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It's the end of the year, and that means it's time for our list of the very best low-end PC games 2020! That's right: we are here to provide you with an immaculate list of 10 best low-spec games you could be playing right this instant on your Pentium III machine! Well, okay, maybe we won't be going that far, now that we think of it. It is, after all, the end of 2020. PC gaming system requirements have, as you surely know, gone up by a fair margin.
Since there aren't that many mainstream low-end PC games coming out nowadays, we've come up with a unique solution to still be able to provide you with this content. The games we've listed will all work on some pretty shoddy/low-end hardware. That said, the lower you go on our list, the less hardware-intensive will our selected titles get. For example, the very best low-end PC game of 2020 will run on virtually anything. But, you'll see. More on that as we go along.
Another thing worth pointing out is that we've made an effort for the games on this list not to overlap too much with our favorite indie games of the year, as those titles are bound to work on low-spec hardware, too.
Best Low-End PC Games of 2020: Top 10 List
As ever, our main goal here is to inform! To that end, we've opted for a simple format that relays all the relevant info to you in one neat little package. So what you'll find below is a short description of the games in question and their respective PC system requirements. That way, you'll know what will work on your end, what might not, and what you'll have to positively butcher to get running. Fun!
#10: Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning
Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning is a remastered and slightly reworked version of the 2012 "classic" that was, in fact, a genuinely good game. Slightly undercooked, granted, but definitely noteworthy for a number of reasons. Graced by great combat, heaps of content, and a narrative/backstory written by none other than R. A. Salvatore, Re-Reckoning has all the good parts of its original variant, with the added bonus of being upgraded and improved upon for its 2020 release.
It's a really lovely package all in all, and it should run on what is generally considered low-end hardware in 2020. After all, the recently released RTX 3060ti is about as powerful as the new consoles, and that's a mid-range GPU through-and-through.
- GPU: DirectX 10 level GPU with at least 1 GB of VRAM
- CPU: Intel or AMD Dual-Core CPU, 2.5 GHz
- RAM: 4 GB
- Storage: 40 GB
Play Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning today!
#9: Darksiders Genesis
Though none of the previous Darksiders games have been all that eager to run on lower-end hardware, we found ourselves surprised by how well-optimized Darksiders: Genesis turned out to be. For sure, this is certainly at least partially the effect of its isometric camera and a simplified visual style. Regardless, it helped, and chances are that you can run this bad boy, even if only at reduced visual settings.
What this game delivers is a phenomenal twin-stick gameplay loop that also builds upon the admittedly significant Darksiders lore. A lovely experience, provided that it runs on your machine, of course.
- GPU: Nvidia GTX 960
- CPU: Intel i5-4690K / AMD FX-8320
- RAM: 4 GB
- Storage: 15 GB
Play Darksiders Genesis today!
#8: Empire of Sin
The newest game on our list is none other than Empire of Sin, by John Romero himself. Yes, the John Romero, of DOOM fame. Don't be fooled by its flashy lighting effects and great visual fidelity: Empire of Sin is wonderfully scalable at its lowest settings.
Perhaps more importantly, this is a turn-based strategy/role-playing game hybrid with management elements. High framerate is hardly an important prerequisite in this case. If the premise of leading a family of mafiosos in Prohibition-era Chicago appeals to you, we reckon you could get Empire of Sin running on some pretty low-end hardware. Why not give it a shot, eh?
- GPU: Nvidia GTX 460 / Radeon R7 250 / Radeon Vega 11
- CPU: Intel Core i3-530 / AMD Phenom II X3-720
- RAM: 4 GB
- Storage: 10 GB
#7: XCOM: Chimera Squad
Another phenomenal turn-based strategy that came out earlier this year, XCOM: Chimera Squad was always going to be one of the best low-end PC games 2020. Alright, maybe it's not technically low-end, but it's going to run pretty darn well on any sort of rig nowadays.
Much like Empire of Sin, Chimera Squad will still be perfectly playable even at a low framerate. Yours truly had finished XCOM 2 back in the day at 15-20 FPS, so trust us when we say that it's doable. Less than ideal, to be fair. But doable. Chimera Squad is a lovely offshoot of the modern XCOM gameplay formula, and we think it's more-or-less a must-play for fans of the genre.
- GPU: Nvidia GTX 650 / Radeon HD 7770
- CPU: Quad-Core 2.4 GHz
- RAM: 4 GB
- Storage: 18 GB
Play XCOM: Chimera Squad today!
#6: Football Manager 2021
Football Manager 2021 is the very pinnacle of the sports management genre, and though its visual representation of matches has improved a fair bit over the years, it's still quite... let's say - approachable.
Let's be real: FM21 is, for the most part, a game of numbers. What you need isn't phenomenal graphics at a whopping 165Hz, because when it all boils down, this is a gamified spreadsheet, and that's precisely what we love about it. We've gone into great detail on what FM21 is and what it isn't, so be sure to check out the rest of our game coverage if you're interested. Otherwise, grab this and the similarly awesome FM21 Touch version of the game, which is even easier on PC hardware.
- GPU: Intel GMA X4500 / Nvidia GT 9600M / AMD Mobility Radeon HD 3650
- CPU: Intel Core 2 / AMD Athlon 64
- RAM: 4 GB
- Storage: 7 GB
Play Football Manager 2021 today!
#5: Persona 4 Golden
In case you somehow managed to miss it - the Persona franchise is now available on PC! Or, rather, one of its games is: Persona 4 Golden. It's still kind of early to tell whether this is merely Atlus' first foray into PC game development, or if this is a sign of things to come for their future releases.
What is not too early to tell, however, is that P4G is a wonder on low-spec hardware. Its stylized visuals may not be quite up-to-par with the latest and greatest PC releases, but they definitely haven't been outdated, and the gameplay consists mostly of classic Persona goodness we all know and love. This one's a keeper.
- GPU: Nvidia GTS 450 / AMD Radeon HD 5770
- CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 / AMD Phenom II X2-550
- RAM: 2 GB
- Storage: 14 GB
#4: Neon Abyss
The one game we wanted to include from our list of favorite 2020 indies - Neon Abyss. Not only does this bugger not even hiccup when the going gets tough on a low-spec machine, but it's also a consistently fun and engaging experience even if you're running it on some awful hardware.
No big surprise, for sure because indie games have always been buds & pals with low-spec gaming communities. Regardless, with the sheer amount, scope, and quality of effects on show in Neon Abyss, we'd have expected it to trudge along at times. No such problems on our end!
- GPU: Nvidia GS 7600
- CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6320
- RAM: 2 GB
- Storage: 1 GB
#3: Prodeus
The only real reason Prodeus wasn't at the very top of our indie game list is that we knew it would probably be a better pick for this one. In short: this is Brutal Doom - A Standalone Game. You can check out a more in-depth overview of this game and its hardware requirements if you follow the link we included above, but devs have really outdone themselves with this one.
Sheer FPS awesomeness aside, Prodeus also allows players to toggle between high-fidelity 3D models and 2D sprites for weapons and enemies, as well as a truly remarkable number of performance settings to fiddle around with. Now, sure, you can push Prodeus to its absolute limit and burn your poor PC down. You could also render it at 640 x 320 and enjoy gaming on your ancient Pentium 3, though.
- GPU: Nvidia GTX 580 / AMD Radeon HD 7870
- CPU: 4 Cores at 2+ GHz
- RAM: 2 GB
- Storage: 4 GB
#2: DOOM 64
Don't let the official spec sheet trick you: Doom 64 will run on anything and everything. The only real requirement is that your GPU supports Vulkan, from what we can tell. The rest, though? Knock yourself out.
What makes this game particularly interesting is that this is the first time DOOM 64 has been released on PC. You read that right: this is an updated port of the original Nintendo 64 release, and it's a real hoot. The game looks way better than the real first Doom title, and it's a far more ominous and grimdark experience overall. Certainly, an experience that stands on its own two legs, and something new for older fans of the franchise that might not have known about DOOM 64 in the first place.
- GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 / AMD Radeon R7 240 / Intel HD 530
- CPU: Intel Core i5-750
- RAM: 8 GB
- Storage: -
#1: Command & Conquer: Remastered
And now we're at the pinnacle of this list. One of the greatest Remasters we've been graced with yet: the renewed and refreshed Command & Conquer title. While we're pretty darn hard-pressed to come up with another RTS that had come out over the course of 2020, C&C Remastered would've topped whatever else we got.
It goes without saying that the original Command & Conquer games not only defined the real-time strategy genre over the years, but also formed it into what it eventually became. While it may have lost its steam by now, reworks and remasters such as this one give us hope regardless. C&C: Remastered is phenomenal, and it will verifiably run on just about anything. Get it!
- GPU: Nvidia GT 420 / ATI Radeon HD 5570
- CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E4600 / AMD Athlon 64 X2-6400
- RAM: 4 GB
- Storage: 32 GB
Play Command & Conquer: Remastered today!
Did you find a new 2020 Low-End PC Game to play?
We hope this list has helped you out in discovering something new and exciting to spend your holidays playing! This kind of article isn't particularly new to us, mind, and we'll have plenty more coming your way over the next few weeks.
In the meantime, what you might want to do is to look over our low-end PC optimization guide. In this rather hefty article, we've gone over some of the most useful techniques that you, too, can try to squeeze out a few more FPS out of your games. No shoddy "scanners" and RAM manager apps, we promise. Just you, your PC optimization knowledge, and our comprehensive tips to guide you all the way through.
Stay tuned for more awesomeness here at 2Game, and happy gaming!
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