You probably don't need a killer PC to play Elden Ring
But Elden Ring's leaked PC minimum specs maybe steeper than expected
If you can't find an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 for your gaming PC, then don't worry as Elden Ring won't need to latest GeForce RTX cards to run. But gong by some allegedly leaked "minimum specs" you might struggle if you don't have a reasonably recent PC.
The new action RPG, featuring work from star Dark Souls developer Hidetaka Miyazaki and Song of Ice and Fire writer George R.R. Martin, had its PC system requirements briefly posted to the Steam store page, before being hurriedly removed as seen by PC Gamer.
OS: Windows 10, Windows 11
CPU: Intel Core i5-8400 or AMD Ryzen 3 3300X
RAM: 12GB
GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 (3GB) or AMD Radeon RX 580 (4GB)
Drive Space: 60GB
With the game only a couple of weeks from launch, it's about time we saw some system requirements. However, as you can see in the box to the right or in the image below, these specs look a little off.
These are arguably surprisingly high specs. Looking at the specs listed on Steam for From Software's last game, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, the minimum CPU was a much less powerful Intel Core i3-2100 from 2011 or AMD FX-6300 processor from 2021, while the minimum GPU was a GTX 760 or Radeon HD 7950, four- and seven-year-old cards respectively by the time the game came out. The specs above ask for much newer components, with the oldest dating to 2017. Also 12GB RAM is an unusual amount to specify given how common 8GB RAM packages have been and how common 16GB RAM rigs are now.
Given these specs are more powerful than expected, it's possible that these specs are in fact the recommended specs. Putting these details on the store page may therefore have been premature, And it may not be long until we see some more reasonable minimum specs online and these re-labelled specs as the recommended requirements.
Equally, it's possible that these just are the true minimums. After all, Elden Ring is a game destined for the PS5 and Xbox Series X, which could mean From Software's been able to make a huge jump in visual fidelity and other key features compared to Sekiro (a PS4/Xbox One game). The high performance demand may also be because unlike previous From titles, Elden Ring has an open world rather than discrete levels. Keeping the map available to the player at all times would likely require a lot of processing grunt in comparison.
You'll be able to get your hands on Elden Ring from February 24, so it won't be too long until the specs are published again, but hopefully this time without disappearing. Other rumors we've heard have tipped a 30-hour story for the game, and we may have also seen the character creator system leak already too.
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Richard is based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, tablets, gaming, and whatever else people need advice on. Following on from his MA in Magazine Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he's also written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at work, he's likely thinking about how to brew the perfect cup of specialty coffee.