At Least I Can Build Virtual PC's--PC Building Simulator 2

Anyone who has been paying even minor attention to the world of building your own PC's knows that if you want to actually build a decent PC nowadays you need to set aside a pretty gigantic hunk of cash.  GPU costs have skyrocketed as have the costs for motherboards and other components.  But hey, at least with games like PC Building Simulator 2 we can pretend that we're actually building our dream PC's.

What is it?

The follow-up to the relaxingly enjoyable PC Building Simulator.  It involves running a fictional PC repair store and fixing or building new PC's for customers with varying demands.  One thing to note--PC Building Simulator 2 was developed by Spiral House (not Cladiu Kiss) and published by Epic Games.  It's sadly not available on Steam.

How long is a playthrough?

Basically you could run your virtual shop forever.  It's the kind of game that you can casually pick up whenever you feel like it and then put down again.

Pros:

+ The core of the game has remained largely similar to the original game.  In career mode you run your own PC repair shop and receive orders from customers via e-mail.  The PC's arrive at your store and then it's up to you to fix them, tweak them, build them, or otherwise improve them.  You earn experience and star ratings for how well you complete jobs (gotta pay attention to all those little details that customers like pop into their e-mails) and as you level up you unlock a wider range of improved PC components.

+ Your shop is vastly larger than in the first game and you can add some personalization.  Your repair shop also includes an actual storefront where you can sell PC's that you build.  You have several "themes" you can choose from when personalizing your shop and you can also choose the layout for the posters scattered around your shop walls.

+ More options for creating unique PC's.  You have the ability to swap out your building tables at any time--this includes an option for a PC customization table where you can create custom cases using spray paint, stickers, and laser cut graphics.  They also made the process of adding water cooled components much more detailed--you can add a table that allows you to create water cooled RAM, MOBO's, and GPU's.

+ A vast array of current components to choose from.  Yes, you can actually virtually touch a 40-series GPU!  It'll probably be the only time you touch one, so enjoy it.  Periodic updates add new components to the list.

+ Small quality of life details have improved on some of the minor annoyances from the first game.  They have added in a tablet which allows you to be able to easily order parts or use apps anywhere in the store.  The best feature though is the ability to mark parts for specific jobs when you are ordering them--this has eliminated the need to physically write down and keep track of parts yourself.  There's also a handy warning if you forgot to order the parts in your cart before you end the day--super handy.

+ Making profits from your store is cheesy easy.  This could be good or bad depending on the level of challenge that you are seeking out.  One of the major differences from the first game is that rather than buying individual parts (from the daily parts re-seller) you are offered "broken" PC's that generally have one malfunctioning part that can easily be swapped out.  Then, you can further improve that PC and sell it in your store front.

+ Tons of options for custom lighting, custom fan controls, and all the bells and whistles.  It's much more detailed than the first game.

Cons:

- Selling PC's in your store front is pretty formulaic and can get old.  Basically you need to swap out whatever part is broken then you receive bonuses to the sale price from performing the same set of tasks: customizing the lighting, overclocking (if the CPU is capable of it), adding water cooling (the bonus isn't really worth the cost of upgraded though), benchmarking it, and customizing the case.  By doing all of those things you can maximize your sale price.

- Story missions aren't as goofy and memorable as in the first game.

-  Figuring out the math of benchmark scores is still a puzzle (at least to me).

- I do wish the customization options were a little bit larger.  I feel like I'm often re-making the same PC's over and over.

Recommendation:

If you enjoyed the original PC Building Simulator, the second game manages to keep much of the core formula and improve on it.  Having a store is fun (but does get a bit old) and the addition of case customization allows you to create some cool PC's.  The small quality of life improvements have made it much easier to keep track of day to day business in your shop.