How many CPU cores will you need for gaming in 2021?

Sony Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X are on the horizon. But what about your old (or maybe even new) CPU? Is it good enough for future games?

#CPU #Cores #Threads #2021

[mab]

4 cores and 8 threads are enough now but in the the next couple of heavy games the 8 core cpu will finally be utilised well, 6 cores is great now while 8 cores is perfect

[windblownleaf]

6 cores are the sweetspot, 8 cores are perfect

[Hiniberus]

You basically nail it real well, 6/12 is a bit of a short term investment, 8/16 should be the go-to if you want it to last a while longer. Above 8/16 can still be useful but it starts becoming a case of "it depends". I know for sure my 6500 / 1080 is really feeling its age nowadays. Yet with AM5 just around the corner and the GPU shortage...Oh, yeah, Alder Lake S is also somewhere there.

[surou]

Very nicely explained.
You explained all scenarios for each cpu.
I enjoyed your realistic thinking. Thanks helped a lot.

[rockybalboa]

Game engine use 6 threads. So fastest 4c/8t is realy what you need now. But Its nice to have some extra headroom for backround application so I would go for 6c/12t in case you dont know how to setup your system.

[RhalataShera]

Have had a 3600 since release and it still feels as snappy and fast as it did back then (upgraded from an i5-4460S). Might upgrade in the future to a 5900x/5800x as my MOBO should still handle them VRM-wise. But since the only upcoming AAA game I'm interested in is the new Total War Warhammer III I think this 6-core will serve me for at least 2 more years :)

[MGB]

I have replace my 4c/8t (7700) this black Friday for a 8c/16t 9900k

[indenkellerag]

0:39 wrong picture, you need a picture of AMD ryzen 3500, it has 6cores and 6threads

[AbhinavRamana]

I have a 3080 RTX GPU. I only want to use it for gaming. Are there games where playing at 4k with ray tracing will bottleneck if I use 3900x vs 3800x ? Can I just stick to 3800x?

[kvetinky]

i5-10400f is better in gaming performance than i7-9700f. 6 cores is enought for any resolution expect 8K.

[crashy]

Long story short: Atleast 4 or 6 cores

[Kynareth]

Current-gen consoles are equipped with 8c16t Zen2 CPUs. 4c8t CPUs will most definitely get quickly outdated, prepare yourself mentally for that. 4c4t is a lost cause already. 6c12t is ok for now, but Zen1 ≠ Zen3. 5800X even though has the same 8c16t configuration, can provide up to 3 times as many frames per second as 1700.

[MrBEFjeld]

its also true that the cpu work harder on 6 or 8 than 10, so it will use more and get tierd faster (lifespan) and power consume. i would not buy under 10 if i could, but u have some years on 8 core.