How the Xbox Series X (and xCloud) saved me from buying a gaming PC

Hotly anticipated Radeon cards expected to sell out. Shortages of GeForce GPUs. Even if you wanted to build a gaming PC right now, obtaining the all-important discrete GPU is practically impossible. But there is an alternative: The Xbox Series X. 

For the past week or so, I’ve tested a $499 Xbox Series X console provided by Microsoft. Announced Thursday and due to ship November 10, it remains one of the most accessible ways to play next-gen games at PC-like resolutions and frame rates. There are also a few things it can do that the PC can’t.

So who needs a gaming PC? Read on to see why you don't.

*Horrendous GPU shortages? Buy an Xbox!*

The GPU shortage is real. Nvidia’s cards are selling out within minutes. Gamers are livestreaming and liveblogging their attempts at purchasing them. What good is listing the best graphics cards for PC gaming if you can’t even buy one? And even if you could, the price of the RTX 3070 FE is $499, the same price as the Xbox Series X. (The slightly less powerful Xbox Series S, which we do not have, costs $299.) That’s before you start testing the waters at eBay, where RTX 3070 prices currently run $700 and above. 

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