- Skill development often outweighs the benefits of high-end hardware in gaming performance.
- For noticeable improvements, invest in mid-range hardware upgrades like good audio and input devices.
- Ensure a low-latency internet connection to avoid game-disrupting lag.
Gaming hardware has been getting continually better and more expensive. This makes you wonder if we’ve hit a point of diminishing returns and if the standard bits of gaming hardware are good enough for most people. Does it matter what hardware level you have to be a good gamer? Keep reading to find out!
Does It Matter?
Yes, better hardware does improve gaming simply by enhancing your perception. For example, playing a shooter at 60 FPS feels smoother than at 30 FPS, but how much does 120 or 240 FPS really help? Let’s explore how each part of your setup impacts your gaming experience.
Audio
Audio might be the biggest overlook one can make while crafting their perfect setup. A lot of competitive games rely heavily on audio cues to alert players of things happening around them that might be outside their field of view.
This might also apply to your audio input, as having a clear and legible can make a big difference in your comms sounding less slurred, allowing you to alert your teammates better.
Because audio is such an underrated aspect of most people’s setup, we would say that having a good quality headset can give you a very real advantage in competitive play. You don’t need to go overboard; you just need headphones that relay directional sound well so you can tell if someone is sneaking up on you and where from.
Performance
We’re bundling together two pieces of hardware under performance: the framerate that your computer can supply and the framerate your monitor can display.
Unfortunately, Steam’s hardware survey does not measure refresh rates, so we don’t know how many people use monitors with higher refresh rates. Disregarding that, higher refresh rates do significantly help you in how fast you can react to certain events and how low the delay between you doing something and it happening is.
Even though you wouldn’t be able to see the higher framerate, having a computer that can render as many frames as possible can be beneficial because of the decreased delay between your input and the event triggering.
Once again, there is a middle ground to be seen here, with most people struggling to notice a difference in efficiency in refresh rates higher than 120 or 144Hz, though advantages do exist if you go even higher.
Input Devices
We’re bundling keyboards, mice, and controllers all into a single heading for this one.
Keyboards with shorter travel can reduce the delay between your reaction and an input being sent to your computer. Getting a shorter travel keyboard is a harmless horizontal upgrade for gaming, though the typing experience on your computer might suffer.
Mice are a bit more complicated. They need to have a good DPI range, short travel, low delay, and light enough to glide over your desk. Competitive gamers are very particular about their mice, leading us to believe that getting better can give you some advantage.
Finally, controllers mainly need small dead zones to be more effective, with back buttons being a bonus. The best method to improve your gaming skills on a controller is to throw it in the trash and start using a keyboard and mouse.
Internet Speed
For many people, the biggest delay in their gaming setup is not their refresh rate or the time it takes to make their buttons actuate but the delay in sending their game data to a server and updating the game for others.
Competitive games can become almost unplayable on high latency, so this is an aspect that we think it’s okay to invest heavily in. Be sure to check the advertised latency of your connection as well as the bandwidth before upgrading or changing your internet plan.
Is It Necessary?
Despite listing all the hardware that can affect your gaming experience, the biggest bottleneck for most people in becoming better gamers is not their hardware but their skills. There have been countless stories of pro gamers winning tournaments on horrible hardware to get their deserved recognition.
Try to hone your expertise as much as possible before you are sure that your hardware is holding you back from being a better gamer. You might find that the advantage you’ve been looking for was inside you this whole time.
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Heya, I’m Asad (Irre) Kashif! I’ve been writing about anything and everything since as far back as I can remember. Professionally, I started writing five years ago, working both as a ghostwriter and writing under my own name. As a published author and a council member in Orpheus, my journey in the world of writing has been fulfilling and dynamic.
I still cherish the essays I wrote about my favorite PS2 games, and I’m thrilled to have transformed my passion for game journalism into a career. I’m a theory crafter for Genshin Impact (and now Wuthering Waves) and have a deep love for roguelites and roguelikes. While I prefer indie games for their distinct aesthetic and vibes, I do enjoy triple-A games occasionally. I’ve also been playing League since season 6, and I main Akali! I have a keen interest in discovering and playing more obscure games, as well as researching forgotten titles. Additionally, I am a front-end programmer who dabbles a bit in gamedev occasionally.
