It’s hard to believe that the holiday season is already creeping up us. Have no fear! We here at Gamacy Network have put together a list of what we think are some the best gifts for that special gamer in your life, or if you’re honest with yourselves, cool gaming stuff to buy for you. Without further ado, here is our list for 2020!
Xbox Series X & S ($499/$299)
The next generation of game consoles is upon us, and Xbox kicks it off with the launch of the Xbox Series X and Series S. The Series X comes with an optical drive for those that prefer to own physical copies of their games, while the Series S will be digital only. When the preorders went live a month or so ago they were sold out in a matter of minutes. The specs for the Series X are impressive:
- CPU: 8x Zen 2 Cores at 3.8GHz (3.6GHz with SMT)
- GPU: 12 TFLOPs, 52 CUs at 1.825GHz, Custom RDNA 2
- Die Size: 360.45mm2
- Process: TSMC 7nm Enhanced
- Memory: 16GB GDDR6
- Memory Bandwidth: 10GB at 560GB/s, 6GB at 336GB/s
- Internal Storage: 1TB Custom NVMe SSD
- I/O Throughput: 2.4GB/s (Raw), 4.8GB/s (Compressed)
- Expandable Storage: 1TB Expansion Card
- External Storage: USB 3.2 HDD Support
- Optical Drive: 4K UHD Blu-ray Drive
- Performance Target: 4K at 60fps — up to 120fps
The Series X will really cater to the gamer/collector in big way. The days of including an optical drive in a console are quickly fading away, and this might be your last chance to own (very possibly) the final generation of Xbox console to play physical media. The Xbox Series S on the other hand seems to be the future of console gaming, being a digital only:
- Custom NVME SSD 512GB Storage
- 1440p resolution and up to 120FPS
- Ray-Tracing (RTX) Support
- 4K (Media playback and upscaling only)
- Variable Rate Shading
- Variable Refresh Rate
- Ultra-Low Latency
The Series S will lack the optical drive of the X, as well as not being able to output at native 4k resolutions or higher. Either way, The Xbox Series consoles will be on holiday wish lists of many gamers this year.
PS5 ($499/$399)
With an new generation of Xbox coming out in November you just knew there had to be a new Playstation on the way as well. Like its competitor, The PS5 comes in both physical and digital versions. The optical drive version sports the following specs:
- CPU: 8x Zen 2 Cores at 3.5GHz (variable frequency)
- GPU: 10.28 TFLOPs, 36 CUs at 2.23GHz (variable frequency)
- GPU Architecture: Custom RDNA 2
- Memory/Interface: 16GB GDDR6/256-bit
- Memory Bandwidth: 448GB/s
- Internal Storage: Custom 825GB SSD
- IO Throughput: 5.5GB/s (Raw), Typical 8–9GB/s (Compressed)
- Expandable Storage: NVMe SSD Slot
- External Storage: USB HDD Support
- Optical Drive: 4K UHD Blu-ray Drive
If you aren’t into physical game collecting, then the digital only version might be your best bet, and cheaper to boot. For just $100 less you get the same specs as the Standard PS5, minus the optical drive. Pretty good deal.
Nintendo Switch: Animal Crossing Edition ($299)
If you weren’t lucky enough to preorder an Xbox or Playstation then why not grab yourself a Nintendo Switch? You already have one? So does your gaming buddy? No problem! Just for collections sake, the Animal Crossing Edition of the Switch is now back in stock! If you just happen to be one of the few gaming enthusiasts that does NOT already own the Switch, or know friends or family who don’t have one, grab one of these quickly.
Ring Fit Adventure ($90)
Be honest. You most likely pack on some pounds during the holidays. If it’s not the stuffing and mashed potatoes, it’s the pumpkin pie and your aunt’s famous triple layer chocolate doughnut cake. Compound that with sitting around and playing video games, the pants are starting to feel a bit tight. We have the solution! Play video games and loose weight at the same time! Ring Fit Adventure from Nintendo lets you do just that! It not only melts those pounds away, but also makes it fun to do so. Grab one while you can.
Sega Genesis Mini ($60)
If you grew up in the 1980’s you most likely remember playing games on the Sega Genesis. Now you can relive those memories with the Sega Genesis Mini. It comes packed with a bunch of classic Sega games and has a great price. Even those of you younger than 40 will get a kick out of this if you simply love video games. Great bang for not much buck.
Oculus Quest 2 ($399)
The next frontier of video games. Forget the antiquated days of playing games on your console or pc. Time to step into another reality, a virtual reality (see what I did there)! Though many will argue that VR just isn’t there yet, Half-Life Alyx proved the opposite earlier this year. Are you ready to step into the next level of gaming. The Oculus Quest 2 will be your best bet. Oh, it’s for your 90 year old grandpa? Good luck (and have good insurance).
Gunner Intercept ($49)
Are your eyes ready to bleed out due to all the screen time you have? Remember last time you played Fortnite eight hours straight and thought you were going blind afterwards? Say goodbye to all of that! Gunner Intercept gamer glasses are designed to filter out all the harmful UV’s that cause eye strain. We here at Gamacy Network all have a pair of these and swear by them. Give your eyes a break today!
Xbox Elite Wireless Controller
Series 2 ($179)
The Gold Standard when it comes to controllers, the Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 is a gift that keeps on giving. If you are looking to improve your own gaming or find a gift for that discerning gamer in your life, this is a sure thing. Put it this way, it’s like taking a nice warm bubble bath surrounded by candles and eating your favorite chocolates. What? What?? Don’t judge me!
Logitech G502 Lightspeed Wireless Mouse ($120)
What the Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 is for game controllers, the Logitech G502 Lightspeed Mouse is for point and click gaming. If you or someone you know is a big PC gamer, you are doing a disservice by not getting this mouse. This meets with a big Gamacy seal of approval. We have used many a mouse in our day, and this is without a doubt the cream of the crop.
Logitech G560 Speakers ($199)
If you or someone you know is as picky about how their games sound on the pc as we here at Gamacy Network are, then we have a solution. The Logitech G560 speakers are the speakers you have been looking for. RGB lighting, 240W peak, 7.1 DTS: X Ultra, and down-firing subwoofer are just a few of the great specs these puppies have to offer. You have no idea what all those specs mean? How about they sound really, really good? Just get these ASAP.
Cyberpunk 2077 ($59 Xbox One, PS4, PC, Stadia)
Gamers everywhere have been waiting for this game for what seems like 20 years. Now it has finally arrived. Adventure in a future filled with cybernetic implants, drugs, guns, and general mayhem. Not much different than today you say? Well I don’t know about you but I STILL don’t have bionic arms and legs. This will be a pretty mature themed game, so I hope you’re old enough for this. Oh, you’re giving it to your 10 year old nephew? No worries!
Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla ($59 Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PS4, PS5, PC, Stadia)
The next installment of the Assassin’s Creed series takes players to the cold north of Scandinavia and England during the Viking invasions. The main protagonist reminds us here at Gamacy Network of a certain Viking from a certain tv show years ago on a certain network (History Channel). We were sad to see him go on the show, so now we can play him in a game! We’ll take it!
Call of Duty: Black Ops — Cold War ($59 Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PS4, PS5, PC)
Call of Duty is traveling back in time once again, but not to WW II this time. Up next is the Cold War era of the early 1980’s. The good ol’ days when the USA and Soviet Union played their little games…what fond memories. Capitalism vs Communism. Not much has changed in 40 years huh? This actually looks pretty good. We here at Gamacy Network usually don’t play a lot of Call of Duty, but this one has our attention.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity ($59 Nintendo Switch)
Travel back 100 years before the events depicted in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and experience the Great Calamity. Fight hordes of monsters as you try and save the kingdom from certain doom. One person here at Gamacy Network insisted we include this game on our list. Truth is, we would have included it anyway! Any chance to journey to Hyrule is worth it.
NERF MA40 Motorized Dart Blaster ($49)
We would have put Halo: Infinite in this spot but Microsoft decided the game wasn’t ready and delayed it until next year for the Xbox Series X. So we got the next best thing! That’s right, now you can have your very own MA40 rifle! This one however just shoots plastic darts. We know, we know. You want to blast aliens into atomic dust. Totally get it. But this is the next best thing! That empty water bottle at the end of the kitchen table doesn’t stand a chance!
And that’s a wrap! There you have our Gamacy Gamers Holiday Buying Guide 2020. Be sure to check out our G3 Show version of this list, the link is at the top of the page. Have a great gaming holidays!
