Running Demanding DOS Games on Affordable Hardware

DOS 3D games running at 640x480 high resolution can be very demanding, struggeling even on a fast Pentium. In this video we are putting together a DOS Retro PC that is very fast, capable of running System Shock smooth at 640x480 but is also budget friendly.

💙 Support Me 💙

Buy parts shown in video:
US:
UK:
Germany:
Canada:
Australia:

Classic Games from GOG:

Resources:

Disclosure: Some links in this description are affiliate links. I receive a small commission when you make a purchase. There are no additional costs to you.

Support PhilsComputerLab:

[jonchapman]

This is the kind of content that made Philscomputerlab what it is today, fantastic stuff 👌🏻

[briangoldberg]

i'm glad some people are keeping this stuff alive. i spend my energy restoring old tvs and stereo equipment, so i don't really have the bandwidth for a retro pc equipment hobby as well. i just use dosbox lol 😅

[Dant]

Another great video, Phil! Looking forward to any future videos you may do on SBEMU or even The Rasteri's eventual LPC to ISA adapter. It really feels like the community is on the verge of busting down the last few barriers from running native DOS games on basically any PC. Very exciting times ahead!

[DarkLordValmar]

Literally the same motherboard and CPU I'm running in my retro 98/ME rig, with a Audigy 2ZS and a ATI X800 XT PE, it's perfect!

[O.Shawabkeh]

Your enthusiasm while staying away from the hype path is appreciated

[theuglycamel]

Talk about coincidences, I just finished a 98/DOS build with a Biostar socket A and an Athalon 2400. It's a via266 chipset without sata but I'm drowning in ide drives anyway... I'm literally setting up autoconfig for DOS as I type! Great video as always. Just so you know, your downloads are a godsend for getting these old cheap boards going. Thanks for all you do!

[MarcoGPUtuber]

Affordable hardware running demanding games? Only Phil knows what to do!

[emmalastname]

Thank you for all the resources in the description! I don't need to build another retro machine but now I am strongly considering it lol
Great job on the video!

[Ronaldopopkings]

Being able to use a new modern cpu cooler is a must. Had so many retro PC moments ruined by small fans with ruined ball bearings making completely awfull noise.

[ozzyp]

I'm happy with my pile of assorted Slot 1 stuff (and a janky HP 486 pizza box), but more people having access to the hobby is always a good thing in my books. Keep it up Phil!

[mesterak]

Thanks Phil for the bonus video! Availability of working 754 boards is a challenge in the US often times, but 939 boards can be had reasonably. Socket 939 CPUs are more readily available on places like eBay, too.

[kcj]

I tried building with a Radeon 9200 pci and it worked fine under windows 98 but once I tried dos I got weird artifacting. It may have been my scaler solution but switching to a GeForce FX 5200 fixed all the issues I was having. (Probably picked up the fx because you recommend it) I did not know about the dvi locked at 60hz I will need to look into that. Always picking up awesome info from your videos.

[DarkLordValmar]

Still my favorite channel on YouTube, keep it up Phil!

[GameplayandTalk]

I have a similar system with an Athlon XP CPU and a similar Radeon you had recommended in a video years back. It's a great dual-purpose rig, allowing nice, high res titles in Windows '98, but it also has decent enough DOS compatibility as well. As you mentioned near the end of this video, I agree that you definitely want as much CPU power as you can for later DOS games that support higher resolutions. I still love playing the original Quake in software mode, for instance. At 1024x768, my system still manages a flawless 60fps. Paired with a CRT, it's a great experience!

[davkdavk]

Another great video, Phil. Love the dedication to the oldschool

[KerranKaksi]

The retro hardware piece that I value most and still own is the Roland SCC-1 ISA card that I got back in the 90's. I could not live without it for retro PC gaming so I am stuck with old motherboards that still have ISA bus :)

[Jackpkmn]

I've been having fun playing around with a Via C7 based embedded system for windows 98/dos stuff it's been an interesting journey. Trying to find extremely small DDR2 dimms tho is a challenge.

[Xerxes-xngy]

Cool setup and video ! As for a MS-Dos/windows 98 setup I built a Pentium4 machine with an Asrock 775i65G (rev3), 512mb of ram, a 40gb Maxtor, a Diamond vortex2 and 6800 gt. So far it runs really well (only tested duke nukem 3d and little big adventure 2 at the moment).

[mjmonjure]

Hi Phil, just visited your website and it is fantastic! Clean and organized, just the way I like it.

[CaptainKenway]

Love Athlon 64s. My DOS/Windows 98 system is built around an Abit UL8 (Socket 939), which has a ULi chipset. Works great and Nvidia even still host the drivers on their website. Complete overkill of course and Socket 754 stuff tends to be cheaper all-round, but I picked it up cheap on Ebay and had always wanted an Abit motherboard.