Do I need a gaming PC for Blockchain gaming?
When a traditional player moves to web3 gaming, the common request players have is whether they need the best equipment for blockchain gaming. Here’s why you need to hold back from buying the portable gaming drive.
Most of the best games in the industry require a sufficient amount of requirements for your gaming rig. Games that consistently have a large fan base such as League of Legends, God of War and Fortnite keep their graphics up to date, appealing to the player’s visual appetite.
As such, when traditional gamers switch to web3, they often ask about system requirements.
Do I need a dedicated graphics card?
Can I use my laptop to play blockchain games
How much memory do I need?
These are all fair questions. So let’s take a look at what blockchain games require.
In 2022, there are no major blockchain games that require you to have a dedicated gaming PC. However, it will also not be a good idea to use the low specification laptop.
For example Decentraland is one of the most popular blockchain games. It’s an open metaverse VR where you interact with other players around the world. Compared to other blockchain games, it is considered one of the most technically demanding games in web3.
As of this writing, it has the following recommended system requirements:
- Processor: Intel Core i7-4770 / AMD FX 8310
- RAM: 8 GB
The Intel Core i7 has a speed of around 3.4 GHz. For reference, the typical work MacBook has an Intel Core i5 processor with a speed of 1.6 GHz. In other words, if users were to use this type of laptop to run Decentraland, they would have an excruciatingly bad time.
You will experience a virtually unplayable game, often experiencing choppy and delayed movement in the game. This type of work laptop would simply be too weak to handle the game
But, 8 GB of RAM isn’t hard to find lately so you should be good there no matter your computer. With the outbreak of the pandemic, you may be able to find cheaper if you look hard enough.
That said, even if you need a decent processor (3.4GHz or faster), there’s still no need for a dedicated graphics card when playing Decentraland.
For reference, here are some spec recommendations for popular PC games:
Fortnite:
- Processor: Intel Core i5/AMD Ryzen 3
- RAM: 8 GB
League of Legends:
- Processor: Intel Core i5/AMD Ryzen 3
- RAM: 4 GB
PUBG:
- Processor: Intel Core i9 (3.6 GHz)/AMD Ryzen 7
- RAM: 32 GB
The bottom line is that the current landscape of blockchain games is far less technically demanding compared to popular traditional online games. Thus, a standard 8GB RAM with an Intel Core i5 will suit you adequately with most blockchain games out right now.
But how long exactly?
Blockchain gaming is still a relatively new industry. The industry simply hasn’t been around long enough for most big games to come to fruition. But considering that many builders are trying to create the next AAA GameFi title, it seems that a change could soon be coming in the coming years.
As it stands, most games are passive. Web3 players can play almost any blockchain game with a basic laptop, as long as it has more processing power than your average MacBook.
As time goes on, there will definitely come a time when you might need a dedicated gaming PC. For now, it would be best to enjoy what GameFi has to offer. Just like web2 games, we may soon see a time when we can nostalgically look back at how simple requirements were back then.
Edmond is a passionate writer for video games, GameFi and Web3. He has worked for top GameFi companies and video game/crypto news sites.
