So, you wish to get a new PC for Civilization 5 and Beyond Earth

[Makavcio]

I have some time now and every now and then a person pops up asking for a "Gaming PC for Civilization". It's not a complicated matter, though if someone is completely oblivious to what things like CPU or GPU are, there are more than a few traps that will cost him money and will hurt his new rig's performance. That's why I decided to put together this little Q&A thread, a rudimentary guide to buying a new desktop PC for Civilization and similar games. It's aimed at people who really do not know what they are doing when they step into computer hardware stores.

1. But I wanted a laptop!

Spoiler :

Laptops were not designed for gaming and you will need to pay a lot more for comparable performance or you'll have to do with very poor performance for the same price. If you really want a laptop, go for a i5-powered device with an SSD drive and a "decent" graphics card. That's what you are supposed to tell the salesperson at your local store. Have 1000-1200 USD prepared.

Ok, but you'll have to pay more for less performance. Spend ~1200$ on a 'gaming laptop'.

2. Can I simply upgrade my rig?

Spoiler :

Yes, you can but if you have problems with running Civ, a really old game, modern computer parts are most likely outright incompatible with the rest of your PC and even if they could somehow work, other elements would slow them down considerably. It's better to buy something brand new. It's usually ok to transfer your HDDs, casing, or things like dedicated sound card. You can also transfer memory but only sometimes and it will hurt your performance.

Not really. Transfer HDDs and case. Sell the rest.

3. Processor, aka CPU

Spoiler :

It's a well known fact that Civ's performance is processor-based. BUT! You don't need high-end processors, especially not an i7 one. It's a thingie for professionals and even though it does offer better performance, it's really negligible while much more expensive.
i5 is a choice for you. A model without any letters after the four digit model description. Especially K models are useless for you since they are designed for people who will be overclocking their setup and you are not one of them. Non-K models are cheaper and for you, just as good. Make sure it's the 4th generation.
Why not AMD? Because, sadly, their price/performance ratio in the range we are dealing in is much worse and when we also take power consumption into account, AMD processors are pitiful. AMD CPUs are not cheaper. What you save on the sticker price, you have to pay anyway to your electric company

You want a non-K model of an i5 processor. You'll pay 150-200€ for it.

4. Graphics

Spoiler :

You really don't need anything fancy for Civilization. I wouldn't recommend an integrated GPU (graphics processor), though I guess it could work. The best choice is something that uses as little power as possible and is quite silent. Go for something around ~200$ at the day of purchase, preferably from nVidia. Their naming is based on a simple schematics: ABCxy where A stands for generation, B for performance rating and C is usually zero these days. xy is a suffix that can be blank or can be saying "ti" as in titanium. It's a 'gaming version' of the same graphics processor. As for today, 750ti and 760 are imo perfect choices for any Civ-focused gamer.

Anything in the price range of 150-200€ will work great.

5. Storage, or do I need a Solid State Drive?

Spoiler :

The most comfortable solution for today is a SSD+HDD configuration. SSDs are incredibly fast and I mean it, though their price/GB is still outrageous in comparison with HDD. Fortunately, there's been a lot of positive development on SSD market lately and there's myriad good ~256GB offers around. Use it for system and games. You need a HDD with this setup but its capacity is up to you. You know best how much space you need.

~256GB SSD + 1-2TB HDD (everything on SATA III)

6. Motherboard, memory and power supply unit (PSU)

Spoiler :

These three things will be confusing. Especially motherboards because they sport many things that are plain witchcraft. Tell the salesperson that you want a modern ASRock motherboard for ~150$. Ask about the number of USB ports if you must. Leave the rest to the salesperson.
Memory is also tricky because RAM comes in many varieties and there are a few strange numbers attached to every price sticker. You need 4GB of it. You may want 8GB because it will prepare you for the nearest future and make switching between things faster. RAM is cheap. I personally have 16GB and merrily waste most of it. Just make sure that it's PC3 1600MHz DDR3 RAM. Less MHzs means worse performance and more MHzs means much higher prices for almost no gain. You also don't need fancy-shmancy radiators and such. Btw, Kingston is extremely overrated. Oh, and you need to always have 2 modules of RAM for it to work in so called double channel mode. So, if you will be getting 8GB, make it 2x4GB.
When it comes to PSU, people get royally screwed every day. First of all, the rig we are building needs no more than ~400W of power 'in stress', ergo, you'll need a 500-550W PSU. No more. You'll be wasting the rest. All PSUs have some colorful certificates: bronze, silver and gold ones. You need a silver one because it will guarantee us that you are not buying junk that will fry your PC. Golden PSUs are for fools and some professionals that use a lot of power, at least 200% of our needs. If you want to know what exactly these certificates are, google it. It's not important for you now.

If you trust that the salesperson you are talking to is a decent human being, just let him or her pick appropriate elements that match your CPU/GPU choices. It's the best course of action for someone with very limited knowledge, though some salespeople don't know what they are doing and some may even want to sell you crap that nobody else wanted to buy.

7. Pre-configured rigs?

Spoiler :

Never buy a PC in places like Media Markt. It's nur fur die bloode. Srsly. You'll have one or two good parts accompanied with crap so bad that it's justified to say that you are being cheated. People who prepare such offers exploit the fact that you don't know what exactly a "2GB GPU is".

Never!

8. Where to buy?

Spoiler :

I usually buy my hardware over the Internet but I know how to put it together and how to update firmware. Firmware is something like a driver but works within the device itself. It's especially important nowadays for things like motherboards and SSDs. Things you buy online are very often a bit old and offer very outdated firmware which can be a cause for numerous problems. For 10-15€ you can get a nerd to take care of everything. It's also important to know that local stores compete with Internet stores and try to match their prices to Internet prices + delivery. You can haggle with them, they can give you good advice and so on. If there is a local computer hardware store near you and it's run by its owner, it's the best possible place to buy your PC.

You can buy parts on the Internet and then give them to a specialist that will put it together and update firmware of each and every little rascal you bought. You can also buy the PC simply at a small local store. This way it will be put together for free and despite the common belief, Internet prices are not that much better. If you are wary about your choices, post them on this forum and someone will most certainly offer some help.


To sum it up, you'll be getting a PC with a very powerful processor and a decent graphics card. You won't be spending much and your electricity bill won't cause a single sleepless night. If you are now using a PC that staggers with Civ5, performance of the new one will amaze you. You will be able to play all modern games, though the highest settings will not be recommended for many titles and may not be playable for some of the most demanding ones.

 

[Terxpahseyton]

My current pc can handle civ5 just fine but there was some interesting info regardless (I for instance had no idea about the firmware). Thank you

 

[Aedn]

The only thing i would mention , while its not exactly civ 5 related, is that other games will be more demanding. While this is a civ forum, Having a higher end GPU for more graphically intensive games is not a bad idea, depending on budget.