Tech News
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Battlefield 4 banned in China
If you look at some of the latest game titles you will notice that games often reflect what is currently happening in the world. COD: Modern Warfare was desert based likely to connect with the US conflicts in the Middle East. There was also a game called Homefront which, in my opinion, had the best backstory EVER but failed to deliver with lack luster gameplay, horrible maps and a storyline that ended too quickly. So, why is Battlefield 4 different? Well the primary antagonist is, China and China is one of the largest computer component markets in the world and also has a few smart people within its borders. That isn't to say North Korea or countries in the Middle East are any different but they aren't generally friendly with the US and thus less likely to buy such games. China on the other hand is rather offended and feels the game will threaten national security.
Summary: Chinese government outlaws the first-person shooter game, accusing Electronic Arts of developing content that threatens China's national security and is a form of cultural invasion.
It also accused the U.S. game developer for depicting a form of cultural invasion, according to a PCgames.com.cn report Friday. China's Ministry of Culture issued a notice prohibiting all materials related to the game in any form, including game downloads, demos, patch downloads, and news reports.
Set in the year 2020, Battlefield 4: China Rising features a fictional war in China triggered by Admiral Chang with plans to overthrow the current government. His success will be supported by Russia, but will bring China to war with the United States which relationship with the Russian is tensed. The game showcases the U.S. military's fight against the coup and Chinese Liberation Army.As a gamer I know that there is typically very little in a game that reflects the real world but the actions portrayed can have negative repercussions. Case in point the COD MW3 "No Russian" mission. This short mission actually got the game banned in some places around the world and was so controversial that the gamer studio had to allow gamers to skip it. Likewise, the actions in Homefront "could" have started a war and the fact that Battlefield 4 is implying that China will go rouge on the world is a remote possibility.
Sadly things like this are what sells games and when someone has a problem with it the media goes wild and the game studio gets free advertising. I’m sure EA is saying "thank you world" all the way to the bank.
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EVGA GeForce GTX 770 Superclocked ACX Cooler @ Hardwareoverclock
Can't afford a shiny new GTX 780 Ti Classified and still need more performance from your PC? Why not look at the excellent line of GTX 770's from EVGA.
Hardwareoverclock.com has just posted another review. Last week we have taken a look at the EVGA GeForce GTX 770 Superclocked video card with ACX Cooler. If you still searching an present for your computer or an upgrade for actually games, maybe the GTX 770 from EVGA is the right one. The card is overclocked, has an quieter cooler and the performance is enough for the newest games.
The nice thing about the Superclocked cards is that they come with a factory overclock and don't cost much more than a regular reference design. Combine that with the new ACX cooling solution and you'll have a custom hot-clocked video card without all the fuss.
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The $109 Console-killer GPU: AMD's Radeon R7 260 Graphics Card Reviewed @ Techgage
When it comes to video cards you have two basic choices, Go for the card that will provide you the best performance -or- Go with the card that is realistic for your needs.
No one should be surprised at the fact that testing out $500 graphics cards is fun, but with the right perspective, budget cards can be, too. Take the $109 AMD Radeon R7 260, for example, which has debuted following flagship console releases. With that in mind, let’s see what such an affordable GPU can pull off at the much-loved 1080p resolution.
I have to agree with Techgage on how they positioned this video card. It isn't a powerhouse but can play games at 1080p which is exactly what most users "need". The card won't bring home any FPS trophies but when you consider PC vs Console this card wins the performance award and is really well priced.
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Cougar MX500 Mid Tower @ PureOverclock
What is in a name? Phone describes a device that allows you to talk into it, Mouse describes many things from a small furry rodent to a device to move a cursor on a computer and well, Cougar could be a large cat, an attractive wealthy older lady looking to get lucky or could simply be the name of a parts mfg who happens to make cases.
Various price points exist for different ranges of computer case products, though lately several manufacturers have taken to the notion that the ratio of paying less for getting less is too heavily skewed in favor of paying less for getting nowhere near enough for your money. Cougar figures it’s their turn to toss another chip into the stack of affordably-priced gamer cases with the introduction of the MX500 mid tower case. Said to be a sleek, modern designed gaming tower, does this offer gamers the features they crave without breaking the bank? Let’s dig in and find out.
I cannot say I am all that impressed with the case but, I'm sure someone will buy one thinking the small fan on the side will actually do something good.
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ECS GANK MACHINE Z87H3-A2X EXTREME (Intel LGA 1150) @ techPowerUp
I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that I'm really surprised at this review. Either the reviewer is drinking the koolaid or ECS has finally released a solid motherboard that does more than just look good.
I will admit I saw GANK boards at Computex and was a little suprised at the effort they put in to support multi gpu gaming and overclocking. LGA 1150 overclocking isn't all that difficult so it really comes down OC controls and layout.
Like a mad rush of level 60 rogues, the ECS GANK MACHINE launches its assault on the Intel Haswell platform in a way no other would even attempt, going straight for the kill. Built with gaming in mind, and a bit of overclocking, too, the ECS GANK MACHINE not only surprised me, but left me feeling helpless, and under-skilled.
Sadly, this is still an ECS motherboard so I won't go out of my way to pick one up for testing. But, I am not against doing a review and seeing how it measures up against a Gigabyte Z87X-OC or EVGA Z87 Classified.
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Asylum: Review Block - Board Cards and Stuff
I swore myself off review blocks but they are so darn easy I just can't help myself
Motherboards
- Gigabyte G1.Sniper 5 Mainboard Review on Technic3D
- GIGABYTE G1.Sniper Z87 Gaming Motherboard Review @ HardwareHeaven
- Gigabyte G1.Sniper A88X Mainboard Review on Technic3DVideo Cards
- ASUS ROG GeForce GTX 780 Poseidon Platinum Review
- XFX R7950 Double Dissipation Video Card Review @ Legit Reviews
- Palit GTX 780 Ti JetStream 3 GB @ techPowerUpStuff Here and There
- Fractal Design ARC MINI R2 Micro-ATX Mid Tower Chassis Review @ MissingRemote
- Cooler Master HAF Stacker 935 Chassis Review @ OCIA
- ADATA DashDrive Elite SE720 128GB External SSD @ Custom PC Review
- AMD A10 6790K Review @ HCWMore news to come, and I only say that to trick Google in indexing this page.
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The First NVIDIA GeForce Benchmarks On The SteamOS Beta @ Phoronix
The hot new OS of the winter (and new year) will be SteamOS. As you can imagine this is a Linux based distro designed for playing Steam games. The footprint promises to be light making it a perfect OS for MiniITX systems that don't require much power or heat.
A comprehensive performance comparison is underway at Phoronix that pits SteamOS against other desktop Linux distributions, but for those anxious to see some performance numbers, here are benchmarks done so far this weekend from seven NVIDIA GeForce graphics cards on the public SteamOS 1.0 Beta operating system. In this article are early benchmarks from seven NVIDIA GeForce graphics cards running Valve's Debian Linux based SteamOS on an Intel Haswell system.
Of course the question of performance always comes to mind and if it is worth building a SteamOS box or picking an off the shelf Linux distro and "rolling your own".
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120mm Water Cooler Round Up Part 2 - Looking Inside @ Legit Reviews
Readers of this site will know that when I do a cooler review I focus primarily on thermal performance and how that would impact the usability of the product. Well, when you are really hardcore you tear a cooler apart to find out what makes it function.
As you can imagine the construction of a watercooler can impact performance but Asetek and CoolIt pretty much set the standard for everyone else to follow. Knowing that we can make the assumption that breaking a cooler down serves no purpose than to see what makes them tick.
Last week we looked at of four all-in-one water coolers and found the performance results were quite similar, as were the coolers. With this thought, and some comments made, we started to wonder how similar the coolers really were. Remember, mom always said it’s what’s on the inside that counts.
I'm not convinced that doing this resolved anything that couldn't have been determined by simply using the cooler but, I did check out every page if that says anything.
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Introducing the EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti Classified K|NGP|N Edition
December 12th, 2013 – Introducing the ultimate overclocking graphics card on the planet – the EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti Classified K|NGP|N Edition! EVGA is taking the 780 Ti to a whole new level with this redesigned graphics card, designed for the hardcore enthusiast. This card is the final answer in the search for the greatest overclocking graphics card on the planet.
Supporting up to 450W of dedicated GPU power, enhanced PLL circuitry, improved GPU power plane, 10CM fans, included backplate, optional PWM baseplate, GPU voltage enhancements and more – this was co-designed by the world’s top extreme overclockers Vince “K|NGP|N” Lucido and Tsemenko “TiN” Illya with extreme overclockers in mind. Built by the enthusiast, for the enthusiast.
“In order to break world records these days you need some serious hardware,” said Vince “K|NGP|N” Lucido. “This card was engineered to serve one purpose… be the world’s best overclocking graphics card. Expect GPU clockspeeds at over 1.85GHz with extreme cooling.”
“With the EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti Classified K|NGP|N Edition graphics card, we focused on the basic demands that are needed when doing extreme overclocking,” said Illya “TiN” Tsemenko. “Capable hardware design and heavy power delivery capacity is key for performance dominance and theultimate gaming experience. So too is a unique power convertor able to provide over 450W of clean voltage for every kind of overclocking!”
The EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti Classified K|NGP|N Edition is coming soon, and will be the first product to be featured in the EVGA Build to Order (BTO) program. More details on this program and availability will be announced soon.
Features:
- Up to 450W of Dedicated GPU Power – Dual 8pin + 6pin power input provides up to 450W of clean power.
- 14+3 Phase Power Design – 14 power phases for the GPU, and an additional 3 power phases for the memory.
- EVGA ACX Cooling with 10CM Fans – K|NGP|N inspired cooling design featuring dual 10CM fans.
- Bundled Backplate – Custom EVGA backplate included.
- Separate PWM Baseplate – When going with extreme cooling on the GPU, it is still optimal to cool the PWMs. This separate baseplate allows you to keep the critical power section cool.
- Enhancement PLL Circuitry – Optimized for extreme cooling.
- Probelt with Bundled DMM Adapter and Status LEDs – Easy and precise monitoring of voltage health using external DMM. Onboard voltage status LEDs provide realtime voltage status for every critical rail.
- Pitch Black High Flow I/O Bracket – Improved airflow with great aesthetics.
- XOC Voltage Modification Points – Allows for extreme voltage tuning.
World Record Performance:
- 3DMark Firestrike Single Card World Record http://www.3dmark.com/fs/1276002
- 3DMark Firestrike Extreme Single Card World Record http://www.3dmark.com/fs/1276445
- More Records Coming Soon!
Learn more at http://www.evga.com/kingpin
About EVGA
EVGA is the #1 NVIDIA authorized partner in channel sales throughout North America and UK. Based on the philosophy of intelligent innovation, market knowledge, and the real time operation, EVGA continues to identify the need in the market place and providing the solution to that need. By offering product differentiation, 24/7 tech support, a 90 day Step-Up program, and other customer focused programs, EVGA is a clear leader in all categories: etail, retail, distribution, and system integration. With headquarters in Brea, CA, EVGA’s global coverage includes EVGA GmbH in Munich, EVGA LATAM in Miami, and EVGA Hong Kong. For further information online about EVGA, visit: http://www.evga.com -
Lawyers Investigate EA Over Battlefield 4 Problems
Oh now this is flipping awesome!
It would appear that EA is now being investigated over some of the statements it made during the pre-release of Battlefield 4. The article indicates that this shouldn't be considered a lawsuite "yet" but rather an look into some of the complaints from players about shoddy servers and DLC issues and how that impacts investor dollars, or, in this case, the lack of return on what was invested.
Specifically, the firm will investigate whether EA complied with "federal securities laws" when making public statements regarding Battlefield 4 between the days of July 24 and December 4 2013.
"The investigation focuses on statements issued during that time regarding the development and sales of the Company's Battlefield 4 video game and the game's impact on EA's revenue and projects moving forward," read a press release issued by the firm. The release then goes on to encourage those who suffered losses on EA common stock purchased between those dates to be in touch.I know this won't teach them to make a better game but we can hope that eventually the COD syndrome will finally come to an end.
