$666 without kb/mouse/monitor/os. https://pcpartpicker.com/list/vjVNbL
You're right in that over the long term, a PC gamer will probably end up spending less on their hobby. But for someone starting from scratch and trying to decide on a path, the console remains the cheaper and easier platform to jump into.
I don't see where I mentioned optimization but I am curious and maybe you can elaborate further on what I'm guessing are probably the differences between game patch optimizations vs driver level optimizations?
https://selfh.st/apps/?search=youtube