Gamers set agenda for system builders

Those using 3D games will benefit most from new products

Although the visual aspect of games looks real, the interactive aspect may be up for improvement.

Two manufacturers have announced products designed to please the UK’s PC-buying demographic of computer games obsessives.

Zotac has added 24 processor cores to its Nvidia-based graphics cards. The GeForce GTX 260 and GeForce GTX 260 AMP now have a total of 216 processor cores, which, it said, will help system builders produce better games machines.

“We wanted to squeeze extra performance from the graphics processor and by adding 24 extra processor cores, we got up to 10 per cent more performance,” said Carsten Berger, Zotac’s marketing director.

This will be particularly useful for consumers of 3D games and high-end applications, he added.

Gaming is all about interactivity, claimed Berger. “Visually, games have come so far they look life-like, but the interactive aspect could be better. PhysX technology will address that,” said Berger.

Games could set the agenda for specialised PC makers, argued Nick Boardman, director of mobile technologies at laptop maker Rock.

“It is an exciting technology that will challenge the traditional thinking of component manufacturers,” he said.
Meanwhile, AMD has announced a new corporate brand campaign under a new tagline, The Future is Fusion, to raise perceptions of the gaming experience.

“We asked how we could make the gaming experience better,” said Brent Barry, AMD’s gaming strategist.

Though much of the strategy involves collaboration, AMD announced one invention of its own. AMD’s Fusion for gaming utility allows players to shut down background applications, so Vista users can play games faster.

However, Boardman warned that gamers might not warm to Fusion. “Gamers have traditionally enjoyed the flexibility offered by multiple components in a machine,” he said.

“With Fusion, this would appear not to be an option, which may not be well received.”