In this video I take a proper trip down memory lane and recreate what the average mid-range PC gaming experience looked like in 2017 — and honestly, 2017 was special because AMD changed everything. Ryzen finally turned up to compete properly, and a 6-core/12-thread chip like the Ryzen 5 1600 for under £200 was a massive deal at the time. I also talk about the AM4 platform (still relevant now) and why even a basic A320 board doesn’t really get in the way for the kind of testing I’m doing here. I pair that with what I still think is one of the most loved GPUs of all time: the Radeon RX 580 8GB (I’m using a Sapphire Nitro+). For around £225–£230 back then you got 8GB of VRAM and really solid 1080p performance, and that’s exactly the vibe I’m aiming for — Full HD, Windows 10, 16GB DDR4 (because 8GB would’ve held you back even in some scenes). I benchmark a bunch of 2017-era games, including a look at Call of Duty: WWII where the system holds up really well at high settings, and I also throw in Cyberpunk 2077 as a “future test”. The big takeaway: it’s a fantastic 1080p box, but compared to a 2016 mid-range system you weren’t getting a huge FPS jump — what you were getting was a platform that could last and be upgraded for years.