Desktop for modest gaming

[KevetS]

Hi all,
My son (12) has a birthday coming up. He quite enjoys online gaming and recently tried the Leggo Incredibles game. Unfortunately, his 10-12 year old PC spec (video card) didn't meet requirements.
Consequently, am looking at the following. Nothing too flash, but within price range.
Appreciate any suggestions on significant improvements for not too much cost.
Thanks

Case
PCS GENESIS G1B CASE + SD CARD READER
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-9400F (2.9GHz) 9MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF Z370-PLUS GAMING: ATX, LGA1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs - RGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz (1 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1050 - DVI, HDMI, DP
1st Storage Drive
240GB ADATA SU630 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb (520MB/R, 450MB/W)
2nd Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
Power Supply
CORSAIR 450W VS SERIES™ VS-450 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
WIRELESS 802.11N 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
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® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 3 to 5 working days

 

[Oussebon]

What;'s the budget and what does the spec above cost?

 

[KevetS]

Sorry, seems the PC Specialist copy and paste spec feature doesn't include the price .

Cost of above spec: £718
Stretch to £750 absolute max

I've chosen the 2nd cheapest case. Is the case a particularly important element of a PC?

 

[Oussebon]

Depends how far down you copy I think

The case is important because it affects future upgrade options, as well as airflow and cooling (which can affect performance, and component lifespan).

Possibly something like:

Case
FRACTAL FOCUS G BLACK GAMING CASE (Window)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 2600 Six Core CPU (3.4GHz-3.9GHz/19MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
Gigabyte B450 AORUS ELITE: DDR4, USB 3.1 - RGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2933MHz ~ (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
4GB AMD RADEON™ RX 570 - HDMI, DP - DX® 12

Get 3 Months of XBOX Game Pass for PC w/ select AMD Radeon Graphics
1st Storage Drive
480GB ADATA SU630 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb (520MB/R, 450MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply
CORSAIR 550W VS SERIES™ VS-550 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
WIRELESS 802.11N 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
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® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 3 to 5 working days
Price: £749.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-pc/tCg4Aree7Q/

The CPU is competitive in gaming performance versus its Intel counterparts
Also the stock AMD CPU cooler is decent, whereas with an Intel CPU you'd always want at least the cheapest after market cooler.
The motherboard supports the new generation of CPU that has just come out, and may even support the refresh people are expecting next year.
Faster, dual channel RAM (2x8gb 2933MHz vs 1x16gb 2400MHz)
The RX 570 is significantly more powerful than the 1050. Likely overkill for Lego, but if your son gets into other games it will make a decent fist of them even on high settings. So it will last you longer before you need to start replacing things. And as a proportion of the PC's overall cost, the price difference between a 1050 and a 570 is very small.
Higher end case and larger PSU to support a wider range of future upgrades, especially graphics cards.

I picked a single 500gb SSD as that would seem like enough for the uses above, and you can add a large HDD down the line if storage is ever an issue. Moreover, if and when you do add an HDD and your son dabbles in other games, having a larger SSD will be more convenient as juggling installs with a 240gb SSD is a bit of a pest.

 

[KevetS]

Many thanks, Oussebon.

I appreciate your suggestions, and will probably go them.
For the time being, I may install a 2 year old 2TB HDD from the old machine in order to keep the C drive solely for OS and applications.

Thanks again!