X3: Reunion	Source: EGOSOFT

Extensive development has gone into the X³ engine, making full use of DirectX 9 technology, to create dramatic visual effects and stunningly realistic starships. Coupled with the massively enhanced A.L. (Artificial Life) system, X³: REUNION will present players with an ever changing, evolving universe; where a players actions really can shape the future of the universe.

X3: Reunion
1024x768:	FPS	Ranking
ASRock AM2V890-VSTA (K8T890 200/800 A64 5000+)	62.048
Albatron KM51PV-AM2 (GF6150 200/800 A64 5000+)	58.968
MSI K9N SLI Platinum (NF 570 SLI 200/800 A64 5000+)	58.267
Asus M2-CROSSHAIR (NF 590 SLI 200/800 A64 5000+)	59.639
Foxconn 975X7AA-8EKRS2H (975X 200/667 PD 840)	47.185
MSI P4N Diamond (NF4 SLI 200/800 PD 840)	58.267
Biostar TForce P965 Deluxe (P965 200/800 PD 840)	50.172
Biostar TForce P965 Deluxe (P965 200/800 Core 2 Duo)	73.077
Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 (P965 200/800 Core 2 Duo)	73.692

Intel has always been very consistent with its chipsets and the two P965 Express motherboards with a Core 2 Duo E6600 processor perform at around the same speed. In this case, cost will be the only separating factor.

Doom 3	Source: id Software

Doom 3 takes advantage of the latest videocard technology and pushes the processing power of the CPU to its absolute limit. At its highest setting, Ultra quality, texture sizes pass the 500MB mark which means even tomorrow's videocards will have a hard time running everything. The frame rates in the game itself are locked at 60 fps so anything above that point is wasted. Each test is run three times with the third run being recorded.

Doom3
LQ 640x480:	FPS	Ranking
ASRock AM2V890-VSTA (K8T890 200/800 A64 5000+)	148.4
Albatron KM51PV-AM2 (GF6150 200/800 A64 5000+)	144.5
MSI K9N SLI Platinum (NF 570 SLI 200/800 A64 5000+)	144.3
Asus M2-CROSSHAIR (NF 590 SLI 200/800 A64 5000+)	141.1
Foxconn 975X7AA-8EKRS2H (975X 200/667 PD 840)	104.3
MSI P4N Diamond (NF4 SLI 200/800 PD 840)	144.3
Biostar TForce P965 Deluxe (P965 200/800 PD 840)	96.6
Biostar TForce P965 Deluxe (P965 200/800 Core 2 Duo)	205.7
Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 (P965 200/800 Core 2 Duo)	206.7

If you're a gamer you'll definitely want to hop on the Core 2 Duo as quickly as possible.... And yes you're looking at those framerates right! Pretty amazing how much faster the new Core 2 Duo E6600 platform is over the previous Pentium D 840. Results for the socket AM2 Athlon64 5000+ remain very consistent, but about 55FPS slower.

Quake 4	Source: id Software

Quake 4 is the latest shooter from ID and is based on the Doom 3 engine. Tweaked to for more eye candy, Quake 4 promises to be tougher on videocards and systems than its predecessor was. Quake 4 also does not have a 60 fps limiter like Doom 3, with the Ultra setting, graphic textures can surpass the 500MB mark! Each test is run three times and with the third run being recorded.

Quake 4
LQ 640x480	FPS	Ranking
ASRock AM2V890-VSTA (K8T890 200/800 A64 5000+)	154.4
Albatron KM51PV-AM2 (GF6150 200/800 A64 5000+)	152.9
MSI K9N SLI Platinum (NF 570 SLI 200/800 A64 5000+)	150.5
Asus M2-CROSSHAIR (NF 590 SLI 200/800 A64 5000+)	146.4
Foxconn 975X7AA-8EKRS2H (975X 200/667 PD 840)	127.3
MSI P4N Diamond (NF4 SLI 200/800 PD 840)	150.5
Biostar TForce P965 Deluxe (P965 200/800 PD 840)	113.8
Biostar TForce P965 Deluxe (P965 200/800 Core 2 Duo)	202.8
Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 (P965 200/800 Core 2 Duo)	202.6

In the last benchmark of the day, Quake 4, the Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 performs very very well. It posts results which are on par with the Biostar TForce P965 motherboard. The Core 2 Duo E6600 processor when combined with fast memory is a force to be reckoned with!