A
completely rewritten 3D engine based on DirectX8 encompasses many visual effects
such as volumetric Nebulae (gas clouds) that have a real impact in the game (you
can hide in them), many new engine, shield, weapon and explosion effects.
Objects cast real dynamic 3D shadows! Dynamic DP3 bump mapping allows a
previously unseen level of detail.
X2: The
Threat is a new 3D benchmark and here we see the AOpen EZ65 XCcube squeak out a
tiny lead.
 Unreal Tournament
2003 |
Source: Epic |
|
Unreal
Tournament 2003 is the sequel to 1999's multiple 'Game of the Year' award
winner. It uses the very latest Unreal Engine technology - where graphics, sound
and game play are taken beyond the bleeding edge. Unreal Tournament 2003 employs
the use of Vertex as well as Pixel Shaders and it's recommended that you use a
DirectX 8 videocard to get the most out of the game.
It should
be pretty obvious that the AOpen EZ XCcube can swing with the best of them. Do
not fear this SFF PC if you're a gamer!
What an awesome SFF PC!
To be honest, before testing out the AOpen EZ65 XCcube
I really never liked the concept of the "Small
Formfactor PC." AOpen have changed my opinion, and in big way!
Clearly, gone are the days of underpowered novelty
SFF PCs which couldn't really handle much on the intensive front,
particularly gaming. The AOpen EZ65 XCcube can easily go toe-to-toe with
the most powerful Pentium 4 PC's on the market thanks to its Intel i865G
chipset.
The case design of the AOpen EZ65 XCcube looks a lot
like a Mac at first glance, but AOpen certainly haven't abandoned the PC market.
What they have done is assemble what I consider to be one of the most desirable
SFF PCs out there; with great hardware under the hood, an incredibly well
engineered case, simple good looks, and a good dose of quality!
The key
of course to much of this winning combination is the Aopen UX4SG-1394 i865G
based motherboard. If all you need is a system to play DVD's, the EZ65
could be built with a slowish Pentium4 processor, but if you need
power, this system supports the top of the line P4 C processors without
sweat. Team that up with Intel's excellent dual channel memory controller, and
an 8X AGP slot, Gigabit Ethernet, and you've got yourself the
potential for a little screamer...
And, just think about the power to weight ratio! ;-)
The AOpen EZ65 XCcube is certainly nice to look at, but
sometimes the inside of a SFF PC can be more important - especially when it
comes to installation and good airflow for cooling. In this case, everything
fits together nicely, and even when the system was fully equipped with CDROM,
HDD, memory and videocard, it was still easy to access individual
components. On the performance front, the Aopen EZ65 XCcube handled the benchmarks superbly; it would
certainly keep me satisfied if it were my 24/7 machine. Overclocking was a
no-go, but since this SFF PC is geared for low noise that's one sacrifice
you'll have to live with.
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