Best budget option for a 10-year-old wanting to play Forza 6?

Posted by YajuuDorange@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 61 comments

Hi everyone,

My 10-year-old son wants a PC to play Forza 6 😅

I tried installing it on his mom’s laptop, which he already uses for The Sims and Farming Simulator without any issues.

The problem is that Forza won’t even start — I get an error message saying the PC isn’t powerful enough.

So now I’m looking for a solution, but I don’t want to spend a fortune either.
What would you go for nowadays for a 10-year-old mainly wanting to play Forza?

cheap used gaming desktop?
Xbox Series S?
upgrading an old PC?
mini gaming PC?

Mainly looking for the best value for money.

Thanks 🙂

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coco16778@reddit

Xbox or if you have amazingly fast internet access, Geforce Now on his mom's laptop.

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Xbox Series S, if he still wants a PC after that, wait a few years for him to get a bit older (not sure what age a kid should have a PC, I was around 13 when I got to be online by myself 😅, albeit that was 20 years ago) and build/buy a pre-built together, might have to start saving now though

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blookiet@reddit

Definitely this, a PC could be a good way to learn some tech skills when the kid is older

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Sorenvious@reddit

Xbox series S is going to be your best budget bet. Forza is a pretty intense game graphic wise so you’re looking at a pc that has to have at least middle of the road specs, which will most likely be pricier than a console. Plus a console with game pass will give him a lot of games that he can mess around with.

Plus there’s no way to get a virus on a Xbox. God knows I was clicking all types of shit when I was 10 on a computer.

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ShinyJaker@reddit

Forza is also a very well optimised game that runs even on steam deck.

Series s is still the way to go, but a low end pc would absolutely play it.

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Hashtagpulse@reddit

It does run well on a Steam Deck, but it drops frames like crazy and hangs every so often, making it unplayable for me. Same with my Legion Go 2. This was the same with FH5 too.

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XiTzCriZx@reddit

Forza actually isn't that bad to run, I have a 2070 Super and can run it on all Ultra settings (with DLSS) and rarely drop under 60fps. It's actually one of the best optimized games I've played in a while.

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DeathByBlue5834@reddit

forza runs >60fps in 1080p on a 1650, it's not graphically intensive at all

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RichJMoney@reddit

Forza actually is really well optimized for PC because they use their own purpose built engine. PC also has game pass, but in general I think you're spot on especially considering future games.

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actstunt@reddit

I'm here to mention the series s either on marketplace or refurbished is your best option. I already have a pc and bought one nonetheless, it runs the game so perfect that you will think its black magic. Just be aware that storage may fill quickly if you add more games, but I've been using an external SSD connected through usb for older games or non demanding games leaving the console's storage for AAAs and it's been working great for me.

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Raptr117@reddit

This, plus any game that comes out for it is optimized to play for your console.

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d_n3ro@reddit

Yup. You can get one used on Marketplace for like $100-$120 that and a Gamepass subscription so you can limit his play hours are cheap and easy way to get started.

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Agent_Tall_Man@reddit

The absolute cheapest option is streaming on Xbox app, a controller and GamePass Ultimate. If your Internet is really good, it should play well..

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actstunt@reddit

Nobody said this option but I agree lol. I've been playing on xcloud a lot and my internet isn't even that great I live in a developing country and it's been amazing, giant leaps they've made in the last few years.

But if you factor the cost of gpu each month just for one game it becomes expensive.

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XiTzCriZx@reddit

I doubt a 10 year old kid would only be playing Forza though, they have quite a few young kid oriented games.

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ShroomerOfCatan@reddit

Yeah a Amazon fire stick, a controller, and ultimate. You'd be good to go

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MagicPistol@reddit

Check FB marketplace and see if you can find any good deals. I recently just got a dell g3 laptop with a core i5 10300h, 16gb ram, GeForce 1650 ti, and 500gb SSD for only $120. It seems to meet the minimum requirements for Forza at least, but I'm not sure how well the game would actually run.

It's gonna be a gift for my nephew and luckily, he doesn't know anything about Forza. I got it so we can play survival crafting games online together lol.

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SpaceCadet2000@reddit

for a 10-year-old ... Forza 6

This

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deleted_by_reddit@reddit

[removed]

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Noctyrnus@reddit

If you absolutely want to go the PC route: https://old.reddit.com/r/buildapcsales/comments/1tilkln/prebuilt_abs_flux_ii_aqua_gaming_pc_windows_11/

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Nerevar197@reddit

Grab a new or used Xbox Series S. PC building in 2026 is stupid expensive and the extra cost won’t be appreciated by a 10yo.

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palapapa0201@reddit

Don't build a PC in 2026

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fakeaccount572@reddit

i mean, that kinda depends on income and means, no?

I built one last month.

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Rechochet_ochet@reddit

This is such a "look at me" response. The overwhelming majority of PC enthusiasts think building a PC right now is crazy unless it's a necessity. Regardless of how well off you are, the cost of inflation in PC parts is insane, and it's not a good thing, regardless of how bad you want to light your money on fire and show people.

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captainstormy@reddit

I mean, if you enjoy just setting money on fire it does.

I"m pretty well off. Well off enough that I'm retiring in 3 years at the age of 45. I still wouldn't build a PC right now. The PC I built in 2024 is pretty crazy specs. 9800X3D, 64GB RAM, 4TB Samsung NVME, 7900XTX. It still only cost me $2,500. Today the RAM and NVME alone are $2,000.

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King_Fuzz@reddit

Ugh. I've been building PCs for 20 years now and it's truly a depressing time to be a PC gamer.

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Iamredditsslave@reddit

Some pretty good CPU/MB/RAM bundles on the other subs.

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Drauren@reddit

Or go used, it's fine.

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ThunderSparkles@reddit

My wife thought i was exaggerating when i went and got a 5080 and built a new PC a year ago. Now who's mad! Ahem. As soon as those tariffs started rolling out i went full build mode

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Brook_Hors@reddit

I had a build that I really wanted to fuck around with using an old radio but I had to stop myself when I saw how much prices have skyrocketed...

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vaurapung@reddit

Is it not avaible with cloud gaming on pc?

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No-Preparation4073@reddit

In 2026, there is no such thing as a cheap PC... not one that will do what you want it to do.

X box S is likely the best price / performance route. However, that will mean that they have a game console and not a computer, if that matters.

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nokei@reddit

could maybe get lucky and find a cheap upgradable pc from someone/business that got new ones for their windows 11 upgrade when windows 10 went EOL before the ram bubble and have the old ddr4 towers laying around.

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OgreTrax71@reddit

Depends what you're looking to spend. You could build a solid 1080p PC for around $750 or so, even in this crappy market.

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Shoshke@reddit

Maybe let him try horizon 3 or on that laptop?

IMHO FH3 still looks great and was a great game on par with 6 and IKO better than 4 and 5.

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QuixOmega@reddit

Xbox is massively cheaper than anything that will run a AAA game like Forza Horizon 6.

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Apachxi@reddit

Xbox Series S - maybe you can find it cheap used? Consoles do last - it's nothing if you buy used.

I bought my Playstation used and it looked like new, worked like new - still works like brand new.

That would be the cheapest and best option. You can also buy Forza 5 and 4 on it probably much cheaper, as they're older games. He's gonna have a lots of forza to play

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Old_Court1078@reddit

A mini gaming PC sounds cool until thermals, upgrade limits, and pricing start becoming annoying.
For pure value, the Series S is difficult to beat right now for younger gamers.
Especially since he mainly wants accessible games instead of ultra settings tweaking.
Low-maintenance setups are underrated, both in gaming and runable workflows.

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VanWesley@reddit

Definitely just go for an Xbox Series S. Cheap, easy to set up and get going.

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psycho-Ari@reddit

Just go with Xbox Series S, it's the cheapest option and from what I heard Forza works and looks great on Series S. You won't buy better PC even in 2x or 3x the price probably.

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thenord321@reddit

Important, check the game's listed minimum requirements and recommended requirements.

Some AAA games will require a 3,000$+ equipement to play well. Games like forza are trying to simulate more realistic graphics and physics than a cartoony game like the SIMS and requires a dedicated graphics card.

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Accomplished_Emu_658@reddit

Best bet for money and performance? Xbox console.

Pc can be more fun for a moment but you want best experience and visuals for a fair budget console is way to go.

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yick04@reddit

How's your internet speed? You could try GeForce Now.

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EatNails_69@reddit

I would get a used series S

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Nagol567@reddit

For the price of an Xbox the best you can build or find used would be something less powerful than a series X. I built my daughter a ryzen 5 2600 + RX 6600 combo and it runs her games good enough for her. But its not as powerful as the ps5. She just likes PC gaming like her dad 🥲

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Legitimate-Wash8416@reddit

Tokyo xtreme!!! Classic game with super fun arcade racing

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Confident_Oil4430@reddit

Xbox. I'm sure your kid isn't going to want to mess around in the settings of every game to get a stable framrate series x everything runs out of the box perfectly smooth. If the kid was older I would I get him a pc but consoles are way easier and simpler to use but they're also better value

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Sakuroshin@reddit

It is availible on xbox game pass and it can be played with their cloud gaming service which can be ran on the laptop you already have. That would be the cheapest immediate option imo.

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ThunderSparkles@reddit

Go series s. At this point he likely just wants to play the game and didn't need the highest performance. Luckily Forza is really well developed. Also Xbox supports keyboard and mouse so if he likes PC games he can still play them PC style

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prz1403@reddit

Could easily pick up an Xbox series s for £140 on eBay or Facebook. Idk how much dollars that is but probably like $170-180

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Cautious_Door10@reddit

with the price of RAM and GPUs

best option is a series S , I guess it costs about 200$ or 300$

upgrading an old pc is not worth it

and mini gaming pc lowk pricey + not that performative

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High_Overseer_Dukat@reddit

Xbox will be best for budget.

But a budget pc (that isn't prebuilt!) may hace a better long term value. It will be able to play many new games without upgrading when the series x won't. And upgrades are cheaper than all new.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gqg2Bt1mWuc

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