Curious to know what kind of set up everyone has. I am new to game development and my first thought was to get an all-in-one. Doesn’t look like a good idea. I assume a gaming PC like Alienware with a 4k monitor is the way to go. Any thoughts?
Not really.
- a reasonable number of cores 5800x/5900x or Intel equivalent
- lots of RAM, 32GB is OK, 64GB is nicer
- a couple of fast NVMe drives
- a potent GPU is a nice to have but not a must unless you’re into something specific and must have a 3090 with 24GB vRAM; a humble 3060 will take you far
- min 2 monitors, widescreen helps (me), anything above 1080 is nice, consider colour accuracy over 240MHz refresh rate
- quality PSU so it doesn’t fry
- a non-gaming office chair that does not turn your spine into a wet noodle
Also, you can absolutely get away with a budget build, it really depends on the scope and type of dev. Level design will demand more from the hardware than making mobile games with widgets.
There may be no need to shatter the piggyB.
- choose your country
- consider Total £$
vs your budget - double the RAM
- drop to a lower GPU tier than the entry suggests
- opt for a higher CPU tier than the entry suggests
A decent starting point for a generic game dev rig. Adjust to your particular needs.
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Wow, thanks so much for this. I am building Levels, but for Quest 2. It’s for our students. So, I am looking for near-cinematic graphics despite the constraints of mobile phones. Trying to get as close as I can. I would love to build a PC, however just getting started and for the reasons I mentioned maybe an OEM might be less hassle? Not so much on upgrades, but on not needing to look for parts or knowing what to do if it breaks.
If you’re buying 10+ units, consider e-mailing a couple of places with a rough specification and get a quote. Maybe they’ll throw freebies at you - can’t say no to a free mug / mousepad / hat ;p
what to do if it breaks
Warranty & RMA cover that.
- a quality PSU might come with a 7 year warranty
- a quality Solid State Drive 5y
- a GPU - I wouldn’t count on something longer than 2y; albeit it may just work fine for the next 20 years… but its age will render it utterly redundant for production work after 10.
If you’re buying 50 PCs, one of their GPUs will almost certainly end up with whining coils (makes high pitch buzzing noise under load) - say goodbye to a quiet classroom (if such thing exists). GPU manufactures / retailer will replace it under RMA even though the unit is not actually broken.
Don’t pay more than $200 for a motherboard.
Personally Im ussing a low-middle tier set-up, which is not low but optimal to enter gaming and dev. There is a list:
RAM: 16GB 3000ghz;
CPU: AMD Ryzen 3 1200 (8 cores, 8 threads);
GPU: RX 470 4 GB
Motherboard: A320 Asus Prime
It’s a cheap (at least used to when I bought it) setup for your needs. Hope my post will be handy for you.