General Discussion [ Page 24 ]

One Month With the ASUS ROG GL552VW-DH74 Gaming Laptop

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/images/images2500x2500/asus_gl552vw_dh74_i7_6700hq_16gb_1tb_128ms3_windows_10_64_15_6_1183449.jpg

I'm not gonna lie, originally I wanted to buy a Mac laptop. I like the Apple hardware, build quality and software better than nearly all of the Windows alternatives. And even though I may love Apple's products I don't love the price because when you buy Apple you pay a premium for it. And with that price and quality premium you also lock in to your hardware specs. Apple used to allow upgrades to it's laptop harddrives and ram after your initial purchase but that is no longer the case. I want a system that's reasonably priced, is mobile and something I can upgrade when the time is right. Playing games well is also important to me so after a bit of searching I finally... Read All I'm not gonna lie, originally I wanted to buy a Mac laptop. I like the Apple hardware, build quality and software better than nearly all of the Windows alternatives. And even though I may love Apple's products I don't love the price because when you buy Apple you pay a premium for it. And with that price and quality premium you also lock in to your hardware specs. Apple used to allow upgrades to it's laptop harddrives and ram after your initial purchase but that is no longer the case. I want a system that's reasonably priced, is mobile and something I can upgrade when the time is right. Playing games well is also important to me so after a bit of searching I finally pulled the trigger and bought an ASUS ROG laptop.

Show Me The Specs

The ASUS ROG was in the right price and spec zone as it features an Intel Core i7-6700HQ 2.6GHz, 16GB RAM; 1TB 7200RPM + 128GB SSD harddrive & an NVidia GeForce GTX 960M -w 4GB VRAM. The OS runs on the SSD which means this thing boots up wickedly fast. The ROG features an HDMI port so plugging it in to my desktop monitor and TV is a breeze and after a bit of learning on my part I figured out how to rock a dual monitor/laptop screen setup in Windows 10. I went with the 15" laptop as 17" seemed way too large for a laptop and since the hardware of both sizes is nearly identical, I think the smaller size was a better choice. The ROG also features a nice illuminated keyboard that really helps with typing in the dark. In general the laptop hardware is solid in nearly every respect but I do have a couple gripes with it. The black finish is very neat looking but it's also a fingerprint magnet. It's not too bad but I do have to wipe it down from time to time because the smudges bother me. The other annoying part of using the ROG is that if you bend it slightly on occasion the DVD drive opens. Originally I thought i'd use the DVD drive more but apparently I don't use it at all so the only time the drive ever opens is on accident.

Beyond those minor issues the ASUS ROG is a very solid and powerful laptop. It's not too heavy has a good build quality to it and is very enjoyable to use.

Apparently, Windows 10 Is Pretty Good

I'll be honest, I am not a huge fan of Windows or Microsoft. This is mostly because I found the Microsoft of the 90's to be really bad in terms of it's anti-competitive behavior but recently the company has come around a bit. Windows 7 was a pretty good Operating System and after using Windows 10 for a month I can say that it's pretty easy and isn't too annoying to use. That said it phones home more than E.T. so if you don't want Redmond knowing when you go to the bathroom, I suggest you run SpyBot Anti-Beacon. The ROG also comes with a ton of crap-ware installed and that takes a bit to get removed but after all of that is gone and Windows isn't calling Bill Gates every 5 minutes, it's a solid experience. I can't honestly tell if Windows 10 performs better than 7 but I haven't noticed any slow downs in any games or actions on Windows 10.

This Thing Plays Games Well Too

If you want the biggest bang for your buck in PC-land you shouldn't go with a laptop. I went with a laptop because I wanted to play games and have a very portable system. I also wanted a machine I could hack Cheerful Ghost code using Linux and the ASUS ROG does that really well. It also plays games well, but again, if you want more power for your dollar go with a regular ol' PC. That said, I was able to max out StarCraft II with zero issues and the ROG can also play the new Doom game in 1080p without dropping below 30 FPS.

After using the ASUS ROG for a month I can say that i'm really happy with my purchase. It's a solid system for the price and it plays all the games I want to at a very acceptable speeds. It's comfortable to use on the couch and slides right in on my Desktop and works great with my monitor, keyboard and mouse. If you are looking for a nicely spec'd laptop that plays games well you might want to look into the ASUS ROG GL552VW-DH74.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 08/05/2016 at 08:06am

Sweet! How's the battery life? Does it get hot?

JaBo wrote on 08/05/2016 at 06:15pm

Huh, yeah, pretty similar to what I bought last year. ASUS G751JL 17-Inch Gaming Laptop
I love mine. Max graphics gaming on a laptop with a quiet fan that doesn't get too hot... I still love it. It's huge though... I had to buy a $100 gaming back pack for it lol. (I use it for school too ).

Will_Ball Game Mod Super Member wrote on 08/05/2016 at 06:34pm

Mmm, new hardware. Does it VR? :)

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 08/05/2016 at 11:41pm

> How's the battery life? Does it get hot?

The battery life is about 4-5 hours JUST with a browser open doing light surfing in battery saver mode. It's a couple hours if you are playing a game on battery.

It gets how when you have Steam or Battle.net open and/or are playing a game. It pushes hot air through a side fan, and it gets a bit warm on the bottom but nothing too bad.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 08/05/2016 at 11:42pm

> It's huge though...

I bet. That's why I got the 15" :D

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 08/09/2016 at 12:26pm

I just noticed in the picture you included in your post that the WASD keys seem to be highlighted. That reminded me of a keyboard change I'd like to see. On most keyboards you'll find that the J and F keys have little protrusions on them so that when you put your hands on your keyboard, you know where the "home keys" are without having to look. I think the WASD keys deserve the same treatment for gamers like us. :)

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The Internet Archive Plays With Power By Putting Each Issue of Nintendo Power Online

If you grew up pouring through each issue of Nintendo Power then the Internet Archive might be your new best friend. They recently put each issue online to view and download for your nostalgic retro gaming needs. Nintendo Power discontinued all publications in 2013 but in it's 90's prime, it was the best way to learn about Nintendo games. My favorite parts of the Magazine were the comics and tips and tricks section where you could learn cheat codes and other secrets to your favorite games. The popularization of the Internet made magazines like Nintendo Power largely obsolete in favor of wikis and game sites but that said, it's still awesome that each issue is... Read All

Vive

http://edge.alluremedia.com.au/m/k/2016/03/VR_Web_ValveRoomScale_Graphic_0216.jpg

Anybody have a Vive? If so, what are you playing?

jdodson Admin wrote on 07/29/2016 at 12:22am

LucasFilm released Star Wars Trials on Tatooine and it looks really good and it's also free but I haven't tried it yet.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/381940/

Will_Ball Game Mod Super Member Post Author wrote on 07/29/2016 at 03:55pm

Yeah, I need to try it. I hear it is pretty resource intensive though, so I am not sure my rig can survive it. I am at the bottom of the high end rating in the SteamVR perf test.

jdodson Admin wrote on 07/30/2016 at 07:07pm

Interesting. What video card do you have on your PC?

Will_Ball Game Mod Super Member Post Author wrote on 07/31/2016 at 01:25am

I have a 780ti. I ran Trials last night in low settings. The only reasons to try it out is because Star Wars and Free. It is a demo through and through. Not much to do, other than look at star wars stuff and swing a lightsaber. That said, seeing r2-d2 and the millennium falcon was kind of cool (although at the low setting, the textures looked like they were straight out of the N64). Oh, and it requires a 2.4m x 2.4m minimum room setup. I have 2.1m x 2.1m. I ran it despite the warnings, and it was fine. I may try it out on medium setting and see if it makes me vomit, or if frame rate is fine.

jdodson Admin wrote on 07/31/2016 at 02:44am

Can't wait to check out some of that stuff. The whole notion of "Room VR" sounds really neat.

Will_Ball Game Mod Super Member Post Author wrote on 07/31/2016 at 03:11am

It is!

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Sega does what Nintendon't, 2016 edition: a mini-Genesis with expansion capability

The tiny console wars are upon us! In October, a mini-Genesis with 80 built-in games will be arriving.

This is coming in two versions, the one pictured, and a handheld version: https://i.imgur.com/ckF2hWc.png

Both versions retail for about $65 USD and are currently only available from a UK retailer.

Both have 80 built-in games, but they have expansion capabilities. The mini-console has a slot to play original Genesis carts, and the handheld has an SD card slot (so are they tacitly approving of downloading roms?).

So lets talk about those games! 80 of them! That's 50 more than the mini NES! Well, yes it is. But you'll only care about 40 of them probably. The remaining 40... Read All

scrypt Supporter wrote on 07/27/2016 at 03:39am

Tricky! Composite, low-fi, but expandable, or high-def retro? What do you play on that still has composite connections? Are you rocking a tube TV?! Double retro! Seriously, I was considering finding a flat-screen tube to play SNES and PS1 games on. Those were the days...

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 07/27/2016 at 06:18am

Looks very similar to what I bought years ago. I honestly barely used it. Maybe I should find it and hook it up again. I never experienced the Mega Drive part of Sega, only the Genesis. I'd also like to note that TONS of Sega (Genesis and Mega Drive) games are available on Steam. I saw one package for over $100.

http://cheerfulghost.com/GregoPeck/posts/2290/i-finally-have-a-sega-genesis

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 07/27/2016 at 06:04pm

I love that it can play old Genesis carts, but there aren't any games preloaded that I'm really interested in. A play through of Altered Beast would probably be fun, and the Mortal Kombat games are cool, but this lineup has nothing that could stand up to the NES game lineup.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 07/27/2016 at 08:54pm

I have two HDTVs, one of them is a 720p from a few years back, the other is a 1080p 3D super-awesome smart TV thing. Both of them have composite connectors! You may not realize that you have them, sometimes the component connectors do double duty.

It feels like putting easy cheese on a meal at a swanky restaurant, but it still works pretty well to play the NES on a 1080p TV with composite.

Greg MegaDrive IS Genesis. They just renamed it for America for some reason. So the same hardware in Europe was called the MegaDrive. You might be thinking of the Master System, which came before the Megadrive/Genesis.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 07/28/2016 at 12:31am

That's good to know about the composite and component connectors.

Master System, Megadrive, Genesis, wow that's a lot. All I know is I only had experience with the Genesis and Game Gear. My cousin and friends owned a Genesis, while I owned a Game Gear.

Anyway, here are some related packages I found on Steam.
Sonic games collection on Steam for $113: http://store.steampowered.com/sub/90504/
Sega Genesis and MegaDrive collection on Steam for $62: http://store.steampowered.com/sub/102625/

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 07/28/2016 at 12:39am

It's only two though! The master system came out around the time of the NES. It's in that generation. Then the MegaDrive came out in the next generation.

I think there was a trademark issue so in North America they had to call it Genesis instead.

jdodson Admin wrote on 07/28/2016 at 04:34pm

> Looks very similar to what I bought years ago. I honestly barely used it.

Apparently it's one and the same thing and it's received some unfortunate reviews.

http://kotaku.com/no-sega-doesnt-have-its-own-mini-genesis-1784350008

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 07/28/2016 at 06:06pm

Wow that's seriously disappointing.

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The Death Of The Platformer (For Me)

Perhaps it was driven by availability, but growing up, I very much enjoyed platforming games. Super Mario Bros 3, Mega Man, Duck Tales, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; heck, I even played the crap out of Barbie for the NES, because my family owned it, so I played it.

But lately, I've found I'm drawn less and less to platforming games. I bought the remastered version of Duck Tales, and played through about half of it. Shovel Knight came and went without me finding any interest in it. Even Mighty No 9 doesn't interest me, at all, when I loved the game series it was modeled after.

I've been trying to figure out why, and it's finally occurred to me.

Roguelike/Roguelite games... Read All

Travis Admin wrote on 07/20/2016 at 09:48pm

I was interested in Mighty No 9. I'm not anymore, but that's not because it's a platformer :D

That said, I still adore platformers and I really like some roguelikes. I don't think they're mutually exclusive. FTL didn't make me enjoy Shovel Knight any less.

scrypt Supporter wrote on 07/20/2016 at 10:49pm

Have you tried Rogue Legacy, Adam? It's a rogulike platformer. Might be right up your alley :).

AdamPFarnsworth Post Author wrote on 07/20/2016 at 11:03pm

I have not! I will have to look for it.

scrypt Supporter wrote on 07/20/2016 at 11:17pm

It's actually really good, and the music is snappy .

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 07/21/2016 at 12:29am

I like that you mentioned Duck Tales. I remember playing it when I was about 12. I enjoyed it. I haven't looked at the remastered version, but (since you remind me) I may. I enjoyed Mega Man back then, too. I do have the Legacy Collection on Steam, which at least looks so much better, but I've hardly played it. I was a big TMNT fan back then, too, and had that Gameboy game. I also enjoyed Super Mario, but the first SMB game on Gameboy was difficult, at least that's what I remember of it. My gaming was somewhat limited to a Commodore 128D and a Gameboy. My cousin, however, had a Gameboy, NES, and Sega Genesis. So, I always enjoyed visiting him and playing a variety of games with him. In fact, I strongly believe those moments are what I cherish most of my childhood memories.

At present, however, I'm really not interested in platform games. In recent years I've found Mario games to be much more frustrating than fun. I haven't tried Super Mario Maker, but my son has played it.

These days I think I'm more interested in games that feature an open world, exploration, RPG elements, crafting, and surviving. I am looking forward to the new Zelda game which seems to contain many of those elements.

jdodson Admin wrote on 07/21/2016 at 02:37am

Adam,

I think a more apt post title would be "PLATFORMING IS DEAD!"

Fun aside, I mostly agree with your opinion here. Like Travis I played Shovel Knight and it's very good. But it didn't hook me like it has with others. It's a good game, but playing the exact same level in hopes that, "this time I'll actually beat it" isn't as much fun to me these days.

Conversely I __love__ Risk of Rain, which is a rogue like platformer. Each play through is different and you can unlock new characters for some really fun and different abilities. It's more learning the game mechanics and strategies and less a bout memorizing a level.

Rogue Legacy is also pretty good and if you are interested they have a demo you can try.

scrypt Supporter wrote on 07/21/2016 at 03:18am

Risk of Rain! Definitely Risk of Rain!

Timogorgon Member wrote on 07/21/2016 at 04:48am

I second Risk of Rain. :)

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Summer Games Done Quick Speedrunning Charity Starts On July 3rd

https://cdn1.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/HkF2Oe1-t9cXBzT7-xOQBJqoBHY=/0x103:1015x674/1280x720/cdn0.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/48535861/Screen_Shot_2016-01-10_at_11.31.05_AM.0.0.png

Speedrunning charity stream Summer Games Done Quick will be blasting through the gaming stream-o-sphere starting July 3rd @ 9.30am and wrapping up on the 9th. As with every year, the game speedrunning lineup is a buffet of classic retro titles and many hot new modern titles such as Goonies II, Legend of Zelda Link's Awakening DX, BioShock, Dishonored, Hexen and Fallout 4.

I've created an Event you can join to add to you calendar to remind you of the event or just queue it up on Twitch starting July 3rd. As with every year there will be some great speedruns of this event and i'll share the ones I really enjoy. Let me know if you plan on watching and what games you are... Read All

All Of A Sudden, Game/Show Ends

After Game/Show launched I posted quite a few episodes to Cheerful Ghost because I liked the style of the show and what it had to say. Today I watched the latest episode that sort of just let us all know the show was over using a title roll and series of clips. Not that everything that ends needs to wave goodbye, but this doesn't seem like the shows style and I wonder what the story here is?

All that said, Game/Show had a really solid two year run and like many I appreciated it's perspective and what it added to the discussion.

*waves goodbye*

scrypt Supporter wrote on 07/02/2016 at 02:34am

I'm probably in the minority (or maybe not, what with the cancellation), but Game/Show wasn't my favorite. LOT's of hyperbole, and I felt like Jamin's arguments were often contrived, to the point of being irrelevant ("Is Halo 5 For Old People?", "Is Jonathan Blow Gaming's Einstein?").

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 07/02/2016 at 03:03am

Oh man, interesting.

I saw this video in my subscriptions, but hadn't watched it yet. I'm not a huge fan either (only really enjoyed a few of the episodes), but it's still a little sad to see it go.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 07/02/2016 at 03:08am

scrypt: They used hyperbole for sure. My thinking as to why is because hyperbole can often get attention and start a discussion, where something more reasoned may not. It's not my style most of the time, but I can see it's use from time to time.

Once the video was going, did you find the arguments to contain the same kind of hyperbolic themes? It seemed they chilled some, but often the arguments seemed somewhat simple.

Travis Admin wrote on 07/02/2016 at 04:19am

"hyperbole can often get attention and start a discussion"

It's like the old joke about Linux forums. If you go in and explain your problem, you won't get any answers, but if you go in and say "Linux sucks, it can't even do [thing you're trying to do]" then you'll get a ton of explanations and fixes from people defending it.

Hyperbole gets attention and starts discussions for the wrong reason, but it definitely does get attention and start a discussion.

I have no strong opinion on the show though. I liked the first couple episodes and then, for no reason I can immediately convey, I just lost interest.

scrypt Supporter wrote on 07/02/2016 at 05:31am

I don't know, I feel like the arguments relied on bent facts that only served to reinforce the title of the videos. I lost respect for him when I felt like I had to do the research for him after each show I watched. Not like his arguments stirred me to look deeper into a subject, rather I felt like he kept missing the point, and then missing the facts that would have supported a more grounded topic. In those cases where I bothered to let it push me, I actually learned more in spite of what was presented, not because of it (and that's not a good thing). I almost wish there was an Onion-like satire to Game/Show. That would have been entertaining. However, trying to start seemingly intelligent conversations by catering to people who have no attention span seems like a completely futile and frustrating endeavor. I watch another show called The Know, and they have similar tactics with their headlines (as do most game news sites these days), and it just gets boring. It's like they're not even trying to be creative anymore. Just say something bat-shit crazy, and people will click.

I'm being pretty harsh, and maybe the show wasn't intended for me. I like smart conversation, and topics that run deeper than surface fodder, but I also feel like there are enough interesting things in the gaming world to discuss without having to make things up.

Having said all that, I really do wish Jamin well with his next project, whatever that may be. He has a unique voice, and at the very least I'll be interested to see where he goes from here.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 07/02/2016 at 05:46am

> Having said all that, I really do wish Jamin well with his next project, whatever that may be. He has a unique voice, and at the very least I'll be interested to see where he goes from here.

Yep, me too. And it was a PBS project so I wonder if we will see more gaming content from them?

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Dolphin 5.0 Swims In The Impressively Murky Seas Of Emulation

If you've ever played a GameCube or Wii game you owned in Dolphin you know it can at times be both very good and at times strange. The upscaling ability of Dolphin on Wii and GameCube games is well worth the price of admission alone as experiencing these classic titles in HD is incredible. For me, my classic hardware sometimes breaks so I try and backup all my games so I can play them on my PC. Recently Dolphin released 5.0 which is a notable milestone in that it optimizes for speed and also makes many games run much better than they did before.

"The long awaited Dolphin 5.0 release is finally here! After nearly a year of bug-hunting and handling the release process,... Read All

The CD Key Grey Market & Cheerful Ghost

Last year Cheerful Ghost published Starship Rubicon and I am really proud of that. Working alongside Wick to get the game launched, promoted and sold has been one of the more enjoyable things I've been part of. When I approached him about publishing his game, I had a fledgling idea of how to approach and in the end I believe we did well by the game and its fans. Together we've learned a lot: firstly, making an Indie game doesn't mean you make big money (because as of now we haven't made very much), and secondly, you need to be aware of what is out there that can potentially harm your game. One such thing that can chip away at the money you can make in the industry is... Read All

Travis Admin wrote on 06/29/2016 at 02:17am

Their model is, as you've said, very morally gray at best. However, they definitely get most of their money from money laundering from stolen credit cards. If this was any other kind of medium that dealt with something other than electronic goods, these services would have been shut down a long time ago, I imagine. Lawmakers still just don't know what to do with electronic goods.

scrypt Supporter wrote on 06/29/2016 at 11:21pm

I'm trying to wrap my head around this one, but I wanted to point out a quick misrepresentation. G2A didn't make $450K in sales of tinyBuilds game keys. The estimation that tinyBuild came up with was that just under $200K in revenue was created, with a percentage of that (somewhere between 10.8 and 30, I can't tell) going to G2A, which they claim would have equated to over $450K if those sales had gone through their site. I think these kinds of factoring are generally flawed, but the fact remains that they had product stolen and resold without seeing fruits of that.

scrypt Supporter wrote on 06/29/2016 at 11:46pm

Added to that, grey markets aren't illegal or immoral. Associating the problems in G2A's system with grey market activity is confusing the issue.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 06/30/2016 at 03:32am

> I think these kinds of factoring are generally flawed, but the fact remains that they had product stolen and resold without seeing fruits of that.

Yeah, that's a good point.

> Added to that, grey markets aren't illegal or immoral. Associating the problems in G2A's system with grey market activity is confusing the issue.

Yeah, that makes sense. This article has been through a couple revisions and what it landed on maybe is a bit odd in that way. I do think that G2A and sites like it can potentially serve a legitimate use, for instance a developer could sell the game there if they wanted. That said, that's a far reach from what I am talking about in this article and I used the term Grey market to sort of cover a legit usecase for these sites even though the main use of them isn't.

In the end I think G2A and sites like it should operate more like a pawn shop and require ID up front and maybe do a bit more to make sure things are on the up and up if you are selling more than a handful of keys.

Travis Admin wrote on 06/30/2016 at 04:43am

I find it interesting that you both use the British "grey" instead of the American "gray"

That's off-topic :D

Gray markets definitely aren't illegal by definition, but there's a certain connotation with the term. And G2A's practices certainly support that connotation. It's possible that "gray market" isn't the right term to use here, but I don't know what the right term is. At its best it isn't money laundering with stolen credit cards, but it supports that. At its usual best, it provides ways for people to sell keys that they probably aren't authorized to sell.

And there's a certain point about ownership here as well. It's worth noting that just because you have a key to redeem a game on Steam, that doesn't mean you are allowed to sell it in all cases. Ultimately, with digital goods, you don't own the content, you are licensed the content, and the content owners can make choices that affect your ability to re-sell or do other non-standard things. G2A and its competitors facilitate fudging that concept of ownership.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 07/02/2016 at 03:09am

> I find it interesting that you both use the British "grey" instead of the American "gray"

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Head Back To Gaming's Past To E3 1996!

Someone posted a video on YouTube that captured 30 minutes of E3 floor footage from 1996. It shows off Nintendo's booth and people playing with the Nintendo 64, Mario Kart and Super Mario World as well as a couple games I don't recognize. I like that this video is free of any commentary and is simply just capturing the 96' E3 show floor, it's a nice change from the massive wall of video commentary we get from these events.