Graphics Card

The graphics card is the most important part of a gaming PC. The key is to get a graphics card that supports PCI Express. This technology is used by PC game developers for upcoming releases.

Processor

The processor is effectively the leader inside your system. It gives instructions to all other parts. An older processor won't be able to keep up with the demands of gaming. Intel Core 2 Quad and the AMD Phenom X4 are two popular processors.

Motherboard

All computer processes run through the motherboard. Without it, the instructions given by the processor would never be received by the other components. As motherboards are only compatible with certain processors and graphics cards, your decision will be narrowed by your above choices.

Memory

Gaming requires a minimum of one gigabyte of RAM (Random Access Memory) to run properly. When buying memory, you can never have too much. The higher the RAM on your system, the smoother the games will run. Two gigabytes should be your starting point.

Hard Drive

Gaming takes up space, and a hard drive is used to store all data from installations and patches. Select a hard drive based on the amount of space you plan to use. A 500GB hard drive should be sufficient.

DVD Drive

Although many games can be downloaded using services such as Steam, a DVD drive is still a good investment for games bought at brick and mortar stores. A DVD drive with a speed of at least 8x is sufficient for any gaming PC