Games That Made Us Upgrade Our PCs
Sometimes, a really special game comes along that doesn’t just challenge our setup, it makes GPUs weep & CPUs cry for their mummy - and makes us realise that maybe our PC *does* need that upgrade.
Categorising these games as “popular” doesn’t really cut it, it becomes a benchmark & even a meme in some cases - it’s the kind of game that dominates hardware forums, discord channels, Reddit threads, and sparks the ol’ “Yeah but can it run Crysis” debate (obvious foreshadowing)…
These aren’t games that pushed your PC to the edge, these are games that watched it fall & smiled.
1. Crysis (2007)
The most obvious game, the OG, before memes were memes. You can’t start this list without this being first.
To say Crysis raised the bar would be an understatement, it said “cya” as it launched it into orbit - with lush jungles, dynamic lighting, and plenty of physics & destructible environments, it has all the hallmarks of a great game and it *is* a great game.
But why did “But can it run Crysis?” become a reference, well… Crytek built the game to mainly focus on single-core processors & the industry moved to multicore, and the graphics were insane - high draw distance, detailed textures, it was almost like they’d made the game for hardware that was generations ahead of what everyone had. And of course, this also meant more strain to keep everything inside your PC cool.
Nowadays, even a modest setup should be able to handle it, so you can sit back & enjoy an old-but-gold classic.
Why it mattered
- Put CPUs & GPUs to the test
- Became an unofficial benchmark
- Gave us that “Ultra Settings” obsession
2. The Elder Scolls V: Skyrim (2011)
“Hey you, you’re finally awake…” A line that’ll live in infamy, followed by a giant Thomas the Tank Engine breathing fire? If Skyrim taught us anything, it’s that mods are way more dangerous than dragons.
Winding the clock back to a time before mods, vanilla Skyrim (at it’s time) looked huge, in fact - it was and is huge, and minus Bethesda’s “features” it was pretty good at being able to run on a wide scope of hardware. And *then* the modders arrived.
4K textures, ENB graphics mods, rebuilt cities, and even cranking up lighting and draw distance - suddenly, with half of Nexus Mods downloaded, your Skyrim was a Goliath & your PC was David. It definitely taught some gamers how VRAM actually mattered, why an SSD was suddenly important, and so much more.
Why it mattered
- Became a tent-pole game
- Modding became more mainstream
- Encouraged RAM & storage knowledge and upgrades
3. Battlefield 3 (2011)
Maybe this feels like a headscratcher, but hang in there with me, because this was a really impressive game & you really did need a half-decent PC *at least.*
Powered by the Frostbite 2 engine, Battlefield 3 was a real “next-gen” experience for PC gamers, with gorgeous lighting, destruction around every corner, the sheer scale of some maps, it was matched up with beautiful audio design to deliver a proper package - and then throw in the lobbies of up to 64 players (for PC at least).
This was a game that really rewarded you if your PC could hit those high frame rates, increased draw distance, and high refresh rates - all around the time where 144Hz was pretty mainstream, and whilst consoles still couldn’t hold a candle.
Why it mattered
- Immersive audio & graphics
- Insane scale for PC players
- Pushed multiplayer PC performance limits
4. Grand Theft Auto V (2013/2015)
Like a lot of gamers, GTA V was one of those games I couldn’t wait for - so I grabbed a copy for my PS3 & then PC two years later. No shame.
When GTA V arrived to PC in 2015, it was packed with settings for us to tweak - population density, grass quality, shadow distance, MSAA that could tank your FPS - and hey, a handy dandy built-in benchmark to let you know just how much your PC sucked. And, I even recall a VRAM warning, and God bless my 780 Ti with its 3GB VRAM… even a higher-end PC could struggle if you got silly.
Because it clung around for so long, it got upgrades, more content, and even birthed roleplay servers - and that’s ignoring all of the available mods you can throw at this thing. We’d be amiss if we didn’t mention the fact that this also became a super social game, too, offering loads of content from the get-go for you and your pals to enjoy - sinking hour after hour into it.
We’re not saying it was the first or the best, but it certainly is a modern titan for everything it does.
Why it mattered
- Open-world optimisation meant learning to tune settings
- Modding & RP communities
- Drove & pushed Games as a Service
5. PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (2017)
PUBG wasn’t exactly what you’d call “optimised” - it was pretty clunky in its early days, meaning CPUs got maxed out, RAM usage that made Chrome blush, stuttering you just couldn’t avoid & that’s ignoring all of the weird stuff like getting a car half-stuck into a building.
Most folk who played CS:GO will remember turning down settings to max out FPS, and PUBG took that as a challenge.
The maps were huge and diverse, the way you played was pretty different, too - you dropped in, scrounged for stuff, and hoped for the best, all whilst that blue zone closed in. OK, yes, there’s an obvious elephant in the room (looking at you Arma & DayZ). It was vastly different to something like CS, a shorter, tactical round-by-round kinda game - or COD, which is pretty much run-and-gun.
Nowadays, it’s polished - and it felt like the team really listened to their players.
Why it mattered
- Arguably delivered a new genre
- Pushed hardware limits with up to 100 players
- Changed what “Early Access” could look like
6. Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020)
Photorealism, real-time weather, massively complex - if you wanted to test your rig, this was it, even a high-end PC would blush at its launch. But for flight-sim enthusiasts? This was it.
MSFS really did make you realise that everything inside your PC mattered: CPU, GPU, RAM, storage, cooling, even internet speeds - because yes, if you wanted the crème de la crème - you needed an internet connection or you’d be stuck with low-qual generated terrain, and with the 2024 release you absolutely need one otherwise you don’t get to play.
But with that said, on the right system with the right monitors - my goodness, it was a joy to experience…
Why it mattered
- High-end, fast hardware mattered
- Pushed simulation more mainstream
- Rewarded ultrawide/multi-monitor
7. Cyberpunk 2077 (2020)
The game that divided opinions, Cyberpunk 2077 was a mixed bag at launch. In one hand, it was visually stunning, had replayability and rich stories, was super customisable & so on - and in the other, it was rushed, you’d get random bugs and glitches, and people felt as though it was missing a lot of content that they’d been shown in trailers.
With that said, when you ironed out the kinks - it was impressive. Ray tracing, dense crowds, those classic neon-lit-dystopian-skyscraper-filled city streets, and even eventually path tracing that could make that game sing, and your PC scream.
Like most of the previous games in the list, suddenly everything mattered again - a better GPU, better cooling, even a better monitor.
Today, you get the joys of DLSS, FSR and frame generation, and with modern OLED monitors becoming more affordable, the game is visually transformed.
Why it mattered
- Revived the “Ultra Settings” race
- Pushed hardware for a premium experience
- Highlighted CPU & GPU bottlenecks
8. Black Myth: Wukong (2024)
A relatively new title, Black Myth: Wukong is powered by Unreal Engine 5, and is a real head-turner when it comes to just how good looking it is.
It delivers cinematic visuals, heavy effects, rich and detailed environments and modern rendering that’ll push your PC surprisingly hard if you want to turn up the settings. It also shows that modern games are using technologies that reward you for using higher-end hardware - even pushing the limits of minimum RAM spec.
Why it mattered
- Showcased Unreal Engine 5
- High barrier to play
- Upscaling matters
Every Generation Has “That Game”
The fun thing about PC gaming is that there’s always another game just around the corner waiting, bat in hand, to pummel your PC into submission - where you check the minimum and recommended and notice your few-gens-old rig is right there.
Whether it’s a title like Crysis, tech like path tracing, or engines like Unreal Engine 5 - there’ll also be something to draw us back in - no matter how many settings we change, that upgrade itch will always be waiting.
