I’m puzzled how you even played on your graphics card. I wouldn’t expect anything to run that doesn’t meet the minimum requirements. I would also like to take the time to point out that the processor you plan to get is more of a side-grade component, you’ll get less than twice the performance of your current processor likely. Twice of a little is still a little. If you’re tight on budget than you should still consider AMD and not Intel.
I would wait and save for a computer worth getting. Something like the FX-4300 on an AM3+ motherboard is something you should shoot for for low budget gaming systems. Then, you can hop on a GTX 650Ti Boost or something similar.
Thanks for the tips. I was hoping to just get that CPU as a placeholder until I upgraded to something nicer, but now I’m thinking that may not be a good idea. If I’m going to upgrade, I might as well do it right. I can play the game now with what I have, so I can wait a little longer. I will be sure to take a look at AMD as well. Thanks for the tip.
I just see the 50 dollar celaron as more of a waste than anything. You are right, you can upgrade to a nicer processor, like the i5 3570K or i7 3770K, but those are some costly upgrades AND not the latest from Intel anymore. The 1155 socket dies with Ivy Bridge and the birth of the 1150 socket came with Haswell. So your upgrade path is very limited on the Intel side.
The upgrade path is much nicer on the AMD side with an AM3+ socket. The FX-4300 is only a quad core, but you can upgrade to a FX-6300 (hex core) or FX-8320 (or FX-8350) for an octa core processor. Then, down the road AMD has plans for an FX-9320 and FX-9350 which are buffed up versions of the FX-8320 and FX-8350 respectively. In addition to that, the next incremental architecture upgrade will still use the AM3+ socket.
I drink the Intel Kool-aid, but its hard not denying the limits of the sockets on Intel chipsets. I’ll likely always buy Intel since I’ll make sure I have money for it upfront without upgrading because by the time I need to upgrade I’ll have to buy a new motherboard because the socket and chipset have changed. Unless AMD dethrones the single thread performance crown Intel holds, I’ll stick with Intel. However, for people who need cheap and decent computers with potential upgrade paths, AMD wins.
Since your last post, I have done a quick search on AM3+ socket motherboards, and I have a small concern. I wasn’t able to find any with a PCI Express 3.0 slot. Most of the video cards I am eyeing use that slot. Of course, they will work in the 2.0 slots as well, but I’m worried about either not getting the most out of the card. In the experience of many far more knowledgeable than myself, will the 3.0 card in a 2.0 slot make a huge difference?