My crappy computer broke and I need a new an much better one.

[Garrettboudreaux]

My computer is broken and I need a new one. Unlike my now dead PC I want it to actually actually play games (it was a peice of crap I gotten 4 years ago for like $200 at Walmart). What's the best guide that I could use for getting a good computer or even building my own custom gaming computer?

 

[noahhicks]

I would start with Tom's "Best CPU" article and build out from there.
The "Best GPU" article is also good. You could also just pick a price point and check PC Partpicker for a build already created.
PCPartpicker is a great place to try selecting different components and checking prices. They also do a decent job of making sure parts are compatible with each other.