Is FPGA the future or just expensive hobbyist gear?

MiSTer and Analogue consoles get a lot of hype for being "cycle-accurate" and closer to real hardware than software emulation. But the cost of entry is steep, and software emulators keep improving.

Anyone made the jump to FPGA? Is it noticeably better in practice, or is it more about the principle of the thing? Genuinely trying to figure out if it's worth saving up for.