How to
Futuremark’s Game-o-meter shows what games your netbook can play
Jan 19th
One big issue I have when it comes to paying for boxed (or downloadable) games is wanting some assurances they’re going to run on my hardware. I currently don’t own a tower with “real” graphics capabilities – just a netbook and a laptop, both with Intel integrated video.
Fortunately, the crew from Futuremark has a useful little web app called Game-o-meter. It uses a Java-powered system profiler to collect data from your rig and compare it to minimum requirements for tons of different games. Just about every popular title is listed, from WoW to CIV3 and 4, to Rome: Total War.
The results Game-o-meter produces aren’t fool-proof, of course, but they at least give you a little more insight than what’s printed on the box.
One caveat: new hardware might take a little while to show up in their database. As you can see from the test run on my Gateway LT210H, the Pine View graphics are as yet unknown to Futuremark.
To check your system, make sure you have Java installed and then head over to Yougamers.com – just click any game to start testing!
The Minifrag guide to enjoying games on your netbook
Jan 2nd
There are plenty of people out there – Intel included – who think that gaming on netbooks is just about one of the stupidest things you could ever do with your portable. Well, they’re wrong.
Netbook gaming is all about understanding what you’ve got to work with and getting the most out of it. The Atom (or CULV or AMD Neo) in your netbook isn’t as powerful as what runs larger notebook computers. And it’s nowhere near as beefy as the processor in a desktop computer.
That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy playing games on a netbook. Far from it! Here are some guidelines that will help you get the most out of your netbook gaming experience.
(header image shows Spore running on an HP Mini 311, courtesy Liliputing)