I'm looking to help a friend who's really into low graphics gaming and needs a new PC after their old one died. They're a big fan of Elden Ring, so I want to know the ballpark price for building a decent gaming setup with brand new parts. Any ideas on how low I can go while still being able to play modern games? We're also planning to pick up some used parts, but I'm curious about the price range for a completely new build.
3 Answers
If you're starting fresh with all new components, the lowest end would be around $500, but that would be a really basic setup with older parts. A better range for a decent system would be $700-$900, which lets you choose quality components that will last a while. If budget is a major concern, you might consider used parts or even a console instead.
You can aim for around $700 for a solid build using an AM4 platform with a Ryzen 5600 and a graphics card like the RX 6600. This setup should run most modern games smoothly at 1080p on default settings. Going cheaper may restrict performance significantly, so you might be spending more later to upgrade.
I built my rig for about £500-550 (around $675) not including the monitor and peripherals. I managed to piece it together with mostly second-hand parts from Facebook Marketplace. It runs games like Starfield and BF4 on high settings at 1440p really well! It did take me about 18 months to find the right deals, but it's definitely doable without breaking the bank.
That's a good point! If you're looking to game on a budget, you can find used PCs for around $200 that can run games at 60 fps on medium settings. Just search for a budget single board computer and you might get fantastic value!