promising titles like Sniper Elite 4 and Get Even ultimately ended up in the “hit-and-miss” pile, and many of us are still reeling from the gut-wrenching after-effects of playing Outlast 2.
If you’re just now joining the party, therefore, the year already has more than enough great PC games for you. Regardless, keep an eye out for upcoming titles like Destiny 2, Call of Duty: WWII and Quake Champions.
Also due in the Fall is Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, as well as Assassin’s Creed: Origins, which, if hype counts for anything, is shaping up to be a worthy “game of the year” contender.
4. The gaming laptop revolution
PC gaming has always been primarily reserved for the desktop computer but, as 2017 releases show, laptops are steadily catching up. The current crop of high-end gaming notebooks now ships with the latest processors and the most powerful GPUs, while still managing reasonably compact packages.
NVIDIA has been on the forefront in the push for desktop-grade performance on laptops, and its premium GeForce GTX 10-series graphics cards are increasingly finding their way into gaming laptops in the under $1500 range and upwards.
The Asus ROG Zephyrus GX501
Desktop PCs may still have one last card up their sleeve, and that’s their ability to make use of NVIDIA’s SLI (Scalable Link Interface), which allows the installation of four high-performance graphics cards on one system. But, with the breathtaking dual-SLI-enabled Asus Predator 21X
5. Windows 10 Game Mode
After years of neglect, Microsoft finally showed renewed commitment to PC gaming by introducing Game Mode to Windows 10. Released as part of Windows 10 Creators Update in the Spring, Game Mode optimizes your computer’s CPU and GPU to prioritize the game you’re running over other background apps and processes.
Although Game Mode may improve gaming experience significantly, depending on your hardware, Microsoft’s main aim is consistency. So, regardless of the processes in the background, your game will still run smoothly.
To enable Game Mode, open Settings and click or touch the Gaming section, and then toggle the Game Mode button on the left-hand side.
Windows 10 Game Mode may not mean much to you if you have a high-end PC, but users of entry-level and mid-tier systems now have a convincing reason to try some gaming.
Parting Thoughts
2017 is turning out to be quite a busy year for PC gaming. So far, we’ve celebrated triumphs, shrugged off letdowns and reluctantly accepted in-betweens. Who knows what surprises the remaining months will bear.
