Need help building gaming computer.

If you could edit it into the format shown here it is very helpful as you left out some important information
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/ [...] ild-advice

I recently built a system for just over $1100 NZD (about $750 USD) with a 2.93GHz Intel Dual Core, 2GB RAM and a nVidia 9400GT (for my girlfriend). You could get a system similar to this but with a slightly better graphics card as the x400 cards are the lower end of whatever series (9600 or 9800 would do a fine job).

As far as compatible/upgradeable goes, pretty much all motherboards now have at least one PCI Express 16x slot (for graphics cards). It is highly unlikely that the interface for graphics hardware will be changing soon, so you will be able to upgrade to a better graphics card in the future should you choose. In terms of RAM, I would say get the highest frequency/speed that your chosen motherboard can support - RAM is dirt cheap and it pays to have plenty. Don't make the mistake of getting one or two large RAM sticks, as the number of total MB does not equal speed! I tend to fill up all availiable RAM (DIMM) slots, even if it is with 512MB sticks.

The games you mentioned are not hugely graphics intensive so having a beafy SLI/Crossfire system is not neccessary. If you can afford to, get a decent graphics card now so you don't have to upgrade later if you decide you want to play extremely graphics intensive games. I have an nVidia 8600GT and can play most games on max graphics (although newer games require me to run at a lower screen resolution ).

Also, if you like your gaming, get a decent quality monitor at a good size. I run dual ViewSonic VX2233WM widescreens @ 1920x1080 and the picture is awesomely clear. The system I mentioned above has a low end monitor and itjust isn't the same.

Here are the components of that recent build and price I paid for them in NZ dollars:

Gigabyte GZ-X1 ATX Mid Tower Case, 420W PSU, Black - $132
Gigabyte GA-EP41-UD3L Motherboard, Socket 775, 1333MHz FSB, 4xDIMM DDR2, PCIe-16, 3xPCI, 3xPCIe-1, 8xUSB2, Audio, 1xATA, 4xSATA, ATX - $156
Intel Core 2 Duo E7500 2.93Ghz, 1066MHz FSB, Socket 775, Retail pack with fan - $242
Asus EN9400GT SILENT/DI/512MD2 Video Card, GeForce 9400 GT, 512MB, DDR2, PCIe-16, TV out, DVI, Low profile - $96
Western Digital Caviar Green WD5000AADS Hard Disk Drive, 500GB, 7200rpm, 32MB Cache, SATA-2 - $107
Corsair XMS2, TWIN2X2048-6400C4, 2x1GB, DDR2-800, PC2-6400, CL4, DIMM, EPP - $74
ViewSonic VA2013WM Monitor, 20" LCD, 1600x900, Speakers, Black - $258
LG Electronics GH22NS50 DVD Writer, DVD 16R/22W/8RW, CD 48R/48W/32RW, Internal, SATA, Black, OEM - $75

I opted for a bit higher up in your budget with the idea of upgradability, 787 before shipping/tax/MIRs

PII 955 $189
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819103674

Asus 790X $120
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131402

Patriot 4GB DDR3 1333MHz CL7 $84
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820220278

Samsung F3 $50
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822152181

Corsair 650TX $100-20MIR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] &Tpk=650tx

HAF 922 $110
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811119197

XFX 4850 $105
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814150337

LG DVD Burner $29
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827136167

Gives you the option of crossfire down the line and the extra 19 for the processor gives you an unlocked multiplier to make for easy overclocking.

Wow thanks alot for all the replys, you guys rock.