I wouldn’t call current consoles “enticingly cheap”, but I see where you’re coming from and I agree with the stance that there’s essentially two (three if you want to include cloud and/or subscription-based) models with fairly different standards.
The PC ecosystem isn’t as resistant as we’d like to think imo, with its over-reliance on Steam vs other storefronts (but that’s kind of a moot point if you take into account piracy I guess).

Yep, if that hypothetical gamer doesn’t care about the “latest and greatest”, then they might be better served by a lower spec’d PC.

I’m simply pointing out that your statement might not be absolutely true. Whether or not it makes sense financially speaking is not as cookie-cutter as it tends to be presented. If you aren’t interested in multiplayer, you have access to either libraries and/or a fair used market, consoles certainly can be financially better than PCs, even Steam Deck.

There are many other reasons why consoles don’t make sense - lacklustre modding scene, censorship, content delisting and “ownership” - but imo it’s hard to argue against how cheap they can be compared to a PC.
Piracy is certainly an option, but then why even bring up pricing in the first place, unless any and every game suddenly becomes free on PC?

If you have access to a local library with video games on offer, then you could very well play more popular physical releases for much cheaper on consoles.
Re emulation, Xbox Series consoles do wonders in dev mode (granted, that’s not official, but it works very well).

Is there anything you’re currently missing out on with your Xbox?
Do you have any public libraries around you might borrow physical games from? (Assuming your Xbox has a disc drive)
Depending on what games you want to play, Game Pass might still be a relatively cheap option, especially if you can find it cheaper (Live Gold codes should still work conversion-wise, but who knows how much they go for these days).

A used Steam Deck or equivalent handheld PC might be a great option or addition to tour setup, obviously depending on what games you want to play.

I don’t need any of those, but thanks for doing this! That reminds me, I’ve got a number of duplicates I should try and give away as well.

RX 9060 XT LP, but it’s not your usual LP in the “Low Profile” sense of the acronym (because why keep it somewhat consistent…). That’s a shame, it would have been perfect for SFF builds.

There are two games I never would have considered if I hadn’t explored new / different genres from what I usually stick with, 1000xResist and Pentiment.
The latter might be my favourite by a slight margin, but either way I’m so glad I went out of my comfort zone and discovered games which aren’t my typical RPGs, action-adventure or shmups.

I’ll keep experimenting next year, I might even put together a list of genres or games I’d like to try.

ITAD allows for wishlist (and collection) imports from both Steam and GOG. You’ll end up with a unified wishlist, where you can set specific rules to get notified when there’s a sale, including which specific stores have a game on sale.
That’s what I use to track any game I wishlist, with specific rules to notify me when said game is on sale at GOG.

Was anyone else tripped up by the picture shown in that article? To me it looks as though it’s a miniature version of the device, but I can’t quite put my finger on why that is.

In the same vein, this YouTuber did their own testing/comparison last year.

May I suggest buying it on GOG instead if you care about DRM-free?

I can’t speak to this backlogging website specifically, it’s one among a fair number of somewhat similar offerings, but I’ve been using Backloggd for a couple years now.
What these apps/sites ultimately help with is getting your gaming library in check, if you also end up buying far too many games every time there’s a sale or if you want to keep track of your physical collection (although there are better sites for that).
Depending on the site’s focus, you might also get average completion times per game or user reviews.
I’ve actually found myself more interested in the “social” aspect of backloggd, eg user reviews (and making my own), ratings, user-made lists, because they’ve helped me discover games I wouldn’t have otherwise given a chance to or even heard about.

Some Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon every now and then. It’s a very vanilla FE, but it’s enjoyable nonetheless.

Otherwise I’m having a lot of fun with Dragon’s Dogma 2. I never played the first, so I likely overlook many of the issues people have with the game.

The thumbnail shows up just fine on Voyager FWIW.

Nope, 8bitdo (via their eshop) ships directly from China to Canada, alongside a number of other countries.
The change is only wrt shipping to US.

Not exactly, you need Steam to install it, but then per PCGW’s wiki:

DRM-free when launched directly via <path-to-game>\SwGame\Binaries\Win64\SwGame-Win64-Shipping.exe while EA app is not installed.

I can’t confirm for Steam, since I only have the game on EA app, but the game’s wiki page on PCGW shows the same DRM-free info (with correct launch steps).

You’re right, they do - this Steam DRM-free games list shows Jedi Fallen Order is the most recent DRM-free EA published game on Steam afaict.
Same goes for DRM-free games on the EA app.

As enjoyable as ever to read!
I think you might have missed the link to Nightdive Studios’ future endeavours? Or Voyager is not showing it at least.

I almost didn’t mention my game of the moment - I’ve been diving deep into Hollow Knight on the Deck, I just wish it supported HDR but otherwise it’s an experience like no other.

I finished a couple of games last week, SotN and Sayonara: Wild Hearts.

I’m currently back on DOS2 and I quite enjoy the slow pace of the game.
I might also attempt another playthrough of Bloodborne.