The 2019 Australian PC gaming Christmas gift guide

It's almost Christmas, and if you're lucky, you've got several people in your life as enthusiastic about games as you are. Of course, you could always resort to buying them the usual bag of, uh, wood shavings, but perhaps we should all try to get more into the gift-giving spirit this year. 

So without further ado, here are some pretty cool gift ideas we've found – and at the time of print, they should all make it to Australia before December 25. We've tried to avoid overly expensive presents – so don't expect gaming laptops – though as a rule of thumb we've put a limit of AU$200. 

So let's get gifting!

PC gaming hardware and peripherals

HyperX Cloud Alpha Gaming Hedset | AU$138.48

HyperX Cloud Alpha Gaming Hedset | AU$138.48
Have a friend who never has a bloody headset in Siege? Here's a trusty, award-winning headset with a detachable microphone and aluminium frame. Get at Amazon.

Razer DeathAdder Elite | AU$49.52

Razer DeathAdder Elite | AU$49.52
An affordable yet widely adored gaming mouse, this one boasts a 16,000 DPI optical sensor, 99.4% resolution accuracy and a 99.4% IPS rating. And it looks pretty good, too. Via Amazon.

Razer Mamba Elite | AU$95.86

Razer Mamba Elite | AU$95.86
Something for that in-game squad member who needs to lift their game. Boasts a 5G advanced optical sensor with 16,000 DPI. Via Amazon.

Games

Battlefield 5 | AU$28

Battlefield 5 | AU$28
If you've got a friend you'd like to spend more time in-game with, less than $30 for DICE's latest warfare sim seems like a cheap way to facilitate that. Get from Amazon.

Doom (2016) | AU$20

Doom (2016) | AU$20
If you've got a PC gaming friend or relative who has yet to play Doom, well, it's hard to think of a better cheap gift, to be honest. Get via Amazon.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 | AU$39

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 | AU$39
It's not the most recent Call of Duty, and it has no singleplayer component, but if you're keen to get a friend into Infinity Ward's take on battle royale, this might force their hand. Via Amazon.

Prey | AU$12.09

Prey | AU$12.09
Can't really go wrong with this: one of the best immersive sims of recent years for cheaper than a pint of craft beer. Via Amazon.

The Evil Within 2 | AU$18

The Evil Within 2 | AU$18
A pretty underrated survival horror game with some neat open world elements, and a cheap and easy gift at this price. Via Amazon.

Books and magazines

PC PowerPlay subscription | AU$69

PC PowerPlay subscription | AU$69
Excuse the cheek, but why not buy a loved one a year's subscription to our stablemate PC PowerPlay?  Get at Techmags.

World of Warcraft by Daniel Lisi | AU$19.91

World of Warcraft by Daniel Lisi | AU$19.91
An instalment in the excellent Boss Fight Books series on video games, this is a breezy history of the biggest MMO that ever MMOed. Get from Amazon.

Masters of Doom by David Kushner | AU$22.52

Masters of Doom by David Kushner | AU$22.52
id Software's Doom celebrated its 25th anniversary this month, so now's a better time than ever to read this meaty (and eye-opening) account of id Software's rise to fame and fortune. Get from Amazon.

The Official Minecraft Annual 2019 | AU$22.00

The Official Minecraft Annual 2019 | AU$22.00
Know someone (probably younger than yourself) that's obsessed with Minecraft? This is a no-brainer, then. Get from Amazon.

Toys and board games

Catan | AU$59

Catan | AU$59
It's never too late to get a friend into this immensely popular board game. Just beware that it's never too soon for them to beat you. Get at Amazon.

Descent: Journeys in the Dark Second Edition | AU$112.41

Descent: Journeys in the Dark Second Edition | AU$112.41
A card-oriented dungeon crawler. As meaty as it is, if you must have more there are several expansions to collect. Get it at Amazon.

Pandemic | AU$55.38

Pandemic | AU$55.38
A cooperative table top game about thwarting civilisation-threatening viruses. We couldn't think of a better token of one's Christmas time love, to be honest. Get it at Amazon.

Pop Five Nights at Freddy's Pizza Sim Rockstar Freddy Vinyl | AU$17.91

Pop Five Nights at Freddy's Pizza Sim Rockstar Freddy Vinyl | AU$17.91
For some reason this utterly terrifying survival horror series is much beloved by kids, so...  Get from Amazon.

LEGO Minecraft: The Creeper Building Kit | AU$103.20

LEGO Minecraft: The Creeper Building Kit | AU$103.20
The marriage of two block-based building mainstays - one digital, one flesh world - is probably a gift most younger kids would be very pleased to receive. Get from Amazon.

LEGO Overwatch Various Characters | starting from AU$20
D.Va and ReinhardtBastionJunkrat and Roadhog Wrecking Ball Hanzo and Genji

LEGO Overwatch Various Characters | starting from AU$20
There sure is a lot of Overwatch LEGO, and most of it pits two characters against one another. For example, the one pictured to the left (and accessible from the link above, features Tracer and Widowmaker. See links for more below, via Amazon.

D.Va and Reinhardt - AU$49
Bastion - AU$90
Junkrat and Roadhog - AU$60
Wrecking Ball - AU$30
Hanzo and Genji - $40

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