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Guide: Buying the right ASUS gaming machine for your needs

By Team GameAxis - 18 Mar 2018

Identifying your needs

Note: This article was first published on 25th December 2017.

Matchmaking your needs to the ideal system

Navigating the vast field of ASUS ROG's pre-built options is a mind-boggling task in and of itself, but with a little bit of know-how it’s easier to find what you need to suit your gaming needs.

For PC gamers, there’s little doubt that the do-it-yourself route presents the ultimate in value and flexibility, but it may not always be the most feasible for various reasons. Navigating the vast fields of pre-built options is a mind-boggling task in and of itself, but with a little bit of know-how it’s easier to find what you need.

The good news is that, these days, purpose-built gaming PCs aren’t hard to come by. For example, ASUS has a boatload of options for casual gamers, all the way to the hardcore gaming and PC enthusiast geek. The trouble is in finding the right balance between price and performance, as it’s easy to get carried away with the latest advancements or excessive future-proofing. Depending on what you hear, getting into PC gaming isn’t as expensive as you might think.

On the other hand, mismatched components may wind up giving you more trouble than it’s worth, and few things are as frustrating as a computer struggling to meet your needs. So with that in mind, we decided to chart your needs that will match suitable system offerings from ASUS.

The first question you should always ask is: What is the new system really for?

 

Identifying your needs

“Gaming” is the obvious answer but we’re going to have to be a little more specific. What do you normally, or hope to, play?

  • Esports fans aren’t particularly demanding on rigs but they do have specific hardware and performance goals to gun for. Long story short: they want frames, they want responsiveness, and they want them aplenty.

For DOTA 2 players, you don't need a high-end computer to play the game. Even at a competitive level.
 

  • Simulator and strategy enthusiasts similarly push their PCs in a specific direction, namely processing power, to cope with all the visible and background data in those marathon sessions. Ballistics, AI, cockpit instruments, and so much more – there’s tons to calculate under the hood.

Space sims such as Elite: Dangerous is getting a mini revival too.
 

  • The core gamer doesn’t dedicate their time to any single title or genre, choosing instead to keep up with their friends, trends, or whatever catches their fancy. Their systems typically straddle that sweet spot between price and performance, making them ideal as gifts or for new PC gamers.

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is a 17-year old game that's enjoyed by both professional and casual gamers.
 

  • High-end gamers abandon budgetary constraints to go after the latest and greatest, driving the high-end market in their quest to conquer 4K. It’s no longer a matter of games being out of reach but about technical achievement, though it’s worth noting that even the best of systems crumble before a poorly optimized game.

Playerunknown's Battleground may not seem like it, but it requires a very high-end computer to run it at full visual settings.
 

  • Streamers tend to overlap with any one of the other categories, and while getting started has never been easier, certain production goals do call for specific hardware requirements.

Streaming while playing a game simultaneously requires a fairly powerful PC as well.

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