Do Games Use Multiple Cores? – How Many Cores Games Need?

With many high-end CPUs featuring upwards of 8, 10, and even 16 cores, the gamer in you may rightly ask, “do games use multiple cores?”

Well, the answer to that question depends on what game you are interested in. Generally. the answer is a resounding yes. Games do use multiple cores. However, depending on the particular game, it can usually use anywhere between 1 – 8 cores. But a vast majority of the games still use 4-6 cores optimally.

You can further break down the core requirement of a game by what type of game it is. Is it a popular online title like Fortnite or a new AAA gaming title? The former demands fewer cores, whereas the latter benefits from a higher core count.

An even further breakdown would be the genre of the game. Strategy and simulation games often benefit from a higher core count than Shooters, RPGs, Racing, Sports, or Platformers.

In the following text, I will talk in detail about whether games use multiple cores and, more importantly, how many cores games need.

So Do Games Use Multiple Cores?

The short answer is yes. Almost all games these days, even the simplest indie games, use multiple cores.

The real question is, how many cores do games need?

There are two ways to figure out how many cores a game needs. The first is through the official game requirements. The minimum and recommended requirements would give you an idea about the number of cores the game needs.

The second is through benchmarks. I want to refer to the DSOGaming.com PC Performance Analyses. DSOGaming.com does a great job of detailing how many cores the latest popular AAA titles require.

Again, the amount of cores a game needs depends upon what type of game it is and its genre. There are two types of games generally:

• Popular Online Games / Esports Titles
• AAA Titles – Latest and Demanding Games

CPU Core Requirement by Popular Online Games / Esports Titles

Since popular online games such as Fortnite, PUBG, League of Legends, Rocket League, etc., are intended to be played by the masses, they generally have a lower core count requirement.

Only some people can afford to procure a high-end and top-of-the-line CPU for their PC.

The following table summarizes the popular online games’ minimum and recommended CPU requirements.

Popular Online Titles Require 2 Cores Generally

You can see here that most popular online titles can work well with a CPU with two cores; at best, they require four.

CS: GO, League of Legends, and even the graphically appealing Fortnite requires two cores.

CPU Core Requirement by THE Latest AAA Titles

AAA titles have a higher core requirement since the latest titles feature the most cutting-edge engines, increasingly using a higher core count.

DSOGaming.com often conducts CPU performance analyses on newer games. I will reference the DSOGaming’s performance analyses for my study on whether games use multiple cores and, if so, how many.

God of War

God of War cannot work with a dual-core CPU. It requires at least four threads. The game is likely playable with two cores and four threads if you have a decent enough graphics card.

God of War works best with a CPU with four cores and eight threads.

Intel Core i3 from 10th and 12th gen and older Intel Core i7s feature four cores and eight threads.

Again, you must note both the core AND thread count for gaming performance.

For instance, here you can see that a 4-core processor with four threads gives 106 average FPS in God of War, whereas a 4-core processor with eight threads provides an average FPS of 123.

Anything beyond four cores and eight threads gives minimal or no benefit in average FPS for God of War.

TL;DR God of War requires at least two cores and four threads. The recommended requirement is four cores and eight threads.

Halo Infinite

Unlike God of War, Halo Infinite CAN work with a CPU with two cores and two threads. But doing so will severely bottleneck your graphics card.

The most optimal core count for Halo Infinite is four cores and four threads.

Far Cry 6

Far Cry 6, like God of War, cannot work with a CPU with two cores and two threads. It requires 2 Cores / 4 threads at the bare minimum.

However, six cores and six threads are recommended for the best performance for Far Cry 6.

Interestingly, a CPU with six cores and 12 threads or a hexacore CPU with hyperthreading enabled results in lower performance.

So, if you have a newer CPU, Intel Core i5 or Ryzen 5 CPU, with six cores and 12 threads, I recommend keeping hyperthreading turned off for this game.

Forza Horizon 5

Forza Horizon 5, despite being graphically pleasing and intense, can work with a CPU with two cores and 2 threads.

The game experiences the best performance with a 4-core and 8-thread CPU. Beyond this, the performance gains are minimal.

Call of Duty Vanguard

This is another game that gets the best performance gains with a CPU with four cores and 8 threads.

It does receive some performance benefit from a 6-core and six threads CPU, but anything beyond that would matter little.

Crysis 3 Remastered

Like its original release, Crysis is one of the most demanding games in core count.

The best performance gains can be seen with six cores and six threads, but you get 8-cortex FPS with an 8-core and an 8-thread CPU.

Again counterintuitively, like many games, Crysis 3 sees deteriorating results from a CPU with hyperthreading enabled.

For instance, with six cores and six threads, the game gets an average of 167 FPS, whereas, with 6 cores and 12 threads, the game clocks in 162 average FPS.

Also Read: Laptop CPU vs. Desktop CPU

Summary of CPU Cores Required By Newer Games

The following table summarizes how many cores the newer titles require. I will be looking at four metrics:

• Minimum: Minimum core sustaining playable frame rates with a good GPU.
• Optimum: Core count at which the game experiences the best FPS gains.
• Max: Core count at which the game experiences the maximum FPS. In other words, you won’t see any benefit beyond this number.
• Multi-Threading: Whether multi/hyperthreading benefits or damages the FPS.

Along with the core count, the thread count also has to be pointed out since some games benefit from multi-threading, while for others, multi-threading is detrimental.

Also Read: Is Intel Core i5 Good for Gaming?

Most Games Require AT LEAST 2 Cores and 4 Threads at the Bare Minimum

So do games use multiple cores? Well, the table above should answer that question for you.

Regarding the latest AAA titles, almost all games require a minimum dual-core processor with hyperthreading enabled, meaning two cores and four threads.

Playing on Intel Celeron is out of the question since most Celeron CPUs have only two cores and 2 threads.

Also Read: Is Intel Pentium Good for Gaming?

4 Cores and 6 Cores are Recommended for Gaming

Regarding how many cores you need for gaming, four cores if you have a relatively low budget and six cores for the best performance gains.

So I recommend the Intel Core i3 from the 10th gen for a budget gaming system, and newer features four cores and 8 threads. AMD Ryzen 3 3000 series CPUs feature four cores and eight threads.

I would recommend an Intel Core i5 from the 10th generation, newer for performance and the enthusiast gaming build, or an AMD Ryzen 5 from the 3000 series and more unique.

The following video also shows how a 6-core CPU can give the best results in various games.

So to answer the question, do games need multiple cores? Yes, they do, and my recommendation is to opt for six cores for the best performance/dollar value.

Also Read: Is Quad Core Processor Good for Gaming?

8 Core CPU is NOT Recommended But Can Give the Best FPS

For the MAX FPS achievable, an eight-core CPU can occasionally help on a few rare titles; however, the gains are marginal, often 1-2% compared to a 6-core CPU.

In other words, the performance gains/dollar invested in an 8-core CPU must be improved for gaming.

Hence, I would only recommend investing in an 8-core CPU for gaming if you want to stream.

Streaming on Twitch or YouTube using x264 CPU encoding can eat your core count.

Encoding can be taxing on your system. x264 will utilize a lot of your CPU, resulting in lower FPS. – Twitch. tv

Also Read: Is Intel Core i7 Good for Gaming?

Games and Graphics CARDS BOTH Use Multiple Cores

It is not a matter of asking whether games use multiple cores; this question can also be applied to graphics cards.

High-end graphics cards need to be paired with a powerful enough CPU. Otherwise, the graphics cards will be bottlenecked. 

Also, Read: Does Graphics Card Affect FPS?

Summary

This brings us to the following generalized summary

Do Games Use Multiple Cores?

Yes, they do!

How Many Cores Do Games Need?

• Two cores at the minimum
• 4-6 cores optimally (best performance/dollar value)
• Eight cores for max FPS (often, it is only marginally better than a 6-core CPU).

Also Read: Does Motherboard Matter for Gaming?

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS