http://www.computerandvideogames.com/29 ... -for-them/

I shall be installing BF2 today...

I went back to BF2 a while back and I dont know what was going on but it was laggy and horrible. It's a shame I dont have the PC to run BF3 anymore. Since Nicola said I can have a Mac I've been playing out a £1600 iMac Vs £1600 gaming PC fight in my head.

I suppose it comes down to whether you want RAWRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR or shiny shiny.

I've always been a PC gamer but became bored of what was available and pound for pound enjoyed the experience as much on the consoles for multiplatform stuff anyway. That led me to getting rid of the GTX275 and scaling the PC back to a browser/photo editor/general PC with little or no gaming potential.

The iMac I've got my eye on does better I guess what I currently use my PC for. The screen is better (and bigger) for a start, the unit is smaller and quieter, it looks nicer and ultimately (mainly because of the screen) will offer a better photo/browsing/general experience.... i hope.

But now BF3, Crysis 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic and Skyrim are all on the way - two of which I need a PC for and two of which will simply be better on PC.

No reason you can't install Windows on your Mac and dual-boot. It might not be the best at gaming, but it's better than nothing...

Aye, but with the fairly limited gfx card in the iMac (by gaming standards) is that experience going to be better than the equivalent console experience? I guess ultimately there's no easy way. I either game on the consoles and get an iMac for my piccys and general use or have a monster gaming PC and put up with the noise and size but still pine for a shiny Apple

Battlefield 3 gameplay trailer explodes out of cover

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/29 ... -of-cover/

Is it just me or is that sniper missing some really obvious shots?

yup, im starting to hate this game already, the SP atleast. so far everything ive seen has been very CODish: all prescripted set pieces and NPC interaction, which i dont like. lets hope the MP is little more up-to-standard

I'm guessing that whole video was either scripted play to make it look like that, or the game section was scripted to force the COD style "all you have to do is press the button..... NOW" type of objective...

I have to concur - sure it certainly looks pretty, but the whole team conversation/swearing/convenient-that-you're-there-at-certain-points ind of thing is getting really old.... and like I care anyway - I'm sure I'm not the only one who tries to shoot his NPC colleagues dead from the get go.

But the one thing that really bothered me about that video, it's the awful suggestion of how your arms look when holding a weapon, when prone - the FOV/posing is all wrong - with simply never enough of your own body, or real-world ergonomics considered... maybe I'm stupid to ask after absolute realism, but why don't rag doll physics play as much a part in a player's character as they do every other Tom, Dick & Harry in FPS games? You've got stamina/fatigue from running, slowdown with heavy ordance & shaky sights - but how about expanding on physics engines to do something more than just blow stuff up into a million particles... how about instead of slowing time for breaches and key-shots, how about exagerating weight distribution when running on stairs, having weather effects that actually effect, random-chance injuries, real shrapnel damage, richochets, improvised weapons from scenery (lob a brick, or make a bomb Under Seige style) or how about a finite number of enemies, with ammo/support limitations and more importantly, a sense of their own mortality... etc etc etc...

agree with everything you say, and it can all be answered by 1 simple statement:

the mass market (ie not us pedantic ingrates who demand originality and innovation from our games) would not notice, making all that effort essentially a waste of time. sadly

That sort of thing was botched (and that's the difference) with KZ2 IME - whole thing felt sluggish. Isn't Flashpoint done something similar?