There are many reasons to choose a gaming PC for academic work. First, the high-performance multi-core CPUs are powerful enough to handle multiple productivity applications and design and production tools at once. It also gives you a breather when the starting bell rings. You see, there are plenty of them.

But seriously, a good gaming PC is a multifaceted device, and many of the best ones for gaming can also help spark your passion for design, illustration, and coding. That's why the Omen Obelisk desktop PC piqued our interest in the HP Back to School sale.

You can save $200 off the asking price of this RTX-enabled gaming rig. Prices start at $1,200, but I put together a $1,379.99 build with a little more RAM and storage. See.

If you can't be bothered to follow a gaming PC building guide or research the best graphics card yourself, a less expensive pre-build may be the next best thing.