/r/lowendgaming

Photograph via //r/lowendgaming

In this subreddit: we roll our eyes and snicker at minimum system requirements. This is a community for anyone struggling to find something to play for that older system, or sharing or seeking tips for how to run that shiny new game on yesterday's hardware. Found a cool game that runs fantastic on a lower end system? Great! Do you have a guide for running a newer game below the minimum requirements? Share it!

We help people with low spec PC builds, but TRY TO INCLUDE some relevant gaming too!

In this subreddit we roll our eyes and snicker at minimum system requirements. This is a community for anyone struggling to find something to play for that older system, or sharing or seeking tips for how to run that shiny new game on yesterday's hardware. Found a cool game that runs fantastic on a lower end system? Great! Do you have a guide for running a newer game below the minimum requirements? Share it!

R/LOWENDGAMING RULES

  1. No "recommend me games" or "can I run?" posts These types of requests are only allowed in the Weekly 'What Can I Run?' Thread.

  2. Do not accuse others of not being "low end" There is no strict definition for what constitutes a "low end" system or game.

  3. All tech-advice posts must state your PC specs Running dxdiag or an application like speccy can help you easily figure out your specs.

  4. Do not link to or encourage piracy Abandonware and emulation as a means of piracy both fall under this rule.

  5. Self-promotion is generally not allowed YouTubers and game developers are treated on a case-by-case basis, and they must get approval from a moderator before posting.

HELPFUL LINKS

OTHER GREAT SUBREDDITS

Join our official Steam group!

Thank you to some help by one of our users, I have reclaimed our old IRC channel!
irc.snoonet.com #lowendgaming
OR browser-based access https://kiwiirc.com/client/irc.snoonet.org/#lowendgaming

/r/lowendgaming

101,899 Subscribers

6

Do majority of pc gamers play at 30fps?

I’m cool with playing 30fps on console because it feels smoother compared to on pc. The reason why I ask is I’m looking to get back into pc gaming but I do want to go back and spend $1,500 to build one again. My go to is my ps5 because it plays 60fps now and it’s just plug and play but I look at my Xbox series X and I wonder if spending $500 on it was worth it instead of a gaming pc. A pc can play the same games and exclusives release day one. There also game pass as an option. I know if I dip back in to pc gaming I’m going to spend at least $1,000 up front, especially because longevity is important to me and having a pc for at least 8 years without updating is my goal. I bought a pre built my first go around and will probably do the same as setting things up like drivers, windows, bios, etc is confusing for me unless things have gotten easier the last 5 years. Any advice on what type of building for longevity with newer games being played at 1080p 60fps ultra settings with head room? I don’t play ultra wide or care for anything higher then 60fps and I use a 4k tv and a 4k projector.

My thought process is get the best cpu possible because it will last longer in a pc then a gpu because upgrading a cpu means upgrading to a new motherboard whereas the gpu is plug and play. I can then get a cheaper GPU to play at 1080p 60fps high/ultra on majority new games. Any advice?

15 Comments
2024/11/01
01:22 UTC

6

Total newbie looking to upgrade my graphics, possibly more.

My PC has served me VERY well, I mainly use it just for artwork and such but I've really wanted to see what I could upgrade within reason to allow me to run some more "high-end" games. (I can rarely run Overwatch on lowest settings)

My specs are as followed (Copied directly from Speccy):

CPU: Intel Core i5 4670k @ 3.40GHz
RAM: 16.0GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 532MHz
Motherboard: Gigabyte Technology - Z97X-Gaming 7
Graphics (ancient): 1023MB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti

As far as I was aware I should have 32GBs of RAM (Family friend that built it for me said) But I'm not that tech savvy to know why its limited? (I'm really sorry if that sounds like a stupid question I just genuinely don't know.)
All I'm really looking for is some better upgrade options within reason to help my PC run more- graphics intensive games better?
Other than that my PC is an absolute rock. Thank you :]

8 Comments
2024/10/31
23:13 UTC

9

[gog.com] (FREE) Return of the Phantom

https://www.gog.com/en/game/return_of_the_phantom

Minimum system requirements:

System: Windows 7 / 8 / 10

Processor: Pentium 4 or later

Memory: 256 MB RAM

Graphics: Athlon 64 or later

Storage: 100 MB available space

0 Comments
2024/10/31
20:08 UTC

5

Legend of Grimrock worth it for a low end laptop?

Dirt cheap may give it a try if one can play on the low end.

5 Comments
2024/10/31
11:11 UTC

2

Is this a worthwhile upgrade?

Looking for some feedback on a potential upgrade from more experienced users. Budget locked to $200

Currently running a Xeon e3-1245 v3 4c/8t, 4GB RX 460, on a 450 Watt power supply. It runs fairly decent for its age but I am limited by the 16 gb DDR3 1600 and smaller proprietary power supply that has no ability to support a more power hungry GPU. I can get most games I own to run but frame rates do dip below 60FPS on newer titles. Yuzu is even acceptable on this prebuilt.

What I am looking at is a Thinkstaition P520 running a Xeon W 2135 6c/12t and the 900 Watt Platinum power supply opens the door to a lot more GPU options. Plus it has 16gb DD4 2666mhz and m2 slots which is nice to have. The reason I am leaning this way is the cost would only be $160 USD

The negatives i see is the much higher TDP taking me from a current 84w to 140w (not an issue in winter but come summer its going to feel like a space heater) and the cost of replacing the stock fans with quieter ones (so additional ~$40 cost)

I realize this is only an incremental upgrade not quite taking me to current gaming standards but benchmark-wise on paper its still a good step up from my current setup. Going the prebuilt route just seems like the most financial sense for the money and time needed to invest into it.

But what I am wondering if its a worthwhile upgrade?

Is there a better prebuilt on the Ryzen platform with a similar sized power supply around this price point that is also more energy (and heat) efficient?

For now all the SSD storage and the rx460 would be transplanted into the new computer until I decide to upgrade those too.

12 Comments
2024/10/31
05:03 UTC

1

Issues with Hollow Knight

Hi all,

I am having some issues running Hollow Knight on my computer and I was wondering if I could get some advice where to go.

When entering a new room in the game, the graphics will fail to load, but I am still able to move the character around (I can hear the actions like swinging my nail). I can still pause the game as well and quit out to fix it. This sucks with Hollow Knight because it puts me back to my bench :/

Here is an example of the graphical issues. The screenshots also show my current computer load. https://imgur.com/a/rs3BX5y

Has anyone seen this issue before? Clearly some sort of rendering issue, but I feel like Hollow Knight shouldn't be graphically intense. I can run quite a lot at low on the 8700g.

Also, there aren't much settings to adjust in Hollow Knight besides resolution and vsync. I have my resolution set at 480p and I have vsync off. Having vsync on causes big input delay :/

Computer Specs

OS: EndeavourOS (kernel 6.11.5)

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 8700g

GPU: iGPU Radeon 780M

Memory: 32gb

6 Comments
2024/10/31
03:07 UTC

14

A6 9500

This CPU is something else. I have some low end PCs for fun and testing, and the last one I got was a6 9500. I got ab350m motherboard for free which was "faulty" so I said why not lets try this thing and how it runs.

I knew it was slow, but got it is so painfully slow that even celeron e3400 (lga 775) runs circles around it. I have tested head to head with my athlon 64 x2 5000+, and it was barely beating it. Let me remind you that this chip fits on am4 which can host 5800x3d which is one of the best gaming chips out there.

I have all kinds of cpus, like athlon II x3 455, phenom II x2 550, core 2 duo e8500, celeron e3400, pentium D (which was slightly slower!), fx6300, i3 2100, i3 4170, some random xeons (on 1356 and 2011v3) and this one tops them all. All were surprising me with how good they can perform in certain scenarios. Hell fx6300 is still perfectly useable as is 4170. This thing isn't.

Sorry for rant, at least gpu is okay, which CPU is bottlenecking! I wanted to test it with 1060 6GB but why bother. Core 2 duo is faster, it can game, especially titles before 2015. I also have ryzen 7 2700, a not so great anymore cpu on the same socket and it is like trying pentium 4 vs the i9. I would recomend anyone with this APU to buy some ryzen. Even 1200 would beat it to the ground probably. 1600/2600 are dirt cheap.

End of rant.

27 Comments
2024/10/30
20:37 UTC

12

Trying to speed up my spouses' PC. Taking suggestions...

This is her PC:

https://browser.geekbench.com/v6/cpu/8545264

OS: Pop 22.04 LTS

Mobo: MSI MS-7693

Processor: AMD FX-8320

Memory: 16GB

We got some extra years out of it by switching to Linux (I love how games through Proton run faster on Linux than natively on windows!) but her game of choice, Elder Scrolls Online, has been getting slower and slower (despite her having double base specs).

The geekbench metrics say it's scoring really low on stuff involving images (so that'd hit image loading, texture loading, etc.)

Any clue what could be causing such abysmal image processing scores?

Is there a software setting or library I should double check, or is there a piece of hardware I should be looking at upgrading or one that might be going out?

It's running the same video card I am ( AMD® Radeon r9 390 series ), but I run a lot better, so I'm pretty sure it's not the video card (which would have been my first guess with image processing), although most of my other stuff is newer. (We upgrade alternating, I get upgrades, then they do, then I do, and so on, but I was running dual video cards, then their video card went 'poof', and I gave them one of mine).

13 Comments
2024/10/30
11:57 UTC

3

Rdr 1 (HD 520)

So I've been trying to run red dead 1 on this pc but when I open it I get the error "access violation (C000000)

Does anyone know why this happens? This same pc could load up GTA 5 and rdr2 so I'd be surprised if it can't run rdr1, it's also dx12 compatible on dxdiag and I'm not running afterburner

Maybe it's something in bios?

4 Comments
2024/10/30
11:23 UTC

2

Looking for a cheap PC for the kids for Christmas.

I was hunting amazon and just curious if some of the stuff out there is just flat out ripoffs or legitimate usable pcs. I need to buy 2 so that kind of factors into the budget and ability to just grab a used one. They will compare so I want to give them the same thing. I find 500dollar pcs that sure it has a 2060 and 16g ram, but the Processor sold new in 2012 for 47 dollars and the memory is ddr3. No way this would actually be usable right? They just trying to sell a graphics card basically?

19 Comments
2024/10/30
10:35 UTC

13

Rate my Pc out of 10

CPU: AMD A6 9225(2Core 2Thread)

GPU: AMD Radeon R4(IGPU)

RAM:4GB DDR4 2666MHZ

HDD: WD blue 1TB 5400RPM

SSD: 128GB Some OEM Samsung NVME M.2 SSD

Will it be worth upgrading the RAM or should i save up and get a new PC ?

23 Comments
2024/10/30
10:28 UTC

2

Worth the price?

Hi everyone! Not really knowledgeable about gaming pcs, but I want to buy my little bro his first gaming pc. My budget is tight, but I want to know if the pc is worth the price listed and if ya'll think it will last a long time. Listed for $349.

Here are the specs:

E52690 (8 cores 16 threads) Rx590 8gb 16gb ram 128 gb nvme ssd + 1tb hdd Ac Wif Usb/Bluetooth Windows11pro 750w

My brother is into all the games kids are currently on like Fortnite, Minecraft, Roblox, etc. so can he play these games with no problem? How about games like Monster Hunter?

Any help and advice is much appreciated!

5 Comments
2024/10/29
23:49 UTC

4

Complete newbie looking for good pcs

I’ve been a console gamer pretty much all my life and wanted to test out the pc market, for reference the closest I’ve had to a pc Is a crappy school monitor my family shared so I’m not really experienced in all this. I want to get a pc that can run games like fortnite, elden ring, Yakuza games, roblox, indie games on steam etc etc. My preferred price range would be 0$-600$ I’m not too knowledgeable in this stuff so I’m not sure how I would get a prebuilt which is what I see a lot of people get reccomended.

8 Comments
2024/10/29
22:36 UTC

4

csgo linux issues on low end hardware

i spent hours waiting for cs:2 to download on steam and to process all the shaders, and when i get in, it crashes when i open video settings? and it took so many attempts to get past loading screen? valve says cs:2 is supported on linux, and many linux gamers have been able to play cs:2 just fine. is there something im doing wrong? Intel Iris Xe Graphics, i5-11357G, 8 GB RAM. When I try to run it forcefully through Proton it runs smoothly, but i cant get into any matches

4 Comments
2024/10/29
02:11 UTC

3

Cheap gaming PC

Hi, Ive been using a laptop(hp pavilion 360) for gaming and I was hoping to upgrade to a gaming pc but I have a very tight budget. Ideally I'd like to spend around 300 but I can go a bit higher if needed. The specs don't need to be anything crazy, I'm mainly looking to run games like gta, rocket league, cod, valorant, etc. I dont care about the looks, I just need something that works and if possible something with decent/good storage. I live in the U.S(NY) so availability of parts isnt too much of an issue for me. I have no experience in building pcs so any advice would be helpful.

5 Comments
2024/10/28
23:31 UTC

6

People, I need help!

I am trying to get a gaming PC that is good and able to run games like Minecraft, Helldivers II( low graphics), and steam games. i have a semi- tight budget of around 300-450$. Please send the website link so i can review it. Thanks guys this will save me!!
*Edit: i live in the south-east side of the states

11 Comments
2024/10/28
23:00 UTC

0

M83 GPU upgrade recommendations?

Hi, basically, I would like to upgrade my actual pc (m83 thinkcentre SFF,intel i5 4430), and i'm done whit everything exepct the ram and the gpu, which the ram i can manage quite easily, but the gpu,I have no clear idea,I did heard the gt 1030 might fufill my needs, but taht really it. (btw, the most demanding game i will probably ever play is like fornite whit my friends, btu that's it).

1 Comment
2024/10/28
21:39 UTC

13

Tasked with building nephew a PC under $150

My nephew's birthday is coming up and he wants a PC for school projects and to play games like Minecraft and Fortnite on. My idea is to get a cheap tower PC on Marketplace and add a graphics card and SSD. I've seen some Dell Optiplexes on there anywhere from $30-75, and have heard those can work well. Is there anything I look out for, or avoid? Any other models besides the Optiplex that would work as well? Suggestions for a GPU to add? I have some basic knowledge about this stuff, but I'm not super well read. Any advice is appreciated!

(No peripherals are needed, just the computer)

24 Comments
2024/10/28
17:32 UTC

17

Cheap Pc that won't be laggy!

I have never ever bought a pc, i have been gaming with consoles before but since mine broke very recently, i can't play anything, i normally play the sims 4, minecraft, very basic games like that. and i don't want to be the type to buy a mortgage price pc just for those sort of games, does anyone have any reccomendations? ones that are easy to buy, prebuilt? whatever its called, i really need some help.

17 Comments
2024/10/28
15:13 UTC

5

5600g build with only igpu and high temperatures

Hi, I've been using my 5600g pc for light 1080p gaming with my son (mostly MCC with splitscreen coop, Ghostbusters remastered, Dirt 3 and Smurfs kart).

Recently I up the mobo and ram and will soon receive a new cpu cooler.

Config is this:

5600G with stoch wraith stealth cooler (soon to be replaced wit an ID-Cooling IS-50X V2)

32gb corsair vengeance rgb 35600mhz C18

asus rog strix B450-I

seasonic 300w tfx 80+ bronze

chieftec FI-01B-U3

I'm getting a score of 1528 on time spy 3dmark (1344 graphic, 6900 cpu), but getting as high as 87C on CPU and 63C on gpu during game with a maxed out GB remaster at 1080p.

The pc is freshly pasted and stable, but I find these temperatures very high.

Is it possible to undervolt the cpu but at the same time overclock the igpu?

Or is it better gaming wise to undervolt the cpu and overclock the ram?

First time I tried undervolting from this video I've got 1516 on time spy (1336 graphic and 6520 cpu) with 54C max cpu temperature.

I'm ok with the the capability of my current pc, dont want to overclock the cpu, but would like to achieve lower temperatures.

What should I do?

13 Comments
2024/10/28
13:21 UTC

2

whats the logic ?

when i play elden ring my fans are almost silent but when i play sekiro my fans are loud almost all the time even though i get more fps in sekiro

shouldnt a open world game put more load on the cpu than a game like sekiro ?

educate me pls

2 Comments
2024/10/28
07:04 UTC

22

Cheap gaming pc I can get right now?

Hey folks, I'm in the market for a budget gaming PC and I'm hoping to get your input. I'm looking for something under $900 that can handle games like Apex Legends or Valorant without too much hassle. Any recommendations for specific models or builds you’ve had good experiences with? I’d really appreciate any insights! Here are some I'm considering:

  • Skytech Nebula Gaming PC
  • STGAubron Gaming PC
  • CyberPowerPC Gamer Master
34 Comments
2024/10/28
00:52 UTC

10

Going from 8 to 16GB DDR3. Will it help?

I currently have 4 x 2GB RAM on an old 870-G45 motherboard. I decided to order a 4 x 4GB RAM kit because it was cheap and why not? Will I actually notice a difference?

I’m also wondering if I will be able to run Brighter Shores? It comes out on Nov 6. These are the minimum specs.

Processor: Intel i3 or AMD equivalent

Memory: 8 GB RAM

Graphics: DirectX 11 capable graphics with at least 2GB RAM

Here are my specs.

Processor: Phenom II X6 1090T

Memory: 16 GB RAM

Graphics: GT 1030 (2GB GDDR5)

23 Comments
2024/10/28
00:39 UTC

3

gpu for an amd a6 pro

so basically i’m planning on building a pc and no longer using my HP elite desk as a gaming rig, is there any gpu i could pair with the AMD A6 PRO-7400B that would give it decent fps in like, minecraft or something so i could give it to a sibling so they could use it?

full specs:

cpu: AMD A6 PRO-7400B 16gb ram radeon r5 graphics

14 Comments
2024/10/27
19:07 UTC

14

Affordable GPU?

hello! i have been looking into getting a budget pc for a while now but i am still quite confused about a few things. help would be much appreciated!

edit: im in ireland and i’m open to only buying products from the EU including the UK

the goal is to have a pc that can run games such as minecraft, lethal company, and small indie games. generally low demanding games since i have a ps5 for more high demanding ones.

another edit: i’m open to getting the full size i7 3rd gen optiplex 7010 instead, and upgrading it to a 16gb ram and 512 gb ssd. which gpu would be best? ideally 4gb

currently, i’m looking into getting a dell optiplex 7020 SFF i7 4770 (16gb ram 512 gb ssd included) for around €180, then adding a gpu. the problem is, i can’t seem to find a cheap low profile gpu, most i’m seeing that are compatible and recommended for the pc i chose are over €100 used on ebay such as the gtx 1650. is there any way to get one that’s a good bit cheaper and suitable for the type of games i intend to play? for the SFF model

thank you :)

45 Comments
2024/10/27
16:28 UTC

0

Me ajudem Com umas duvidas...

Olá Me deem umas dicas por favor, Eu tenho um pc atualemnte com as seguintes configs
Placa Mae: A320-M-Hd
ssd nvme 500
ssd 120
hd 1 tb
RTX 3060 TI 8GB
RYZEN 7 2700
16 GB RAM DDR4
Eu gostaria de fazer um upgrade sigifnicativo para rodar bem os jogos, sem travar, so que acho que o gargalo esta no processador Porem ai que esta eu nao tenho muito dinheiro, gostaria de saber o que voces fazriam e colocariam, por exemplo juntasse bastante dinheiro e ir para ddr5 ou mesmo pegar um ficar no ddr4
pelo que vi minha placa mae pega ryzen 5 geracao mas pelo site nao mostra que pegar o ryzen 7 5700x3d
o que voces recomendam?

5 Comments
2024/10/27
13:41 UTC

6

Weekly 'What Can I Run?' Thread (October 27, 2024)

Hello and welcome to the Weekly "What Can I Run?" Thread. Here you can ask and answer questions that fall under the purview of "what can I run?"

This includes:

  • Asking what games your PC can run
  • Asking whether a specific game can run
  • Asking for game recommendations

Before You Post: In order to receive helpful answers, it is strongly recommended that you include your specs in the question details. Running dxdiag or an application like speccy can help you easily figure out your specs.

48 Comments
2024/10/27
10:00 UTC

6

upgrading the GPU on a prebuilt from 2014

hi everyone, been lurking for a while. i have a prebuilt from 2014 that has these specs: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/t7JzmD (also has a sata ssd). i like the 750ti and it's managed to hold off over the years, but it's very obviously an old card, with no dx12 support, and i have to play most things at 720p.

i don't really play current-gen AAA games and that is probably not gonna change for a while. i play indie games, older AAA titles, and emulated games. i'm just looking to keep playing the stuff i currently play, but maybe with a higher resolution or slightly higher settings.

what kind of card would i be able to put into a weak system like this? i've been looking at the gtx 1070 for just around $100 USD. i'm looking into upgrading the ram as well, but if i do then i can't currently afford a new psu (to support a card over the wattage). is the 1070 my best option around that price and wattage? i appreciate any advice

22 Comments
2024/10/27
01:55 UTC

6

Warzone stuttering/freezing problem

I have been getting horrible stuttering problems in Warzone, sometimes it's so bad it freezes for 30 secs or more, my CPU (i7-2700k) usage was almost at 100%, and i probably won't be able to fix it because it's not a very powerful CPU, but if there are any, what settings should i change for a smooth gameplay?

7 Comments
2024/10/26
23:36 UTC

2

3770 vs 6700hq with both having a desktop-level 1070?

I picked up another 3770 today, one of them is probably going to end up being my daily driver. However I want a more portable one but the 1070 probably won't fit in the case. Cpubenchmark says there's about a 7% performance difference between the two cpu's, userbenchmark says 14. Starfield runs bearably on both so I have reasonable expectations for other year-old games. The 6700hq being a laptop sure would be nicer to carry around but its' 3.5ghz boost is single core only vs 3.9 (all core?) on the 3770.

6 Comments
2024/10/26
09:53 UTC

Back To Top