My friend wants me to build him a gaming PC for $500.

gorebs

Honorable
Apr 3, 2013
42
0
10,530
He already has Windows 8.1. He doesn't care about all this AMD vs Intel nonsense. ;)

What would you guys suggest? He has 1600x900 monitor and plays mostly games that are on console too.
 
Solution
watchdogs is a poorly coded game it even struggles in a quad core and yes the system will be fine for 2 years you may have to lower the gfx settings eventually.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($104.98 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock 970 Extreme3 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 Low Profile Blue 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($67.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($57.23 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 270 2GB Dual-X Video Card ($162.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX TS 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24F1ST DVD/CD Writer ($19.94 @ OutletPC)
Total: $543.09
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

This is what i came up with i have gone a little bit more than the budget but this setup will let him play at high and ultra settings every game.