Oblivion Minimum Reasonable Gfx Card Spec?


BaDToaD

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I have the following system and want to be able to play Oblivion.

AMD 2400XP

1024 MB Ram

and the weak point. AGP 128MB Nvidia FX5200 gfx card.

I am so glad I installed a mates oblivion before buying! Trust me if you have a low end gfx card FGS beg borrow or steal a copy before you part with cash. I was getting about 5 FPS in game at 640 x 480 and this card can handle doom 3 on low settings at 30 FPS plus.

Simple question. What's the cheapest card I can get away with for running Oblivion at say 800 x 600 low - medium settings on my existing processor and RAM. I have traditionally had Nvidia cards but ATI would be fine if more bang for the buck. Remember i have AGP.

I really need to do this for under 80 quid or a very maximum 100. I need a new motorbike so can't afford to cock up the savings by more than a month. I'm gagging for the bike now :)

I'm not interested in cutting edge just smooth enough at 800x600 to be playable. I've only got a 17inch CRT and 800x600 looks fine on that with my old eyes ;)

Over to you blokes.

ToaD
 
first you may want to try to install a recent nvidia driver, at least 84.25, i sugest 84.37. This driver gives a speed boost up to 20fps on some systems, i kinda doubt that it gets yours in a playable area, but its worth a try. also theres a tool called oldblivion wich makes oblivion use 1.1 shaders, looks shitt, but should be a good improvement in speed for a 5200.

You may look for a cheap 6600gt at ebay, they go for about 90$ and this card is fast enugh to even play at upper medium details.
Through i think your cpu may be limiting as well.

84.37
http://www.tweaksrus.com/index.php?option=...d=626&Itemid=41
 
Vimacs posted on Apr 23 2006 at 10:20 PM said:
first you may want to try to install a recent nvidia driver, at least 84.25, i sugest 84.37. This driver gives a speed boost up to 20fps on some systems, i highly doubt that it gets yours in a playable area, but its worth a try. also theres a tool called oldlivion wich makes oblivion use 1.1 shaders, looks shitt, but should be a good improvement in speed for a 5200.

You may look for a cheap 6600gt at ebay, they go for about 90$ and this card is fast enugh to even play at upper medium details.
Through i think your cpu may be limiting as well.

84.37
http://www.tweaksrus.com/index.php?option=...d=626&Itemid=41

I got 84.37 last night but it made no noticible difference. I'll give the oldlivion a go tho, thanks. Yeah the CPU worries me a bit too but since I can't afford a gfx and processor upgrade and given a choice between delaying buying my bike or playing Oblivion I think RL wins here :)

wolly wotsit posted on Apr 23 2006 at 10:24 PM said:
The Oblivion FAQ has info on the minimum requirements for graphics cards.

Yeah and my chipset is there at the bottom of the Nvidia list but there's no way it's playable. That's why I urge anyone with an old card to test the game it really is a huge hog.
 
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BaDToaD posted on Apr 23 2006 at 05:27 PM said:
Vimacs posted on Apr 23 2006 at 10:20 PM said:
first you may want to try to install a recent nvidia driver, at least 84.25, i sugest 84.37. This driver gives a speed boost up to 20fps on some systems, i highly doubt that it gets yours in a playable area, but its worth a try. also theres a tool called oldlivion wich makes oblivion use 1.1 shaders, looks shitt, but should be a good improvement in speed for a 5200.

You may look for a cheap 6600gt at ebay, they go for about 90$ and this card is fast enugh to even play at upper medium details.
Through i think your cpu may be limiting as well.

84.37
http://www.tweaksrus.com/index.php?option=...d=626&Itemid=41

I got 84.37 last night but it made no noticible difference. I'll give the oldlivion a go tho, thanks. Yeah the CPU worries me a bit too but since I can't afford a gfx and processor upgrade and given a choice between delaying buying my bike or playing Oblivion I think RL wins here :)

wolly wotsit posted on Apr 23 2006 at 10:24 PM said:
The Oblivion FAQ has info on the minimum requirements for graphics cards.

Yeah and my chipset is there at the bottom of the Nvidia list but there's no way it's playable. That's why I urge anyone with an old card to test the game it really is a huge hog.

I used OLDblivion and it looked quite good. The only prob was i didnt have enough of whatever else and it lagged like fuck.

good luck
 
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Tried Oldblivion and it runs fine on my card. I'm sure the gameplay will be more or less the same but I do find myself thinking. Do I really want to play the game everyone is raving about while the on screen gfx look like a bad version of the original Halflife.

I think I'll try to pick up a cheap 6600gt or has anyone else got some sub 100 notes card suggestions?

Failing that I really don't think I can play the game via oldblivion. I'd rather wait and see the game as it's meant to be played even if I have to wait a few months more to get a card.
 
Jarska333 posted on Apr 24 2006 at 08:55 PM said:
Do you want to play the game because of it's good graphics, or because it's a good game, fun to play?

Graphics don't maketh the game but...

I obviously want to play the game because it's fun. However a massive modern RPG can graphically be awe inspiring. For example, when I first played World of Warcraft when I reached a new area I would often just stop and gawp at the screen. Not the graphics per se as the Warcraft game engine is not cutting edge by todays standards. It does however convey the sceenery in a manner that sometimes just makes you go wow (no pun intended) Never before in any game have I found myself thinking "I wonder what the view is like from up there?" With Warcraft this happened to me several times. And guess what? I wandered off to said location for a look. There are places in warcraft that look like paintings in the screenshots.

If Oblivion is as good as it's supposed to be then yes I do think it's important to view it as it was meant to be viewed.
 
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Half the fun of Oblivion is the fact you are immersed in a very realistic surroundings, which really give you a sense of "being" the character you play. I agree toady, save up and get the better card.
 
My parents just gave me their PC in exchange for my laptop (an XP 3200+ 512MB DDR etc) however it doesn't have a PCI-E slot and I've been thinking of upgrading my GFX card for this game, is AGP really going to hold me back much? I used to be up to date with the most L33T of cards but have lost touch over the last year or so.

Can anyone recommend a powerful but reasonably priced AGP card?
 
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