I've never owned a personal PC, but I'm comfortable working with computers and would like to build or buy one for gaming. My main games will be World of Warcraft and Minecraft, though I'd like some room to play other games too. My total budget is around $1,000, including the computer, monitor, mouse, keyboard, and possibly speakers. Spending less would be ideal. I'm open to either a prebuilt or custom system, but my hardware knowledge is limited, so I'd appreciate beginner-friendly advice. I'm located in the United States.
3 Answers
A secondhand PC marketplace or a discounted store display model could help you stay under budget. World of Warcraft’s minimum requirements are fairly modest, so even an older gaming PC can run it. Before buying used, check the exact CPU, graphics card, RAM, storage, power supply, and operating system rather than relying only on a seller’s claim that it is a gaming computer.
If you’re comfortable buying used, a Ryzen 5 3600 or 5500 paired with a GTX 1060, 1070, 1660 Super, RX 570, or RX 580 can make a solid low-cost gaming PC. A used system in this range might cost roughly $400–$600, but make sure you can test it and verify the parts before paying. For a safer purchase, look for a seller who provides benchmarks, clear photos, and the exact component list.
A Ryzen 5 5600 is the processor, the B550 is the motherboard platform it fits into, and the RX 5700 XT is the graphics card. That combination is much stronger than the minimum hardware needed for WoW or Minecraft.
For these games, you don’t need an especially expensive graphics card. A Ryzen 5 5600 or 5600X with a B550 motherboard and a used RX 5700 XT would be more than enough, even for many other games. With careful shopping, you could keep the tower around $500–$700 and use the rest for a 1080p monitor and peripherals.
I’m not very confident evaluating used hardware, so I’d probably ask for the full specifications and get a second opinion before buying. A reasonable target would be 16GB of RAM, an SSD, and a dedicated graphics card.