New PC - Where to focus to get best performance for OOTP?

[thecjm]

New build time is coming soon, and on my budget ($700-$800) I know I'm not going to be able to build a system that is amazing at everything. Instead I'm looking to focus my parts spending on the kind of games I spend the most time with - Strategy games!

Most hardware review sites focus on the latest FPS for framerate comparisons, and while I enjoy a round of Titanfall, what I really care about is how quickly my new PC can run strategy games and sims that might not have the best graphics but run a lot of simulation in the background

What should I be focusing on to best run Paradox games like Crusader Kings 2 or sports sims like Out of the Park 2015? An i5 instead of i3 for more cores? 16GB of RAM instead of 8GB? A big SSD to get as many games on it as possible instead of just Windows?


I've already got a R9 270x and a recently purchased 2TB HDD to put in the new system, but everything else in this build is up in the air right now.

[rudel.dietrich]

Originally Posted by thecjm

New build time is coming soon, and on my budget ($700-$800) I know I'm not going to be able to build a system that is amazing at everything. Instead I'm looking to focus my parts spending on the kind of games I spend the most time with - Strategy games!

Most hardware review sites focus on the latest FPS for framerate comparisons, and while I enjoy a round of Titanfall, what I really care about is how quickly my new PC can run strategy games and sims that might not have the best graphics but run a lot of simulation in the background

What should I be focusing on to best run Paradox games like Crusader Kings 2 or sports sims like Out of the Park 2015? An i5 instead of i3 for more cores? 16GB of RAM instead of 8GB? A big SSD to get as many games on it as possible instead of just Windows?


I've already got a R9 270x and a recently purchased 2TB HDD to put in the new system, but everything else in this build is up in the air right now.

For OOTP, I would focus on a good CPU and SSD's.

SSDs are still expensive so for your build price you might tie up a lot of your build money in a single drive or two drives.
You can still get good performance out of 7,200 RPM mechanical drives.

If you already have a 2 TB drive. You might be able to get two 250 GB Samsung Evo SSDs and put them into Raid 0.
You would be amazed at how fast OOTP becomes.

As for CK II. Not much is going to make it faster. It is not turn based. And the game does not constantly read off a HD like OOTP.
A SSD and decent video card will help the game load faster and draw the map faster. But beyond that you will not see too many gains.

You have a nice mid level video card. Intel just releases their newest chipset so you might be able to grab a Gen 4 Haswell i5 or even i7 at a good price if you shop smart.
8 GB of ram should be sufficient or 12 GB depending on your motherboard and money and finding a good deal.
Most programs still don't take advantage of over 4 GB but if you have multiple things open at once you will appreciate the move to 8 or 12.

[kingcharlesxii]

Definitely go with an i5 vs an i3, it's a much better gaming chip. No need to go to i7.

8GB of RAM is probably enough but more never hurts. CKII can be a memory hog if you have lots of mods/DLC installed.

An SSD will make a difference - put the OS on the SSD and you can keep everything else on the other drives and still see a big boost.