Saturday, 4 July 2015

Raidmax Atomic Mini ITX

Raidmax Atomic Mini ITX

Small and sensible...

While we have seen a few smaller form factor motherboards in the past, it isn’t often that we get to look at a case that would house them and their associated components. There are several solutions around, of course, like the Raidmax Atomic. This particular mini ITX case is sleek and stylish, almost cube-like in design and perfect for those wanting a smaller housing for their PC system.

No Privacy No Way!

No Privacy No Way

Little things can tip the balance…

It’s very easy to look at the world the way it is today, warts and all, and make the mistake of thinking that things will be the same tomorrow. For most South Africans, for example, assuming that load shedding is simply a part of life and that we will just have to work around it is becoming a stark reality. But it’s so easy for change to tip one way or the other, that many people would probably be surprised (and also resentful that they invested in a R20k generator that they could have avoided).

XEOX Speedlink Pro Analog Gamepad USB

XEOX Speedlink Pro Analog Gamepad USB

Having a game pad is not something that only console gamers get to do – many PC gamers have found the advantages that gamepads offer to their playing. While they may not surpass the mouse and keyboard for some types of games, gamepads can be an invaluable companion in others. And so purchasing a gamepad, for the serious gamer or player who enjoys things like fighting and sports titles on PC, is almost a nobrainer.

Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End

Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End

Nathan Drake’s long-awaited PS4 debut is still number one with a bullet – and a lot of bangs…

Bruce Straley breaks videogames. He just can’t help himself. Naughty Dog’s go-to director has crashed two Uncharted 4 demos on the spin; the first at last December’s PlayStation Experience, then at Sony’s (otherwise incredible) E3 presentation. Minutes after finishing up with a typically breathless, real-time rollercoaster of Nate adventuring, Straley tweeted: “I just lost about 38 years of my life from that demo.” Well, that’s what happens when you make Drake stall at a bustling Madagascan market for a seeming eternity.

Fallout 4

Fallout 4

We’ve got more than a feeling about this one

The vault door has finally been opened. Years of rumours spill out like ’roaches, and into the blinding sunlight walks Fallout 4 with a confident stride, a canine companion and sleeves heaving with new tricks. Who said war never changes?

With development beginning in earnest shortly after Fallout 3 shipped in 2008, game director Todd Howard is calling its follow-up, “the most ambitious and detailed world that we have ever made.” Naturally, he would say that – but it’s a claim reinforced, not diminished, by footage of the game itself. An updated engine boasting sumptuous volumetric lighting and a revamped physics system reinvigorates the familiar post-nuclear wasteland, and it’s capable of rendering the ruins of Boston on a scale we simply haven’t seen in the series before. Fenway Park, Bunker Hill Monument, and the iconic gold dome of the Massachusetts State House have all survived the blast (though not unblemished, of course), and they’re part of a cityscape that stretches and stretches into the distance.

Street Fighter V

Street Fighter V

We go hands-on, feet-on and fireball-on with Capcom’s brilliant PS4-exclusive brawler

They call it the hit pause: a brief slowing of time when an attack hits home to emphasise the weight of the connection. Capcom as good as wrote the book on it, and while it’s a technique many have borrowed, few have used it quite so well.

Tearaway Unfolded

Tearaway Unfolded

An adventure that’s a papercut above the rest

There’s a danger that some people may dismiss Tearaway Unfolded as a tartedup version of the PS Vita incarnation and pass it by as a result. And that makes us mad for two reasons: firstly, because the original was a criminally overlooked classic that deserves to be played by all PlayStation owners; secondly, and more crucially, because Unfolded is no mere refresh.

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

Sub-par combat? Eidos Montreal says, “We can rebuild it”

Ah yes. The eternal balance between stealth and combat. Many a game has been sacrificed at the altar of the ‘play your way’ mantra. When you look back at these titles, though, stealth seems to be the only right way to go about things for the likes of Dishonored and Mankind Divided’s predecessor Human Revolution. Sure, you could dip into the guns and glory playstyle as and when you got spotted and couldn’t be bothered to reload your last save to try again, but really the onus was on not being seen in the first place.

PiBorg UltraBorg

PiBorg UltraBorg

Designed for Raspberry Pi robotics projects, does the expandable UltraBorg deliver on its promises or let us down?

Designed primarily for the Raspberry Pi yet compatible with any microcomputer or microcontroller that can speak inter-integrated circuit (I2C) – including the popular Arduino and compatible – PiBorg’s UltraBorg is built with one task in mind: robotics.