Thinking of dipping my toe into the gaming pool

[Martinr36]

Ok I'm toying with the idea of trying gaming you lot are a bad influence, I've no real gaming history (doom many years ago, and some driving game that came with a pc i bought many years ago), and was wondering what games it would be possible to play with either of the 2 setups I've got:

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PCSPECIALIST.CO.UK SPECIFICATION​

The specification below has been formatted so you can easily copy and paste this to our forums when discussing your specification. Once you've copied the specification, please click here to continue.

Case
PCS CYCLONE GAMING CASE (Red LED Fans)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 Six Core Processor i7-8700 (3.2GHz) 12MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® PRIME Z370-P II: ATX, LGA1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3600MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
INTEGRATED GRAPHICS ACCELERATOR (GPU) Replaced with RTX2070 Super
1st Storage Drive
Crucial MX500 1 TB CT1000MX500SSD1(Z)-Up to 560 MB/s (3D NAND, SATA, 2.5 Inch, Internal SSD)

2nd Storage Drive
SanDisk SSD PLUS 480 GB Sata III 2.5 Inch Internal SSD, Up to 535 MB/s
3rd Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE

1st M.2 SSD Drive

1TB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
External DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x Slim USB 2.0 External DVD-RW
Memory Card Reader
USB 3.0 EXTERNAL SD/MICRO SD CARD READER
Power Supply
CORSAIR 450W VS SERIES™ VS-450 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster Hyper 212X (120mm) Fan CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
COOLER MASTER MASTERGEL MAKER THERMAL COMPOUND
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00001]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Firefox™
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
TIMED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND - MON-FRI (BEFORE 2PM)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 10 to 12 working days

Price: £0.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z370-pc/vx74UfqTz2/

Monitor

iiyama XB2481HS-B 24" VA LCD with slim bezel, 6ms, Full HD 1920x1080, 250 cd/m² Brightness, 1x HDMI,1 x DVI, 1 x VGA, 2 x 2W Speakers, Height Adjustable Stand

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Laptop Specification​

Chassis & Display Cosmos Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD 144Hz 45% NTSC LED Widescreen (1920x1080)

Processor (CPU) Intel® Core™ i7 Six Core Processor 10750H (2.6GHz, 5GHz Turbo)

Memory (RAM) 16GB Corsair 2666MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 8GB)

Graphics Card NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1650 Ti - 4.0GB GDDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1

1st Storage Drive 512GB PCS 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb (520MB/R, 450MB/W)

1st M.2 SSD Drive

NONE 1TB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)

External DVD/BLU-RAY Drive 8x Slim USB 2.0 External DVD-RW

Memory Card Reader Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)

AC Adaptor 1 x 120W AC Adaptor

Power Cable

1 x 1 Metre Cloverleaf UK Power Cable

Battery

Cosmos Series Integrated 4 Cell Lithium Ion Battery

Thermal Paste

STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING

Sound Card

2 Channel High Def. Audio + SoundBlaster™ Cinema

Bluetooth & Wireless GIGABIT LAN & KILLER™ Wi-Fi 6 AX1650 M.2 GAMING + BLUETOOTH 5.0

USB/Thunderbolt Options 1 x USB 3.2 PORT (Type C) + 1 x USB 3.2 PORT + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT

Keyboard Language 15" COSMOS SERIES UK KEYBOARD

Operating System Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00001]

Operating System Language United Kingdom - English Language

Windows Recovery Media Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account

Notebook Mouse INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE

Webcam INTEGRATED 1MP HD WEBCAM

Warranty 3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)

 

[AgentCooper]

I think you could probably play pretty much anything you wanted with your desktop system. The graphics card and RAM are certainly not an issue, and the CPU is still a capable processor for gaming. With your monitor, you’ll be running extremely high settings 👍

What games are you thinking about giving a go, buddy?

 

[Martinr36]

I think you could probably play pretty much anything you wanted with your desktop system. The graphics card and RAM are certainly not an issue, and the CPU is still a capable processor for gaming. With your monitor, you’ll be running extremely high settings 👍

What games are you thinking about giving a go, buddy?

Don't really know whats out there, and would i need controllers or just be ok with keyboard and mouse, as i say i'm really coming into this blind so any pointers would be great

 

[Bhuna50]

Don't really know whats out there, and would i need controllers or just be ok with keyboard and mouse, as i say i'm really coming into this blind so any pointers would be great

Controller v Mouse/Keyboard would really depend on what sort of games you think you might like.

Admittedly, I use mouse / keyboard for most of my games, but also have an xbox controller plugged in to use for some games where I have to drive vehicles or something LOL.

for now try mouse / keyboard - no additional outlay then LOL.

 

[AgentCooper]

Don't really know whats out there, and would i need controllers or just be ok with keyboard and mouse, as i say i'm really coming into this blind so any pointers would be great

You’ve already got a keyboard and mouse so start there and see how you get on. Some games lend themselves more to either KB&M or a game pad but you’ll soon get a feel for it.

I’ve seen a video of someone playing and completing Dark Souls (notoriously difficult game) using just one of those plastic guitars that were made for the Rock Band game. ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE 😆

 

[Bhuna50]

As for what games you will like...no-one knows, but consider, and this may sound silly, how does your mind work..

are you a strategist?
a planner?
hit and hoper?
mad at everything and want some release...?

then consider - favourite subjects / TV program?
- sports?
- war films?
- sci-fi?

you might find then some games that fit around those areas...

 

[Martinr36]

Maybe shooting game of some sort or something that needs a bit of thinking about, so yea maybe something that requires a bit of strategy.

Is there anywhere that i can go to try different types of game out for free

 

[Bhuna50]

You could look at things like:

EA Play / Origin
Ubi Play - or whatever Ubisoft are calling there monthly access to all games now
Do Microsoft offer a monthly with a free trial too? Someone else might be able to advise on that.

You might get a one month free trial to their monthly gaming services to try some games over the next month - just remember to cancel before the month is out.

Steam also has some free to play weekends on some games.

Epicgames do free games each week and some are good - this coming Thursday looks like its Elite Dangerous - that would then be yours forever...

 

[AgentCooper]

Maybe shooting game of some sort or something that needs a bit of thinking about, so yea maybe something that requires a bit of strategy.

Is there anywhere that i can go to try different types of game out for free

First bit of advice, get an Epic Games account. They give free games away every week, and they’re not all tat. I’m personally salivating for next Thursday as they’re doing Elite Dangerous as a freebie.

Something ‘shootery’ that requires strategy... not strictly in the category but it’d be worth trying Dishonored or Skyrim... both great games that welcome different approaches and play styles. And they’re both cheap as chips these days 👍

 

[AgentCooper]

Epicgames do free games each week and some are good - this coming Thursday looks like its Elite Dangerous - that would then be yours forever...

You read my mind 😆

 

[Martinr36]

Cheers guys, really appreciated, I'll look into the epic games account tomorrow.

Will look at those thanks @AgentCooper

 

[Bhuna50]

Another place to keep an eye on is humblebundle

They do some cracking good deals - pay £3.50 and get these 3 games, £5 for 6...., average for bundle £ xxx and get all of it...

but the good thing about the humblebundles is you can also select where your money goes on a sliding scale.

To the publishers....or to charity LOL

So if you donate regularly - get games for it too

 

[Martinr36]

just found a review on elite dangerous on you tube will watch it later, but it certainly looks interesting

 

[AgentCooper]

What I did after getting back into gaming was to search for ‘best games of insert year here’ and see what intrigued me. My tastes are quite particular these days so what suits me may not suit you, have a look at what’s out there. And if you’re sat on the fence about a particular title and want a second opinion let us know 🙂👍

 

[Martinr36]

Another place to keep an eye on is humblebundle

They do some cracking good deals - pay £3.50 and get these 3 games, £5 for 6...., average for bundle £ xxx and get all of it...

but the good thing about the humblebundles is you can also select where your money goes on a sliding scale.

To the publishers....or to charity LOL

So if you donate regularly - get games for it too

Will take a look at that as well

 

[Martinr36]

What I did after getting back into gaming was to search for ‘best games of insert year here’ and see what intrigued me. My tastes are quite particular these days so what suits me may not suit you, have a look at what’s out there. And if you’re sat on the fence about a particular title and want a second opinion let us know 🙂👍

cheers, certainly will do

 

[Bhuna50]

My highest gaming hours have been:

Over 2500 - The Division
500+ hours - The Division 2
300+ hours and will still carry on a bit more - Ghost Recon: Wildlands - very strategic shoot em up game this one - involves several methods of play - just go in shooting if you want but some missions you have to do undetected etc. involves First person, driving vehicles - cars, helicopters, planes...

500+ hours and was still playing this when my laptop blew up LOL - Elite Dangerous / Horizons expansion

and I occasionally still revisit Ultima Online having played it from when it was out many many years ago...

 

[AgentCooper]

cheers, certainly will do

Keep updating the thread! I want to track your journey from non-gamer to absolute pwnage 😆

 

[Martinr36]

Keep updating the thread! I want to track your journey from non-gamer to absolute pwnage 😆

As i said you lot are a bad influence, so yes I'll update here as things unfold

 

[Bhuna50]

Thing to do is if you see or hear about any games you might like, go and search on you tube for initial game play videos - as these give you a good idea on what the game is like and you will probably get an idea of whether or not you will like the game in the first 10/15 mins of watching.