Tip: Don't get a GPU (hear me out guys).
Then get $500 dollar of sensibly priced quality products. Then when you are ready get a good GPU as they are pretty much plug in and play.
A decent quad core Intel CPU (i5) will be competitive for a few years (maybe even 5 years) judging by the recent pace of CPU development, and lower CPU overheads from new API's like DX12 and mantle.
Maybe wait for DDR4 to become widely adopted it's not looking like a huge leap in terms of performance though. Also AMD have their new desktop CPU which could be a good buy, but we won't know for sure until it's released.
Could an SSD be squeezed in somewhere? Doesn't really impact framerates, but cuts load times dramatically, and help stop stuttering through slow asset-streaming.
There is alot to think about but imo it's worth the time in the end.
Note: I don't do PC gaming anymore.
PS, PS2, Gameboy Advance, PS3, PSP, PS4, Xbox One
