Day 2.

Step 2 — Working out whether your desktop computer can run it

DEPTH 02 of 05  ·  HAUL 8 checks  ·  CREW you, alone

Step 2 of 5

This step produces a short written record of what your computer is. Once you have it, you can answer “will this run?” for any desktop game, not just the one this course uses as an example, and you will never have to guess again.

Nothing here requires installing a tool. Every number comes from a screen that is already on your computer. If a web page ever offers to scan your machine and tell you what it can run, you do not need it and you should not run it; the operating system already reports everything that matters.

The four numbers that decide it

Published requirements for desktop games are always expressed in the same four quantities, plus the operating system. Learn them once.

Processor (CPU)

The general-purpose chip that runs the program. Requirements name a model, such as a particular Intel Core or AMD Ryzen part, or a generation of Apple silicon. Newer generations are generally faster than older ones at the same model number.

Memory (RAM)

Working space, measured in gigabytes. A game that wants more memory than you have will either refuse to start or run badly while the system shuffles data to the disk.

Graphics (GPU)

The chip that draws the picture. It is either a separate card or built into the processor, in which case it is called integrated graphics. The distinction matters, because integrated graphics are usually well below the separate kind.

Storage

Free space on the drive, in gigabytes. Requirements state the installed size; the download and the installation together need more than that while the work is in progress.

Operating system

Which system and which version. A game published for Windows, macOS and Linux may still name a minimum version of each.

Finding them on Windows

1. Open the Start menu and type About your PC, then open the result. The page that appears lists the processor, the installed memory, the system type and the Windows edition and version. Write down all four.
2. For graphics, open the Start menu and type Device Manager. Expand Display adapters. The entry or entries listed there are your graphics hardware. If the only entry mentions the same brand as your processor, you are using integrated graphics.
3. For free space, open File Explorer and select This PC. Each drive shows free space and total size. Note the figure for the drive you would install on, normally C:.
4. Write the five values on one line in a notebook or a text file. You now have your record.

Finding them on macOS

1. Click the Apple menu at the top left and choose About This Mac. The panel names the macOS version, the chip or processor, and the memory. On Apple silicon the chip and the graphics are the same part, which simplifies matters.
2. For more detail, click More Info and then System Report. The Graphics/Displays section names the graphics hardware explicitly.
3. For free space, open System Settings, then General, then Storage. Note the available figure.
4. Write the values down in the same one-line format.

Finding them on Linux

Most desktop distributions include a settings panel with an “About” page listing the processor, memory, graphics and distribution version. If you prefer a terminal, four short commands give the same information, and none of them changes anything on the system.

1. Processor: run lscpu and read the Model name line.
2. Memory: run free -h and read the total on the Mem line.
3. Graphics: run lspci | grep -i vga. The line returned names the display controller.
4. Free space: run df -h / and read the Avail column for the root filesystem, or point it at the partition you would install to.
5. Also note the distribution and release, from cat /etc/os-release, since requirements sometimes name a minimum.

Reading a published requirement

Vendors publish two columns, usually headed minimum and recommended. They are not two opinions about the same thing. The minimum column describes the hardware on which the program will start and run at its lowest settings. The recommended column describes the hardware the vendor expects to give an unremarkable experience at ordinary settings.

Three habits make the comparison reliable. First, compare like with like: a model number alone means little without its generation. Second, treat memory and storage as hard limits, because the program either has the space or does not. Third, treat the processor and graphics entries as a rough band rather than an exact test; hardware a little older than the named part often works and simply runs less smoothly.

Where a specific game publishes its requirements is on the vendor's own site. For the title used as this course's example, the vendor's affiliate programme states only that the desktop versions are for Mac, Windows and Linux; it does not state hardware figures to us, so none are repeated here. Read the vendor's own page for those.

Disk space, and the number nobody checks

The most common practical failure for a first-time installation is not an underpowered processor. It is a drive that was already nearly full.

Two allowances are worth making. During installation, the downloaded files and the unpacked files often both exist for a while, so the peak requirement is higher than the final installed size. And a game of this type grows after installation, because content is added over time and because of cached data. Leaving a comfortable margin above the stated figure avoids a second round of tidying a month later.

A drive that is close to full also slows the whole computer down, which is often mistaken for the game being badly made. Clearing space before you start removes that ambiguity.

The connection, and whether it matters

Two different demands are often confused. The first is the download, which is a one-off transfer of a large file and is limited by the speed of your connection. On a slow connection this can take hours; it is inconvenient rather than disqualifying, and it can be left running.

The second is the ongoing connection while playing. Games of this type generally keep their state on the publisher's servers, so a connection is needed while you play, but the amount of data moved during an ordinary session is small compared to video. Steadiness matters more than raw speed.

If your household has a data allowance rather than an unmetered connection, the initial download is the part worth planning around. Check the allowance before starting a large transfer, not during one.

Updates before installation

Installing anything new is a good moment to let the operating system finish its own updates, because an update that runs halfway through a large installation is a common cause of a mess. Keeping software current is also ordinary general advice for any computer connected to the internet; the Australian Cyber Security Centre publishes guidance on updates and on securing devices at home.

The household in the spare room

The hypothetical household opens About your PC and finds a processor from several generations back, sixteen gigabytes of memory, and a Windows version that is current because updates have been left on. Device Manager shows one display adapter from the same brand as the processor, so they write down “integrated graphics” and understand what that means.

File Explorer reports that the main drive has a little under thirty gigabytes free out of five hundred. They decide that is the number to deal with before anything else, and spend twenty minutes removing old video files to a spare external drive. They note the before and after figures, because a written record is the only way to tell later whether the game or the housekeeping made the difference.

They do not conclude that the computer will or will not run any particular title. They conclude that they now have the five values to compare against whatever the vendor publishes, which is the whole point of the step.

Before you move on

Checklist for Step 2

• I have written down my processor, as the system reports it, including its generation.
• I have written down my installed memory in gigabytes.
• I have written down my graphics hardware, and I know whether it is integrated or separate.
• I have written down the free space on the drive I would install to.
• I have written down my operating system and its version.
• I have allowed a margin above any stated install size, rather than planning to the last gigabyte.
• I have checked whether my household connection is metered, and if so what the allowance is.
• I have let pending system updates finish before installing anything new.