Thought this could be usefull in the W4O Forums, as I was bored and browsing I found the thread. It's nothing new to those who keeps up with TES and Oblivion but anyway.

The Offical "Will My Computer Run Oblivion" Thread

The Most Recent Thread in TES OB Section;
Newest Link
Updated: Wednesday 4th January 06

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Supplementary Post, courtesy of Nottheking


First, if you want to post here, it's generally a GOOD IDEA to find out as much information as you can about your system. A good way to do this would be to install and run a free analysis program like one of the below:
•Lavalys Everest (http://www.lavalys.hu/products/overview.php?pid=1?=en) - Very comprehensive, will give you exact information. Must wait while it runs after downloading and installing. Find CPU information under "Motherboard->CPU." For your motherboard, look at "Computer->Summary." For RAM, look at "Motherboard->SPD" and for video card, look under "display." (must double-check this)
•Crucial System Scanner (http://www.crucial.com/systemscanner/) If you've got an Internet connection availible from the PC in question, this is very quick & straightforward; download it, (it's only 77KB) run it, and it will scan and upload all the necessary information to Crucial's website, and automatically open up a page with the results in a matter of seconds. Ignore the graphics card tab, but take a look at the information listed on the left-hand sidebar; it will have virtually all the information you need if you want to ask a question about your system, and exactly that. You don't have to purchase anything through them, and it's cheaper elsewhere anyway, but it's a very useful tool.
•CPU-Z (http://www.cpuid.com/cpuz.php) - Doesn't cover your graphics card, but a clean, simple tool for everything else; recommended for "system tweakers" rather than the novice.
•DirectXDiag - This is already on your computer; click the Start Menu, then "Run...". Then, type in DXDiag.
Here is the standard set of specs used in what appears to be the "standard" dev machine, according to the German magazine GameStar:

AMD AthlonXP 2500+ or 2600+ (Barton Core, 333MHz FSB)
1024MB (1GB) RAM
ATi Radeon 9800pro, AGP with 256MB video RAM

The above settings would likely run the game at a fairly decent clip, and more importantly, if such machines are in use for development, they obviously run the games with all the settings "turned on."

Note that there are MANY different types of PC in use at the BethSoft HQ. From what I understand, the PC used to render that mind-blowing trailer used a pair of GeForce 6800 (GT or ultra) cards in SLi-mode. Also, the machines have varied processors; a dev (Steve Meister, a.k.a. MSFD) noted that Dell is the company's main supplier of PCs; he apparently works at debugging and optimizing from his computer, which is the same as the one mentioned by GameStar, except that it has a 3.0GHz Pentium 4. MSFD also stated that he still uses the same computer he had when Bloodmoon shipped, (in 2003) to code, test, and play Oblivion. It is believed that he has the following specs:

Intel Pentium 4 3.0GHz with hyper-threading technology
1024MB RAM
ATi Radeon 9800pro, AGP with 256MB video RAM

Because countless people have asked by now, now all CPUs are made equal when it comes to gaming. Different processor lines come with different qualities, so in the end, one processor may actually beat a processor that may seem to be superior. To attempt to alleviate confusion, here is a little guide. Take your processor's clock speed (if it's an Intel) or its "+" rating, (if it's an AMD) and multiply it by the following number, according to what kind of processor it is. the resulting number will be the speed of an equivalent Pentium 4 processor, assuming if it has hyper-threading.

Celeron - 0.50
Celeron D - 0.80
Sempron - 0.85
Pentium 4 (no hyper-threading) - 0.90
AthlonXP - 0.95
Pentium 4 (with hyper-threading) - 1.00
Pentium 4 Extreme Edition - 1.10
Athlon64 - 1.15
Pentium D - Varies (anywhere from 1.00-1.20+)
AthlonX2 - Varies (anywhere from 1.15-1.35+)
Celerom M - 1.75
Pentium M - 1.85
Athlon64 FX - 1.85 (clock speed, see below for exact numbers)
FX-51: ~4.0GHz (equal to an AMD 3700+, actually runs at 2.4GHz, but its lower FSB speed makes it more like a 2.2GHz, just like the 3700+ San Diego)
FX-53: ~4.4GHz (equal to an AMD 4000+, actuall runs at 2.4GHz like the San Diego 4000+)
FX-55: ~4.8GHz (equal to an AMD 4200+, actually runs at 2.6GHz)
FX-57: ~5.2GHz (equal to an AMD 4500+, actually runs at 2.8GHz)

Additionally, when it comes to the question of video cards, I think we could take a look at a poll made by Pete Hines, director of PR and marketing. While sadly, the poll has been taken down, he refers to a card such as the Radeon 9800pro as "mid level" while calling a card like the Radeon X800XT or GeForce 6800GT as "the latest." In a more recent update, Gavin Carter reported to Bit-Tech (link) that the PC version of the game will feature the same thread-scheduling technology that’s being used to take advantage of all three of the Xbox 360’s CPU cores. In other words, this will mean that Oblivion will attain great benefits from multi-core CPUs. Note that the E3 demo and E3 trailer were made before dual-core processors existed, so they aren’t necessary, but rather an awesome addition.

Anyway, for the convenience of those that DO think, or find out, that they need to upgrade, I have thrown together a list of "recommended" video cards for AGP. I also have one for PCI-express cards. For now:

$119US: Radeon 9800pro, AGP with 128MB video RAM - This card is a little outdated now, but in performance, it can hold its own against the GeForce 6600GT.

$125US: GeForce 6600, AGP with 256MB video RAM - This is the lowest 256MB video card I can reccomend. It's still a rather decent mid-range card, and offers quite a bit for the money. Although the other cards on this list are all more powerful, this is good if your priorities are for detail over resolution/performance, and you're on a budget.

$149US: GeForce 6600GT, AGP with 128MB video RAM - A bit more powerful than the 9800pro, it also supports shader model 3.0; this will help ease some "laggy" shader- and lighting-intensive scenes in games. (think flashlight in foggy corridors)

$176US: Radeon 9800pro, AGP with 256MB video RAM - This breaks from my tradition of only including retail (not OEM) cards in this list, however, it seems to be the only 256MB model of the 9800pro availible. This is the card that the devs are using. I do not recommend this card for purcahse; this is included here only for the sake of comparison.

$179US: GeForce 6800, AGP with 128MB video RAM - This is a VERY nice price/power ratio alone, and this card is also well-known among system tweakers because it's really just a 6800GT with a few easily-broken limits placed on it. The downside? Only 128MB of video RAM. (the 256MB version costs as much as a full 6800GT, hence it's not included)

$229US: Radeon X800GTO, AGP with 256MB video RAM - This card is perhaps a better buy for 256MB of video RAM than any lesser card, as it’s powerful enough to at least be in league with most top-of-the-line cards today, though it only sports 12 instead of 16 pipelines. Note that unlike most cards mentioned here, it's OEM-only, but it's easily the only decent deal in this price range.

$353US: Radeon X850XT Platinum Edition, AGP with 256MB video RAM - This is unquestionably the best card availible for AGP. And chances are close to 100% it’s all there ever will be; both ATi and nVidia won’t be making AGP versions of their latest high-end cards. Both will be making their mid-range X1k and 7 series cards available for AGP, but keep in mind that this card compares nearly to a Radeon X1800XL or GeForce 7800GT. (there was a cheaper one availible at some $350US, but you people bought it out. )
I have also compiled a list of decent PCI-express video cards, complete with prices and some sort of summary on them, for those looking to upgrade their PCI-express video card.

As a forewarning note, I am not one to truly recommend any new video card that costs notably less than $100US; going below that amount, you will get FAR less performance, and only save a little money; you'll ultimately wind up dissatisfied. Additionally, I base my performance comparisons on the VGA charts available at Tom's Hardware Guide, (Link) as well as other sources.

$99US: GeForce 6600, PCI-e with 128MB video RAM - This is perhaps the lowest card that I can truly recommend. Anything cheaper has some fairly serious issues with it. Cheapest card that supports shader model 3.0.

$101US: Radeon X1300pro, PCI-e with 256MB video RAM - For once, next-gen cards spill out into the reasonable purchases. It seems to clearly beat-out the 6600 in performance, and comes with full SM 3.0 support, as well as 256MB of video RAM. Not bad at all for around $100US.

$129US: Radeon X700pro, PCI-express with 256MB video RAM – This is both a solid mid-range card in power, as well as having a full 256MB of video RAM.

$130US: GeForce 6600GT, PCI-e with 128MB video RAM - A highly popular video card, this is generally a good deal, and comes with enough processing power to last you for a few years to come.

$137US: Radeon X800, PCI-e with 128MB video RAM - Arguably a better deal than the GeForce 6600GT, this will barely land you into the "high-end" range.

$171US: Radeon X800GTO, PCI-e with 256MB video RAM - A powerful deal of a card, this would perhaps be the cheapest truly high-end card with 256MB video RAM on it.

$209US: GeForce 6800GS, PCI-e with 256MB video RAM - As the reviews have said, this nearly comes up to the level of the GeForce 6800GT, but is notably cheaper. Apparently, this uses a unique core; no extra pipelines to unlock, but thanks to a die shrink, it can be fairly overclockable.

$230US: Radeon X800XL, PCI-e with 256MB video RAM - Though it's getting a bit muscled over by the significantly cheaper, while hardly any less powerful 6800GS, this card is still a viable option. It's a fairly low price for a 16-pipeline, high-end video card.

$239US: GeForce 6800GT, PCI-e with 256MB video RAM - This is largely included here for the sake of completeness; it is clear that the 6800GT is at the end of its commercial lifespan, and prices are rising again as supply is running low. Either the cheaper X800XL or more powerful 7800GT would be a better idea at this point.

$295US: GeForce 7800GT, PCI-e with 256MB video RAM - This is a good deal, and a good bit cheaper than the 7800GTX. However, note that it’s not a massive leap over the previous generation of GeForce 6800 and Radeon X850 cards.

$330US: Radeon X850XT Platinum Edition, PCI-e with 256MB video RAM - It's inferior to the GeForce 7800GT, as it doesn't support SM 3.0, is slightly weaker, and also a bit more expensive, (though there's also a $30US rebate attached that brings the prices within range) but I thought I'd include this for the ATi fans there; lots of people will only buy one type of card or the other, and this price range is pretty dominated by nVidia. It's likely a better deal than a X1800XL minus the SM 3.0 support, though, and possibly the PCI-e card that's anything close to a good deal compared to the nVidia cards nearby.

$449US: GeForce 7800GTX, PCI-e with 256MB video RAM - If you want top-end performance, you’ve found the right card. It’s a true beast, even if its time might be considered to be waning, as it approaches the half-year-old point.

$539US: Radeon X1800XT, PCI-express with 512MB video RAM - An ATi flagship card that's actually readily availible? If you can't get lucky enough to purchase a 7800GTX 512, or can't swallow the incredible price, this is perhaps the best card out there that you'll lay your hands on. It easily trumps the ordinary 7800GTX in everything, even former nVidia bastions like Quake IV.

$750US+ GeForce 7800GTX 512, PCI-express with 512MB video RAM - You want the best, do you? Good luck. This is easily the hardest-to-find card out there; every store is currently "temporarily sold out" with no real clue when they'll get their next shipment. This is THE lowest price that vendors have agreed upon; if you want the very best, you'll have to be quick, lucky, and willing to shell out this much money. But make no mistake, this card is the current champion.
Note that this list is most likely NOT perfect, as the lineup of PCI-express cards IS rather confusing to ANYBODY.

Lastly, for those that're really curious as to how good their video card is, I have sketched out a ROUGH outline of how just about any video card in use today stacks up against each other. It's VERY rough, and not gaurunteed to be accurate. It also ignores, for the most part the suffix (ultra, XT, GT, pro, LE, SE, etc.) that follows the model number. In this case, I'm just ranking the series as a whole; If i measured things for every single differing model in existance, this list would be FAR too long. Also, keep in mind that the ammount of video RAM on the board has NO real impact on performance in and of itself; it merely comes into play in determining how well the card will do on certain detail levels.

As a general rule, the lower on the list the card comes, the more powerful it is; all cards in one lower list section ARE more powerful than those of the section above it, and generally, the card at the bottomg of any given section will be the most powerful, and the least powerful at the top of the section. (this comparison was done fairly loosly after looking at enough benchmarks to make one's eyes hurt, and aren't perfect, obviously) Anyway:

(Please notice that I have not added the spes. colours)

Rock Bottom (these cards do NOT support pixel shaders, and as such, won't run Oblivion)
(Any integrated graphics that's NOT listed elsewhere on here, save for any integrated Radeon or GeForce chips I forgot)

Radeon 7000 (Radeon VE)
GeForce 4 MX 4000
GeForce 256
GeForce 2 MX
Radeon 7200 (ATi Radeon)
GeForce 2 GTS
GeForce 2 Pro
GeForce 2 Ti
GeForce 2 Ultra
GeForce 4 MX 420
Radeon 7500
GeForce 4 MX 440

Outdated (these cards support shader model 1.x, which at the very least won't enable HDR in Oblivion, or may only allow diminished features, or may not even run the game)

Volari V3
GeForce 3
Radeon 8500
Matrox Parahelia 128
Radeon 9000
Radeon 9100
GeForce 3 Ti
Radeon 9200
Radeon 9250
GeForce 4 Ti

Low-end (these cards support shader model 2.0, but are fairly old now)
Intel GMA 900 Integrated graphics (chipset 915) (much better than the "Intel Extreme," but still somewhat below a GeForce FX 5200, and perform more like the "outdated" group)

GeForce FX 5200 (questionable SM 2.0 ability)
GeForce PCX 5300
GeForce FX 5500
GeForce FX 5600
S3 S8 256
GeForce 6100 IGP (integrated graphics)
Radeon Xpress 200 (integrated graphics)
GeForce FX 5700
GeForce PCX 5750
Radeon 9550
Radeon X300 HyperMemory
GeForce 6200 TurboCache
Radeon X600 HyperMemory
Radeon X300SE
Radeon 9600SE
Radeon X300
Radeon 9600
GeForce 6200
Volari V8 Duo
Radeon 9500
Volari V5 Ultra
GeForce 6600LE
GeForce 6500
Radeon X1300HyperMemory
Radeon 9600pro
Radeon X600pro
Radeon 9600XT
Radeon X600XT
Radeon 9500pro

Mid-Range (these cards were/could've been considered top-end a few years ago, and are fairly powerful, using 8 pixel pipelines and support for at least shader model 2.0)

Radeon X1300
GeForce FX 5800
Radeon 9700
GeForce FX 5900XT
GeForce FX 5900
GeForce 6500
GeForce PCX 5900
Radeon 9800
GeForce FX 5800ultra
GeForce 6600
Radeon 9700pro
GeForce 5900ultra
Radeon 9800pro
GeForce 5950ultra
Radeon X700
Radeon X1300pro
Radeon X700pro
GeForce 6800LE
GeForce 6800 (PCI-express version)
GeForce 6600GT
Radeon X800GT (also called X800RX)
Radeon 9800XT

High-End (some of these cards may be "outdated," but just about any given one is OVERKILL for almost any game out there)

Radeon X800
Radeon X1600pro
GeForce 6800 (AGP version)
Radeon X800pro
Radeon X800GTO
Radeon X1600XT
Radeon X800GTO²
GeForce 6800GS
Radeon X850pro
GeForce 6800GT
Radeon X800XL
GeForce 6800ultra
Radeon X800XT
Radeon X850XT
Radeon X800XT Platinum Edition
Radeon X850XT Platinum Edition

OMGWTFBBQ! (these cards are outrageous; a new top class all of their own, they are rather expensive, but insanely powerful. Note that I cannot guarantee perfect accuracy of this ranking)

Radeon X1800XL
GeForce 7800GT
GeForce 7800GTX
Radeon X1800XT
GeForce 7800GTX 512mb

(Please note that all italicized cards are not truly final yet, and are likely to not be placed with much of a degree of accuracy. As more reliable benchmarks pour in, their ranking will be revised)

Anyway, if your card is on the "rock bottom" list, please, for the love of Akatosh, upgrade it; those cards don't support shaders at all, and don't even run Morrowind at it's fullest!

For those who have cards in the "outdated" list, start praying. The cards likely won't be enough, given that the game seems to rely on shader model 2.0, whereas these cards only support 1.1.

If your card is in the "low end" list, I can just about assure you Oblivion WILL run on your system; it's just a matter of what your going to wind up sacrificing, be it a part of quality, resolution, or performance.

If you find your card listed as "mid range," don't sweat it. Things will run FINE, and you'll get plenty enough eye candy to satsify you. For those that need to upgrade, I'd reccomend looking at some of these cards first. These ones will last for at least a short while.

If your card makes it to the lofty heights of the "high-end" list, rejoice! You have monstrous gaming power that will certainly eat up Oblivion quite greedily. Just remember to keep your drool bucket handy.

Lastly, if your card makes it into the “OMGWTFBBQ” list, careful there, steady! You were starting to hyperventilate. Please don’t pass out on the forums. And make sure your drool-catching bib is still firmly tied on. You’re going to need it when playing.

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I'd say that if you're not sure if you're PC will be able to run Oblivion and not sure what upgrades you should do; Follow the threads, a lot of usefull information (which we don't find that much in the TES Oblivion Section for the time )



Since this is basically about the same thing, and following in the footsteps of TESF
this is now merged.

~ Alexander ~

the machine that im about to put together at an estmated cost will be about $1200. i think it will be pretty good. here is what i have in mind for it....

Amd Athlon 3200+ (something like that)

Radeon 850xt 256mb PCI-E--- $400

PCIE motherboard, but not really sure which model

2-3gb of RAM

hard-drive, well im going to buy one that has about 120gb of space, because thats alot more than i need. there's no way im gonna go out and buy those 500-200 ones, who needs all that space? id probably even do fine with an 80.

then theres the heatsink, case, already have a monitor for it.... but thats not important. i think this computer will be very promising.
right now im running a...

Radeon 9600 series 128mb AGP

1022mb of RAM

AMD Athlon xp 2600+

Use to be great, (well to me it was) but now its becoming obosolete. its still good on all my games though, like BF2. though i want to take full advantage of TES 4's graphics and get excellent gameplay by buying the machine i described above. though i think that the game should still be able to run decent on what i have now.

Do you guys think that this game will run Oblvion? What upgrades should I make.

1gb of DDR ram

AMD ATHLON 64 X2 Dual core processor 3800.

ATI Radeon X200

Will i be able to run oblivion at 1280x1024 MAX settings (well, if there isnt antialiasing, doesnt matter). But if its possible with AA and AF not at 16x but at 4x each. Maybe the FA 8x.

MY PC:

P4 3,4 GHz
2048 MB DDR2 (2GB)
ASUS 7800GTX 256MB @ 475/1300

Thx

Upgrade that video card and you will be fine.

How much do you have to spend?

If you want a real great gaming computer go to ibuypower.com and make a custom PC be prepared to get set back quite a lot of money because with all the best stuff in it you can rack up $8000+ dollars.

IBUYPOWER is at least a 100% markup, and as you get into four-digit territory, that markup increases at an astounding rate.

Rebranded pre-assembled computers are worth considering if -- and only if -- you're looking for a $US400 disposable kit with the latest version of MS-DOS (or whatever OS Dell puts all their software onto nowadays); for any other scenario, and especially with a computer used for demanding games, which is just about as far-removed from the $US400 special as possible, building it yourself is the only cost-effective option.

Well I came home from work and there they were...

for those of you who don't watch the main forums here they are straight from the Official FAQ:

system specs

Edit: oops just noticed its already been updated on the w4o main page.. hehe sorry



well... my cpu is 2.8 ghz.. otherwise I am at recommended. One more milestone down. Hopefully we will get a release date sometime soon as well.

I think the release date will be out within a few weeks at the most, because if they know how demanding the game is then they must be almost done with it.

Well, we're not allowed to speculate ... *coughs* March 31st?

hmm, my first post in ages, but heck this is crazy... Why oh why do they only support Windows XP!? I don't want windows xp and my 2000 works just as I want it, so I hope someone comes up with a workaround quickly after release or I'll have to buy crappy XP and run it on a separate partition just for Oblivion...

Besides that "small" frustration, God it's good that the waiting is almost over.. I almost can't believe it... maybe I'm dreaming?...

Mmmh... I hope that my PC will run the game wihtout any complications... my PC is only 1.8 ghz, but it's form the AMD Athlon 64 3000+ Series ...

And about the release date ... did you know that the German Amazon Page does already have an release date for Oblivion? It's said that the game will be out on 24th of March -.-

Check this out!

Yours, XellD!

I wouldn't worry too much Bofra... Its very likely that it will run just perfect in 2000. They only state XP because that is all they wanted to test it on I am sure. Win2000 is practically identical. They can't say it will work on 2000 if they didn't run tests on it and doubling up testing on a game that was already on delay just wasn't what they wanted to do.

I also saw alot of people upset about supported video chipsets... Same rule applies.. These are the chipsets they KNOW work because they tested them... It doesn't mean that others won't work.

I'm doomed, neither my Processor nor my graphics card are gonna work.

I'm gonna have to see if I can upgrade . . .

Amazon have always been slightly wrong or out of sync with release dates because they don't give a release date unless it's double-official. This sometimes means, like mine, "Dispatch Estimate Dec 5th - Not Yet Dispatched"
But it also means you shouldn't trust the dates on Shopping sites, but, It's not the only site saying late March. March is nearer the end of Q1 2006, ie. "early" 2006, so... Roll on March.

the amd 3000+ is the equivilent of an intel 3.0ghz. you'll be fine

U guys think this is gonna go to play on minimedium or minimum on ob:

Prossecor: Intel Pentium 4 2.8 Ghz with some cool hyper.....somthing

RAM: 1024 Mb

Grafic: ATI Radeon X600 PCI-express 256 Mb

2.2 Ghz, 32 bit Graphics, 512 RAM... but I have a 360, so who cares?

how do you check you ghz?

1. Will this computer run Oblivion?
amd athlon 2500+ 1.75ghz
512mb ram
ati sapphire radeon 9600 pro atlantis 256mb

2. Will this computer run Oblivion on MAX without aa, af and screen resolution 1280x1024?
amd athlon 64 x2 3800+ 2.0ghz
1.5gb ram
xfx 7800gt 256mb

I wouldn't be at all suprised if it ran it at 1792x1344 with 4xAA and 8xAF.

Anything over 1gb of ram will really help out but is practically not needed cos recommended specs said only 1gb. And your card and processor rock! You will easily be able to run it MAXED.

A question for my setup, what should I upgrade:

1gb of dual channel ddr ram (runs twice as fast, im told)
Athlon XP 2k CPU
nVidia geforece 4 ti 4200 128 ddr

two easy ways depending on how your start menu is configured

for classic view, simply right-click the MyComputer Icon on your desktop then click Proproties. At the bottom of the general tab, you will see something that looks like this...

Computer:
AMD Athlon™ 64 Processor
+3500
2.25ghz, 1.00GB of RAM
Physical Address Extension
(This is from my system, so obviously yours will look a little different, i used it just to show you the layout)

for the new view, you simply click start, and right click your MyComputer icon from the start menu, and click proproties, both methods will take you to the same screen.

I hope that helps


EDIT: oops, forgot to add, amd's run a little differently than intels. so, an AMD +3000 is equivilent to an Intel 3.0ghz. An AMD +2500 is equivelent to an Intel 2.5ghz and so on.

When I looked in my properties of "My Computer" it had the ram and some other info but not my hz, so I thought maybe there was another method you might have left out.....don't worry about it if you don't know of another way...I know I have a pentium II 866 that I put in a while ago(year).

Direct X Diagnosis is best.
(ie. dxdiag.exe or similar)

Funny, i was quite happy with my 2.6 gig processor til i realised it was Celeron, and ergo was running at approx. 1.3 gig.

*Stamps foot repeatedly*

oh yea ....start => run => type "dxdiag" I remember that now, did it some year or so ago when I got guild wars, thanks for the memory prod...still says 866 pent3

guys what do u say at inte p4 3000ghz CPU 1000RAM 7800GT 256
will it be able to run at best graphics?