In recent years, gaming has become an accepted part of modern entertainment consumer culture. Billions of people around the world play the latest console and PC games and can enjoy competitive online matches on a range of high-quality titles. In a relatively short period of time, games have evolved from having low-resolution graphics and low-fidelity sound to benefiting from photorealistic real-world environments with professional actors voicing the main playable characters. Put simply, the modern world of gaming is now a multi-billion-dollar industry that has become a key part of the daily lives of a large proportion of the planet’s population.
Many people seek to invest in a cutting-edge gaming PC or laptop so they can enjoy the latest AAA titles and play them on high graphics settings. However, some gamers are unaware of the key components in gaming PCs that are vital to allow the best and most current games to be played effectively. In this article, three of the most important components of modern gaming PCs will be discussed.
Sophisticated PCBs
Printed circuit boards (or PCBs) are one of the most vital components in any modern gaming PC. In fact, without PCBs, it simply would not be possible to have computers as we know them. In the early days of computing, circuit boards were far larger than today’s designs and featured valves in their design rather than the tiny transistors that are found in modern computers. A PCB will house a range of different components in it that are linked together with copper to form the circuits. Today, some of the leading PC manufacturers will use sophisticated circuit board design programs to create the next generations of PCBs which can house a vast array of components in an extremely compact design. In short, PCBs form part of many different components in a PC and allow different systems and equipment to communicate together.
Dedicated graphics cards
Almost all modern gaming PCs that offer the best performance and can play the latest titles will require a dedicated graphics card. This technology powers the vast number of calculations and steps that are required to create high-resolution gaming environments. The latest graphics cards are extremely sophisticated and can allow games to benefit from photorealistic visuals that are of similar quality to watching movies. One of the latest improvements to advanced graphics cards is that they can support ray tracing visual effects. This allows extremely realistic environments to be created with lighting and environmental effects that are incredibly lifelike. You can read more about ray tracing here.
High levels of RAM
A final example of a key component in modern gaming PCs is the amount of RAM they have. RAM stands for random access memory. Essentially it is a computer’s short-term memory that is wiped once the computer is shut down. A computer can access RAM far quicker than data and information that is stored on its hard disk. This means that RAM is essential to process the immense number of calculations and operations that are required when a memory-intensive game is loaded and played. Most gaming PCs will have high levels of RAM to enable games to run smoothly; commonly, 16 GB of ram is considered to be the minimum amount that is needed to run the latest gaming titles.