Laptop help

[corruptjackyl]

So, I prepurchased the game and then found out my current laptop won't run it. I have a limited budget ($600 or less) and am unsure which laptop to buy. Which of the cards can handle it and perhaps SW:TOR.

I love my Civ games but am not a technical genius so was hoping you guys could help me out.

Thanks in advance!

 

[joncnunn]

Well, BE is using the same engine as Civ V, only they dropped the DirectX 9 support so it will run on anything that Civ V runs in DirectX11 mode in.

Given how many years ago that was when Civ V came out, every new machine sold today will have the hardware support needed for DirectX11 to at least run. If you have other more intensive graphic games you are also thinking about buying, those are actually going to increase what specs you need.

How late game lag compares in BE vs Civ V BNW though is just wild mass guessing. Empires have less penalties to self expansion in BE (and in addition one of the victory conditions requires it), which suggests potential for more lag in BE, but removal of actual trade units and the changes from city states to outputs suggests a lot less lag.

But actually the biggest factor is likely to be a hidden one that we won't know until some of the source code is released to modders at some unknown point post release. If when making BE they took the time to redesign the guts of the game layer, a lot of lag could be removed. But if BE was just clobbered on top of the Civ V code, then that would suggest increased lag.

 

[Breezin]

I agree that if your current laptop can run Civ V it should have no problem running BE.

I went to "can you run it" today and checked out my current laptop and it said I'd be able to run BE easily. You may want to go to that site and let it analyze your new laptop.

 

[Beefie]

Hi, similar request. I may be getting a new laptop soon and would be grateful if anyone has any tips on a budget laptop capable to play this and Civ 5.

My Acer Aspire 5738z recently died one me, which was around 5 years old, and I was able to play civ 5 on it though completely in strategic view and tiny-small-standard maps.

I'm assuming/hoping that Moore's Law will mean any cheap laptop will be much better for playing these games, though I'd appreciate people's opinions on what graphics are like on low-end laptops and how intensive it runs the machine. I'm a UK resident with about £300-£400 available, any advice would be greatly appreciated

 

[3of5]

The core i3-4000 i bought for my parents can barely run Civ5. I'd recommend a low tier core i5 from the newest generation with a dedicated graphics unit (not the integrated intel solution). Having 8GB of RAM would also be highly recommended. And if you can get it also take a hybrid SSD/HDD drive (those are quite nice and rather cheap). If you plan on playing for hours at a time i'd take a non-glare screen too, your eyes will thank you.

Bad news is that moores law seems not to be valid any more (at least when talking processors), good news its that requirements are rising slower as well. Old rigs last longer today than they did 10 years ago.

 

[Lord Shadow]

A proper desktop should give you guys a better experience for the same price.

 

[Breezin]

I don't know if there's a strategic view in BE but I know that some people were playing Civ V this way because their computer couldn't run it. Granted, this is an imperfect solution if it is available but could be used while you decide on a new system.

I was actually wondering if the new Surface 2 would run it. I tried Civ V on the old Surface bit it was really unplayable unless you used strategic view. It would be nice to a tablet rather than lug around a laptop on trips.

 

[cooldude1128]

No DirectX9 support?
Guess I'm not playing CivBE.

 

[joncnunn]

A proper desktop should give you guys a better experience for the same price.

Chances are really high when someone says they want a notebook or laptop that they need to be able to move their computer around and would like the option to be able to play BE when not at home.

I don't know if there's a strategic view in BE but I know that some people were playing Civ V this way because their computer couldn't run it. Granted, this is an imperfect solution if it is available but could be used while you decide on a new system.

I was actually wondering if the new Surface 2 would run it. I tried Civ V on the old Surface bit it was really unplayable unless you used strategic view. It would be nice to a tablet rather than lug around a laptop on trips.

Well the fact that Surface ran Civ V at all (even in strategic mode) means that Surface 2 should be able to run BE (assuming "72 GeForce graphics cores (24 vertex shaders + 48 pixel shaders" meets the DirectX 11 requirements)

I would however recommend using using other than your raw finger for playing BE. (If it's touchscreen will support a stylus that may be work but some touchscreens require body heat and if it's one of those you'll want a USB mouse)

The wikipedia is saying there are known overheating issues with the Surface2 that are still ongoing.
In addition 2 GB of RAM would be really low of a notebook, my smart phone came with that much memory. The Surface2 is clearly just a tablet that's made a big deal about a keyboard accessory being allowed. (When USB keyboards have been available for over a decade)

If you really want a surface, go with the surface pro 3 that at least comes with 4 GB+ of RAM. (For Civ V or BE the models that include 8 GB RAM would be better)

 

[Breezin]

If you really want a surface, go with the surface pro 3 that at least comes with 4 GB+ of RAM. (For Civ V or BE the models that include 8 GB RAM would be better)

You can tell I'm out of the loop. I didn't even know there was a surface pro 3.