General Gaming Article

General Gaming Article


How to Build a Fish Tank PC

Posted: 07 Apr 2014 02:05 PM PDT

Operation Mineral-Oil Submersion

Lately, we've been tossing around the idea of doing a Build It story that uses a custom liquid-cooling loop just because they are fun to play with, and when properly designed, have many tangible performance benefits. But since this is Maximum PC, we asked ourselves, "Why not take it one step further and submerge everything in liquid?" After all, what could possibly go wrong?

You've probably seen aquarium-style case mods like this before, but this time we're taking advantage of a pre-fabbed kit from Puget Systems. It incorporates items that will be familiar to liquid-cooling aficionados, such as a Swiftech pump, compression fittings, and a 240mm radiator. However, what's different is that this kit combines familiar bits with more exotic items, like an acrylic frame/container, an integrated temperature gauge, and the star of the show—several gallons of mineral oil.

Click play on the video above to see how we finalized the fish tank PC.

Water would kill everything it touches, but mineral oil doesn't conduct electricity and is nonreactive—you can dunk a running power supply into a bucket of the stuff and it will keep running. We'll walk you through the build, detail our mistakes, and show you how it all works. It's not for the faint of heart, but it certainly makes a great conversation piece.

Exploratory Drilling

This actually isn't the biggest mineral-oil system Puget offers, as the one we used is designed for microATX motherboards ($445, www.pugetsystems.com). There's a bigger kit that allows an E-ATX board ($690), but we like the fact that this kit requires "only" eight gallons of oil. A single one-gallon jug of the stuff weighs 7.3 pounds, so even this little build will be pushing more than 50 pounds once we're up and running. As you can imagine, this makes the system quite difficult to move around safely. Since our needs included being able to move the system to the photography studio, shuffle it to different ambient temperature ranges for thermal testing, and dangle it over a misbehaving intern's head, we opted for Puget's more manageable mATX option.

Puget does not sell mineral oil directly, but the company is affiliated with STE Oil, which sold us the eight gallons for $160, plus another $180 for three-day shipping (what can we say, we're not the best planners). UPS Ground would have still cost $52, since shipping fees scale according to weight, and shipping 58.4 pounds of anything isn't cheap. So, we recommend you get it locally to save yourself some cheddar.

Since this is the first time we've attempted a mineral-oil submersion Build It, we're being conservative with our hardware. We'd rather not destroy expensive gear, and almost all of it is on loan from vendors anyway, so it's not even ours to destroy. Since our build is mediocre, we won't be testing for performance, but instead just seeing how it all fits together, what pitfalls exist, and reporting on temps and whether or not we'd ever do it again. We also hope to produce a PC that looks seriously cool.

1. The Kit and Kaboodle

Puget's microATX kit is made of custom-shaped Plexiglas machined in small batches. It also includes some premium parts, such as a $57 240mm Swiftech radiator, a $100 Swiftech MCP35X pump, several nickel-plated compression fittings, pre-cut tubing, and a thermometer with an LCD readout. Storage devices are mounted on the outside of the thing in order to keep them dry, and the kit includes extension cables and brackets to accommodate that setup. The included documentation is meticulous, and the bags of screws are even color-coded to avoid confusion. The radiator does not come with fans, but you can buy a pack from Puget or bring your own. We chose the latter, pulling some Scythe Gentle Typhoons from our basket of Dream Machine parts.

2. Making a Case

When you see all the separate components of the case laid out, it looks like it would take days to assemble. In practice, however, the interior rack that holds all the components comes together like Lego pieces, except with screws. The instruction manual has very clear diagrams for every step, leaving little question about what to do next. The case itself is one piece, and the parts you assemble end up with a pair of handles, so when it's all finished, you can carry the assembly via the handles and lift it in and out of the case.

Click the next page to read about installing the graphics card in the system and more.


 

3. Getting Graphic

Since we intended to test how well mineral oil can dissipate heat compared to air or conventional liquid-cooling systems, we wanted to use some reasonably hot hardware to put the system to the test, and we had exactly that with the triple-slot Asus Radeon HD 7970 DirectCU II GPU. It's as hot as it is huge, measuring 2.25 inches thick and 11 inches long, but Puget's case had no trouble accommodating its length. This GPU gets so hot Asus had to stick a condo-size cooler on it, so we wondered if the oil would be able to handle all the heat this card gives off.

It should, because, in theory, even though the fans will spin more slowly since oil is more viscous than air, the lack of fan movement shouldn't matter since the oil is sucking up the heat given off by the card, and the fans don't play a major role in the cooling loop. Once the oil gets warm, it's pulled out of the case by the pump and sent to the external radiator.

The only thing we didn't like about the GPU setup is that it's across from where the PSU is mounted, so we had to drape the cables through the acrylic case.

4. Pumping Up the Volume

The Swiftech MCP35X pump included with this kit is not the standard unit that we used in this year's Dream Machine. It's PWM-controlled, so it can adjust its speeds dynamically according to instructions given by the motherboard that it's plugged into. When the system is idle, the pump operates very quietly. When needed, it can crank up to 4,500rpm, so it's very powerful for its size (and you'll need that extra horsepower to offset the thickness of mineral oil). It also takes standard G1/4 fittings and can directly integrate specific reservoirs, which saves on space. At $100 when purchased separately, it's one of the more expensive pumps you'll find. But our oil-based setup benefits from a pump that has premium features.

5. Taking a Dip

Our oil came in one five-gallon jug and three one-gallon jugs. The big jug needed a pipe wrench to get the cap off, and it did not have a built-in tube like a gas can. So there was some spillage there. Mineral oil has the clarity and consistency of corn syrup. It also has no odor, thankfully. We began by emptying the large jug into the tank, which filled a little more than half its capacity. Then we inserted our rack of parts, and topped off the tank with one of the gallon jugs of oil. We ended up needing just six gallons since the rest of the container's capacity was displaced by the hardware and the pebbles. It got pretty heavy after everything was poured in, but there are silicone feet underneath the aquarium, so you can at least get your hands underneath to lift it.

The instruction manual recommends using bubble bars to simulate an aquarium, which requires a second set of pumps, valves, and tubing. We thought that was just a bit too complicated for our first time with mineral oil. But rocks and other typical fishy decorations are an easy add, as long as it's all clean. Any dust will cloud the oil and potentially clog the circulation system, or at least reduce its effectiveness.

6. The Heat of Battle

The pump is just one part of the oil circulation system, of course. The Swiftech MCRx20-XP radiator uses brass tubes and copper fins, and a self-purging plenum, which is a chamber that helps maintain equal pressure throughout the loop and can suppress noise. The radiator is hung outside the case on a bracket. It's big enough to fit three fans if you wanted to; one up top and two down below. But the bracket is a bit too bulky to fit four fans, thus eliminating the possibility of a full "push-pull" configuration. The Scythe fans are 120mm units that spin at a fixed 1,850rpm, but they're surprisingly quiet and good at forcing air through a radiator. The fan cables aren't braided, so they're not very pretty. We also needed to add a power distribution block because the motherboard has just one case fan header, and we wanted to minimize the number of cables leading out of the case.

Striking Oil

Trying something truly novel in Build It is exciting, but that excitement was tempered by several "oh, crap" moments and hardware failures. For example, it wasn't until all the hardware was dipped into the oil for the first time that we realized we probably should have made sure it at least booted first. Luck was not on our side, and on our first try the machine would not POST. We hoped the issue was related to the monitor, or the monitor cable, or some small thing, but no combination of parts outside the machine had any impact. We did have some luck, in that there was a plastic tub available in the Lab that was large enough to place the oil-soaked rack in temporarily. So we hauled it out and proceeded to methodically replace one part at a time until we got the machine to boot. The problem appeared to be a motherboard fried at some earlier point by static, or physically damaged in a way that's difficult to detect with the naked eye. Once we swapped the board, the system booted right up and remained stable.

The pump was initially a little noisy as it filled up and started circulating oil through the radiator, but the overall acoustics eventually settled down to a gentle whir, even when spinning at a reasonably high 4,500rpm. The loudest element was actually the oil pouring back into the case from the radiator, which was like a pleasantly babbling brook.

Overall temps seemed fine, so we ran FurMark's thermal test for a little while to get some heat into the oil, and the case temperature eventually leveled off at 37 degrees Celsius, comfortably below its rated maximum of 50 C. The Asus HD 7970 stayed around 60 C, though we did have to manually increase fan speed to compensate for the thickness of mineral oil. We found that temps are highly dependent on the fans you use on the radiator; random $5 case fans won't get the kind of result that you will get with $20 Gentle Typhoons (or Corsair SP120s, or Noctua CPU fans), because the higher-end units have a combination of high pressure, high durability, and relatively low noise. We didn't try overclocking the AMD chip, since it was using a stock cooler, and Puget warns against overclocking systems in the oil due to heat concerns.

The radiator fan wires were not long enough to reach the motherboard headers, so we used a power distribution block, which is like a power strip for case fans. You can power them up with Molex, SATA, or PCI Express power cables. The Gentle Typhoons we used spin at a constant RPM, but the noise is low enough that we don't need variable speed PWM control.

Aside from human error, the system itself was a great success. People around the office who aren't even into computers stopped to admire our aquarium PC, with its bubbling liquid and eerie blue glow (provided by a 30cm BitFenix Alchemy Connect LED Strip). It's obviously not for everyone, but if you're looking for a fun DIY project that's "different," it doesn't get much better than this.

Origin PC Offers Incentives to Blow Your Tax Refund on a New PC

Posted: 07 Apr 2014 11:57 AM PDT

Origin PC SystemsUse code TAXDAY at Origin PC for free shipping and other bonuses

The tax deadline is rapidly approaching, and if Uncle Sam helped himself to a larger chunk of your paychecks than he's entitled to, you'll be due a tax refund. Depending on how much it is, you might be tempted to buy a new PC, especially if you've been holding onto a Windows XP system. To give you a nudge, boutique builder Origin PC is offering a string of incentives when you use promo code TAXDAY.

Here's what that code gets you:

  • Free U.S. ground shipping
  • Free professional GPU overclocking on GPU GeForce GTX GPUs
  • Free digital game codes: Daylight and $150 worth of in-game credit for Warface, Path of Exile, and Heroes of Newerth

The promotion runs until April 18, 2014. In addition, Origin PC says there's no U.S. sales tax outside the state of Florida, though technically you're supposed to keep track of online purchases and settle up with Uncle Sam come tax time, so it's kind of a dubious thing to advertise.

In any event, the Tax Day promotion is good on both workstation and gaming laptops and desktops. RTS (Ready To Ship) ship systems are excluded from the deal.

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Newegg Daily Deals: Corsair Enthusiast Series 750W PSU, MSI Gaming N760, and More!

Posted: 07 Apr 2014 11:02 AM PDT

Corsair TX750Mnewegg logo

Top Deal:

One way to save money a new PC build is to skimp on the power supply and pick up a cheaply made unit. After you do that, be sure and punch yourself in the crotch -- after all, one bad decision deserves another. The alternate route is to pick up a well made PSU from a name brand company that actually cares about maintaining its reputation. You don't have to spend a fortune to go that route, either. We can prove it -- just check out today's top deal for a Corsair Enthusiast Series TX750M 750W Modular Power Supply for $85 with free shipping (normally $110 - use coupon code: 9EMCPFPG44]; additional $15 mail-in-rebate). That's pretty much a steal, though Newegg ensures us it won't alert the authorities. What they will do is send out a PSU with 80 Plus Bronze certification and a beefy single +12V rail.

Other Deals:

MSI Gaming N760 TF 2GD5/OC GeForce GTX 760 2GB 256-Bit GDDR5 Video Card for $230 with free shipping (normally $260 - use coupon code: [EMCPFPG26]; additional $10 Mail-in rebate)

AMD FX-4300 Vishera 3.8GHz (4.0GHz) Socket AM3+ 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor for $100 with free shipping (normally $110 - use coupon code: [EMCPFPG35])

Western Digital WD Green WD10EZRX 1TB IntelliPower SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5-inch Internal Hard Drive for $60 with free shipping (normally $67 - use coupon code: [EMCPFPG37])

Corsair Carbide Series 400R Graphite grey and black ATX Mid Tower Gaming Case for $70 with free shipping (normally $100 - use coupon code: [EMCPFPG43]; additional $20 Mail-in rebate)

AMD's Flagship FirePro W9100 Graphics Card Boasts 16GB of GDDR5 Memory

Posted: 07 Apr 2014 09:46 AM PDT

AMD FirePro W9100A professional graphics card designed for next generation 4K workstations

What do you get when you pile on heaps of GDDR5 memory to a slab of silicon rocking a fast GPU? You end up with AMD's FirePro W9100, a monster graphics card featuring an industry-first 16GB of GDDR5 onboard memory. According to AMD, the FirePro W9100 spits out up to 2.62 TFLOPS of double precision GPU compute performance, up to 5.24 TFLOPS of peak single precision GPU compute performance, and is prepped and primed for getting work done on 4K ultra high resolution workstations.

With that much onboard memory, AMD says professionals will have no trouble multitasking across up to half a dozen displays where they can load massive assemblies and data sets to manipulate, edit, color-correct, and layer in multiple effects to 4K video projects, all in real-time.

"Now is the time when 4K displays are more readily available and accessible," said Matt Skynner, corporate vice president and general manager of AMD Graphics. "We're seeing even more applications demand increased memory support while pushing the limits of real-time 4K video production and rendering. AMD has delivered a product at the right time to meet these needs -- the new AMD FirePro W9100 professional graphics card -- designed for the most demanding workflows in next-generation workstations."

AMD FirePro W9100 DisplayPorts

The new card sports 2,816 stream processors, a 512-bit memory interface, 320GB/s of memory bandwidth, DirectGMA support, and six mini DisplayPort 1.2 outputs. It's 28nm GPU is clocked at 930MHz.

AMD says the FirePro W9100 will be available this spring from Sapphire Technology, AMD FirePro Ultra Workstation providers, and in HP Z820 and Z620 workstations. No word on how much it will cost to adopt this beast.

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Nvidia GeForce Experience 2.0 Adds ShadowPlay Support for Notebooks

Posted: 07 Apr 2014 08:34 AM PDT

Nvidia GeForce Experience 2.0Laptop gamers are invited to the ShadowPlay party

Today is a busy one for Nvidia. In addition to launching new beta drivers intended to steal some thunder away from AMD's Mantle API, Nvidia upgraded its GeForce Experience platform to version 2.0. The new release is described as a "major update" to the software that's been installed on 35 million PCs to date, and among the new features is ShadowPlay support for GeForce GTX notebooks.

ShadowPlay will work on laptops rocking GeForce GTX 800M, GTX 700M, and select GTX 600M GPUs. In addition to adding laptop support, Nvidia's updated GeForce Experience software now allows for desktop capture. To take advantage of the feature, you'll need the latest GeForce driver with Aero mode enabled.

Other additions to ShadowPlay include native 1920x1200 capture, the ability to pause via Alt-Tab (previously this would terminate a recording), advanced quality options for Twitch streaming, improved microphone audio quality, and a few other odds and ends.

GeForce Experience 2.0 also adds remote GameStream support, meaning you can log into a locked PC from Shield no matter where you are and stream your games, provided you have enough bandwidth.

You can find more information on GeForce Experience 2.0 here, and you can download the software here.

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Nvidia Takes on Mantle with Enhanced DX11 Driver

Posted: 07 Apr 2014 07:42 AM PDT

Nvidia releases enhanced DX11 drivers

GeForceToday Nvidia is releasing an all-new driver for customers of its Fermi, Kepler, and Maxwell GPUs that it claims offers significant performance gains in DirectX11 titles. It told us this driver is reminiscent of its "Detonator" drivers from back in the day, and it's claiming the driver can provide "up to 64 percent faster single GPU performance" as well as "up to 71 percent faster SLI performance."

The Driver

The driver is labeled 337.50 Beta and it's an "optimized DX driver." Interestingly, no details were given by Nvidia on what specifically was optimized or different from previous drivers, which is a departure for Team Green. Usually big updates like this include a white paper of some sorts, but for this particular update it just provided general terms like "Dramatic Improvements." This is clearly a driver aimed at AMD's Mantle though, as the majority of the presentation we received from Nvidia pointed out how a DX11 GeForce card and this new driver is faster than AMD cards running Mantle. It then provided these specific numbers comparing a GeForce 780 Ti vs. an R9 290X on Mantle:

StarSwarm - 16% faster

Battlefield 4 - 12% faster

Thief - 7% faster

In other words, Nvidia is saying, "We don't need a custom Nvidia-specific API, we can optimize DX11, which a lot of games already support," unlike Mantle which is only supported in StarSwarm, Thief, and Battlefield 4 currently. Here's one of the slides Nvidia offered to us:

 

BF4 337 Drivers

 

In addition to being faster than AMD's Mantle API, Nvidia is also claiming that its driver improves SLI performance. Since a CPU can easily bottleneck a multi-GPU setup this makes sense, but let's look at the numbers Nvidia has provided.

As you recall, earlier Nvidia claimed "up to 71 percent faster SLI performance." In the accompanying chart, it showed one game receiving that level of improvement, and that game is Total War: Rome 2. On the other end of the spectrum is Call of Duty: Black Ops II, which received around 15-20 percent improvement. Here is that slide:

 

 

Unfortunately, none of those games are in our testing suite. In anticipation of this, and taking pains to hit AMD where it hurts, it also presented a slide showing multi-GPU scaling in Thief, which is now AMD's poster child for Mantle and TrueAudio support. Here is that slide:

 

 

But that's not all. Nvidia also pointed out that this driver is just plain faster in many titles, including the same ones it pointed to before, such as CoD: BLOPS2, Sleeping Dogs, Alien vs. Predator, Total War: Rome 2, and finally Sniper Elite v2.

None of these games are in our testing suite, so hit the next page to see how the new driver fared on two different test systems, and on dual GTX 780 cards in SLI.


Benchmarks

To begin, we tested an Nvidia GTX 780 reference card on our standard video card test bench, which consists of an Asus Rampage IV Extreme motherboard, Intel Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition 3.3GHz CPU, 16GB of DDR3/1600 memory, and Windows 8 Enterprise. We tested using the current 335.23 driver as well as the 337.50 beta driver. Here are the results:

 

Tests done with a single GTX 780 reference board at 2560x1600. Best scores are bolded.

As you can see, not much difference at all between drivers in this config and on these games. Since we weren't sure we'd ever see a difference, we moved to a different setup that consisted of the following: A  Gigabyte Z77X-UP4 motherboard, a slower and easier to bottleneck Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz CPU, GeForce GTX 780 Ti, and 8GB of RAM. Here are those results:

 

Tests done with a single GTX 780 Ti reference board at 1920x1080. Best scores are bolded.

Once again, we didn't see much of a difference between the old driver and the new one, except for on two games -- Battlefield 4, and Thief. That is odd, because what is special about these two titles, aside from being AMD's flagship titles for Mantle support? Obviously Nvidia is very interested in hitting AMD where it hurts, and whatever they have done has worked, at least in this particular configuration.

Finishing up, we also tested a two-card SLI configuration at 4K resolution using dual GTX 780 cards on the Intel Core i7-3960X machine. Here are those results:

 

Test done with two GTX 780 cards in SLI at 3840x2160. Best scores are bolded.

And once again, we didn't see much of a difference using two GPUs at 4K res, but this was also with a hefty CPU. We did see a massive boost in Hitman: Absolution though, which is also an AMD-sponsored title.

Final Thoughts

In the wake of Mantle's release nobody was really clamoring for Nvidia to respond since people consider its drivers to be generally very good, but we're glad to see that it has. Unfortunately, in our tests the result is very similar to what we've seen with Mantle in that it can offer a boost but only on very specific configurations and in certain games. In other words, anyone hoping these drivers would instantly give them a 20 to 50 percent boost in every game they play is in for a rude awakening, because that's not what we saw. Admittedly our testing didn't run a gamut of 20+ games, but all this dropped when we were in the final push for our June issue, so our time with the new driver was very limited. That said, based on what we did see we expected more, especially with lofty claims of "up to 64% faster single GPU performance." We didn't see anything close to that, and as always your mileage with this new driver will vary depending on the game you play and the specs of your PC. It is heartening to see Nvidia achieving somewhat dramatic improvements in certain games with no changes to hardware though.

The driver is supposed to be out by the time you read this, and here is the 64-bit Win7/Win8 driver. You can download other flavors here and here. Please let us know in the comments if you're seeing what we're seeing, or if you're gaming experience has been transformed by the 337.50 beta driver.

Qualcomm Preps 64-bit Snapdragon 808 and 810 Chips for 2015

Posted: 07 Apr 2014 07:33 AM PDT

Snapdragon LogoThe future of high-end smartphones looks bright

If ignorance is bliss, it's best you stop reading now, especially if you just locked yourself into a subsidized handset for the next two years. For the rest of you, here's a heads up that next year's high-end smartphones could end up being game changers. High-end handsets in 2015 will be rocking Qualcomm's newly introduced Snapdragon 810 and 808 processors, which completes the company's lineup of 64-bit enabled, LTE-equipped chipsets for premium mobile computing devices.

Qualcomm's flagship Snapdragon 810 processor will usher in support for native 4K ultra HD video, along with an upgraded camera suite using gyro-stabilization and 3D noise reduction for recording 4K video at 30 frames per second and 1080p video at 120 frames per second. It will have 14-bit dual Image Signal Processors capable of supporting 1.2GP/s throughput and image sensors up to 55-megapixels.

The 810 part will be made up of 64-bit quad-core ARM Cortex A54 and A53 CPUs, and Adreno 430 graphics with support for OpenGL ES 3.1, hardware tessellation, geometry shaders, and programmable blending. According to Qualcomm, Adreno 430 will deliver up to 30 percent faster graphics performance and 100 percent faster GPGPU compute performance while reducing power consumption by up to 20 percent

Other featurs include high-speed LPDDR4 memory support, 2-stream 802.11ac with MIMO, Bluetooth 4.1, USB 3.0, NFC, and CAT 6 LTE.

The 808 is another fast part, though video support tops out at 2K. It will have an Adreno 418 GPU and support up to 20 percent faster graphics performance than its predecessor (Adreno 330).

"The announcement of the Snapdragon 810 and 808 processors underscore Qualcomm Technologies' continued commitment to technology leadership and a time-to-market advantage for our customers for premium tier 64-bit LTE-enabled smartphones and tablets," said Murthy Renduchintala, executive vice president, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., and co-president, QCT. "These product announcements, in combination with the continued development of our next-generation custom 64-bit CPU, will ensure we have a tremendous foundation on which to innovate as we continue to push the boundaries of mobile computing performance in the years to come."

Qualcomm will begin sampling it new Snapdragon chips in the second half of this year. Devices built around the 808 and 815 will debut in the first half of 2015.

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Seagate Begins Shipping 6TB Hard Drive to Enterprise Customers

Posted: 07 Apr 2014 06:50 AM PDT

Seagate 6TB HDDA high capacity hard drive intended for cloud-based data centers

The enterprise market now has another option when it comes to high capacity storage solutions. That's because Seagate announced it's now shipping its 6TB "Enterprise Capacity v4" HDD, which the company claims is the fastest 6TB HDD on the planet. This particular model isn't likely to find its way into consumer homes, as Seagate is targeting enterprise customers who need super sized storage solutions, particularly in data centers that drive cloud services.

This is Seagate's eighth generation enterprise HDD platform and with it comes up to a 25 percent increase in performance over competing 6TB HDDs, the company claims. Utilizing the latest generation 12Gb/s SAS, the drive offers customers scalability and a future-proof solution. It's also available with a SATA 6Gb/s interface.

"Unstructured data growth is doubling exponentially and will propel the digital universe to reach 16 zettabytes of data by as early as 2017. This will cause cloud service providers to look for innovative ways to store more within an existing footprint while lowering operational costs," said Scott Horn, Seagate vice president of marketing. "Seagate is poised to address this challenge by offering the fastest 6TB enterprise capacity HDD based on our proven, reliable platform meeting this never-ending demand in both private and public cloud data centers."

Seagate's 3.5-inch 6TB HDDs feature 128MB of cache, 7200 RPM spindle speed, up to 226MB/s sustained transfer performance, enhanced error correction, self-encryption (AES-256), and 5-year warranties.

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YouTube’s Rumored Paid Music Service Allegedly Delayed

Posted: 06 Apr 2014 10:03 PM PDT

YouTube Music Streaming Service

Was originally rumored for a late 2013 launch

YouTube has been rumored to be prepping a premium on-demand music service since October 2013. Initially rumored for a late 2013 release, there is still no sign of the music streaming service. According to Billboard, which was the first to report on the yet unconfirmed service last year, the launch has been pushed back to "the second quarter or later"

The delay, per a senior label executive Billboard talked to, is on account of YouTube's refusal to launch anything short of a great product. "They feel that there's just too much scrutiny of this product, and that they need to get it right out of the gate," the executive was quoted as saying by Bloomberg Thursday.

Chief among the challenges YouTube is grappling with are: figuring out the best possible way of dealing with songs that have no official videos and, more importantly, getting people to pay for something they're used to getting for free. As for the visual treatment of video-less songs, the company is currently gravitating toward "art videos" — those made up of random pictures and videos. But with YouTube allegedly hoping to charge users up to $10-a-month for the premium service without it impacting the way non-paying users currently use the site, the latter is clearly a lot trickier.

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MMO Updates

MMO Updates


Here's a look at ESO's first major content update

Posted: 07 Apr 2014 10:30 AM PDT

Filed under: , , , , , , , , , ,

ESO Craglorn
Ready for Elder Scrolls Online's first major content update? Me too, but since it's not out yet, we'll have to make do with this video preview. It's a four-minute clip detailing the Craglorn adventure zone, which is aimed at high-level players and features new quests, incentives to explore, main story updates, dungeons, and quite a bit more. Click past the cut to see for yourself!

Continue reading Here's a look at ESO's first major content update

MassivelyHere's a look at ESO's first major content update originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 07 Apr 2014 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Nexus Telegraph: Is WildStar a World of Warcraft clone?

Posted: 07 Apr 2014 10:00 AM PDT

Filed under: , , , , , , ,

This isn't a metaphor.  Metaphors are subtle.
No.

That was quick, so we can all -- oh, wait, no, I need to write more. Also saying we can all go home is pointless; most of you are reading this from home. All right, we'll start over. This is one of those things that gets trotted out every time a new game comes along, and in WildStar's case it comes out twice as regularly, since it's the first game in history to use colorful and stylized graphics other than World of Warcraft, except that it isn't.

It's kind of ridiculous, and it's a bit of a pet peeve. As someone who has played World of Warcraft extensively, I find the list of similarities between the two pretty shallow, and it comes across more as a way of dismissing the game without bothering to learn about it. So let's talk about where WildStar does take its cues from Blizzard's game, where they differ, and why saying it's just a clone is absurd.

Continue reading The Nexus Telegraph: Is WildStar a World of Warcraft clone?

MassivelyThe Nexus Telegraph: Is WildStar a World of Warcraft clone? originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 07 Apr 2014 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    CCP's Valkyrie eyeing 'a really big transformation in how games are built and played'

    Posted: 07 Apr 2014 09:00 AM PDT

    Filed under: , , , , , , , , ,

    EVE Valkyrie
    Eurogamer recent talked to CCP chief marketing guru David Reid about the company's place at the forefront of the fledgling virtual reality movement. EVE Valkryie was the first title to be publicly played on both the Oculus Rift (PC) and Sony's Morpheus (PS4), which puts CCP in the driver's seat in terms of VR game development.

    "There aren't a lot of white papers and APIs and ways of doing these things yet," Reid explained. "We want to be a flagship game. We're on the cusp, potentially, of a really big transformation in how games are built and played, but we have to do our part to make sure that's worthwhile for everybody."

    Reid also talks up Valkryie's connection to the economies in DUST 514 and EVE Online as well as its "rock/scissors/paper" game mechanics. "As I go into a battle and I earn skill points and I earn currency, I can translate those to having the capabilities to fly bigger, better different ships and can kit them differently," Reid says. "It's a fundamental mechanic of the EVE universe, in EVE Online and in DUST, and it'll be coming to Valkyrie as well."

    Continue reading CCP's Valkyrie eyeing 'a really big transformation in how games are built and played'

    MassivelyCCP's Valkyrie eyeing 'a really big transformation in how games are built and played' originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 07 Apr 2014 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    Trion shows off ArcheAge housing in dev video

    Posted: 07 Apr 2014 08:00 AM PDT

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    ArcheAge
    A new dev video from Trion Worlds showcases the housing system in ArcheAge, including tips on claiming the land and building your new house in the game.

    If you were curious about ArcheAge's housing system, the Trion community team shows off the process of claiming your desired land and the details on placing a house from your inventory. Of course, there's an intricate construction process that goes on while the house is being built (in which players can attack the construction site and loot the materials!).

    What happens when you don't pay your taxes? Will that lurking alpha player loot the dev team's stone packs? Check out the full video after the cut to see more!

    [Thanks to everyone who sent us this tip!]

    Continue reading Trion shows off ArcheAge housing in dev video

    MassivelyTrion shows off ArcheAge housing in dev video originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 07 Apr 2014 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    Here's how you can customize your Black Desert character

    Posted: 07 Apr 2014 07:00 AM PDT

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    Black Desert character creator
    Black Desert's second Korean closed beta test starts on April 22nd, and one of the new features on display in the fantasy sandbox will be a more robust character creation system. Daum and Pearl Abyss have released a four-minute video showing the system in action, and we've embedded it for you after the cut.

    Continue reading Here's how you can customize your Black Desert character

    MassivelyHere's how you can customize your Black Desert character originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 07 Apr 2014 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    The Daily Grind: What's your definition of a polished MMO launch?

    Posted: 07 Apr 2014 06:00 AM PDT

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    Elder Scrolls Online - Spindleclutch swarm mother
    I feel bad for ZeniMax, because it put itself in a bit of a no-win situation when it declared that Elder Scrolls Online's launch would be "polished" and "lag-free." The first of those terms is of course subjective, and there's quite a bit of wiggle room in the entire statement, but even so it was the equivalent of painting a bullseye on your chest and inviting the chorus of anti-ESO snarkanauts to take their best shot.

    From my 50-hours-of-playtime perspective, though, the launch has in fact been completely lag-free. It's also been one of the more polished overall launches I've experienced in a number of years, though I wouldn't say it's number one (Lord of the Rings Online had fewer quest bugs out of the gate, which was all the more impressive since smooth MMO launches were unheard of in 2007).

    In any case, what's your criteria for a "polished" MMO launch? Assuming you played ESO last week, does it qualify?

    Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!

    MassivelyThe Daily Grind: What's your definition of a polished MMO launch? originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 07 Apr 2014 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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      Trove offers a peek at March improvements

      Posted: 06 Apr 2014 06:00 PM PDT

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      Lousy Smarch zombies.
      If you want to invest yourself in voxel-based crafting and destruction, you're not starved for options. Trove might not be the highest-profile option within that field, but the game is still in heavy development and updating regularly. An official update shares what the team has been working on in March for anyone who hasn't been kicking around in the game itself, starting with laser mining. Yes, you're not hacking away with a pick any more; you're burning things out with laser beams.

      March also saw the inclusion of ultimate abilities for the Knight and Gunslinger and the rollout of Personal and Adventure worlds. Players can also forge their own dungeons and wear gear free of the threat of decay. For April, the development team will be hard at work with a forging system to upgrade equipment as well as the inclusion of the Fae Trickster. Isn't it nice to have options?

      MassivelyTrove offers a peek at March improvements originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 06 Apr 2014 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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      The Stream Team: Creating your Elder Scrolls Online CMA character

      Posted: 06 Apr 2014 05:00 PM PDT

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      Elder Scrolls Online
      The Elder Scrolls Online is enjoying a fairly smooth early launch period this week that corresponds perfectly with the start of a new Choose My Adventure. As you've been focusing your energy on picking his character's starting gender, race, alliance, and class, Shawn Schuster has been enjoying the game so far. But the real fun begins when he plays the character you've selected for him to create. Come join Shawn Schuster at 7:00 p.m. EDT on Sunday for a Choose My Adventure livestream.

      Game: The Elder Scrolls Online
      Host: Shawn Schuster
      Date: Sunday, April 6th, 2014
      Time: 7:00 p.m. EDT

      Enjoy our Stream Team video below.

      Continue reading The Stream Team: Creating your Elder Scrolls Online CMA character

      MassivelyThe Stream Team: Creating your Elder Scrolls Online CMA character originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 06 Apr 2014 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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        MMO Week in Review: The Elder Scrolls Online's PC launch

        Posted: 06 Apr 2014 02:00 PM PDT

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        ESO
        At the end of every week, we round up the best and most popular news stories, exclusive features, and insightful columns published on Massively and then present them all in one convenient place. If you missed a big MMO or WoW Insider story last week, you've come to the right post.

        After a few pre-launch hiccups, ZeniMax's Elder Scrolls Online MMO formally launched on PC this week. We celebrated with a five-part launch week diary, a guide to exploration, two livestreams, and a month-long Choose My Adventure series in which you'll boss us through playing the game.

        Read on for a look at the rest of this week's top MMO stories.

        Continue reading MMO Week in Review: The Elder Scrolls Online's PC launch

        MassivelyMMO Week in Review: The Elder Scrolls Online's PC launch originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 06 Apr 2014 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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          The Elder Scrolls Online runs into free sub time billing issues

          Posted: 06 Apr 2014 12:00 PM PDT

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          You didn't really want to play past early access anyway, right?  You did?  Oh.
          The early access period is over, and The Elder Scrolls Online has launched. Unfortunately, it's running into a bit of a subscription problem. Thirty days of free time are included with the box purchase, something that most subscription-based games include; that's not the problem. The problem is that the game won't let players start in on those 30 days of free time until a subscription has been set up... and paid for, it appears.

          At the moment, cards used to set up accounts are being charged the subscription cost immediately as a verification measure, which means that players who are not able to pay yet are locked out of the game. This is a strange state of affairs, obviously; most verification charges are for a single dollar, but people are reporting a full month's charge being applied immediately. It's most likely a mistake, although it can cause problems for those looking forward to playing on the free month during the launch weekend.

          [Thanks to anonymous for the tip!]

          MassivelyThe Elder Scrolls Online runs into free sub time billing issues originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 06 Apr 2014 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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          MMORPG News

          MMORPG News


          Celtic Heroes: Mobile MMO Launches Via Android

          Posted: 07 Apr 2014 07:05 AM PDT

          Mobile MMO Launches Via Android

          One Thumb Mobile has announced the release of its mobile MMO, Celtic Heroes, for Andoid devices. Mobile users join desktop and browser players in the fully-fledged MMO based on the Unity game engine.

          World of Warcraft: Waiting for Draenor

          Posted: 05 Apr 2014 05:00 PM PDT

          Waiting for Draenor

          This week in the WoW Factor we take a look at six things you can do while waiting for this fall's release of Warlords of Draenor.

          General: This Week's Live Stream Schedule

          Posted: 07 Apr 2014 07:01 AM PDT

          This Week

          We've got this week's Live Stream goodness for you to peruse. Check out the games and times to be sure not to miss a single minute.

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