PC gaming isn’t known for its accessibility, and it’s definitely not known for reasonable prices. Still, in the spirit of keeping my preferred platform alive, I’ve decided to compile a list of products and gadgets that can aid the college-bound (or merely jobless) PC gamer with minimal money to burn. So, without further ado, and in no particular order…

Rosewill RNX-N180UBE USB 2.0 Wireless Adapter - $30

Buying a wireless adapter is a pain in the neck. Have you seen how much stores charge for Belkin adapters? A comparable adapter at Best Buy cost me 70 dollars, barely worked, and caused me to do research online and buy this one. “Ah,” you might say, “but shopping at Best Buy was your problem in the first place.” Fair enough, but I learned my lesson so you don’t have to.

SteelSeries Kinzu Optical Mouse - $35

“Gaming” mice are expensive. I put quotes around that because I’m not Korean and don’t play Starcraft or Sudden Attack professionally, and therefore have no real point of reference for DPI and stuff like that. What I do care about is basic functionality and looks. The Kinzu is well built, great for gaming (at least at an average level) and doesn’t cost a boatload of cash. It also doesn’t glow green and make you look like a jerk.

AblePlanet NC300 Noise-Canceling Headphones - $150

Decent speakers can be incredibly expensive, especially if you plan on going anywhere above a 2.1 set. However, there is an alternative - headphones. Now, sure, $150 isn’t pocket change, but for noise-canceling cans it’s a bargain. These AblePlanets have the remarkable feature of not-giving-you-a-migraine-after-ten-minutes, which is a huge plus. They’re also incredibly comfortable, and support an additional microphone add-on if you fancy basing your entire gaming rig’s sound around them. As far as price-to-sound-quality goes, a $150 set of speakers vs. this $150 set of headphones, these will pretty much always come out on top.

Hanns-G HW-191APB Widescreen Monitor - $110

Need a new monitor? Prefer widescreen? Don’t have much money? Kerblam. Sure, it’s only 19″, but you’re also paying $110 dollars. There are collector’s editions of games that are almost that much. It’s probably cheaper than your graphics card. The picture is pretty stunning at that price range, too.

Logitech Classic Keyboard 200 - $15

Nice keyboards with lots of extra features are usually also incredibly expensive. There’s Zboards, which look dopey and cost an arm and a leg, and Logitech G15s, which look like they’re from Tron but will cost your other arm and other leg. Who woulda thunk that the same company that put LED screens all over their keyboards would also make one of the best simple boards around? It’s not fancy, but it’ll(this actually happened while moving) survive being run over by a Saturn, and to be honest, it actually looks pretty slick. It’s also $15. It may not have a little screen that’ll keep track of your cooldowns for you, but it will save you enough money to go buy Baconators with friends later.

ThinkGeek USB Missile Launcher - $25

Actually, never mind, this is a total waste of money. A hilarious, adorable waste of money.

GoG.com - $0

GoG (Good Old Games) has a fantastic back catalog of… well, good old games. There’s a myriad of classic titles available, ranging from ancient adventures like Beneath a Steel Sky to fairly recent cult hits like Beyond Good and Evil. Everything is delivered digitally and DRM free, which is a pretty great bonus. You can’t really go wrong with any site that offers Baldur’s Gate and Icewind Dale for reasonable prices.

Steam - $0

Ok, so maybe that’s a little disingenuous. Steam will cost you more than $0. Why? Because you’ll spend a lot of money on it. A lot of money on games. Isn’t that what this is really about? Steam’s holiday sales are absolutely nuts, and while it may not be responsible to buy a whole ton of games through it, they’ll probably all be really cheap. Like when Mirror’s Edge was $5, or Team Fortress 2 was $2.50. If there’s one thing you can do to help your wallet as a starving artist/PC gamer, it’s waiting for sales on Steam.

Not pictured: my other Steam account