PC gaming is often seen as the pinnacle of the pastime, because historically no console has been able to hold a candle to the most powerful rig. Simply put, games can look and perform noticeably better on a desktop PC or high-powered laptop.
But not everyone has an RTX 5090 in their arsenal. If it’s been years since you’ve upgraded your setup, you might worry that PC gaming has left you behind. And in the case of the most recent AAA titles, that sadly may well be true.
However, there are hundreds of fantastic games that run handsomely on a modest PC, from teeny tiny indies, to genre-defining RPG epics. Here are three of the best.
Tactical Breach Wizards
If ever a game has sold itself on title alone, it’s Tactical Breach Wizards. But luckily, there’s a lot more in the game’s favour than that.
In this 2024 turn-based tactics game, you assume control of a crack team of wizards who work in espionage. In each small-scale battle you have to breach and clear a room of hostiles using a combination of traditional weapons and unique spells. Think XCOM, but with added magic.
Combat encounters are usually short and snappy, making Tactical Breach Wizards a great pick for a laptop, and as smartly designed as its accessible tactics gameplay is, the writing is arguably even better.
This is one of the funniest games I’ve played in years, and given its modest hardware requirements, it’s one anyone with a PC can enjoy.
Undertale
Toby Fox’s seminal indie RPG turns 10 this month, and as a game that feels like it could feasibly run on a souped-up calculator, you should have no concerns about whether your PC is up to the job.
If you’re unfamiliar, Undertale is a classic RPG adventure in which you control a child who has fallen into the Underground, a fantastical realm full of sentient (and often very weird) monsters.
Unlike most RPGs, which tend to have you fighting enemies, Undertale gently encourages you to take a more pacifistic approach, with each combat encounter becoming a puzzle in how you can get progress without killing your foe.
You are also welcome to murder everything in sight if you want to, but the game will remember it.
From enemy attacks that take the shape of mini bullet-hell sequences, to the charming low-res pixel art and surreal humour, everything about Undertale has stood the test of time, and you can play it on any old rig.
Fallout: New Vegas
There are two very good reasons to fire up what a lot of people still consider to be the best Fallout game today.
First, the upcoming second season of the surprisingly excellent TV adaptation looks like it’s going to be set primarily in New Vegas, so you won’t miss any of the inevitable winking references to the game. And second, because Fallout: New Vegas remains one of the standout RPGs of the 21st century.
With one of the most memorable openings in any game, you’re immediately given a reason to be invested in this dangerous post-apocalyptic world. And what a world it is.
The Mojave Desert, and what’s left of the most famous city that sits in the heart of it, is teeming with quest opportunities, grotesque mutant creatures to fight, and shady characters to befriend (or the opposite).
New Vegas also has some of the best writing and most agonising choices in the entire series, and owning an older PC shouldn’t put you off jumping in.
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