William BagleyGame Releases and Upgrades and Crysis, oh my!
September 2nd 2008 13:55
With the last four months of the year approaching, that means Christmas will once again need to shower, shave, have a few painkillers and shake off last years hangover to bring about a new wave of unacceptable presents and awkward family moments.
More positively, this also means that game companies will be hawking their latest and greatest wares. Just a quick glance at the latest release dates for the next few months shows a lot of promise on the PC gaming horizon:
04/09 - Spore
18/09 - Crysis Warhead*
23/09 - Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
25/09 - Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway*
26/09 - Sid Meier's Civilization IV: Colonization (ExPack)
31/10 - Fallout 3*
12/11 - Call of Duty - World at War*
21/11 - Grand Theft Auto IV*
The above are the latest "confirmed" release dates. Titles which are slightly more tentative at this point include:
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3
Duke Nukem Forever (sorry, couldn't resist),
Prince of Persia (allegedly follows the same dynamic, open-world system utilized by Assassins Creed, which I loved playing when it wasn't blue-screening me)
Potentially the next chapter in the Mass Effect saga. More lesbian sex, much?
The titles above with the asterisks are ones which should be watched with caution if you have a gaming system which may be over the hill (you know, one you bought last week). For example, the following are the confirmed minimum requirements for Crysis Warhead:
============================= =============================
CPU
Intel Pentium 4 2.8 GHz (3.2 GHz for Vista), Intel Core 2.0 GHz (2.2 GHz for Vista), AMD Athlon 2800 (3200 for Vista) or better
RAM
1GB (1.5GB on Windows Vista)
Video Card
NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT, ATI Radeon 9800 Pro (Radeon X800 Pro for Vista) or better
VRAM
256MB of Graphics Memory
Storage
15GB
Sound Card
DirectX 9.0c Compatible
ODD
DVD-ROM
OS
Microsoft Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or Microsoft Vista
DirectX
DX9.0c or DX10
============================= =============================
While it's well-known that Crysis is an example of game development which strays to the side of the sadistic, it shows that once again developers are throwing down the gauntlet to hardware manufacturers, and to our wallets, to try and keep up their rampant use of system resources if we want to obtain the very best that their games can offer. This is a good thing for the progress of PC gaming, as increased technology will result in a better gaming experience (in theory). However it can still instill fear when you wonder if your rig will be able to handle the latest and greatest piece of interactive literature to emerge from today's developers.
Bearing this in mind, I will be writing up a guide over the next week or so based around those looking to upgrade their machines in the next few months. Please note, the guide doesn't endorse buying things. Please ask Mum or Dad's permission before stealing their credit cards.
For the first edition, I will be looking at processors. Please drop by tomorrow for:
The CPU
More positively, this also means that game companies will be hawking their latest and greatest wares. Just a quick glance at the latest release dates for the next few months shows a lot of promise on the PC gaming horizon:
04/09 - Spore
18/09 - Crysis Warhead*
23/09 - Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
26/09 - Sid Meier's Civilization IV: Colonization (ExPack)
31/10 - Fallout 3*
12/11 - Call of Duty - World at War*
21/11 - Grand Theft Auto IV*
The above are the latest "confirmed" release dates. Titles which are slightly more tentative at this point include:
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3
Duke Nukem Forever (sorry, couldn't resist),
Prince of Persia (allegedly follows the same dynamic, open-world system utilized by Assassins Creed, which I loved playing when it wasn't blue-screening me)
Potentially the next chapter in the Mass Effect saga. More lesbian sex, much?
The titles above with the asterisks are ones which should be watched with caution if you have a gaming system which may be over the hill (you know, one you bought last week). For example, the following are the confirmed minimum requirements for Crysis Warhead:
============================= =============================
CPU
Intel Pentium 4 2.8 GHz (3.2 GHz for Vista), Intel Core 2.0 GHz (2.2 GHz for Vista), AMD Athlon 2800 (3200 for Vista) or better
RAM
1GB (1.5GB on Windows Vista)
Video Card
NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT, ATI Radeon 9800 Pro (Radeon X800 Pro for Vista) or better
VRAM
256MB of Graphics Memory
Storage
15GB
Sound Card
DirectX 9.0c Compatible
ODD
DVD-ROM
OS
Microsoft Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or Microsoft Vista
DirectX
DX9.0c or DX10
============================= =============================
While it's well-known that Crysis is an example of game development which strays to the side of the sadistic, it shows that once again developers are throwing down the gauntlet to hardware manufacturers, and to our wallets, to try and keep up their rampant use of system resources if we want to obtain the very best that their games can offer. This is a good thing for the progress of PC gaming, as increased technology will result in a better gaming experience (in theory). However it can still instill fear when you wonder if your rig will be able to handle the latest and greatest piece of interactive literature to emerge from today's developers.
Bearing this in mind, I will be writing up a guide over the next week or so based around those looking to upgrade their machines in the next few months. Please note, the guide doesn't endorse buying things. Please ask Mum or Dad's permission before stealing their credit cards.
For the first edition, I will be looking at processors. Please drop by tomorrow for:
The CPU
"Yes, but can it run Crysis?"
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