As a novice to the world of gaming, many of the terms and equipment may seem a bit daunting. Things like graphics cards, 1600 DPI mouses and LAN may sound like a foreign language when just starting out.
Firstly, lets deal with the important stuff. Your hardware. The equipment you have not only affects your performance, it lets other gamers know you mean business. It’s much like any other sport really, if you arrive at a golf course in your best tie-dyed henna pants complete with matching rugby boots and tank top, you can expect to be escorted off the premises and possibly beaten to death with a putter. Generally the best place to find the right gear is at a Computer Hardware Store.
Equipment is vital, and by equipment, we mean the right motherboards, graphics card, CPU and RAM.
To many, the graphics card is key. The graphics card is responsible for processing and increasing the quality of images in the game. It increases the speed of the gameplay and lends a more realistic visual element to the game, resulting in better performance and an improved gaming experience. By buying a quality graphics card you will improve both the quality and speed of your game exponentially.
Deciding on the right graphics card for you can be a bit tricky and is pretty much dependent on what you’re willing to spend, as well as your proficiency and requirements as a gamer. Many gamers are very picky about which brands they will buy and it ultimately boils down to personal preference.
For the starter gamer, a 512 MB, 8800 GT(G92) card is more than sufficient. A lot of your requirements are dependent on what game you are playing as some games are more demanding than others in terms of graphics but generally something in the 512MB range will see you right.