The REAL System Requirements

32 MB DirectX 9.0b compatible video card

Obviously, that is the minimum to play the game... my question is...

What type of video card would you consider the minimum to play the game at max or near max settings? I know integrated graphics aren't ideal, but do you suppose the "Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 900 graphics card" could get the job done? I realize this is a "newb" question, but I am going to be purchasing a new computer sometime soon, and would like to be able to play Live on it .

Basically, without spending well above $1,200 on a computer, what kind of settings would I have to play on to get a nice framerate?

Even more specific, what kind of settings would I be looking at if I played Live on something like this...
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp ... 0263403701

hmmm, the cpu and the ram seems all good, but i don't know how good the video card is:

"Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 900 graphics card with up to 224MB DDR shared video memory; Intel® High Definition Audio (5.1 support); 5 audio ports (2 front, 3 rear)"

that could be built in GPU, which you if you can, AVOID. I would suggest cards like radeon 9600 or better. It should be more than enough for 2005. With 9600 you can pretty much set the settings to high running at 1280X1024. But it might not enough for for 2006.

My personal suggestion is, build the computer yourself. That way you can get a lot of the componets cheaper, so you can have get better quality and power. But that price isn't bad, and Gateway is pretty reliable.

What type of video card would you consider the minimum to play the game at max or near max settings? I know integrated graphics aren't ideal, but do you suppose the "Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 900 graphics card" could get the job done? I realize this is a "newb" question, but I am going to be purchasing a new computer sometime soon, and would like to be able to play Live on it .

Basically, without spending well above $1,200 on a computer, what kind of settings would I have to play on to get a nice framerate?

Even more specific, what kind of settings would I be looking at if I played Live on something like this...
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp ... 0263403701

That setup would run it just fine, but you probably want to investigate the other suggestion upthread and see about building it yourself. Newegg.com, outpost.com and zipzoomfly.com are good places with good prices on quality components.

My system (see sig) cost about $1100 in August, including a $300 video card (which you can get now for like $250). It runs everything I've thrown at it perfectly at very high quality (NBA Live 2005, Doom3 Half Life 2, Far Cry, Chronicles of Riddick, etc) with no performance issues whatsoever.

You could probably build a system like mine for $50-$100 more than the Gateway price, and you'd have a better, much more capable gaming machine.

(Hardforum.com is a wonderful place to read, learn and ask questions about PC hardware)

Thanks for the feedback, I truly appreciate it. Busta, for someone who knows virtually nothing about assembling computers, or anything about hardware, do you think it is do-able? I know my way around XP and Mac OSX very well, but as far as actual hardware goes, I know zero.

Were you a "hardware genius" before you assembled your first computer?

a lot of places such as Newegg.com has some pre-assembled computers, so you can just make some upgrades on those. Most of the times, they will assemble the computers for you for free if your computer is over a certain price. Just make sure you double check your components when you get it.

Thanks for the feedback, I truly appreciate it. Busta, for someone who knows virtually nothing about assembling computers, or anything about hardware, do you think it is do-able? I know my way around XP and Mac OSX very well, but as far as actual hardware goes, I know zero.

Were you a "hardware genius" before you assembled your first computer?

I was a total novice when I built my first computer in like 1987. Took hours of fiddling and cursing before I realized that my mb was shorting out by touching the case (still a common problem today). That was about 40 computer builds ago (between my own and those built for others).

There's no genius required to build a pc, just a reasonable understanding of what you need and how it should go together. There are plenty of resources on the web with guides for new system builders (i.e. http://www6.tomshardware.com/howto/20020904/index.html & http://www6.tomshardware.com/howto/20020918/index.html).

Things are far easier for the novice builder these days than they were a decade or more ago. Things are generally plug n play and mostly work right on the first try with just the default settings.

for someone who knows virtually nothing about assembling computers, or anything about hardware, do you think it is do-able?

Check this book out (http://tinyurl.com/bjv56 - 42mb PDF). It explains practically everything about everything about PC hardware.

Thanks for the feedback, I truly appreciate it. Busta, for someone who knows virtually nothing about assembling computers, or anything about hardware, do you think it is do-able? I know my way around XP and Mac OSX very well, but as far as actual hardware goes, I know zero.

Were you a "hardware genius" before you assembled your first computer?

dude i built my pc for the first time in 2000 which is grade 5, it shouldn't be hard

I need to get a much better video card for next year. Right now when I try to make my graphics look better my computer slows down a little bit.

I need to get a much better video card for next year. Right now when I try to make my graphics look better my computer slows down a little bit.

What do you have now, system-wise?