37 Great Games For Laptops And Low-End PCs

We all want to have the best gaming setup possible, but we can’t all afford thousand-dollar GPUs and 12-core monster PCs. Sometimes you’re a student stuck with a potato laptop, or you’re just getting by on an entry level rig.

And that’s fine, because there are a ton of great games available. If you’re looking for something that’ll run without much fuss, here’s a massive list of games to try out.

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This post has been updated since its original publication, with new games added and old ones removed.

Gunpoint

One of the great stealth PC indies, Gunpoint is all about dodging alarms, sight cones and crafting clever plans to confound enemies. Sometimes it’ll all work perfectly, and other times you’ll completely screw it up. A great, short title with tight mechanics that’s often available on sale for a few dollars.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky

One of the most well-crafted — and most enormous — JRPGs ever made, Trails in the Sky is an excellent adventure that you can comfortably get lost in for weeks. It’ll run on literally everything: the minimum requirements are a Pentium 3 550Mhz CPU, which was released all the way back in 1999. Your laptop can handle this one easy.

La Mulana

If you’ve got some patience, then one of the most difficult platformers awaits. La Mulana is one of the original Metroidvanias that delighted in brutalising players, far more than Castlevania or its ilk ever did. A complex dungeon and some truly brutal puzzles, but if you like a challenge, La Mulana will keep you busy.

The Witness

Look. I personally wouldn’t play The Witness on a laptop of any description, but that’s because The Witness would be liable to make me throw said laptop across the room. The game has an astonishing ability to make you feel really dumb. Hell, some people started drawing on their TVs just to work out some of the puzzles.

But in all seriousness, it’s an extraordinary game. Great on the eyes, too, if you’re playing on a newer laptop with an HDR-capable screen.

Star Wars: Empire at War

Age of Empires meets Star Wars. Do you really need more than that?

Strife: Veteran Edition

A blast from the past courtesy of remaster legends Night Dive Studios. Strife was a shooter first released in 1996, built on the principle that DOOM-esque games were capable of incorporating deeper stories and RPG elements.

The re-released version plays much more nicely on modern screens and operating systems. The low-end requirements mean you won’t have to tank every detail into oblivion either. A great nostalgic trip and a wonderful window into a great era of PC games to boot.

Heroes of Might and Magic 3

Still the best and greatest of the HoMM high fantasy series. Don’t get the HD edition that’s floating around on Steam: make sure you grab the better version from GOG instead.

Xenonauts

A harder version of X-COM, styled much more like the original MicroProse game, for those who hate themselves. I’m warning you: Xenonauts is damn hard.

Retro City Rampage DX

Retro City Rampage DX already runs on low-end systems, but if you really want, the game comes with an extra that’s designed to run on a 486 DX PC. There’s even a prototype Windows 3.1 version.

That aside, Retro City is great for scratching that 8-bit, early GTA vibe. It’s also a great call back to the late ’80s and early ’90s, for those that love exploring that world.

UnderRail

Love the original Fallout games? Then UnderRail might be up your alley. Humanity has retreated to a series of underground train stations, fleeing from the radiation on the surface. It’s fairly challenging, offers a deep character creation system, and has some savage difficulty spikes to boot. But if you love that era of isometric, hardcore RPGs, there’s something in UnderRail for you.

Invisible, Inc.

Invisible Inc.

One of Klei’s best adventures and a great roguelite adventure. Klei’s art chops are world class, as always, but what really makes Invisible Inc is its deep customisation. The soundtrack and characters are excellent too, and there’s the Contingency Plan DLC for extra starting characters and a longer campaign.

Command & Conquer: Remastered Collection

Want that classic RTS feeling with a modern touch? C&C Remastered is a great choice, running just fine on modern integrated graphics. It’s not on Macs, though

Terraria

One of the greatest indies ever released on Steam, and also one of the most popular PC games on the platform. If you want something that’s great solo, shared with friends, or just a giant sandbox with more defined progression than Minecraft, Terraria is it.

Journey

Traditionally only available on PS3 and the PS4, Journey has since made the leap over to PC by way of the Epic Games Store. Like some of the indies on this list, Journey is one of those seminal, unmissable titles. It’s also got relatively low PC requirements, only needing a Nvidia GTS 450 which any modern integrated GPU will be able to match.

Elsinore

An intriguing indie where you’re stuck in the world of Hamlet, with a twist: everyone you know will die, and the world continually repeats itself until Ophelia can figure everything out. Elsinore‘s dynamic story engine means Ophelia learns from every time loop, and the game immediately reacts to your decisions in the beginning and every future loop.

It’s a narrative adventure that really flew under the radar last year, and it’s great to dive into if you need a gripping story when you’re on the road. A minimum GPU requirement of a HD 4000 means most modern laptops will run the game with no issue, too.

AMID EVIL

It’s like oldschool Heretic, but in a modern wrapping with a totally different context. If you want more retro shooters, DUSK is also another banger of a title that runs on low end PCs, but as is customary, they’re both better with a mouse (wired or wireless).