Joined on 08/16/07
One of the best cases out there...
Pros: First and foremost - sexy. I know a few people who don't think so but I saw this and thought - woooo that is one sexy computer case. I even paid the extra 50 bucks over the all black one cuz this one is just oh so much cooler. Now down to features: The hard drive bays are great. A little annoying that you have to screw the hard drive in, BUT the fact that each hot swap bay is designed for both 2.5 and 3.5 inch hdds. USB 3.0 - Two bays built in. Fantastic. My motherboard actually came with a card that had the adapter for usb 3.0, but since my case had it, I used the slot on my mobo for the case and I have 2 3.0 on my mobo and 2 3.0 on my case. Awesome Air ventilation is great i7-2600k idles at like 20 celsius (liquid cooling granted, but still). Mobo temps remain around 20, and although I don't have too much in terms of heat intensive equipment, it's roomy and allows for air flow on top of the fact that I have lots of space for management (see other thoughts for mo
Cons: Eh, I guess since I have the field, I'll put some stuff in. 3 colors for fans and different setups (you can have colors rotating and stuff), but so far seems like there's no way to default the fans to a particular setting (I like my fans high and green). The back panel I guess can be annoying to re-attach, but in all reality, IT HAS A BACK PANEL. It's great for running and managing cables, as well as accessing the back of the motherboard for coolers and such without having to remove the motherboard). The case is HUGE. DO NOT underestimate this case. I knew it was big and wanted it for that, but even then, I wasn't prepared really for just how monstrous it is. It gets to look more normal once you get used to it, but it is a behemoth.
Overall Review: This is a continuation of pros because I have almost nothing but good things to say. The side panel (the side with the fan) actually opens up as a door (which is useful for the setup I have when I don't want to completely disassemble it to get inside) and the fan on the door does not have a wire - rather the circuit is reconnected once the door is closed. You can also remove the door if you want (also awesome). The case basically comes apart in great ways, and also has keys to lock both the hard drive bays and side doors in case your worried about someone just jacking your hard drives out of their lovely hot swap bays. The feet on the case actually let me run cables under the case and hide them. Overall, for a giant case, it has so many features you'll soon forget how huge it is and fall in love with it.
Mixed Feelings
Pros: Solid game. Decent graphics. Easy enough gameplay/controls. The story (despite what many may say) is actually interesting, although I agree with the lack of fluidity. It's more like 3 separate stories with some common ground. I replayed quite a few times and got a solid 15-20 hours on each play through. I have a love hate relationship with the leveling system. I DO like the change in the appearances of characters (more effort was put into the qunari by far, and I love that about it). Also, they finally do mages some awesome justice by making their standard attack flashy and cool. Rogues can bounce around it's pretty awesome. I feel like aesthetically they covered much better ground in terms of graphics and motion.
Cons: Now...the cons. The game does not go into each character quite as much as the first one did, and gift giving is all but eliminated. I DO like the interesting system of giving each character two specific gifts that you have to find, but meh, I would have liked more character interaction. Don't get me wrong, the characters actually are interesting and fun, but idk. Something was missing I couldn't quite put my finger on. The controls were easy enough, but I didn't like them. I also didn't like the changes to some of the abilities, like the one where you rain fire. I thought they made it kind of cheap and limited. I liked the whole fire storm thing. Also, as interesting as the story is, it is nowhere near as great as the story for DAO and DAA (I guess the lack of real fluidity kind of killed it for me). I think the biggest disappointment/annoyance to me was the lack of places to go and the constant recycling of dungeons and caves.
Overall Review: I actually really liked the game but I gave it 3 stars because a) it did not compare to DAO really. Graphically it's better, but really it falls short in the other areas. I feel like they developed far more unique characters for DAO than DA2, and b) I swear I must have walked past the same skeleton in the same spot by the same rocks by the same stairs a billion times while exploring a "new" cave or dungeon. I kinda get the practicality for it, but in all reality, I think it was laziness to do that. Like. Come on. At first it was kind of interesting to explore new parts of the cave. But EVERY warehouse, cave, dungeon. They had like 5 templates total. That was probably the game killer for me to be honest. I understand it's work to create as expansive a world as DAO did. But this was a complete letdown in comparison. In my opinion, this game is really only fun if you accept the lack of unique scenery and are willing to work with basically seeing the same things over and over and over.
imjuscrazy
Pros: I really just am writing an update to a previous review...and a response to a few others. Still love the game, but....
Cons: It is glitchy. I've read on too many forums that it's the person/pc's fault....not true. You're assuming that somehow you're smarter than everyone else who bought the game, which for at least half of the people saying the game is 'perfect' i'm sure is not true, and that everyone who complains about problems is incompetent. I have a 2gb 6850 that crashes no matter what the game is running on - low, high, medium. It always crashes at least 15 times on the hooverdam under the ncr questline (again, for me), and there are certain times it won't even let me walk into a specific area. I've lost saves or been stuck in quests that can't be fixed without the console. I've installed it and played it on two other pcs where NO OTHER GAMES had a problem. Just this one. On this same system I've played skyrim, the witcher II, arkham city, fable 3, crysis 1&2 with NO problems (maybe the occasional issue if playing for hours and hours on end). But New Vegas could give me no problems for a whole day and then an onslaught of them for the next week, and there are definitely known bugs (like the hoover dam issue)
Overall Review: Just wanted everyone who basically says "if you're too dumb to configure your pc just go buy a system" to think before they make comments. The bugs exist. People complain about them all over the internet. It may very well be a system thing, but it probable doesn't have to do with someone setting up their computer "wrong" in most cases. It has to do with (although an awesome game still) a very buggy and glitchy game that can be a real headache to some. It's a matter of luck how well it runs for you, but if you don't get a completely bugged out experience, it is well worth it.
Solid
Pros: Solid power supply. No problems running it, modular, and comes with a nice little bag for all the cables and things you dont use. It's actually a sick looking package, AND the fan on it is actually very quiet. 80 plus gold certified.
Cons: None. Can't complain about a thing except maybe the price, but they do get more expensive when you buy a 1000 watt 80 plus gold lol
Overall Review: Would definitely recommend this power supply
Trooper
Pros: Phenomenal performance out of this card. Like a previous reviewer had said, I WISH I had bought two of these two crossfire before they were discontinued. No real heat issues (granted a lot of fans in my case) and I was able to run this without using a lot of power. It has run everything from The Witcher II to Skyrim to Arkham City. All on max settings? Absolutely not. All pretty darn smooth though? Absolutely.
Cons: None I can think of. Just that I didn't get a second one.
Overall Review: If you ever happen to come across this card for cheap somewhere, it's genuinely not a bad solution (I imagine a crossfire setup would be pretty nice with these) for a budget gamer or someone who just wants to have some slightly bumped up graphics. Breathe some new life into an old computer.
One of my best purchases...
Pros: Still running after a year and a few wipes - just as strong as day 1. Noticed load times on basically everything drop significantly. While playing DAO (which I had installed on a regular hard drive before this game) the load screens actually loaded in probably about 20% of the time.
Cons: Where as before I was able to read all the lovely hints and tips at load screens at my leisure, I now can barely scan one sentence before it's done in some games :) (one of those cons that isn't really a con). There is the need to update the firmware before use (at least for me there was) but it literally took less than 10 minutes to download and set up everything to update the firmware.
Overall Review: I bought this one at around 230$ on sale, and I do not regret paying that much for it. Can you get a 256gb for less than 300 now? Absolutely. So honestly, I'd say go up a notch for around $100. But either way, if you're someone who knows you won't ever need more than 128gb on your system drive (and need a sata II specifically) I say go for it. It's a solid product that works.