(Part 2) Best products from r/steam

>Also just to be fair, look at where this hero-based FPS style got Quake into, there is a reason why Blizzard made the most successful game in the genre, while others suffer from lack of development and direction.

Overwatch and Quake are NOT in the same genre. AT ALL. Overwatch is just as much an arena shooter as, say, Counter-Strike or Call of Duty are; which is to say not at all. You're making the same mistake everyone else is making in starting with incredibly superficial aspects of each game, namely that they have classes, and creating "genres" based on that rather than the actually significant gameplay differences between them (And they must be based on gameplay, since none of these games have any significant story elements in their actual runtime).

Overwatch is so far removed from traditional objective shooters, namely in how efficient use of abilities plays a much larger role in success than raw shooting skill than in virtually any other first person objective game that comes to mind. A large number of the classes don't even require any "FPS" skills, and instead have analogues in asymmetric strategy games and the like.

Quake Champions may be small, yes, but it IS attracting more people than just the quake crowd. On a technical level, it's an excellent blend between an archetypal arena shooter, the sort of game design Quake invented, while reducing complexity and convolution to make it much more approachable for those with more modern shooter habits. Lawbreakers, too, hardly suffers from any "lack of direction" in the design department. It's packed to the brim with great ideas and unique takes on the "high-skill FPS" concept, and had my jaw hitting the floor with respect for its elegant gameplay several times when I started playing it.

Success has far more to do with randomness and luck than most people in this thread seem willing to admit. Quake, Overwatch, and Lawbreakers AREN'T significantly better or worse than each other. No hypothetical backfit narrative properly explains why one would have hypothetically failed or succeeded without luck. We just live in a works where the big take the whole pie and the small get nothing; in a world of bandwagoning and herd mentality caused by popularity coming from whatever just happens to gain traction early on in its lifetime.

I bought in relatively early to all of these games because I'm a shooter fan and a nut for unique game design ideas. I will admit that I like Quake the most, Lawberakers second, and Ovwerwatch third, so I do have a little voice in the back of my head that gets irritated whenever others disagree with that assessment, but we all need to learn to come away form making simple judgements between them and other games in the same boat. All of them break the mould in different and unique ways, all of them have good ideas, and all of them could have been popular, in a world where luck happened to favor someone else.

I wouldn't recommend getting USB or surround sound headphones. They come in two types and both are mediocre as well as limiting. You have your headphones with multiple drivers, which reviews will time and time again say are off. Multiple smaller drivers in a circumaural headset next to year ear? Diminished sound quality as well as limited directional accuracy. The other option is to get a set that use virtual surround, but these are going to be USB only. My experienec with USB headphones tells me this is not worth it. Needing to install drivers, potential voltage dropouts from USB charge not being stable, popping (that shit HURTS and is what caused me to throw out my last USB headset), as well as not being able to plug it into more devices. The 3.5 millimeter standard is MUCH better to have here for its versatility and simplicity. If you would like USB, as another user suggested a functional reason for it (though the same could be achieved by using the front audio ports because most computers will still distinguish between headphones and speakers if you use the front ports), they do sell cheap USB adapters that often have their own virtual surround drivers. I'd recommend this over a dedicated USB headset. The lack of versatility and problems associated are worth keeping your setup modular. If you would like to have virtual surround but your soundcard/motherboard doesn't have driver support for it, then I really suggest grabbing the Razer Surround drivers for free.

Okay, wall of text is over! What SHOULD you buy? That's a crazy question. If you're looking for a headset (headphone+microphone), I'm personally a fan of the Logitech G230 which is one of the better price/performance options out there. They are not the highest quality headphones but they are sturdy (important!) and comfortable (double important!). The sound quality coming through them is more than passable. Sometimes I forget I'm not listening to speakers, even though I've been using them exclusively for months. The mic quality is mediocre and requires some boosting, so that should be known.

If you're just looking for headphones without a microphone, this is NOT the place to be asking that question. Audiophiles know headphone gear much better than gamers do, but generally don't know anything about headsets because the low-quality mics headsets use aren't of much use to audiophiles.

If you got through all that, congratulations and I hope it helps you! Just make sure to check reviews on various sites (or just Amazon, if you're lazy like me) and don't pick up anything with less than a 4/5 rating. Good luck!

Looking at the games you listed, you don't need a 'gaming' laptop.

Since you know nothing about 'what all the specs mean'. I'll give you a quick run down of what's important.

The CPU - just because a laptop says advertises itself as quadcore at X ghz doesn't mean it's good. Instead find the CPU model (e.g. i5 8400) and look it up on a bench marking website and compare it with other CPUs of other laptops at whatever price point. Another thing you can do is look for youtube benchmarks, which will give an indication of how that CPU will perform on whatever games she wants to play (e.g. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggfuW_tx9GA). Generally when looking at these benchmarks you want to look out for the FPS counter - anything 60 or above is good.

GPU - Again, look for benchmarks of how the GPU performs on websites and on you tube. Although the games she plays doesn't need to good of a GPU. Again, anything above 60 FPS is good.

HDD/SSD - SSDs are SIGNIFICANTLY faster than Hard-drives, although are more expensive. So if you can get an SSD, get one as I've been able to turn utterly crap laptops into fast ones. This will not help with actual FPS (frames per second) performance in games, but load times and the responsiveness of activities will be significantly better. You shouldn't ever underestimate how big of a difference an SSD will make. Therefore I'd probably find a laptop with an SSD of 240GB or over. You can always upgrade/replace a HDD with an SSD if the laptop you brought doesn't have one and you can find them for about $30 I'd say.

Resolution - Get a 1920x1080 screen (commonly referred to as 1080p). IPS is nice but not necessary. The screen size is up to you. Bigger = better viewing experience however if you want to carry it around every where, smaller might be better.

RAM - 8Gb is generally the norm, although you can probably get away with 4Gb. If you need to you can upgrade the amount of RAM your laptop holds anyways pretty easily.

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Now the games you listed aren't very intensive games (meaning they don't require too good of a PC). Anything over $800 imo is definitely overkill since she won't be playing graphics intensive games. I'd get a laptop with a decentish CPU but nothing too fancy, and you might be able to get away with integrated graphics (the GPU that comes with the CPU), although I wouldn't be overly sure. So don't waste your money on a laptop with a really fancy GPU. Especially as she's only 12; she doesn't need a mid-high end laptop for the types of games she plays.

Something to watch out for is the tag 'gaming'. Just because it has the tag 'gaming' doesn't mean it's good at gaming - it's simply a tag used for marketing. So ignore the tag 'gaming' and just focus on pure specs. The only thing a 'gaming' laptop offers is that it probably looks nice with flashy colours.

Also have you considered a desktop? As they generally are more upgradable (If she decides she wants to play games which are more graphically intense she could easily buy a new GPU for 200 and throw it in there instead of buying a totally new laptop) and more affordable. The only thing she won't be able to do is carry it around.

Hope this helps

Edit found this laptop - https://www.amazon.com/Acer-Nitro-AN515-Laptop-i5-8300H/dp/B07C715KNT/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=laptop+gtx+1050+ssd&qid=1565396341&s=pc&sr=1-4

Now the GPU is a bit overkill IMO so if you do some digging you could probably find a laptop with a better CPU and a worse GPU at a similar price.

I have both a 360 controller and a steam controller. I prefer the 360 for flight if the game is made for it but like above if you fiddle with the steam controller you can make it pretty great. Then there is all the games that don't support the 360 and the steam controller is still nice but I just got this . I personally think playing flight games with a hotas is way more enjoyable than the controller. I do like the steam controller and recommend it. Played Hawken recently with it and loved it.

Acer Predator

This is a pretty good deal right now for 300$ off but it only has 256gb of storage though. I have similar parts in my PC and it can easily run Minecraft with shaders at 80 FPS and can run games like COD using low to medium graphics.

The only real downside of this is the storage but with hundreds more dollars in your budget to buy an external hard drive if you need too.

It says is 144hz but I wouldn’t really rely on that since in most games unless your playing very well optimized or simple games you won’t be able to utilize it.

1060 6gb is a great card for this price especially for a laptop.

Intel i7-8750H is also very good for the price.

16 gb of ram is enough ram to get you by while on chrome or even in games.

Over all if you buy this while the 300$ off deal is happening you will get more than normal in a laptop and will still have money left over to buy a keyboard and mouse.

HyperX alloy 10-keyless keyboard

This is a great portable keyboard that I actually use for my at home setup for how good it is.

Razer Deathadder

The classic gaming mouse. I have one of these bad boys at home and they work great especially for only 40$.

Just a simple medium size mousepad

Reply if you have any questions or if you want me to look around more.

I posted this on buildapc, but didn't get any results. Hope it's okay for me to post this here too. It's a question that involves the use of a steam link.

I've got a pretty silly setup for couch gaming right now which is a result from my lack of proper research (no wireless support) before buying certain accessories. When I'm couch gaming on my TV, I'm hooked up through something like this:

Couch->XBox One Elite Controller (Wired)->Roccat Sova (Wired)->Steam Link (Wired)->PC

I'm looking to get my couch set up to be microphone friendly. My current plan is to get a USB microphone adapter to plug into the Sova, and then have my microphone/headset plugged into the adapter. (https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Adapter-Windows-AU-MMSA/dp/B00IRVQ0F8/ref=pd_cp_23_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00IRVQ0F8&pd_rd_r=MM9NND2RJ7HJBB9CBDRY&pd_rd_w=LGle5&pd_rd_wg=DI0MR&psc=1&refRID=MM9NND2RJ7HJBB9CBDRY)

Would this work, or is this not enough? Do I need an external soundcard or something to have audio come through the usb in the Sova?

The other option is to hope for Steam Link to support wireless connection for the XBox One Elite Controller, and see if I can insert a microphone directly into the XBox One Elite Controller. If anyone can help out with this, I'd really appreciate it. My couch gaming setup doesn't feel very efficient, but thats also due to Steam Link not supporting the controller I have over wireless.

It is entirely dependent on about 30 factors, but yes, due to my ISP interfacing a hop away with a peer (Internet2) with a designated Steam CDN, we have an unrestricted pipe to their servers. Commercial internet services, even Google Fiber, have over-provisioned networks and nodes, so while your subscriber rate is limited to a one gig link, it may not in reality hit that for very long.

Another major bottleneck that I have seen is whether the machine has optimized IOPs, or a NIC capable of true offload to support that sort of continuous data stream. I've been extremely and pleasantly surprised at how well this mGig (NBase-T) adapter works, made by Trendnet.

The wired xbox 360 controller is probably your best bet right now. It's the most popular and the most well supported in games, as well as being well designed. Unless you want to wait for valve's own controller to come out, I'd recommend that.

Hi Sirarvel, I also bought Bulletstorm on the sale and started with my mouse & keyboard but switched to my controller to see if it was any easier. I think that using the controller is better to be honest, to me it means you can be more accurate but that may be because im used to using a controller because I have only recently switched to PC gaming. The controller I use for my PC is a cheap afterglow gamepad. Below is a link, It's the exact one I have:
here

Wireless should be fine for singleplayer. You may still experience rare freezes and stuttering but overall it's ok (at least when I tried it). If you can afford to spend a little money I would recommend buying powerline network adapter. I bought this one off Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/TP-LINK-TL-PA4010KIT-Powerline-Adapter-Starter/dp/B00AWRUICG/
(I am not saying it's the best but I have 0 issues with it). This is what I am using with steam link. It works MUCH better than with wifi. Absolutely no complaints.

So I have the original Skyrim game on my Steam account, but not the DLC. Now I'm looking to get the DLC, but it's not on the store anymore, only with the Special Edition. I have a low power PC so I don't want to sacrifice more performance with the special edition, so I was wondering if the original Legendary Edition physical would be what I'm looking for? And also the UK version is almost half the price, so if I bought that would it be compatible with my US Skyrim license? (Want to keep my saves)

Just saying, if you're in the UK you can get it for £15 on amazon (physical copy), which is £2.50 cheaper than steam right now. Free delivery, so yeah, if it doesn't go to/below 50% off then do that if you wanna save a little bit more.

Link!

I have this. It works perfectly with the steam link. The one you picked out should work as well. Even if it has a dongle included. (Some are Bluetooth).

it' 10% off on amazon right now. At most it will be discounted to 33% on steam if it ever goes on sale. If you really want to play just get it from amazon

I've used a bunch of different 360 controllers for PC. Of all of them the best one is the Logitech F710. Its wireless and games recognize it as a 360 controller. It has the dual analog stick orientation of the ps3.

But you can just buy the adapter and use your existing 360 controller too.

Don't need it all power supplies are switching now, just plugged mine in, you can add Kodi to your steam library and video streams very well, I have one of these as well http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Wireless-Keyboard-Built-In-Multi-Touch/dp/B005DKZTMG for using with Kodi, works really well. Might need a power cable with an Australian endpoint is all. Only thing I am missing is netflix, while it's technically possible in the browser the UI is so shit I still have the AppleTV

€244. With free shipping.

https://www.amazon.de/dp/B0764L8YL7

Wireless isn't the only option, grab an ethernet over power adapter off Amazon like this one- https://www.amazon.com/TP-LINK-Powerline-Adapter-Starter-TL-PA4010KIT/dp/B00AWRUICG/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1467169071&sr=1-2&keywords=ethernet+over+power

I would recommend you to go with Crusader Kings 2 instead of Victoria 2 if you don't have it already. Or, you could get one of these Paradox packs from Amazon right now. 1 2

PSA: The Samsung Odyssey+ is currently $229 on Amazon.

You do not need an Index to play HL:Alyx.

Keep in mind that 100% of the time, wireless is going to have less throughput (considerably, the majority of the time). This is definitely going to impact the quality and latency that you get. You may want to look into an AC Ethernet adapter. It'll get you a wired connection without having to run a cable all the way around the house.

Good thing the Odyssey+ is $250 right now

huh, would you look at that. it's already on a better sale.

i'm really starting to think that all our choices here are irrelevant.

You just buy a controller online like any one in the USA?

Being outside the us has nothing to do with this question. A basic google search will answer this question.

https://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Xbox-Wireless-Receiver-Windows/dp/B000HZFCT2

https://www.amazon.com/Wired-Gaming-Controller-PlayStation-Android/dp/B01GDKXMPA/ref=pd_cp_63_3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=FDSJPVS5CSE7KJEQMVFS

https://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Wired-Controller-Windows-Console/dp/B004QRKWLA

Looks like one of the Logitech controllers

Edit: Yup! http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0041RR0TW/ref=mp_s_a_1_12?qid=1369759221&sr=1-12&pi=SL75

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004QRKWLA

Just bought one of these myself. Plug and play. No extra software like MotionInJoy necessary.

There is a legendary edition: https://www.amazon.com/Elder-Scrolls-Skyrim-Legendary-PC/dp/B00CJ7IUIQ

And yes it will unlock all the dlc.

This is an insanely good deal for Paradox fans: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008G0ZDZI

Just a PSA to Skyrim Legendary Buyers, you can get it even cheaper on Amazon at £15 and it of course activates on steam:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Elder-Scrolls-Legendary-Edition/dp/B00CJ8X24C/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1374339346&sr=8-2&keywords=skyrim+legendary+edition

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008G0ZDZI/ref=s9_simh_gw_p367_d0_i2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-3&pf_rd_r=08QMDBP8YHKJ046RMT17&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938811&pf_rd_i=507846

You can get it for cheaper than 75% off ($9.49) on Amazon along with 5 other games

The official xbox 360 controller is a bit north of $30 on amazon right now.

http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Xbox-360-Controller-Windows/dp/B004QRKWLA/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1425526920&sr=8-2&keywords=xbox+360+controller

Get it from Amazon. Includes a few other games
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008G0ZDZI

Quantum Conundrum is 8,99 on Amazon right now, activates on Steam. http://www.amazon.com/Square-Enix-41064m-Conundrum1-Conundrum/dp/B0088TTJH0/

No.

Ethernet would have to be plugged into both in order to be stable.

A Powerline Adapter will allow you to connect devices via ethernet anywhere there's a power outlet on the same circuit. They run about $40, but with the link on sale, you may as well go for it.

Also, don't get the link through Steam. I've seen enough complaints about long shipping and possible delivery miscommunication to not order hardware directly from them. Amazon currently has the same sale price though.

This is what I use. They cost around $30 and they light up the same colour as the circuit board. It's a bit expensive but because it's a 360 controller, there is no extra setup required like motionjoy or xpadder.

EDIT: Amazon link

You want a PC controller? I suggest you actually buy something decent such as the Logitech F710

I own one of these and it works for everything. If the game doesn't let you rebind keys, get JoyToKey.

Quantum Conundrum is already on sale on amazon.

Buying the Legendary Edition from Amazon.co.uk costs £15 and I believe you get a Steam key with it.
Take a look here

Thank you but even one of those budget options is way too costly for me. My countries currency isn't worth much, so I could either get a cheap VR set or pay my rent for around 6 months..

I really wanted to buy this:
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Electronics-Wireless-Controllers-XE800ZBA-HC1US/dp/B07HS7R1RT/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Samsung+Odyssey%2B&qid=1574368990&s=electronics&sr=1-1

And it is cheaper now, but I just can't afford it.

Easy to do when microsoft still sells them: http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Wired-Controller-Windows-Console/dp/B004QRKWLA

The only risk on amazon is if some shitty 3rd party using amazon as a warehouse slips in fake ones, but amazon will quickly blacklist such a seller and give you a refund or replace it with a real one. That risk is generally quite low since the first person who ends up with a fake is going to report it and inventory will be checked.