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PC hardware has made notable leaps over the past few generations, and many processors now come with fairly capable integrated GPUs (iGPUs). These jumps may have made old computers less capable of handling heavy workloads, but they aren’t completely useless.
While many would think of a PC that’s a couple of generations old as nothing but e-waste, they can actually do a lot. I tested exactly that by turning an old Intel 8th Gen office PC into a retro-gaming machine. The result? Games were not just playable; the setup pushed PS2-era emulation without requiring a dedicated GPU (dGPU).
It goes without saying that the Intel UHD 630 of 8th Gen processors wasn’t designed for AAA gaming. Even for the titles of its time, which is 2018, the iGPU could barely offer over 20FPS. Of course, it was possible to squeeze a bit more out of it by tweaking the visual settings and lowering the resolution, but the gaming experience was still bad on it.
The picture changes when retro gaming is brought into the equation. The thing about emulation is that it’s more taxing on the CPU than on the GPU. So, when emulating old consoles, these dated iGPUs get a bit of breathing room, but that also means that the processor needs to be capable enough.
While emulation does require a capable CPU, the hardware doesn’t really need to be fancy. for example, the old Intel PC that I’m working with features the Core i5 8500, a mid-range processor from the lineup. It’s paired with 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. There’s no advanced cooling setup or any extra enhancements.
Setups such as this one are easy to find, but, of course, they might not come with an SSD or over 8GB of RAM. Upgrades on these components will help with responsiveness, but they won’t be necessary to get started with retro gaming.
A solid PCIe 4.0 Gen 4×4 SSD with up to 6,000/5,000MB/s read/write speeds.
The hardware is just half of the equation; software is the other half. Windows isn’t the wrong choice, as almost all retro game emulators are available on this platform, but simplicity matters for setups like this. With that in mind, Linux distros are the clear winners.
Batocera, for example, makes things easy. It can make the retro-gaming machine feel more like a console and less like a jerry-rigged PC trying to be one. There’s comprehensive system support, including relatively modern systems like the PlayStation 3, and the Linux distro even has performance optimizations.
Of course, Batocera isn’t the only option. If you want to retain core PC functionality and do retro gaming on the side, Arch Linux is a good pick. With RetroArch installed, you also get a similar front end as the one available on Batocera.
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Retro performance is where these old setups with capable processors shine. With the PS2 emulator that’s baked into Batocera, which is PCSX2, the Core i5 8500 with UHD 630 could deliver smooth 30FPS in almost all tested games. That includes God of War 1 and 2, Shadow of the Colossus, Tekken 5, and Persona 3.
Less demanding games were more than playable at the 1080p resolution, and many stayed close to 60 FPS during the sessions. However, for heavier titles, you need to do some tinkering with the rendering backends, resolution, and other settings.
Beyond PlayStation 2, the setup handled GameCube, Wii, PSP, PS1, and Dreamcast games well. The performance was stable enough in most titles, but the system can’t really handle anything beyond PS2. Running games with the RPCS3 at steady 30 FPS or higher was out of the equation, especially when the resolution is set at 1080p.
Still, for a setup that has an Intel 8th Gen CPU and no GPU, the overall performance turned out to be better than expected.
For setups like this, the performance isn’t really the main highlight. Instead, it’s practicality. An aging office PC can’t replace a modern gaming system, but it doesn’t need to.
With the right expectations and software installed, old PCs such as the one that I got can easily breathe new life by turning into a retro gaming machine.