will be able to get my pc up to the task, but realistically I have no idea what it will take. I was hoping the advice here would lead me to be able to go out and upgrade where I need too, rather than for example spending money on more RAM or a better processor which might not actually be what is holding my system back. So Knight of Redemption, you think it is a case of going out and buying myself a more powerful graphics card? Oh no shadow of a doubt...it's a tough call though, you have to be sure your motherboard and power supply is up to the job of the newer cards. I had a close call with my GTX 570, just enough power cables to run it (it takes four) Your processor is a little old (in PC terms) even my Quad core is showing its age. You may even be better off looking for a second hand gaming PC $500 should get you one only a year or so old that is more up to spec and you can upgrade that more in a few months. My best advice is to really nail down the specs of your machine, what kind of pci slots do you have, will your power supply have enough outputs and have enough power for a new card. More memory is never a bad thing, Windows is a terrible memory hog and the more you have the better. mobo p67