Today’s gaming computers are more powerful than we even realise. Even a lower range gaming rig offers thousands of times the computational power than the computers that first sent the human race into space, and we often take for granted just how much the average desktop or laptop is able to accomplish in a relatively short amount of time.

Despite all of that, many computers can struggle when faced with some of the latest AAA titles, which can include lower FPS, overheating, and parts wearing out a bit faster than they’re meant to. Fortunately, there are a few simple ways of improving overall performance without having to empty your wallet.

Specific Hardware Upgrades

When we think of how to better improve the performance of our machines, we often believe that only the latest graphics card can make any kind of real difference, but this simply isn’t true. Perhaps the very biggest update that a computer can receive is the installation of a Solid-State Drive as its primary drive where the operating system is found. SSDs have become extremely expensive, and it’s sometimes worth investing in a small 120 GB model just for the OS. Upgrading to an SSD will have the biggest impact on overall performance but adding an extra stick of RAM can also make a noticeable difference.

Bloatware

If you bought your machine from a specific brand or vendor, the chances are that it will come preloaded with enough bloatware to significantly cut down on performance. This might come in the form of an antivirus or other software that comes bundled with the PC but will ultimately just end up eating away at its resources. This is why it’s a good idea to give the computer a completely fresh install of an operating system after formatting the primary drive to ensure that there is no unnecessary software on board. To take this step even further, avoiding as much unneeded software in the future can also make a difference, such as avoiding antivirus software that is known for causing a slowdown of performance.

Graphical Adjustments

If everything else fails to improve performance, the next best option is to start playing with the graphical options of both the games that you want to play as well as the settings for the graphics card that’s installed. Nvidia, for example, offers a powerful suite of graphics card controls that allow the user to change just about every setting imaginable, allowing them to tune a specific game to work best with that specific card. AMD also provides their own set of tools for a similar reason. Ultimately, it depends on what the user values most: higher FPS or higher quality visuals. For most, having a consistent FPS is much more important, as it means lower input lag, but some don’t mind this too much.

Whatever the case, there are always options to improving the gaming experience, especially as hardware becomes cheaper and software more streamlined.