Now if youve been toying with the idea to get GTA IV for your PC but not sure whether you should get one for your XBOX instead, take a look at the video below. I dont know about you but when I select a game to play, its based on graphics primarily. Obviously game play has a big effect but thats something you can only find out once purchased. As you can see here the gfx for the PC version outdo the Xbox by miles, but this to me is to be expected, you cannot reproduce better graphics on any console than a PC. The only problem with GTA here is that there are known performance issues with the PC release, but the developers have been hard at work trying to get a patch out to correct these issue. But never the less, I think im going to go buy it. GTA has always been a game to play. Ive been following it since the very first release. Neway, heres the vid.

The MSi Wind netbook is MSi’s reponse to the successfull ASUS EEE pc. It comes with either Windows XP Home or Linux Novell SUSE. Now what grabbed my eye when I first got my hands on this laptop was the size. The keyboard and bottom section of the laptop was as long as my hand, the LCD as well. Now to me this feels like a kids toy because of the size, I mean I dont even know how I would type on the thing. But its not a kids toy and is becoming very popular. The size and specs make it perfect for on the fly work where you dont need to lug a big heavy notebook around, you can just whip out a subnotebook/netbook like the MSi Wind. Some women may even be able to fit them into their handbags. I also noticed that when playing around on it, the Linux distro was installed, it felt incredibly smooth and easy to use. For its size it can definitely pack a bit of a punch in the processing area. Specs are taken from here and are listed below:

So as you can see for a little netbook, it definitely has some features. But now to the main point of this blog. What if you happen to be an avid gamer, and when on the road, you need to get your fix in. Unfortunately you think that because you only have a netbook rather than a notebook you will have to go without games for a bit. You are wrong. MSi have compiled a list of games that will run on this netbook:

* 4×4 Evo 2
* Age Of Empires 2
* America’s Army
* Aquaria
* Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura
* Baldur’s Gate
* Balls of Steel
* Bejeweled 2
* Blade & Sword
* Black & White
* Blood Rayne 1 (use 3D Analyze to emulate TnL)
* Call of Duty 1
* Carmageddon II
* Carmageddon TDR 2000 (>30 FPS)
* City of Heroes
* Colin McRae 2
* Colin McRae 3
* Colin McRae Rally 04
* Combat Flight Simulator 3
* Command and Conquer
* Command and Conquer: Generals
* Command and Conquer: Red Alert 2
* Command and Conquer: Renegade
* Command and Conquer: Tiberian Sun
* Command and Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars (Works OK, but Shader MUST be set to medium or game will crash)
* Crimson Skies
* Curse of Monkey Island (tested OK in ScummVM)
* Darwinia
* Dawn of War (Platinum edition checks out ok — need to choose ’safe mode’ on first run)
* Day of the Tentacle (use with ScummVM)
* Deer Hunter 2005
* Defcon
* Delta Force
* Deus Ex GOTY (~30 FPS@1024×600 HD)
* Diablo II/Diablo II Lord of Destruction (~25 FPS@800×600)
* DOSBox (running very well)
* Doom
* Doom 3 (low frames)
* Drakan: Order of the Flame (~50 FPS@1024×600, High Detail)
* Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project (~30 FPS@800×600, High Detail)
* Dungeon Keeper 2 (1.7+XP Fix, ~30FPS@800×600(No Shadows, HD))
* Dungeon Siege
* Dungeon Siege II
* Etch A Sketch
* F.E.A.R (v1.08 works better)
* Far Cry
* FIFA 08
* Final Fantasy XI Online
* Football Manager 2008 (requires tweak, see link)
* FlatOut
* FlatOut 2 (15-30 fps)
* Fallout
* Fallout 2
* Ford Racing 3
* Ford Racing Off Road (select “Simple Graphics” setting. Don’t set complex graphics as this crashes it)
* Fusion
* FreeCiv
* Freelancer
* Freedom Fighters
* Freedom Force vs. The 3rd Reich
* Frets on Fire (15-20 fps @ minumum details and resolution)
* Giants Citizen Kabuto
* Gladiator - Sword of Vengeance
* Gothic 2
* Grand Chase
* Grand Theft Auto (free version from rockstar.com/classics)
* Grand Theft Auto II (free version from rockstar.com/classics)
* Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
* Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
* Grim Fandango
* Guild Wars
* Guitar Hero III
* Gun
* Halo (~15 FPS@1024×600 LD, No Shadows, No VSYNC)
* Half-Life (also playable: Counter-Strike, Team Fortress, and other mods)
* Half-Life 2
* Heroes of Might and Magic V
* Hitman 2
* Hitman Contracts
* Homeworld
* Imperium Galactica II (800×600 @ ~60 FPS, 1024×600 results in anomalies…)
* Incoming (very high frame rate)
* Jaws Unleashed
* Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver I and II
* Lego Indiana Jones
* Lego Racers
* Lineage 2
* Lionheart
* Live For Speed
* Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-Earth
* Mafia (Choppy at times)
* Manhunt1
* MapleStory
* Max Payne
* Max Payne 2 (1.01 1024×600 ~20fps)
* MechCommander 2 (<30 FPS@800×600)
* MechWarrior 3 (15-40 FPS@800×600)
* Medal of Honor Allied Assault
* Medieval: Total War
* Mobile Forces
* Monopoly Tycoon
* Morrowind
* Motocross Madness 2
* Neverwinter Nights (14 FPS@1024×600 - Low Graphics settings)
* Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2
* Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed
* Need for Speed: Underground 2
* Nexuiz 2.4.2 (all 3 OS’s)
* No One Lives Forever 2 (Requires TnL emulation)
* Oni - 800×600 32 bit high quality
* Operation Flashpoint (1024×600)
* Peggle
* Perfect World (Mmorpg - optimized video config button)
* Peter Jackson’s King Kong (Some low framerate)
* Planescape: Torment
* Postal 2: Share The Pain
* Prince of Persia: Warrior Within
* Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones (15-25fps)
* Project64
* Psychonauts (borderline - choppy framerate)
* Puzzle Hero
* Quake
* Quake 2
* Quake 3 (edit ini file to get 1024×600)
* Quake III Arena (60 FPS @ 1024×600)
* Railroad Tycoon 3
* Rayman Raving Rabbids
* Return to Castle Wolfenstein
* Roller Coaster Tycoon 2
* Rome: Total War
* Rune
* Sacrifice
* Sam & Max - Season 1 & 2
* Sauerbraten
* ScummVM (an emulator, runs old LucasArts quest games)
* Second Life
* Severance: Blade of Darkness
* Sid Meier’s Locomotion
* Sid Meier’s Pirates
* Sim City 4
* Simon the Sorcerer 2 (ScummVM)
* Snes9x
* Soldier of Fortune
* Space Rangers 2
* Spore
* Spore Creature Editor
* Star Wars: Empire at War
* Star Wars: Jedi Knight II - Jedi Outcast
* Star Wars: Jedi Knight - Jedi Academy
* Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic - 800×600 low details, no shadows, no grass. A bit choppy but playable.
* Starcraft
* StepMania
* Street Wars: Constructor Underworld
* System Shock 2
* The Hulk
* The Incredible Hulk
* Theme Hospital
* Total Annihilation
* Tomb Raider: Legend (borderline - playable but quite choppy)
* Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon
* TrackMania
* TrackMania Nations
* Transformers The Movie Game
* Tropico
* Turok
* Tux Racer
* Unreal
* Unreal Tournament (40-60 FPS@1024×600, with newest Patch you neither need to edit ini for the res nor the CD for starting)
* Uplink
* Virtual Skipper 5 (free version, see link)
* Warcraft III (Low frames, don’t expect to play DotA)
* Wall-E
* Winning Eleven 8 International
* WinUAE (Amiga emulator, FPS is depending on WinUAE settings, highest settings work perfectly)
* Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory
* World of Warcraft
* Worms Armageddon (800×600)
* ZSnes

Im also pretty sure there are a bunch of games not mentioned here but can slide in there for sure. If you have a netbook and keen to game on it, find one of the above games and try it out.

So Ive been patiently waiting for this title for a while now, with an expected release date of late 2008, I guess its gonna be a bit longer then. But all is not lost, I can use this extra bit of time to save up for the upgrade I know Ill need. The physics alone is probably enough to bring an average gaming pc to its knees. Alot of Bf3 will be based on Bad Company but otherwise it will be a different game in its own. The below clip seems to be all I can find on the matter, it gives some insight.

So far the rumour is that this game is only going to be playable with DX10. That effectively nullifies all of us XP players. I cant actually believe it to be true, but the engine called Frostbit DX could relate to the DX engine used in Bad Company for the Xbox and Ps3, except this will be the PC version which could mean DX10? I hope this isnt true but if it is, I will be forced to change against my own will.

Here is some leaked info on what to expect:

• Release in late 2008
• Powered by “Frostbite DX”
• Set in year modern day (just like BF2, ed.)
• Will ship with 8 maps, each supporting up to 40-players per team
• Two playable factions, NATO and MEC (Middle Eastern Coalition)
• Same “ticket-based” gameplay style as before
• Maps are mostly urban, based in Middle East
• Squads and Commanders are present, introduced are “Battalions” which consist of three to four squads.
• Five playable classes; Sniper, Assault, Engineer, Medic and Support
• Will feature 48 different vehicles (24 for each faction)
• Will feature 34 different weapons (17 for each faction) and another 22 unlocks (for both factions), in total 56 different weapons.
• Other unlocks include different types of ammunition, body armor, helmets, camouflage and accessories.
• Possible public beta in “Summer 2008?
• Online stats tracking, awards and “real world ranks”
• “Soldier” feature, looks like MMO-styled characters and avatars
• Ranked servers will be available for resellers weeks before the game ships (for testing, apparently, ed.)
• In-game replay and recording feature
• VoIP, friends list, in-game IM-client and “extensive clan support”
• Built-in auto software updater (no more patches!, ed.)
• Widows Vista and OS X (no XP?!, ed.)
• Announcement and teaser trailer in January 2008.