Can I Run X4: Foundations?
Released in 2018, X4: Foundations is an action simulation game built by Egosoft. It offers a single player campaign. Progress follows the account through Steam Cloud rather than sitting on one disk. Builds exist for Linux as well as Windows. It handles controllers properly rather than leaving the player to bind buttons by hand. With more than 24 thousand player reviews on Steam, its behaviour on real hardware is well documented. Workshop content is supported, so the published requirements describe the unmodded game only. At 8 years old it targets an older hardware baseline than most buyers now own. It carries 172 achievements. 14 languages are covered by the store listing.
Can your PC run it? →System requirements
Minimum requirements
| CPU | Intel i5-4590 3.3GHz or AMD equivalent |
|---|---|
| GPU | NVIDIA GTX 1060 or AMD RX 5300 or equivalent (Vulkan 1.4 support required) |
| RAM | 8 GB |
| Storage | 35 GB |
| OS | Windows 10 (64-bit) or higher |
Recommended requirements
| CPU | Intel Core i7-6700 or AMD equivalent |
|---|---|
| GPU | NVIDIA RTX 3060 or AMD RX 6700 or equivalent (Vulkan 1.4 support required) |
| RAM | 16 GB |
| Storage | 50 GB |
| OS | Windows 10 (64-bit) or higher |
Verified from Steam · 9 Jul 2026 source
Scores are deterministic, computed by fixed rules and benchmark tables, not written by an AI. How we score. Maintained by Farhad Ali. Spotted a wrong specification? Tell us.
Setting and environment
The game is set in space and the vessels that cross it. Play is structured around one continuous open world. Continuous worlds put sustained pressure on memory and storage, and X4: Foundations can never assume the player will stop and let it load. Play is presented in three dimensions. 19 storefront images show what the game actually looks like in motion.
Why X4: Foundations is demanding
X4: Foundations sits in the middle of the demand range, targeting NVIDIA RTX 3060 or AMD RX 6700, a tier a mainstream card from the last few generations reaches without difficulty. 16 GB of system memory is expected, the current mainstream figure. Minimum and recommended sit far apart here, which usually means X4: Foundations scales hard with the hardware you give it. A 64 bit version of Windows is required. X4: Foundations takes about 50 GB of disk space.
This reading comes from the published requirements and our own benchmark tables, not from the store listing.
Can you run X4: Foundations?
X4: Foundations scales across a wide range of hardware. NVIDIA GTX 1060 or AMD RX 5300 or equivalent (Vulkan 1.4 support required) is enough to get in at minimum settings, while NVIDIA RTX 3060 or AMD RX 6700 or equivalent (Vulkan 1.4 support required) and 8 GB of RAM is what it recommends for a smoother experience. Where you land mostly comes down to the settings you're willing to trade.
Bottleneck: GPU
Projected by resolution
| Resolution | Projection | Headroom |
|---|---|---|
| 1080p | Borderline | 1x |
| 1440p | Below the bar | 0.56x |
| 4K | Below the bar | 0.25x |
A projection, not a measurement. We scale the published GPU requirement by pixel count, since 1440p draws 1.78 times the pixels of 1080p and 4K draws 4 times as many, then compare against RTX 3060 / Ryzen 5 build. The publisher did not state a target resolution, so 1080p is assumed as the baseline. We hold no frame rate data, so no FPS figure is claimed. Headroom above 1 means the reference machine has room to spare at that resolution.
Common GPUs
| Graphics card | Verdict |
|---|---|
| GTX 1060 6 GB | Playable |
| GTX 1060 Laptop | Playable |
| GTX 1650 4 GB | Below minimum |
| GTX 1650 Laptop | Below minimum |
| RTX 2060 6 GB | Runs well |
| RTX 2060 Laptop | Playable |
| RTX 3060 12 GB | Runs great |
| RTX 3060 Laptop | Runs well |
| RTX 4060 8 GB | Runs great |
| RTX 4060 Laptop | Runs well |
| RTX 3070 8 GB | Runs great |
| RTX 3070 Laptop | Runs great |
| RTX 4070 12 GB | Runs great |
| RTX 4070 Laptop | Runs great |
| RX 6600 8 GB | Runs great |
Each card is compared against X4: Foundations's published GPU requirement, assuming an otherwise-capable PC. Laptop rows use the real mobile chip's benchmark, a mobile GPU is always slower than its desktop namesake.
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Frequently asked questions
Can my PC run X4: Foundations?
Upload your DxDiag file to Idxdiag's free checker and get a component by component compatibility verdict for X4: Foundations in seconds. No install required.
What are the minimum system requirements for X4: Foundations?
The minimum requirements are CPU: Intel i5-4590 3.3GHz or AMD equivalent; GPU: NVIDIA GTX 1060 or AMD RX 5300 or equivalent (Vulkan 1.4 support required); 8 GB RAM; OS: Windows 10 (64-bit) or higher.
How much storage does X4: Foundations need?
X4: Foundations needs about 35 GB of available storage.
Can an RTX 3060 run X4: Foundations?
The RTX 3060 runs X4: Foundations comfortably, clearing the title's GPU requirement with room to spare.
What is the bottleneck for X4: Foundations?
On a typical modern PC (Ryzen 5 5600, RTX 3060, 16 GB RAM), the tightest component for X4: Foundations is the GPU.