I have some experience building PCs, but I have not followed the market closely for about four years. My current gaming laptop still works, though I would like to build a proper upgrade in the near future.
I am looking for a system that can handle most games at 4K and around 60 FPS or 1080p at 144 FPS on high or maximum settings. For particularly demanding or poorly optimized games, I would be satisfied with 1080p and 60 FPS at medium to high settings.
I specifically want an Nvidia graphics card, at least 32 GB of RAM, preferably 64 GB if prices allow, and a minimum of 2 TB of SSD storage. I live in Eastern Europe, so regional pricing may be different.
What kind of parts would be typical for this level of performance, and what would be a rough total cost? I am mainly looking for a general estimate rather than an exact shopping list. Also, are the current GPU and memory price increases expected to improve soon?
3 Answers
You do not necessarily need 64 GB of RAM for gaming right now. 32 GB is still the sensible baseline, and you can upgrade later if prices drop or your workloads need it. I would prioritize the GPU, a reliable power supply, and a good 2 TB SSD before spending extra on 64 GB.
Memory and graphics card prices do not appear likely to normalize immediately, so I would not count on a quick major drop. If your current laptop remains usable, waiting and watching prices may be better than rushing into an inflated market.
For your requirements, the graphics card is the main deciding factor. An RTX 5070 Ti-class card can manage 4K at 60 FPS in many games, but often with upscaling such as DLSS and reduced ray tracing. If you want more consistent native 4K performance at high settings, an RTX 5080-class card is a safer choice.
A high-end build with a Ryzen 7 9800X3D-class CPU, 32–64 GB of DDR5, 2 TB of storage, and an RTX 5080 could easily reach roughly $3,000 in some Eastern European markets. Prices vary significantly by country and retailer, so comparing complete parts lists locally is worthwhile.
A rough budget would be around $2,000–$2,500 for a strong build, although local pricing can push that higher. A system in this range might use a modern Ryzen 7 or Core i7-class processor, 32 GB of DDR5 memory, a 2 TB NVMe SSD, and a graphics card around the RTX 5070 Ti or Radeon 9070 XT level. You would also need to budget for the motherboard, power supply, case, and cooling.
That is more expensive than I hoped, but it helps to know that a capable system might still be possible closer to $2,000 if I am willing to use upscaling and avoid relying heavily on ray tracing.