Editing Openai/69676758-d944-8003-a3d4-835e33b4e372 (section)

=== Assistant: Got it — now we’re flipping the problem. ===
Got it — now we’re flipping the problem. Instead of “given hardware, what can my game do,” you want “given a game design, what hardware specs are required to run it at target performance.” This is exactly what studios do for “minimum” and “recommended” specs.

Here’s a step-by-step method.

==== 1. Define your design targets ====

Before estimating hardware, you must know:
* Frame rate → e.g., 60 FPS → 16.67 ms/frame
* Resolution → e.g., 1080p
* Maximum simultaneous entities → NPCs, physics objects, particles
* Maximum texture & geometry fidelity → polygons, texture resolution
* Maximum post-processing effects → shadows, lighting, screen-space effects

: These numbers are the design inputs for the calculation.

==== 2. Estimate CPU cost per mechanic ====

For each system, estimate time per unit per frame.

| Mechanic          | CPU per unit (ms) | Units | Total CPU (ms/frame) |
| ----------------- | ----------------- | ----- | -------------------- |
| NPC AI            | 0.025             | 100   | 2.5                  |
| Physics body      | 0.002             | 500   | 1.0                  |
| Animation eval    | 0.010             | 150   | 1.5                  |
| Game logic        | –                 | –     | 1.0                  |
| Scripting / audio | –                 | –     | 0.5                  |

Sum → CPU time per frame
Example: 6.5 ms → required CPU must have at least this much per core (or multi-threaded equivalent).

==== 3. Estimate GPU cost per mechanic ====

Same approach, but in GPU milliseconds or complexity units:

| Mechanic                     | GPU cost per unit | Units | Total GPU cost |
| ---------------------------- | ----------------- | ----- | -------------- |
| Character geometry & shading | 0.05 ms           | 50    | 2.5 ms         |
| Environment props            | 0.005 ms          | 500   | 2.5 ms         |
| Particles                    | 0.01 ms           | 200   | 2.0 ms         |
| Post-processing              | –                 | –     | 2.0 ms         |
| Shadows                      | –                 | –     | 1.0 ms         |

Sum → GPU frame time
Example: 10 ms → GPU must be able to execute that workload in ≤ 10 ms at the target resolution.

==== 4. Convert CPU/GPU time to hardware class ====

Once you have total CPU & GPU time per frame:
# CPU: ``<code> Required CPU performance = total CPU workload / frame time per core </code>`` - Adjust for multithreading and per-core efficiency. - Use benchmark numbers of real CPUs: - e.g., if your design uses 6.5 ms CPU per frame on one “simulation” core, a CPU like i7-3770K (~3.5 GHz) can handle it. If >10 ms, need a stronger CPU.
# GPU: - Convert total GPU ms → GPU throughput needed: - Vertex throughput (Mvertices/s) - Pixel throughput (MPixels/s) - Shader performance (GFlops) - Compare to benchmarked GPUs. - Example: total shading cost = 10 ms at 1080p → 6600 XT class can handle it. 4K would need stronger GPU.

==== 5. Estimate memory requirements ====

===== RAM =====
# Sum all gameplay, physics, AI, audio, streaming buffers.
# Add OS overhead (3–4 GB for modern Windows).
# Add safety margin (~10–15%).

Example: design requires 8 GB + 4 GB OS + 10% → 13.2 GB → recommend 16 GB RAM minimum.

===== VRAM =====
# Sum all textures, geometry buffers, render targets, shadows, post effects.
# Add headroom (0.5–1 GB).
# Example: 6 GB total → recommend 8 GB GPU.

==== 6. Factor in bandwidth ====
* CPU: RAM bandwidth may limit AI/physics-heavy systems.
* GPU: Memory bandwidth may limit high-resolution textures or full-screen effects.
* Include headroom (~10–20%) in both cases.

==== 7. Define minimum / recommended / high-end specs ====
* Minimum → can just hit your frame target at lowest settings.
* Recommended → comfortable frame rate, medium-high settings.
* High-end → maxed-out settings, higher resolution / FPS.

| Tier        | CPU                 | RAM      | GPU                     | Notes              |
| ----------- | ------------------- | -------- | ----------------------- | ------------------ |
| Minimum     | ~i5/i7 3rd gen      | 16 GB    | 6600 XT / GTX 1060      | 1080p 60 FPS       |
| Recommended | 6–8 cores, 3.5 GHz+ | 16–32 GB | RTX 3060 / 6600 XT high | 1080p Ultra 60 FPS |
| High-end    | 8+ cores            | 32 GB    | RTX 4070+ / 6800 XT     | 1440p 60–120 FPS   |

===== ✅ Key principle =====
* Start with frame budget and mechanics cost.
* Sum per-unit costs to get total CPU/GPU time and memory.
* Compare to benchmarked hardware → pick hardware tier.
* Iterate: tweak mechanic complexity or entity counts until budget fits desired tier.

If you want, I can make a worked example calculation for one specific system, like your 3770K + 6600 XT, showing exactly how to calculate minimum CPU cores, GPU power, RAM, and VRAM from a hypothetical open-world game design. That turns theory into a step-by-step “on-paper hardware calculator.”