The debate surrounding PC gaming requirements is becoming increasingly relevant. Games like Alan Wake, with their demanding specifications, raise questions about whether these high requirements are due to game complexity or poor optimization.
Taking a closer look at Alan Wake's minimum PC requirements, achieving 30 FPS at 1080P mandates an RTX 2060, even on low settings. Yes, you read it right, low settings at 30 FPS. The RTX 2060 remains a capable GPU, but it's now two generations old. This leaves us wondering if developers prioritize optimizing for just two generations of technology, or if they focus more on consoles, neglecting PC optimization.
The truth is that in just two years, textures and lighting/shadow technologies have made significant strides. As a result, GPUs purchased four years ago or cards from two generations ago are rapidly falling behind in terms of performance.
Adding to the challenge, these GPUs' prices have skyrocketed, and they don't provide longevity for playing newly released games for years. This however, is a different problem entirely.
One thing is for certain though, being a PC gamer is becoming more expensive by the day.
