I've asked this question before, but I've done my homework on some PC components & Crysis 2's requirements now...

I need a graphics card that's better than my old one that will run DirectX 11=. My budget is $150 at the very most, but under $100 would be preferable. Is such a thing possible?

Current specs (simplified form because I don't feel like looking them up this second):
AMD Athlon X4
750 GB hard drive (w/ plenty of space)
6GB RAM (3x 2GB cards I think)
nVIDIA GTX 315 w/ 512MB (DirectX 10.1)
...and a 23" monitor

buy amd 5770 or gts 450 dont go below that

you cant get a gfx card with that what you want for under 100 bucks
you might have to grab deeper in your pockets.
mine cost 450$ (GTX 480 [monster price and monster gfx even not overclocked best settings everywhere])
Now the problem is: You can't just buy a new graphics card because that won't make it much better (this is what i figured out).
So you might need a new CPU and for that a new mobo (I had to do that :S).
BUT You have luck I found a GTX 470 for wait here it comes: 189,90€
Although this is an Austrian site so it won't bring you much i guess.
But again you are even more lucky: I FOUND A GTX 460 for 139,99$ in the US (link: http://www.compusa.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6976278&Sku=E145-0475)

Good luck

I'm planning on a GT 440 or 430 at the moment... they're plenty affordable and I don't care about high settings, mostly decent playablility.

If you want to go higher, than I would suggest the 5770. 5770>GTS 450. If you decide this, choose the brand depending on price, cooling, and warranty of course.

I'm planning on a GT 440 or 430 at the moment... they're plenty affordable and I don't care about high settings, mostly decent playablility.

They won't even offer decent playability... The lowest you want to go is the 5770 or the 460. If you have a monitor that outputs 1680x1050 or higher you will want the 1GB version of the 460, if you have a lower resolution you could pass with the lower memory 460.


5770/460 should be the lowest you want to go. Anything lower and they won't play games well even at lowish settings. Even at this point if you get those cards, they will most likely need to be replaced by the end of this year or early next year when they become obsolete.

I'm planning on a GT 440 or 430 at the moment... they're plenty affordable and I don't care about high settings, mostly decent playablility.

They won't even offer decent playability... The lowest you want to go is the 5770 or the 460. If you have a monitor that outputs 1680x1050 or higher you will want the 1GB version of the 460, if you have a lower resolution you could pass with the lower memory 460.


5770/460 should be the lowest you want to go. Anything lower and they won't play games well even at lowish settings. Even at this point if you get those cards, they will most likely need to be replaced by the end of this year or early next year when they become obsolete.

Im using a 5770 and running 1680x1050 i can run crysis 1 all settings very high no aa just fine and i can max most other games or get clost to maxing

Crysis 2 has DX11 which will be sure to bog down your gpu to about 30fps... On medium.

Anything less than a 5770 anyway is not worth it. You start getting into huge performance losses while it doesn't cost much less. You would be better off with a 4770 than something freaking lower than a 5770.

as i said b4 gts 450 is the minimum you want, spend some more and get a gtx 460. I higly recommend not to go with amd cards. Crysis 2 is specifically designed for nvidia hardware

as i said b4 gts 450 is the minimum you want, spend some more and get a gtx 460. I higly recommend not to go with amd cards. Crysis 2 is specifically designed for nvidia hardware
It's just a matter in their coding, I suppose...