Most Demanding PC Games 2023 (Updated February 2023)

After a rather lacking 2022 in terms of new releases, 2023 looks to bring a lot more to the table, including the likes of The Last of Us Part 1, Resident Evil 4 Remake, Hogwarts Legacy, Star Wars Jedi Survivor, and Final Fantasy XVI.

This guide has everything you need to know about the most demanding games on PC as of February 2023, including their specs, so you can get the most performance your cards can provide.

The open-world action RPG is set to become a highlight of the year and is a game many fans of the series have been dreaming of for a long time.

Check out the Hogwarts Legacy PC requirements below.

Credit: Warner Bros

Credit: Warner Bros

Credit: Warner Bros

CPU: Intel i5-6600 or AMD Ryzen 5 1400RAM: 16 GBGPU: Nvidia GTX 960 or AMD RX 470Direct X Version: DX 12Storage: 85 GB HDDNotes: 720p/30 fps low settings, SSD preferred.

CPU: Intel i7-8700 or AMD Ryzen 3600RAM: 16 GBGPU: Nvidia GTX 1080 Ti or AMD RX 5700 XT or Intel Arc A770Direct X Version: DX 12Storage: 85 GB SSDNotes: 1080p/60 fps high settings.

CPU: Intel i7-10700K or AMD Ryzen 5800XRAM: 32 GBGPU: Nvidia RTX 3090 Ti or AMD RX 7900 XTDirect X Version: DX 12Storage: 85 GB SSDNotes: 2160p/60 fps ultra settings.

CPU: Intel i7-10700K or AMD Ryzen 5800XRAM: 32 GBGPU: Nvidia RTX 3090 Ti or AMD RX 7900 XTDirect X Version: DX 12Storage: 85 GB SSDNotes: 2160p/60 fps ultra settings.

Credit: EA

Dead Space Remake is the first major release of 2023, giving us a look at where we are with graphics heading into this year.

Check out the PC requirements for Dead Space Remake below.

OS: Windows 10 64-bit +CPU: Intel i5 8600 or AMD Ryzen 5 2600XRam: 16 GB RAMGPU: Nvidia GTX 1070 or AMD RX 5700DirectX: Version 12Network: Broadband Internet connectionStorage: 50 GB available spaceAdditional Notes: 50GB SATA SSD

OS: Windows 10 64-bit +CPU: Intel i5 11600K or AMD Ryzen 5 5600XRam: 16 GB RAMGPU: Nvidia RTX 2070 or AMD RX 6700 XTDirectX: Version 12Network: Broadband Internet connectionStorage: 50 GB available spaceAdditional Notes: 50GB SSD PCIe compatible

Call of Duty Modern Warfare II is the newest game on this list at the time of writing.

This is the second entry in the series since Call of Duty was rebooted in 2019, and it continues on, and even exceeds, what Modern Warfare brought to the table a few years prior.

Modern Warfare II is perhaps the best-looking game available to play, and if you want to take advantage of its stunning visuals, you will need some top hardware to make it happen.

Here are the PC requirements for Call of Duty Modern Warfare II.

CPU: Intel i5-6600K/i7-4770 or AMD Ryzen 1400Ram: 12GBGPU: Nvidia GTX 1060 or AMD RX 580Storage Space: 72 GB at launchHi-Rez Assets Cache: 32 GB

CPU: Intel i5-6600K/i7-4770 or AMD Ryzen 1400Ram: 12GBGPU: Nvidia GTX 1060 or AMD RX 580Storage Space: 72 GB at launchHi-Rez Assets Cache: 32 GB

CPU: Intel i9-9900K or AMD Ryzen 3900XRam: 16GBGPU: Nvidia RTX 3080 or AMD RX 6800 XTStorage Space: 72 GB at launchHi-Rez Assets Cache: 64 GB

CPU: Intel i9-9900K or AMD Ryzen 3900XRam: 16GBGPU: Nvidia RTX 3080 or AMD RX 6800 XTStorage Space: 72 GB at launchHi-Rez Assets Cache: 64 GB

Like the second entry on this list, Call of Duty Modern Warfare II is one of the first games to really push PC gaming into the next generation.

For the past two years since the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S were released, as well as the RTX 30 and RX 6000 series GPUs, games have often been released on the previous-gen PS4 and Xbox One too.

This has held back gaming as the graphics need to be dumbed down for the older tech to run it, which means that the newer versions aren’t reaching their full potential.

Now, we’re finally seeing the previous gen hardware be phased out, and games are looking more beautiful for it.

Modern Warfare II is perhaps the best-looking video game on the market today, from Mexico’s desert landscape to Amsterdam’s incredible-looking streets.

READ MORE: Call of Duty Modern Warfare II Wiki Guide

CPU: Intel i5-4430 or AMD Ryzen 3 1200GPU: Nvidia GTX 960 or AMD R9 290XRAM: 8GBStorage: 126GB HDD

CPU: Intel i7-4770 or AMD Ryzen 1500XGPU: Nvidia GTX 1060 or AMD RX 570RAM: 16GBStorage: 126GB SSD

CPU: Intel i9-9900K or AMD Ryzen 3950XGPU: Nvidia RTX 3080 or AMD RX 6800 XTRAM: 16GBStorage: 126GB SSD

CPU: Intel i9-9900K or AMD Ryzen 3950XGPU: Nvidia RTX 3080 or AMD RX 6800 XTRAM: 16GBStorage: 126GB SSD

Like Modern Warfare II, Uncharted Legacy of Thieves Collection is incredibly demanding, with 4K Ultra settings requiring the RTX 3080 or RX 6800 XT.

Uncharted Legacy of Thieves Collection also marks the first time the Intel 3rd gen series of CPUs will not be enough to run the game due to it needing AVX2.

Despite being more than a decade old, the higher-end 3rd gen Intel CPUs have still been great for budget builds when paired with a good GPU, but now that isn’t the case.

Minimum Requirements – 720p @ 30 FPS:

Graphics Preset: Very LowGPU: Nvidia GTX 950 or AMD equivalentCPU: Intel i3-4160 or AMD equivalentRAM: 8 GBOS: Windows 10Storage: 75 GB HDD

Recommended Requirements – 1080p @ 60 FPS:

Graphics Preset: MediumGPU: Nvidia GTX 1060 6 GB or AMD RX 580CPU: Intel i5-4670 or AMD Ryzen 3600RAM: 16 GBOS: Windows 10Storage: 75 GB SSD

Very High Requirements – 4K @ 60 FPS:

Graphics Preset: Very HighGPU: Nvidia RTX 3070 or AMD RX 6800 XTCPU: Intel i5-11400 or AMD Ryzen 3600RAM: 16 GBOS: Windows 10Storage: 75 GB SSD

Ultimate Ray Tracing Requirements – 4K @ 60 FPS:

Graphics Preset: High/Ray Tracing Very HighGPU: Nvidia RTX 3090 or AMD RX 6950 XTCPU: Intel i7-12700K or AMD Ryzen 5900XRAM: 32 GBOS: Windows 10Storage: 75 GB SSD

Graphics Preset: High/Ray Tracing Very HighGPU: Nvidia RTX 3090 or AMD RX 6950 XTCPU: Intel i7-12700K or AMD Ryzen 5900XRAM: 32 GBOS: Windows 10Storage: 75 GB SSD

Credit: Marvel/Insomniac Games/PlayStation

Credit: Marvel/Insomniac Games/PlayStation

When it comes to running Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered, it is very reasonable at lower resolution and frame rates.

Still, as soon as you crank things up to 1440p or 4K, especially with Ray Tracing, you better have a higher-end build to run it, requiring an RTX 3080 or RX 6950 XT to run 4K/60fps with Ray Tracing.

CPU: Intel i5-4800 or AMD Ryzen 5 2600GPU: Nvidia GTX 1060 or AMD Radeon RX 580RAM: 8GBStorage: 75GB HDD

CPU: Intel i7-8700 or AMD Ryzen 5 3600GPU: Nvidia GTX 1070 or AMD Radeon RX 5700RAM: 16GBStorage: 75GB SSD

CPU: Intel i7-9700K or AMD Ryzen 7 2700XGPU: Nvidia RTX 2070 or AMD Readeon RX 6700XTRAM: 16GBStorage: 75GB SSD

CPU: Intel i9-9900K or AMD Ryzen 9 3900XGPU: Nvidia RTX 3080 or AMD Radeon RX 6900XTRAM: 16GBStorage: 75GB SSD

Credit: KRAFTON Inc

Credit: KRAFTON Inc

Credit: Techland

CPU: Intel Core i3-9100 or AMD Ryzen 3 2300X RAM: 8GBGPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti / AMD Radeon RX 560 4GBOS: Windows 7Available storage space: 60GB HDD

Recommended System Specifications (for 1080p resolution at 60 frames per second)

CPU: Intel Core i5-8600K or AMD Ryzen 5 3600XRAM: 16GBGPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 6GB or AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 8GBOS: Windows 10 Available storage space: 60GB SSD

Minimum System Requirements (for 1080p resolution/30 frames per second)

Minimum System Requirements (for 1080p resolution/30 frames per second)

Recommended System Requirements (for 1080p resolution/60 frames per second)

CPU: Intel Core i5-8600K / AMD Ryzen 7 3700XRAM: 16GBGPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 10GBOS: Windows 10 Available storage space: 60GB SSD

CPU: Intel Core i5-8600K / AMD Ryzen 7 3700XRAM: 16GBGPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 10GBOS: Windows 10 Available storage space: 60GB SSD

Dying Light 2 looks to become one of the most demanding games on PC, especially when taking ray tracing into account, with the game requiring an RTX 3080 just to hit 60fps at 1080p with ray tracing turned on.

If ray tracing isn’t something you are bothered about, things get more reasonable, with the game just requiring an i5 8600K or Ryzen 3600X along with an RTX 2060 for 1080p/60fps.

God of War PC requirements: Minimum (720p/ 30fps)

Graphics settings: LowGPU: Nvidia GTX 960 (4GB) or AMD R9 290X (4GB)CPU: Intel Core i5 2500k (quad-core/ 3.3GHz) or AMD Ryzen 3 1200 (quad-core/3.1GHz)RAM: 8GBStorage: 70GB HDD (SSD recommended)

God of War PC requirements: Recommended (1080p/ 30fps)

Graphics settings: OriginalGPU: Nvidia GTX 1060 (6GB) or AMD RX 570 (4GB)CPU: Intel Core i5 6600k (quad-core/ 3.5GHz) or AMD Ryzen 5 2400G (quad-core/ 3.6GHz)RAM: 8GBStorage: 70GB SSD

God of War PC requirements: High (1080p/ 60fps)

Graphics settings: OriginalGPU: Nvidia GTX 1070 (8GB) or AMD RX 5600XT (6GB)CPU: Intel Core i7 4770k (quad-core/ 3.5GHz) or AMD Ryzen 7 2700 (octa-core 3.2GHz)RAM: 8GBStorage: 70GB SSD

God of War PC requirements: Performance (1440p/ 60fps)

Graphics settings: HighGPU: Nvidia GTX 2070 (8GB) or AMD RX 5700XT (8GB)CPU: Intel Core i7 7700K (quad-core 4.2GHz) or AMD Ryzen 7 3700X (octa-core/3.6Ghz)RAM: 16GBStorage: 70GB SSD

God of War PC requirements: Ultra (4K/ 60fps)

Graphics settings: UltraGPU: Nvidia GTX 3080 (10GB) or AMD RX 6800XT (16GB)CPU: Intel Core i9 9900K (octa-core 3.6GHz) or AMD Ryzen 9 3950X (16-core/3.5GHz)RAM: 16GBStorage: 70GB SSD

God of War runs at just 30 fps on PS4 and 60 fps on PS5, making this new PC port the first time gamers can go beyond 60 fps in the game and allowing for improved graphics and resolution too.

But, if you want to go for high frames and resolution, you will need a high-end PC to make it happen.

To play God of War at 4K/60fps, you will need an i9 9900K/Ryzen 3950X and an Nvidia RTX 3080.

If you want to play the game at around the same performance as the PS5, things get more reasonable as it requires an Nvidia GTX 1070.

Credit: Microsoft

OS: Windows 10 version 15063.0 or higherProcessor: Intel i5-4460 or AMD Ryzen 3 1200Memory: 8 GB RAMGraphics: NVidia GTX 970 OR AMD RX 470DirectX: Version 12Network: Broadband Internet connectionStorage: 110 GB available space

OS: Windows 10 version 15063.0 or higherProcessor: Intel i5-8400 or AMD Ryzen 5 1500XMemory: 16 GB RAMGraphics: NVidia GTX 1070 OR AMD RX 590DirectX: Version 12Network: Broadband Internet connectionStorage: 110 GB available space

If you want to measure how far graphics have come at any given point, then a racing game is the perfect way to find out.

Forza Horizon 5 is one of the best-looking games available today.

That also means that it is very demanding, especially when looking to get high frame rates alongside Extreme graphics settings, with the game requiring an RTX 3080 or RX 6800 XT to meet the game’s ideal specification.

OS: Windows 10 RS5 x64Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 or Intel i5-4440Memory: 8 GB RAMGraphics: AMD RX 570 or Nvidia GTX 1050 TiDirectX: Version 12Storage: 50 GB available space

OS: Windows 10 19H2 x64Processor: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X or Intel i7-9700kMemory: 16 GB RAMGraphics: Radeon RX 5700 XT or Nvidia RTX 2070DirectX: Version 12Storage: 50 GB available space

Credit: 343 Industries

Credit: 343 Industries

Like many online and competitive games, Halo Infinite has a low entry cost, requiring older and lower-end parts.

But, if you want to enjoy the game in all of its glory with high graphics settings and frame rates, then you will require much better components, with the game requiring an RTX 3080 or RX 6800 XT to meet its Ultra requirements.

With a 3700X and RTX 3070, I average approximately 110-120fps on Ultra at 1080p, which should give you an insight as to how demanding the game can be.

Credit: Rockstar Games

Operating System: Windows 7CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K / AMD FX-6300RAM: 8 GBGraphics Card: Nvidia GeForce GTX 770 2GB / AMD Radeon R9 280Disk Space: 150 GB

Operating System: Windows 10CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K / AMD Ryzen 5 1500XRAM: 12 GBGraphics card: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 6GB / AMD Radeon RX 480 4GBStorage Space Required: 150 GB

Red Dead Redemption 2 was released on PC in late 2019 and is still seen as one of the benchmark titles to measure performance.

Despite being over two years old at this point, it is still one of the most demanding games on PC, much like GTA V too, which still requires a powerful PC to play at a high graphics setting and frame rate.

BUY RED DEAD REDEMPTION 2 HERE

Credit: Xbox Game Studios

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 or AMD Ryzen 3 1200RAM: 8 GBOS: Windows 10 64-bitVIDEO CARD: Radeon RX 570 or GeForce GTX 770 PIXEL SHADER: 5.0VERTEX SHADER: 5.0FREE DISK SPACE: 150 GBDEDICATED VIDEO RAM: 2048 MB

CPU: Intel Core i5-8400 or AMD Ryzen 5 1500X or betterRAM: 16 GBOS: Windows 10 64-bitVIDEO CARD: Radeon RX 590 or GeForce GTX 970PIXEL SHADER: 5.1VERTEX SHADER: 5.1FREE DISK SPACE: 150 GBDEDICATED VIDEO RAM: 4096 MB

Microsoft Flight Simulator lets players fly across the entire Earth on a 1:1 scale, and it is very demanding, too, with an RTX 3090 only able to push the game to 60fps.

But Flight Simulator benefits more from a consistent frame rate rather than a high frame rate, which should make it easier for players to at least get started playing the game.

Credit: Ubisoft

Minimum Configuration – Low preset 1080p 30 FPS

Processor: AMD Ryzen 3 1200 – 3.1 GHz / INTEL i5-4460 – 3.2 GHzRAM: 8 GB (Dual-channel mode)Video Card: AMD R9 380 – 4GB / GeForce GTX 960 4GBStorage: 50 GB HDD (SSD Recommended)Operating system: Windows 10 (64-bit only)DirectX Version: DirectX 12Additional note: Requires GPU with DirectX 12 (Feature Level 12_0) support

Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 – 3.2 Ghz / INTEL i7-4790 – 3.6 GhzRAM: 8 GB (Dual-channel mode)Video Card: AMD RX 570 – 8GB / GeForce GTX 1060 – 6GBStorage: SSD (50 GB)Operating system: Windows 10 (64-bit only)DirectX Version: DirectX 12Additional note: Requires GPU with DirectX 12 (Feature Level 12_0) support

Recommended Configuration – High preset 1080p 60 FPS

Recommended Configuration – High preset 1080p 60 FPS

Processor: AMD Ryzen 7 2700X – 3.7 GHz / INTEL i7 – 7700 – 3.6 GHzRAM: 16 GB (Dual-channel mode)Video Card: AMD Vega 56 – 8GB / GeForce GTX 1070 – 8GBStorage: SSD (50 GB)Operating system: Windows 10 (64-bit only)DirectX Version: DirectX 12Additional note: Requires GPU with DirectX 12 (Feature Level 12_0) support

Processor: AMD Ryzen 7 2700X – 3.7 GHz / INTEL i7 – 7700 – 3.6 GHzRAM: 16 GB (Dual-channel mode)Video Card: AMD Vega 56 – 8GB / GeForce GTX 1070 – 8GBStorage: SSD (50 GB)Operating system: Windows 10 (64-bit only)DirectX Version: DirectX 12Additional note: Requires GPU with DirectX 12 (Feature Level 12_0) support

2K Configuration – Very High preset 1440p 60 FPS

2K Configuration – Very High preset 1440p 60 FPS

4K Configuration – Ultra High preset 2160p (4K) 30 FPS

Processor : AMD Ryzen 7 3700X – 3.6 GHz / INTEL i7 – 9700K – 3.6 GHzRAM: 16 GB (Dual-channel mode)Video Card: AMD RX 5700XT – 8GB / GeForce RTX 2080 – 8GBStorage: SSD (50 GB)Operating system: Windows 10 (64-bit only)DirectX Version: DirectX 12Additional note: Requires GPU with DirectX 12 (Feature Level 12_0) support

Processor : AMD Ryzen 7 3700X – 3.6 GHz / INTEL i7 – 9700K – 3.6 GHzRAM: 16 GB (Dual-channel mode)Video Card: AMD RX 5700XT – 8GB / GeForce RTX 2080 – 8GBStorage: SSD (50 GB)Operating system: Windows 10 (64-bit only)DirectX Version: DirectX 12Additional note: Requires GPU with DirectX 12 (Feature Level 12_0) support

Released in late 2020, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is fairly reasonable when it comes to components to play the game, even just requiring an RTX 2080 to play in 4K.

But, playing beyond 60fps is where the game will get demanding, and with good reason, because this game is one of the best-looking and realistic games we’ve ever seen.

Credit: CD Projekt Red

Minimum Requirements: 1080p Low

CPU: Core i5-3570K or FX-8310GPU: GTX 780 3GB (or RX 470 4GB)RAM: 8GB RAMStorage: 70GB storageOS: Windows 7 or Windows 10 64-bitTarget: 1080p Low

Recommended Requirements: 1080p High

CPU: Core i7-4790 or Ryzen 3 3200GGPU: GTX 1060 6GB, GTX 1660 Super (or R9 Fury)RAM: 12GB RAMStorage: 70GB SSD storageOS: Windows 10 64-bitTarget: 1080p High

Recommended Requirements: 4K Ultra

Recommended Requirements: 4K Ultra

CPU: Core i7-4790 or Ryzen 5 3600GPU: RTX 2080 Super, RTX 3070 (or RX 6800)RAM: 16GB RAMStorage: 70GB SSD storageOS: Windows 10 64-bitTarget: 4K Ultra

Recommended Requirements: 1080p Medium Ray Tracing

CPU: Core i7-4790 or Ryzen 3 3200GGPU: RTX 2060 (or RX 6800)RAM: 16GB RAMStorage: 70GB SSD storageOS: Windows 10 64-bitTarget: 1080p RT Medium

CPU: Core i7-6700 or Ryzen 5 3600GPU: RTX 3070 (or RX 6800 XT)RAM: 16GB RAMStorage: 70GB SSD storageOS: Windows 10 64-bitTarget: 1440p RT Ultra

CPU: Core i7-6700 or Ryzen 5 3600GPU: RTX 3070 (or RX 6800 XT)RAM: 16GB RAMStorage: 70GB SSD storageOS: Windows 10 64-bitTarget: 1440p RT Ultra

Recommended Requirements: 4K Ultra Ray Tracing

Recommended Requirements: 4K Ultra Ray Tracing

CPU: Core i7-6700 or Ryzen 5 3600GPU: RTX 3080 (or RTX 3090)RAM: 16GB RAMStorage: 70GB SSD storageOS: Windows 10 64-bitTarget: 4K Ultra

It is hard to tell whether Cyberpunk 2077 is demanding due to how good the game looks or how broken it is.

But the game has been available for over a year now and has seen plenty of performance updates, although it could still do with some work.

READ MORE: Cyberpunk 2077: A Broken Game and A Broken Promise

Plenty of great games are slightly older but still look fantastic for those with mid-range PCs or lower-spec computers who don’t want to play the most demanding games.

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