Intensive Gaming Diary

The blog about videogames.

The Push for New Hardware

Posted on by Viljami

What is the push for new hardware and where does this kind of thinking fit? What are some options for getting your hands on the latest hardware? Are you playing video games with older hardware? Where does emulating retro video game consoles fit right in this discussion? These are only some of the questions I am trying to answer in this latest blog post. I am happy to have you on board!

I was recently playing some PS2 games on my current PC setup. I started thinking about some modern games and how were they compared to these old PS2 games. There is just some deeper appeal in these so called retro games for me. I have also played lots of Xbox 360 games recently. One of these Xbox 360 games is Dirt 3 and there are many other good games that you can actually play on the latest Xbox, Xbox Series X, through its backwards compatibility.

For me the golden era of video games was, or is, the 2000s. Back in the day we had consoles like PS2, PS3, original Xbox and also Xbox 360 along with GameCube. Sega Dreamcast has to be also mentioned when it comes to the hardware of this golden era of gaming. There are also ways to run these games on emulators. So even after the hardware might be broken, that being the console or the actual game disc, you can still get back to playing games from this era. Today we are getting lots of power out of PCs. It is today possible to emulate Xbox 360 and PS3 hardware with a decently powerful, new, PC.

Why are we getting pushed for new hardware? This is a very good question. The hardware manufacturers have to sell some products. After all there would be no manufacturers if there weren’t new hardware products for them to sell. Also the software is getting sold mainly for same reasons. Without mentioning any specific company we can say that there are some facets that get profit from pushing the new hardware to us consumers that also are the gamers in this world.

What is enough when it comes to performance? We could have a device that would be roughly as powerful as a PS4 and that would actually provide all the power needed to run modern video games. One particular gaming console that has made a difference when it comes to performance was the first Nintendo Switch. in the recent years it couldn’t stand up against its greatest competitors.

Do we need new hardware so badly? For me the answer is actually no. You can have a ten year old PC that you would connect to a screen of any type and play the best games from 2000s with a brand new Xbox One controller and enjoy the golden era, according to my viewpoint, with this kind of a setup. We have some hobbyist that actually like to play with and fix old computers. Also many old PC games cannot be run with a modern PC at all. You might need an older operating system and also some old drivers for older hardware like graphics processing unit or an audio device.

I have had some tough luck with my older video game hardware. I have broken two PS2s, one original Xbox and also one Xbox 360 console. The main issue I’ve had was that the console isn’t somehow able to read the game disc anymore. This has everything to do with dust. Also original Xbox has some electrical components, condensers, actually, that are very sensitive to wearing down when time progresses. So, for me it is way more easier to just abandon a broken down console and turn to some emulation on a suitable PC.

These were some thoughts that I had in mind. They were appearing to me as I was playing some PS2 games as I told you in the beginning of this blog post. I ahve to say that I was actually playing Need for Speed – Hot Pursuit 2, but I just couldn’t find the original game to take a photo of. So you are going to have to be content with another great PS2 racing game Burnout 3 – Takedown. I actually do play my PS2 emulator games with this fresh Xbox Series S/X compatible game pad. It is very handy as a controller on a Windows PC.

Some Notes About the New Nintendo Switch 2

Posted on by Viljami

Nintendo Switch 2 was released in June 5th this year (2025). There weren’t any huge actual limitations in the availability. I think everyone that made an order in advance also received their console. There were also lots of Switch 2 consoles available in “stone foundation” shops. I had to wait some days because there was a shortage on the Pro Controller 2 that I also ordered. I made my order in 6th of June. That day was Friday and it was 14th of June when I finally actually had the console and could start the deployment of my Switch 2.

There was a better availability of the console that came with Mario Kart World bundled. So, I bought my Switch 2 with this game. There weren’t really, yet, so many options for the first game for Switch 2. There has been already some debate online on social media and also on some video and text reviews about the price being a bit high. The price for the bundled version was, here in Finland, 620 euros while the version without Mario Kart game would cost 570 euros. Here in Finland the importer decided to add a special 100 euros to the price. I haven’t heard any deeper explanations on this. After all I am happy, still, that I can at least buy this console. I am not complaining but lets just say that there was already some conversation about this.

I am aware also that you have to buy many accessories that help you to use your Switch 2. The console has already 256 GB of space for your games. You might need also a memory card. It has to be the right type of a memory card. It can cost some tens of euros. I went and bought also the new Pro Controller 2 that cost me an extra 110 euros. You can still use the old and the first Pro Controller also with Switch 2. You also might need a carrying case that costs also some tens of euros. Also every game you want to play, of course, you have to buy. There has been some discussion and a new game for Switch 2 might cost something around 80 euros. So, as you can see, this isn’t a cheap console at all and you need to invest in it quite a bit.

What’s cool about Switch 2 is that it is almost ( I think it’s like 98 percentage or even more than that) backwards compatible with Switch 1 games. When I first had ran the deployment through with my Switch 2 I started to play Mario Kart World. However the game seemed a bit boring, a bit childish and I also read that it would take only about three and a half hours to finish the game. It is a good game, but I wanted to play something else. So, I inserted the physical Switch 1 game Diablo III and played it for maybe six to seven hours. I even continued playing it the next day. I created a new character and so after these hours of playing I had a wizard in level of 28. Then I started to play some Dragon Quest III 2D HD Remake. I also plan to play some Civilization VII on my Switch 2. I haven’t had time to play it, yet.

I also already bought another game. So, I now have two actual Switch 2 games along with my collection of Switch 1 games. The other Switch 2 game is Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster. I bought it just yesterday from a super market here in Vantaa (Finland). It cost me 50 euros. Some other options were and still are, if I really want to buy a third game already for this brand new console, The Legend of Zelda games Breath of The Wild and Tears of The Kingdom that do cost around 80 euros per game. They have some improvements. One game that I thought about buying was the Sonic game (Sonic X Shadow Generations) that is available for about 50 euros also.

The screen resolution is just fine and of a good quality. You really couldn’t ask for more. In handheld mode the screen works in Full HD resolution (1920 x 1080 pixels). When the console is docked you get a 4K (3840 x 2160 pixels) resolution. The handheld screen isn’t an OLED screen but I think that would have risen the consoles price even more and all the reviews that I’ve seen about this are basically saying that the screen is actually a very good one.

So, you probably got a clear picture of what I think about this new console, the Nintendo Switch 2. I told you about the games I am currently playing and what I think about the console in general. I am waiting to get my hands on some nice and new games. If you think a new console like this, take PS4 for example, it did take about a year or even a bit longer that we started to see some more games getting released. We are seeing lots of remakes but I am not going to complain about it. Lets just wait and play the games that are available. You can always play your Switch 1 games. If you are like me you have some games in your backlog that you haven’t had time to finish, yet.

Hogwarts Legacy

Posted on by Viljami

I spent about two weeks playing Hogwarts Legacy for Xbox Series X. This game has received several good, or maybe excellent, reviews. It is not the newest game since it was released in 2023. So, it is about two years old. This also means that you can get it with a cheap price. You definitely don’t have to pay 80 euros for it today.

Hogwarts Legacy is a role-playing-game with lots of action included. The basic gameplay operates on completing quests, finding new areas through map and also fighting against enemies with many spells. You also get some gear from time to time. You get to upgrade your gear and also your skills.

The open-world environment is fun to explore. You face some enemies while you are finding these new places. You can also sort of “unlock” waypoints so you can travel to these locations just by selecting them from a map and clicking the button.

The game gives you full statistics of how much of the game have you completed. There are different areas of these challenges like how much of you have explored, battled and how many quests you have completed.

It took for about 40 hours to finish the game. There are several difficulty levels to choose from. They actually make the battles harder. Hogwarts Legacy offers a lot to play even after you have finished the main quests. You can develop your character and explore even more.

The graphics, or visual, are very nice in Hogwarts Legacy and so is the music. The world is the world of Harry Potter. I have to say also that I am not so familiar, actually not at all, on Harry Potter. This might be the first game that is placed in the world of Harry Potter that I have finished. Nor do I have memories of any books or movies. Still while I was playing it didn’t really bother me so much.

It is nice to see a game where battles are structured to just swinging your wand instead of shooting with a gun or fighting with a melee weapon (like an axe or something. I did enjoy this game. It really isn’t still something that I would like to spend more time on. As I am writing this I have just begun playing the newest Dead Space. I am trying to really play these games and they have been in my game shelf already for a good amount of time.

I am also waiting to get my hands on the Nintendo Switch 2. So, I really don’t have many reasons to go and play some Xbox Series X titles. I am already waiting for some new Switch 2 titles to play. I bought the version of Switch 2 that has Mario Kart World bundled. I would have liked to buy some other game for the first game of the console but this is now the game I have to start my journey with Switch 2. The console seems already really promising.

I also read that there is a new handheld Xbox console coming. It is interesting to see how huge game console companies are moving towards handheld gaming. It hasn’t been a long time since we were first introduced to Steam Deck. There might be something new coming from Valve, also. And of course we have all our Windows 11 handheld PCs already in the markets and selling very nicely.

Do we see something new in a form of an operating system from Valve in the near future? We will have to wait and see. I am very interested in seeing how Linux can operate with some applications that are usually utilized with a Windows PC. We have already seen how PC games bought through Steam can already function on a Linux operating system. They seem to work fine.