Working out whether your computer can run it

This is the step people skip, and it is the one that causes the most wasted evenings. A requirements list is not a sales document and it is not a legal guarantee; it is the game company's estimate of what hardware the game needs. Reading it properly takes about twenty minutes, most of which is spent finding out what your own computer actually contains.

The five things you need to know about your machine

Every requirements list in the category is written against roughly the same five facts. Write them on one piece of paper and you can read any list on the internet in under a minute.

1. Operating system. Which system and which version. This is a yes-or-no gate: if the game does not have a version for your system, nothing else on the list matters.
2. Processor (CPU). The central processing unit: the chip that does the general work. You want the full model name, numbers included.
3. Memory (RAM). Working memory, measured in gigabytes. This is not storage; it is the space the computer uses while it is running things.
4. Graphics (GPU). The graphics processor, either a separate card or a part of the main processor. This is usually the limiting factor in a game.
5. Free storage. How much empty space is on the drive you would install to, in gigabytes.

A sixth fact matters for online games but rarely appears in the list: your internet connection. More on that below.

Finding them on Windows

This is a numbered procedure. The exact menu names have shifted between Windows versions, so the descriptions are written so you can follow them even if a label differs slightly on your machine.

1. Open the Settings application, then System, then About. This single panel gives you most of what you need.
2. Copy the processor line exactly as written, model number and all. “An Intel one” is not enough to compare against a requirements list.
3. Copy the installed RAM figure, in gigabytes, and note whether the system type says 64-bit. Nearly all current games need a 64-bit system.
4. For the graphics hardware, open Task Manager (Control, Shift and Escape together), choose the Performance tab, and select the GPU entry in the left-hand column. The name of the hardware and its dedicated memory appear at the top right.
5. Note the edition and version of Windows from the same About panel, since requirements are usually written against a version.
6. Open File Explorer, select This PC, and write down the free space on the drive you would install to.

If your computer has both a built-in graphics chip and a separate graphics card, Task Manager will show two GPU entries. The separate card is the one that matters for a game; it is usually the one with its own dedicated memory listed.

Finding them on Linux

Desktop Linux distributions vary, but every one of them can answer these questions from a terminal window, and most also have a graphical “About this system” or “System information” panel that gives you the processor, memory and graphics in one place.

1. Open your distribution's settings application and look for About or Details. On many desktops this shows the processor, memory, graphics and operating system version together.
2. If you prefer the terminal, lscpu reports the processor, free -h reports memory, and lspci | grep -i vga reports the graphics hardware.
3. Record the distribution and version, not just “Linux”. Game support on Linux is usually stated against particular distributions.
4. Use df -h to see free space on each mounted drive, and note the figure for the one you would install to.
5. Note your graphics driver as well as the hardware. On Linux the driver in use often matters as much as the card itself, and the vendor's support page will usually say which drivers it expects.

Minimum against recommended

Most requirements lists give two columns. They are not two opinions about the same thing; they describe two different experiences.

If your machine sits between the two, which is where most ordinary household computers sit, the sensible expectation is: it will run, you will turn some settings down, and it will be fine. If your machine is below the minimum in one category only, that one category is where to look first — most often it is the graphics hardware or the amount of memory.

The operating system question, including Mac

Operating system support is a gate, not a slider. A game is either published for your system or it is not, and no amount of memory compensates.

This matters in the vehicle-combat example used in this course. The vendor states that Crossout is for desktop computers running Windows or Linux, and states explicitly that there is no Mac version. If you have a Mac, that title is not a candidate, and the correct conclusion is to stop there rather than to look for a workaround. The same reasoning applies to any game: read the supported systems line first, and if your system is not on it, move on.

It is also worth knowing that the example is a desktop title rather than a mobile or console one. Requirements lists for desktop games assume a keyboard, a mouse and a monitor, and nothing in this course applies to phones or tablets.

Paid affiliate link: following this link and creating an account earns Raw Segment a commission from the affiliate network that operates the link. It costs you nothing extra and does not change the advice above, including the part where a Mac rules the game out.

Visit the Crossout website

Storage, downloads and your internet connection

Two practical matters sit outside the usual requirements list and cause more trouble than either of them deserves.

The first is storage growth. The figure published in a requirements list is the size at installation. Online games receive updates, often large ones, and a game that installs at twenty gigabytes may want noticeably more a year later. A sensible habit is to keep roughly half again as much free space as the stated requirement, and to check the drive before a big update rather than during one.

The second is your connection. An online game needs a connection that is steady more than it needs one that is fast. A long download at installation is a one-off inconvenience; a connection that drops out briefly every few minutes will make a competitive online game unplayable even though a video stream over the same connection looks fine, because a video can buffer ahead and a live match cannot. If you are on a metered or limited plan, check the download size against your remaining allowance before you start, not afterwards.

Distance matters too. Australia is a long way from a lot of the world's game servers, and the resulting delay — latency, usually quoted in milliseconds — is a physical fact rather than a fault in your equipment. Many games show a server region at sign-in; choosing the nearest one is usually the single biggest improvement available to an Australian player, and it costs nothing.

Where to find the real requirements list

Use the vendor's own site, or the store page the vendor publishes through. Those are the only two sources that are updated when the game changes. Requirements copied onto third-party pages, including this one, go stale; that is why this course tells you how to read a list rather than reproducing anybody's numbers.

When you find the list, read it with four questions in hand: is my operating system named; is my processor at or above the one listed; do I have at least the stated memory; is my graphics hardware at or above the one listed. If three of four are comfortable and one is marginal, the game will probably run with reduced settings. If two or more are below the minimum, believe the list.

Running close to the minimum: the trade-offs

There is no obligation to upgrade anything. A game you cannot run is simply a game you do not play, and the free-to-play category is large enough that another title will fit the machine you already own.

Checklist 2 — your machine, on paper