First focus on the most critical components.
First focus on the most critical components.
I’m planning to purchase a BF1 in a few hours. I’m worried it might not run perfectly on my system—hosted on an AMD 7870 with an Intel i5 3570K, which isn’t overclocked due to thermal issues and I’m using the stock cooler. My only available RAM is two 2x4 GB modules, which could be a minor bottleneck. What should I focus on first? In most demanding games other than BF1, my GPU usage hits 100% while the CPU stays around 80-85%, so upgrading the GPU might be better. Alternatively, improving the CPU cooler and sticking with the current setup until the next update could work. If I stick with DDR3, I’ll need to upgrade it again later if I switch CPUs.
That's exactly what I was considering, thanks for your feedback.
Budget considerations? An i5 works just fine and won’t be a big concern for BF1. Upgrading the 7870 later is a good thought, though it already meets basic requirements—don’t aim to push it to its limits. Edit: Based on what I found, you should handle it smoothly at medium load with only occasional drops below 60. If you’re serious about boosting performance, consider a budget aftermarket cooler and a bit of overclocking (same applies to the GPU).
3570k works well for bf1 and you won’t notice a big change by upgrading. 7870 is still usable but upgrading later would be beneficial if you plan to play mostly ultra. The main concern will likely be RAM—many users report problems with 8GB, though 8GB is affordable right now, so I’d treat it as a priority. Upgrading your current CPU isn’t necessary; other systems handle most games smoothly at 1080p.
Choose an affordable CPU cooler such as the CoolerMaster 212 Evo, then boost the i5 3570k. After that, upgrade to a fresh GPU—wait for the Vega release to evaluate its performance and possibly benefit from lower prices on Nvidia components.
The RX 480 should smoothly reach 60 FPS at 1080p with maximum settings on 64-core systems. However, the i5-3570K is likely to maintain around 100% performance across all cores in 64-man servers, though graphics enhancements probably won’t improve it much due to its aggressive physics system. It’s a game that reacts strongly to CPU load, particularly with multiple cores. I currently use an overclocked i5-6600K at 4.5 GHz, and with VSync enabled, I consistently stay above 90% on all cores in that title. There are no major drops or stutters noticeable. Compared to the i5-3570K, you should have no trouble, though BF1 behaves differently. If you’re considering a upgrade, it’s safe to hold off until reviews for Zen or Kaby Lake are released.