False, price is a huge misconception for PC gaming. Now, if you refuse to build a PC, then yeah, it's expensive because those companies have a huge markup on parts. And with PC builds not huge amounts of money can give big performance boosts, just that $100 in between the builds goes a long way.
$600 build
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
| Type | Item | Price |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor | $173.95 @ SuperBiiz |
| Motherboard | MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard | $43.99 @ SuperBiiz |
| Memory | Team Vulcan 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory | $52.99 @ Newegg |
| Storage | Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive | $52.69 @ NCIX US |
| Video Card | XFX Radeon R9 280 3GB Double Dissipation Video Card | $203.98 @ Newegg |
| Case | NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case | $31.98 @ Newegg |
| Power Supply | Corsair CX 500W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply | $39.99 @ Newegg |
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts | ||
| Total (before mail-in rebates) | $649.57 | |
| Mail-in rebates | -$50.00 | |
| Total | $599.57 | |
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-04-02 19:02 EDT-0400 |
$500 Build
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
| Type | Item | Price |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i3-4150 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor | $104.95 @ SuperBiiz |
| Motherboard | MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard | $43.99 @ SuperBiiz |
| Memory | Team Vulcan 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory | $52.99 @ Newegg |
| Storage | Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive | $52.69 @ NCIX US |
| Video Card | HIS Radeon R9 270 2GB IceQ X² Video Card | $131.98 @ Newegg |
| Case | NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case | $31.98 @ Newegg |
| Power Supply | Corsair CX 500W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply | $39.99 @ Newegg |
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts | ||
| Total (before mail-in rebates) | $508.57 | |
| Mail-in rebates | -$50.00 | |
| Total | $458.57 | |
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-04-02 19:03 EDT-0400 |