Phoenix654

All this has been extremely helpful and I've learned a lot. First off, I definitely need to think about upping my budget on this project because I would like this thing to last a few years. Next, assembly doesn't look as difficult as I thought it'd be. I assumed I'd need to solder things and know more about electrical engineering than I do. Lastly, I have much more research to do before I can start purchasing parts... I need a more concrete idea of what I want to be able to play before I get started.

Thanks to everyone who contributed advice, I'll keep you posted.

@kcp12: That's a nice collection of tools, thank you.

As to budget questions, I don't want to spend more than, say $700 (and that's at the absolute bleeding edge for me, probably try to stay in the $500-600 range). Probably will just want to run it through my TV's HDMI port (I know, lag, not the best, but I don't have room for a dedicated monitor space until my housemate moves out), though I think it has a PC monitor plug.

I've been a Mac user for quite some time now, so video games have been kind of isolated to consoles. Not that that's a huge issue lately, console games are perfectly serviceable, but I'd like to dive into this strange world people call "Steam" and there just isn't an option on my Playstation-Box One U for that. I think it's finally time to build a gaming PC, or get one pre built.

I'm probably not going to get into VR for a while (I'm way not an early adopter), but I'd like to get one that can run well for a few years and won't look crappy on my 40+ inch TV, since that'll probably be my monitor. I'm a complete neophyte when it comes to gaming PCs though. I had a Sony Vaio a while back, but that was mainly for editing. I needs advice y'all, please help. Thanks in advance, duders.

By Grabthar's Hammer... cancer blows. I'm going to have to watch Galaxy Quest in the coming days... maybe the last Potter movie too. Oh, and Dogma.

Here's a pretty good round up of his Potter universe contacts paying tribute to what seems to be a pretty cool man to be around. We'll miss you Alan.

@starvinggamer said:

Thank you for this. I don't drink and I'm starting to feel this is the proper outlook on the situation.

If you're at all into classic Mario games, Super Mario Maker is a must have, Mario Kart is arguably the best that series has been so far (it's certainly the prettiest), and if you're in the mood for some puzzly gaming, Pushmo World is a forgotten gem on the Wii U, though Pushmo is also available on the 3DS.

You really should see it. It's really amazing movie making. Also, Wall-E is probably the cutest robot in modern cinema, though BB-8 is giving him a run for his money. And thanks, it's always fun to pose inanimate objects and make them take on a life of their own.

Build him. It takes a couple of hours, but he will warm the cockles of your heart forever afterward once you do. Worth the time investment.

Been a while, but thought I'd post some more of these. He still makes me chuckle now and again. The last three are something of a rudimentary comic strip (please don't take it too seriously, he is a LEGO Disney robot after all).

After watching far too many of Patrick's Mario Maker Mornings, I tried my hand at a more puzzly stage. Have a play, let me know if it's too damn hard.

4C3A-0000-00D2-C04A

@mortuss_zero: I hear ya on that one. If your use case required online play, it's probably not worth picking up, honestly, but I never really played the online stuff too much. I think Drew talked about playing it with family when he gets together with them and that's basically how I play RB, though I do enjoy jamming on new songs by myself with guitar and mic on (mic stands are a fun addition that force you to do two things at once... and actually know the vocal part since you can't look away from the notes for too long). It's basically a game I play when I have family and/or friends over or when people have parties and ask me to bring my set up.

@frybird: Yeah, I know... all good points. I've come to terms with it all and have accepted that it's probably my fault for not paying attention to the later info after submitting my preorder back when they first became available. I agree the DLC support is amazing, I spent the evening going through the store and picking it all up again, happy that I get to have my library (mostly) on the next console and that new music will be coming.

Sorry to hear that your order has been delayed. I maintain that the playing of Rock Band is still solid as ever, the new features are an interesting addition (particularly the vocal improvisation stuff) and once I get an adapter and perhaps a new drum kit, it'll be business as usual for me again. I was just venting my day one frustrations. I have to keep reminding myself that this is a platform that will (hopefully) be improved on as we go.