With games like Starfield and BG3 making such a splash (admittedly, the latter being somewhat more enthralling than the former) and even the possibility of GTA 6 gracing our lives sometime next year, it has never been a better time to jump into the world of PC gaming. If you have previously been contented with a console thus far, you will be utterly amazed at just how much a well-specced gaming PC or laptop can change your life. It’s not merely the higher resolutions but the controls and access to platforms like Steam and Epic that make it such a seamless and exciting experience to get into. Nevertheless, for those less intertwined with the heady world of PC gaming, knowing what’s important and what’s not can make a huge difference in how much money you have left over at the end of the process. This post will take a look at a few of the most critical things you need to know when choosing a brand-new gaming computer that will provide hundreds of hours of fun and be fure-proofed enough to avoid having you fall into poverty when you need to update to the latest graphics card!
Consider Your Gaming Needs And Budget
Before you can even begin considering what type of options you want to include, it pays dividends to carefully think about the kinds of games you enjoy and, perhaps most crucially, your budget. If you are unsure at this stage, you can utilize any of the plethora of online publications dedicated to this topic. The gaming computer experts from pcpowerzone.co.uk cover a range of subjects that can help you become a little more integrated in this world. By understanding what games you will predominantly play and how much you are prepared to spend, you will narrow down options and make the entire process more manageable. Just bear in mind that many of the top AAA games will demand a far larger budget if you plan on playing them at their highest settings. However, if you are a casual gamer, you might suffice with a lower-cost rig and simply reduce the settings to medium levels.
Think About Future Upgrade Possibilities
There are lots of new games on the horizon, and many of them incorporate the latest technologies like ray tracing. These technologies will require vast amounts of processing power from both the CPU and GPU, making it vital that you factor these in before making any decision.
Consider The Processor And Graphics
Although the processor isn’t quite as important as the graphic card, it still plays a huge role in how smoothly games will run and also what activities you can perform outside of gaming. If you plan on playing higher-end games, you might want to opt for the latest Intel i7 or i9s, or if you really want to nerd out, AMD’s Ryzen 7 7800X3D, which is primarily considered to be team reds most capable gaming CPU.
Don’t Overlook Storage Space
Most modern games have enormous file sizes that often reach the hundreds of GB levels. Therefore, you should equip your PC or laptop with a 1 TB SSD at the very least, as you fill this up far quicker than you think. Fortunately, storage is relatively affordable these days, so you can simply upgrade as you go. Moreover, ensure it is an SSD rather than a HDD. This isn’t merely because they are faster, but as games like Starfield have shown, more and more games are moving towards an SSD-only attitude for various reasons beyond the scope of this post.
Purchasing a gaming computer isn’t rocket science, nor computer science, for that matter! Instead, it takes a few weeks to carefully think about what you need from your machine, your budget, and what games you envision you will play.