Spore-ready PC?

March 23, 2006 5:06 PM

Buying a computer, don't want to spend too much, but want to be able to play Spore when it comes out.

Do I need to wait until May when they announce more information? Or can I anticipate my computing power needs now? If so, what specs do I need? Assume I don't want to spend $10,000 on Alienware.

posted by commander_cool to computers & internet (19 comments total)

Wait for more info if Spore is the primary reason you're buying the computer. If you have other things you need it for then that changes the equation.
posted by aubilenon at 5:09 PM on March 23, 2006

$500.

I think the GeForce 6600 will be able to more than handle that game. I'd considering going up to 1GB of RAM before calling it a proper gaming machine, but 512 or 768 should do.
posted by skallas at 5:12 PM on March 23, 2006

Assume I need a PC now. Need is a relative term, so I could hypothetically live without it and wait a few months, but it's seriously inconvenient to not have a functional PC with up-to-date compatibility with the word processing software I'm using at the office.
posted by commander_cool at 5:12 PM on March 23, 2006

Just looking at that screenshot shows me a low polygon count and nothing really special going on. Wright's games tend not to be cutting edge FPS monsters. I wouldnt be surprised it this ran on a pentium III with a geforce3 flawlessly.
posted by skallas at 5:14 PM on March 23, 2006

Alienware Dell.
posted by patr1ck at 5:34 PM on March 23, 2006

yeah my guess is this game will need more system RAM than pure graphics power
posted by lbergstr at 5:38 PM on March 23, 2006

It's impossible to say until minimum specs are released.
posted by cellphone at 5:47 PM on March 23, 2006

Just looking at that screenshot shows me a low polygon count and nothing really special going on.

Bear in mind that the game is slated for release in 2007. I'd recommend buying pretty much top-of-the-line right now. That way by 2007 it will be mid-range and probably on the low end of Spore's minimum sys. reqs, but enough.
posted by ChasFile at 5:50 PM on March 23, 2006

Yeah, a 2007 computer is another upgrade cycle away. Your best bet is to get something extensible now (this means a GOOD motherboard), and don't worry about processor speed/ram/video card yet.

I'd go for Athlon64 (socket 939), PCI-E, and SATA on your mobo. THen get the cheapest athlon64 you can find, whatever HD you need, 512 of ram (more than enough for anything but games & digital content creation), and a cheap PCI-E video card (they do exist - check newegg).

When the game comes out, upgrade your video card/processor/ram.
posted by devilsbrigade at 6:18 PM on March 23, 2006

List of parts and justifications for my current machine, as well as suggested future upgrades can be found here. The only update that needs to be made to is a suggestion that you get a GeForce 7900GT instead of the 7800GT, as the 7900 series has been released since I wrote that post.

I can't guarantee you 100% that'll run Spore, but I'd be very, very surprised if my machine doesn't play it very smoothly. Will Wright is not exactly known for pushing back the boundaries of hardware requirements - that's a big factor in the mass appeal of all of his games.
posted by Ryvar at 6:33 PM on March 23, 2006

skallas:

If the game is doing as much proceedural stuff on the fly as the PR would like us to think, and if that proceedural stuff is as complex as it appears at first glance, then it could be quite a hardware intensive game, though it would likely be intensive on different aspects of the hardware than a high end FPS.
posted by -harlequin- at 7:18 PM on March 23, 2006

Might I reccomend something like the excellent Sharky Extreme March Value PC Gaming Guide?

In Short: good PCI-Express motherboard, good hard drive, good case, get a single stick of 1GB ram so that you have room to throw another in, and get a cheap ass video card and on-board sound/ethernet. You can upgrade if necessary when the game comes out, which is still a long way away. More relevant would be looking for a rig to play something like Elder Scrolls IV, which came out last week and is at least twice as graphically rigorous as Spore will be. As mentioned before, Will Wright is not known for pushing the graphics envelope, system ram will probably help you out much more with all your computing needs than a cutting edge graphics card.

I would highly reccomend a middle of the road building solution, a lesser known company between the mass-market, pos Dell/Gateway and building it yourself off Pricewatch. There are plenty of companies that build great computers and don't charge Alienware prices. Try Americomp, IBuyPower, or look in the back of a PC Gamer for good online shops that offer full customization (NOT like Dell, who won't let you choose motherboards, operating systems, memory manufacturers, etc and have very limited selections of things they actually do customize for). Look at a site like Tom's Hardware or Sharky Extreme for individual hardware reviews, and keep an eye towards a solid backbone (Case, Power Supply, Motherboard, Primary Hard Drive ) that can always be upgraded later with newer video cards, sound cards, more memory, extra peripherals, etc.
posted by sophist at 7:34 PM on March 23, 2006

Buying a high-end system now to play a game that won't be out for 6-18 months would rank high on my list of dumb things to do.

That said, if you want a new system now for your other computing tasks, I'd probably do something like what DevilsBrigade suggested and buy with upgrades in mind, but I don't think I'd skimp on the CPU.

AMD is almost certainly not ever releasing any socket 939 CPUs faster than what they already have on the market. That means that 939 CPU prices probably won't fall all that fast in the next 6-12 months. (In the past year the cheapest price on a socket 939 CPU has only dropped ~$50, or 25%, even with new CPUs coming out to push prices down)

For that reason, I'd suggest an Athlon 54 3700+ for about $210.

Stick it in something like the Biostar 6100-M9 motherboard, which is only $59 and has integrated video and audio and gets the basics right (if you get the biostar, make sure you flash to the latest BIOS). If you get a board with integrated video to save money up front, make sure you get one with a PCIe x16 slot so you can put a real vid card in it once your game is released.

Add two 1GB sticks of PC3200 DDR memory, either Corsair Value Select or Kingston ValueRam for $140. Plenty of memory is something that will make even your day to day web browsing more pleasant, so it doesn't hurt to buy enough of it now. It may get a little cheaper in a year, but probably not much, since Intel is already on to DDR2 memory, and AMD is going that way soon, which means memory makers are going to start cutting production drastically.

Don't get a sound card. The onboard sound will be good enough for now, and may well be good enough for spore.

Don't get a video card. This is probably the fastest moving part of the PC market right now. Price/performance will move a lot in 6-12 months. Instead, use the onboard video , which is perfectly find for any 2D apps, and does ok with older games. Once the game comes out, you can buy something appropriate.

No harm getting a new drive now. SATA drives are finally on par with PATA drives, price-wise. You can shop around for a loss-leader deal, or just spend ~$100 and get a decent 250GB drive at newegg.

If you have a working DVD-ROM drive, you can reuse it.

You'll need a new powersupply and case. I don't have particular advice about brands and models here. Spore doesn't look like it will need a high end card, but who knows. To be safe, get something with a good 450w power supply, which should have enough juice for a mid-range card.

One thing to be aware of. That motherboard has, at best, 2 useable PCI slots, and one of them may be too close to the cooling fan on any vid card you add. As a result, you don't have a lot of room to add other cards. You could add a firewire card, but if you did, you might not be able to upgrade beyond the motherboard sound. It does have a PCIe x1 slot though and there are some inexpesive netcards for that if you want GigE.

Also, you could step up to a dual core processor for $100 more.
posted by Good Brain at 9:29 PM on March 23, 2006

If the game is doing as much proceedural stuff on the fly as the PR would like us to think, and if that proceedural stuff is as complex as it appears at first glance, then it could be quite a hardware intensive game.

There's on-the-fly and there's on-the-fly. It's possible that the game isn't continually computing new rules and shapes and structures, but periodically doing so (either at regular intervals, such as when you progress from one stage or level of the game to another, or perhaps when cpu load isn't high), and then storing the result for quick use.
posted by weston at 9:42 PM on March 23, 2006

wait till it's released. then you'll know and prices will fall in the time between now and then.
posted by rudyfink at 10:12 PM on March 23, 2006

IMO, the best bang for the buck video card today is the nVidia 7800GT. If you get a motherboard that is SLI-capable, you can add another video card down the road and double your performance (when the card has gotten cheaper, too).

However, I agree with everyone that it's retarded to try to build a system for a game that is a year away. Computer hardware changes too quickly.
posted by knave at 11:25 PM on March 23, 2006

Yeah, if you need computer now but only want power for spore, you should get something that can be upgraded when Spore actually comes out. Hardware prices will go down and you will have a better idea what you need.
posted by insomnus at 3:27 AM on March 24, 2006

Well as an alternate view.

For the PC market, it's generally not in the best interest of developers to release a game that is only playable on the latest and greatest hardware. The publishers know that most of their market buys computers on a 3-5 year replacement cycle, and that setting the bar too high means loosing sales. Most of the angst about Doom3 and HL2 was less about access to the core game, and more about taking advantage of the full range of visual effects, while maximizing frame rate. (And much of that is a matter of bragging rights.) Most games are designed to scale down to older systems and still be entertaining. In addition, half of the market now consists of laptop computers with specs lagging a bit behind desktop workstations.

I'm almost certain that most new systems today will be able to play Spore. And it would surprise me if the recommended specs exceeded that of the mid-range PC today. Buying up might give you improvements in game play, visual effects and screen resolution. But I really wouldn't worry about being able just to play the game.

Your best bet is to buy a system in your budget that you feel comfortable cracking open and upgrading if needed.
posted by KirkJobSluder at 6:48 AM on March 24, 2006

Just as an example looking at some recent and upcomming releases:

Elder Scrolls Oblivion: 3GHz Recommended (2GHz minimum)
Empire Earth II: 2.2 GHz Recommended.
Dungeons and Dragons Online: 3GHz Recommended (1.7GHz minimum)
Godfather: 1.4 GHz
Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth: 1.3GHz
Star Wars: Empire at War: 1.0GHz
posted by KirkJobSluder at 7:27 AM on March 24, 2006