05-14-2004, 04:51 AM
ANY new computer you would buy today would do absolutely fine, without
the slightest question. The only way you could shoot yourself in the foot would
be to go too low in RAM (128MB-256MB) or get on-board graphics.
I'm running a 1.3 GHZ P4 and an ATI 7000-era basic card with just 32MB video RAM.
The game plays amazingly good, and as I'm not used to, expecting, (or care about!)
photorealism in a game where I'm trying to kill orcs, it's been a very smooth experience.
Contrast that with a Call to Duty demo which was utter "slideshow", ie one HALF a fps!
And as was said above, it's not a fast reaction game at all.
Recommendation: 2.3 Ghz or faster CPU (can you even buy lower nowadays?)
512MB or a 1 Gig of ram, and for a graphics card, I think the sweet spot right now is
between the ATI 9600XT and the 9800PRO, or if nVidia, a GeForceFX 5700 to a FX 5950
(not the fastest on the planet, not overpriced, and DirectX 9 enhanced). You'll only need 128MB
of Video Ram, I would neither go for less nor more.
Nystul, thanks for your input on video cards. I've since done a ton of reading, and to condense it
to a few sentences...
- the GeForce TI4200 was a card ahead of its time for speed, power and reliability, and still works well
- the GeForce MX series was a dud.
- ATI or nVidia seems now a matter of preference (ATI had a hands-down winner status for a while there)
with ATI giving highest quality image, nVidia giving least hassles with drivers (on average)
- Ultra budget winners: GeForce 5200 , or ATI 9200 or 9600SE (yours for about $70)
- Budget winners (great bang for buck and a very good bang at that): GeForce ATI 9600 Pro or XT, nVidia 5700 (~$130 range)
- More bang, still good value: ATI 9800 Pro (XT great, pricey), and nVivia 5950 Ultra (just under $200?)
- High end - who cares, why waste your money and spend 400-500 when it will be second rate in 9 months?
Which did I pick for an upgrade to my P4 1.3 system... an Asus 9600XT with VIVO for about $180. I hemmed
and hawed between that a minimalist GeForce FX5200 but figured I wasted more $ in lost time than in the difference between the cards and just 'went for it'. I kinda wanted video in capability anyway, and that
helps justify getting a new card in the first place. I'm hoping I can get one more year and/or one more generration of games with this upgrade and hold off on another computer for 1-1.5 yrs. :P
Charis
the slightest question. The only way you could shoot yourself in the foot would
be to go too low in RAM (128MB-256MB) or get on-board graphics.
I'm running a 1.3 GHZ P4 and an ATI 7000-era basic card with just 32MB video RAM.
The game plays amazingly good, and as I'm not used to, expecting, (or care about!)
photorealism in a game where I'm trying to kill orcs, it's been a very smooth experience.
Contrast that with a Call to Duty demo which was utter "slideshow", ie one HALF a fps!
And as was said above, it's not a fast reaction game at all.
Recommendation: 2.3 Ghz or faster CPU (can you even buy lower nowadays?)
512MB or a 1 Gig of ram, and for a graphics card, I think the sweet spot right now is
between the ATI 9600XT and the 9800PRO, or if nVidia, a GeForceFX 5700 to a FX 5950
(not the fastest on the planet, not overpriced, and DirectX 9 enhanced). You'll only need 128MB
of Video Ram, I would neither go for less nor more.
Nystul, thanks for your input on video cards. I've since done a ton of reading, and to condense it
to a few sentences...
- the GeForce TI4200 was a card ahead of its time for speed, power and reliability, and still works well
- the GeForce MX series was a dud.
- ATI or nVidia seems now a matter of preference (ATI had a hands-down winner status for a while there)
with ATI giving highest quality image, nVidia giving least hassles with drivers (on average)
- Ultra budget winners: GeForce 5200 , or ATI 9200 or 9600SE (yours for about $70)
- Budget winners (great bang for buck and a very good bang at that): GeForce ATI 9600 Pro or XT, nVidia 5700 (~$130 range)
- More bang, still good value: ATI 9800 Pro (XT great, pricey), and nVivia 5950 Ultra (just under $200?)
- High end - who cares, why waste your money and spend 400-500 when it will be second rate in 9 months?
Which did I pick for an upgrade to my P4 1.3 system... an Asus 9600XT with VIVO for about $180. I hemmed
and hawed between that a minimalist GeForce FX5200 but figured I wasted more $ in lost time than in the difference between the cards and just 'went for it'. I kinda wanted video in capability anyway, and that
helps justify getting a new card in the first place. I'm hoping I can get one more year and/or one more generration of games with this upgrade and hold off on another computer for 1-1.5 yrs. :P
Charis