looking for some build ideas

Im not up on all the latest and greatest as I used to be...If i posted some general info, could I get some opinions?

I am looking to replace my desktop and give it to my niece for school. I use this almost mainly for gaming and web surfing as well as some office stuff.

budget <1300$

amd athalon 64 x2 processor (never had intel, figured why start now?)
need opinions on a video card, motherboard, new tower, ram, hard drive.

I am basically starting from scratch.
I was looking at the alienware as they always seem to be great for gaming, but I cant stomach $2200. Here is their build..

Processor: AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 5200+ Processor w/ HyperTransport and Dual Core Technology
Operating System (Office software not included): Genuine Windows® Vista Home Premium - With no Media Center Remote Control or Dual TV Tuner
Chassis: Alienware® P2 Chassis with AlienIce™ 3.0 Video Cooling - Space Black
Chassis Customization : Alienware® Standard System Lighting - Astral Blue
High-Performance Liquid Cooling: Alienware® Standard System Cooling
Motherboard: Alienware® Approved NVIDIA nForce 590 SLI Motherboard
Memory: 2GB Low Latency DDR2 PC2-6400 SDRAM at 800MHz - 2 x 1024MB
System Drive: Single Drive Configuration - 500GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s 7,200 RPM w/ 16MB Cache
Primary CD ROM/DVD ROM: 18X Dual Layer DVD±RW/CD-RW Burner w/ Nero Software
Graphics Processor: 512MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 7950 GT
Power Supply: Alienware® 700 Watt Multi-GPU Approved Power Supply
Monitor: No Monitor
Sound Card: High-Definition 7.1 Performance Audio - Standard

 

HELL NO! dont do that!

you can build a VERY good directx10 capable system for about $1500

here's how it goes:

EVGA 680i SLI motherboard
core 2 e6300
nvidia 8800gts
250+gig HDD (western digital or seagate)
at least 1 gig of DDR2 RAM (preferably 2 gigs)
OCZ gamextream 700W PSU
pretty much any dvd drive
a case that will fit the 8800gts like an Antec nine hundred or similar

 

and now with links:

case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811129021
mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813188013
processor: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819115005
RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145034
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817341002
HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822148142
video card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130071

you can use this link to get the processor, motherboard, and video card w/ a free copy of supreme commander: http://promotions.newegg.com/misc/commander/index.html

also, some of the stuff has pretty good rebates which i dont know how long will last