Video Games: Fantasy's Final '16

[Kalbear]

If you're doing two 1070s I don't think you're gonna be doing an iTX case

[Mudguard]

1 minute ago, Kalbear said:

If you're doing two 1070s I don't think you're gonna be doing an iTX case

Probably not.  I know you can fit one, but not sure about 2.  Overheating probably would be an issue, unless you could convert both to watercooled systems, and I'm not sure there's space for that either.

[Jace, Extat]

29 minutes ago, Kalbear said:

The Asus Z170 is pretty good for that generation. 

 

23 minutes ago, Mudguard said:

 

Yeah, the Asus z170 would work fine if you are building a normal sized computer (regular ATX case).  If you are building a smaller sized computer (mini ITX) you need something else.  When I built my computer a couple years ago, I used the following website:

https://pcpartpicker.com/

You can look at recommended builds and also build from scratch using the system build section.  It will automatically make sure everything is compatible, so when you select your processor, only compatible motherboards will be shown.

Hold on! 'That generation'!?! Does that mean he is not putting together a top of the line machine? Do I need to find a new guy?

[Kalbear]

No, it's pretty much top of the line as far as I can tell. I was talking more about that specific chipset for the Intel chips. I recently upgraded and that was what I got, and I was fairly happy (apart from my CPU being  DOA the first time). 

[Mudguard]

4 minutes ago, Pony Queen Jace said:

 

Hold on! 'That generation'!?! Does that mean he is not putting together a top of the line machine? Do I need to find a new guy?

The Asus z170 works with the current generation i7-6700K processor.  Your guy was recommending an old processor (i7-4790K, which is 2 generations ago) and an old motherboard.  Honestly, I'm a bit suspicious about your guy.  Was he going to buy the parts himself, build the computer, and then drop it off at your place?  Or were you going to buy the parts, have them shipped to your place, and he would come over and assemble it at your place?  Because if he was buying and assembling the computer at his place, he could just be giving you old parts unless he's giving you all the receipts as well.  I built my computer a couple years ago with the chip he is recommending to you.  You also mentioned that he was suspicious or defensive when you asked him about the parts, which makes me more suspicious.  Unless he has a good reason for preferring the older chip over the new one, and maybe there is one, I'd think about getting a new guy.

[KiDisaster]

Yeah the i7-4790K is a weird choice. You really don't need an i7 if all you're using it for is gaming. I'd go with a current generation i5 instead if I were building it.

[Kalbear]

As lame as it is, I've found this set of articles to be at least a good jumping-on point for builds.

[KiDisaster]

Also I'm assuming you're playing at 1080p in which case there's really no need to buy two 1070s. One of those is plenty powerful enough. 

Personally I don't think I'll ever do two cards again, it's not worth the extra cost IMO. If you want more power than a 1070, buy a single 1080. It'll cost you less and you don't have to deal with SLI issues and incompatible games. 

ETA: Also agree with the above suggestions to go with 16GB of DDR4 along with a current gen CPU, it will last you much longer without needing to upgrade again. 

[Ded As Ned]

7 hours ago, Rhom said:

Sadly, almost every game I owned for the PS4 until recently was also available for PS3.

However, for kiddos I think the gameplay on Dragon Quest Heroes is good stuff.  Think Dynasty Warriors in the DQ setting.

 

2 hours ago, The Anti-Targ said:

Rocket League. Though it might be rather mechanically too difficult and frustrating for a 5-year old, but it is as child friendly a game as you can get. Soccer with flying cars, what's not to love for a kid?

Knack. It gets a lot of flack from gamers, but for kids it is fun and cute.

Thanks guys!  

[KiDisaster]

Did your kids play Ni No Kuni on the PS3 by any chance? Because they just announced a sequel to that coming to PS4 next year. Something to look forward to potentially. 

[Jace, Extat]

1 hour ago, Mudguard said:

The Asus z170 works with the current generation i7-6700K processor.  Your guy was recommending an old processor (i7-4790K, which is 2 generations ago) and an old motherboard.  Honestly, I'm a bit suspicious about your guy.  Was he going to buy the parts himself, build the computer, and then drop it off at your place?  Or were you going to buy the parts, have them shipped to your place, and he would come over and assemble it at your place?  Because if he was buying and assembling the computer at his place, he could just be giving you old parts unless he's giving you all the receipts as well.  I built my computer a couple years ago with the chip he is recommending to you.  You also mentioned that he was suspicious or defensive when you asked him about the parts, which makes me more suspicious.  Unless he has a good reason for preferring the older chip over the new one, and maybe there is one, I'd think about getting a new guy.

I suspect he's simply a bit... entrenched. Last time I ordered all the parts then he came over and assembled it, this would be the same. He's a friend of my BF, so I do not think he is trying to cheat me. I think it more likely that he was threatened by my questioning of his judgement. He told me once that when he builds a computer he basically goes by the highest amount of eggs on the site, which is why I asked you guys.

1 hour ago, KiDisaster said:

Yeah the i7-4790K is a weird choice. You really don't need an i7 if all you're using it for is gaming. I'd go with a current generation i5 instead if I were building it.

I... Holy shit. Ever since I got this phone I literally only use my PC for games...

54 minutes ago, KiDisaster said:

Also I'm assuming you're playing at 1080p in which case there's really no need to buy two 1070s. One of those is plenty powerful enough. 

Personally I don't think I'll ever do two cards again, it's not worth the extra cost IMO. If you want more power than a 1070, buy a single 1080. It'll cost you less and you don't have to deal with SLI issues and incompatible games. 

ETA: Also agree with the above suggestions to go with 16GB of DDR4 along with a current gen CPU, it will last you much longer without needing to upgrade again. 

I want to do the 4k. Is that relevant?

[KiDisaster]

For 4K getting the second card makes sense, but you might still be better off with a single 1080 instead. I'll look at some benchmarks tomorrow and check that out. 

[briantw]

Decided to tick Wolfenstein: The Old Blood off of my Steam installed games list.  With The New Order being arguably the best single-player shooter of the past few years (who saw that coming?), I can happily report that The Old Blood is more of the same.  It still takes itself hilariously seriously for such a ridiculous story and over-the-top gameplay, but that's part of the appeal.  I also enjoy the hidden throwback Wolfenstein 3D "nightmare" in each level of The Old Blood.

In summary...if you like games that feature killing an ungodly amount of Nazis, zombies, general WWII stuff, alternate histories, surprisingly enjoyable stealth, and over-the-top but very well done FPS gameplay, this is an excellent choice.  

[Werthead]

Yeah, running two cards is a bit hit and miss. A lot of games won't recognise the second card and the performance boost you get is rather limited (about 20-30% framerate boost on a good day) given the extra money you are shelling out. That 20-30% actually can be the difference between making games playable at 4K or not, so it might be worthwhile. I'd be tempted to go for a 1080 initially and look at adding a second 1080 down the line if you feel it's really necessary (plus it'll be cheaper by then). A single 1070 or 1080 will do you well for the time being.

The reality is 4K gaming on PC is only borderline viable right now. Since the consoles can't do it at all, games manufacturers aren't really targetting it as a priority.

[Ded As Ned]

9 hours ago, KiDisaster said:

Did your kids play Ni No Kuni on the PS3 by any chance? Because they just announced a sequel to that coming to PS4 next year. Something to look forward to potentially. 

Nope that's the first I've heard of it.  Looks neat though.  Pretty much ALL my oldest (7) has played for the past 2 years has been Minecraft... until recently I opened him up to Call of Duty and Skyrim (which has gone fine btw, if you remember me posting about it a thread or so ago).  He largely kicks my ass at CoD multiplayer (I'm way out of practice), but is struggling a bit with Skyrim because he's still learning the finer points of the game.  The youngest (5) is still... ya know... learning to read, so he's been big on all the Lego games and Minecraft Story Mode as they're fairly simple.  I've already downloaded the few duplicate games they'll want to the PS4... and have a couple new titles to put under the tree for the oldest, but was looking for something for the youngest as well.  I went with Knack and Dragon Quest Heroes for him.

I'm really looking forward to having them not hogging the PS3 all the time so I can finish up the titles in my queue there.  I can send them to the PS4 in the game room and hook up the PS3 in the living room for me  

ETA:  Crap I just realized I'm going to have to buy a PS Plus subscription to play online, aren't I? 

[KiDisaster]

Benchmarks I'm looking at are all indicating about a 30% performance boost with two 1070s over a single 1080, so that's pretty significant. But there are other issues to consider when deciding if two cards are worth it for you. 

First and foremost, you won't always get that performance boost. Not all games work with SLI and won't recognize your second card. Some do, but it's poorly implemented and the scaling is off, meaning that 30% performance boost drops off because both cards are running at below 100% load. Some games actually perform worse with two GPUs than with one. Some games have other issues when SLI is enabled, Ubisoft games for example are notorious for having micro-stuttering issues with multiple graphics cards. 

Now for the games that have these issues, you can always turn SLI off (it's as simple as opening your GPU control panel and unchecking a box basically) and they'll run as though you only have one card installed. But when you do that you are not getting the extra performance you paid for the second card for, and that single 1070 won't perform as well as a single 1080 in those instances.

There's also other more minor issues like additional power consumption and heat output in your case. 

So you have to decide if the extra 20-30% performance some of the time is worth the extra money, vs a single more powerful card that you will always get the full performance out of.

Personally I would go with a single 1080 (or if money is no object a single Titan XP since 4K is the goal). You can always add a second one later if you decide you need more performance.   

[KiDisaster]

22 minutes ago, Werthead said:

The reality is 4K gaming on PC is only borderline viable right now. Since the consoles can't do it at all, games manufacturers aren't really targetting it as a priority.

This is also true. You won't be getting 60fps with maxed settings in most games at 4K with most any setup these days. It's a compromise, lower settings or lower FPS (or both) for the higher resolution. 

I made the jump to 1440p with my last PC upgrade and even this res is very taxing on my system with a lot of games. 

[Rhom]

27 minutes ago, Ded As Ned said:

ETA:  Crap I just realized I'm going to have to buy a PS Plus subscription to play online, aren't I? 

Probably, but you get a free game every month for both your PS3 and your PS4.  Most months its just some indie game (which aren't bad) but every so often you get an older AAA title.  I got Prince of Persia: Sands of Time a month or so ago for the PS3 for free.   

[Ded As Ned]

Yea I'm not terribly upset about it (only $6/month if you buy a year), plus the other perks that come along with a sub, like backing up saves in the cloud.

Has anybody played The Last Guardian yet?

[Rhom]

Just now, Ded As Ned said:

Yea I'm not terribly upset about it (only $6/month if you buy a year), plus the other perks that come along with a sub, like backing up saves in the cloud.

Yes, I've been doing my aforementioned ME replay on the PS3.  Its been automatically backing up saves to the cloud, which is a huge relief to me since I've had to get it repaired twice for that blinking light problem I mentioned a few months ago.