I was just hoping to get a rough idea of what the minimum requirements for a PC are if I want to run this game at ultra settings smoothly. I just need some sort of benchmark to base a future PC build off of. I am not asking for specific parts to be named, just statistics like ram, CPU, Graphics card memory and other abilities, and anything else I may not know about.

I would have put this in the tech issues thread, but the FAQ thread told me it was not the place.

Vista\XP
2.4 ghz processor.
1 GB Ram
6 Gig Hard drive space
Nvidia 6800 or ATI x850.

That`s minimum. I really can`t say what the minimum is for smooth running. I mean who would know unless they had several grades of PC?

I can tell that with my Specs I play on FULL and have a smooth game.

My specs are:
Win 7
AMD Phenom II 955 Quad core processor (overclocked to 3.20, but probably not required).
4 Gig DDR2 Ram
Nvidia Gainward 260 896meg card.

Yeah, the current machine that is my parents has XP with a 2.7ghz single core processor, 4 gig ram, enough hard drive space, and a 512mb graphics card ( don't remember what it is and can't check as the thing is dead and the comp won't display anything on screen) That machine could only run on medium settings. It died because some idiot at some point put a 270 watt power supply in it and it needed at least 300watts. Apparently that can slowly kill the graphics card. It's time for my own machine now anyway.

I am going for this kind of power because I want to be ready for Skyrim when it comes out, but can't wait to build my computer until they put out requirements for the new game as I am unable to play computer games now.

So I am thinking windows 7, a quad core above 3 ghz, 4 gigs of ram(maybe 6) and maybe a 1024meg Nvidia graphics card of some sort(or 2 512s)

As far as specific hardware I have some buddies that went to college for this kind of stuff that can help me.

I have the following:

Intel Core2Duo 3.0 GHz processor
Asus P5K-E WiFi Edition motherboard
4 GB RAM
ATI Radeon HD 4890 graphics card
SoundBlaster Live!
Windows XP Professional 64 bit SP3
Laser Trackball

To me it seems a very good setup, but it can't max the game on ultra without flaw. I turn off antialiasing because it is no use at maximum resolution.

I must make sacrifices so that I can enjoy mods like FWE, MMM, EVE, and NMCs texture packs.

do you know if it will run smoothly with with any settings with a ATI x3100 and 3 gigs of ram

It might be alright, though not at Ultra settings. You should be able to manage with Medium to High settings with that video card, depending on what your monitor resolution is. Your RAM is OK but your CPU is important as well, which you don't mention.

well i might need a little help finding that out im a noob when it comes to computer, am using vistas and am not sure how to find out my CPU
i think it is AMD Althlon x2 64 so far thats all i can find

http://www.belarc.com/free_download.html will tell everything you need to know.

Isn't the X3100 a fairly low end intergrated graphics chip? I think it would have a hard time running FO on medium settings with a decent frame rate. My system isn't high end and manages to run it at the highest settings without problem (details in my sig).

Oops, you're right. I take that back then, it probably won't run the game very well. Maybe on Low settings, possibly Medium with a few extra things reduced. I was just comparing the number to where it was on the list of supported cards, I guess I should have looked it up on the web first. I'm not that familiar with ATI cards anymore, I've been a Nvidia user for several years now.

Well it's hard to be sure, I built a AMD/Ati system last year and the onboard graphics played Crysis at medium. I was quite surprised.

so i shouldn't buy FO3 for PC, are the graphics on low setting horrible and will i have several problems playing?

Ouch, this is even worse than I thought. I presumed with the X in front of the number that it was an ATI card, but it's an Intel. I only got as far as "mobile" the first time looked it up. So I'd suggest you forget about Fallout until you get yourself a real graphics card. If you want to play games like Fallout on a PC, you pretty much need a desktop version with a dedicated video card. Or be willing to spend a boatload of cash on a high end laptop. Even then the desktop will still perform better. For future reference, Intel chips are by the far the worst on the market. If you get something by ATI or Nvidia, you might be able to get half decent performance from a laptop, and most definitely on a desktop. But you can pretty much forget it with an Intel chip. They're designed with Internet and spreadsheets in mind, not gaming.

You can get a graphics card for under $80 that will play FO and any other game at decent settings, I'd suggest GeForce GTS 250 or the Radeon 5670 would be well worth saving up for.

Radeon 5670 is 80 dollars? I paid more than twice that years ago for the HD 4890.

Not if he's using a laptop, which it sounds like he is.

i am using a laptop and i looked on youtube on how to change graphica card on laptops and doesn't look so difficult but are all graphics card the same size and where does one buy a graphics card? Best Buy i suppose

You can't change graphics cards on a laptop, they're integrated into the motherboard itself. They aren't stand alone cards like a desktop system but video chips that are implanted right into the architecture. If you want a card that's powerful enough to play games like Fallout then you have to pre-order them. About the only things you can change on a laptop is your hard drive and your RAM, everything else is built in. Maybe if you were an experienced computer tech you could manage it, but it would be beyond the ability of just a casual user like yourself.

so any tips you know about the next computer i should buy, don't always trust the people trying to sell me stuff i hope you don't work at best but :cryvaultboy:

Well whatever you get, it should be a desktop system, at least if you're interested in playing games. Then you'll be able to upgrade the individual components as needed rather than having to pay alot of cash for a whole new rig. The only advantage that laptops have is their mobility, desktops are superior in every other way. Even the components you can get for them are better since there's not as much of a problem with heat build up, you can use fans and a well-ventilated case to control it. As for what's a good setup to go for, I'm afraid I'm a bit behind the 8 ball these days. My rig is due for an update as well, being about 3 years old now. And since I don't have the money at the moment, I haven't been looking too closely at what's good in new gear. Though when it comes to a video card, you at least want something in the Nvidia 400 series or the ATI 5000 line. Those are the start of their DirectX 11 compatible cards, which will be the standard used by future games. At least until DirectX 12 comes out. Anything below those lines are going to be obsolete soon.

I feel your pain, I got the 5770 when it first came out, it's costs about a third of what I paid now.

Ive got win 7, 6 gig ram, intel i7 950 at 3 ghz and a 1gb nvidia gtx 460. Running fallout, crysis 2, bulletstorm, sc2 etc. etc. on max graphics settings flawlessly. set me back about 1200 euros, given the current exchange rates.