Could this run AH3?

[TequilaChaser]

Only reason I would upgrade from a 1060 or 1070 to 1080ti or even 1080 would be if you wanted to go VR 3D IE...Oculus rift or HTC Vive

I don't see any other reason to do so...

With that said, your CPU will be fine and enough as long as you OC it to bare minimum of 3.2 GHz

I posted 3.4 GHz just because that is what default is on my Intel i7-2600k 3.4 GHz quad-core CPU


Hope this helps

TC

[Gman]

^^Agreed, if typical AAA games and AH3 are going to yours/your sons primary deal, 1060 will do the trick and then some IMO.  If $ isn't a big deal,  by all means, a 1080 will give you more performance, no doubt, that CPU will drive a 1080 just fine, again IMO.

My experience with both the Vive and Rift when I briefly tried a 1070 was OK, but the 1080s I had were a big improvement in VR, and the 1080ti/Titan are an improvement on the 1080 too in the VR department. 

Personally, if VR isn't something you're going to be doing anytime soon, and with a system that is older like the one in the OP, I'd just buy a good used 1060.

[Brooke]

For me, even a 1050 does fine.

[Gman]

I ran AH3 on an MSI laptop that was at the local PC shop, with a 1050ti in it, just to see how it worked (15.6" screen, not the 17.3).  I was pretty impressed, and a desktop 1050ti will of course perform even better than a laptop variant.