Yawning Cat Outbounds Performance

We here are Yawning Cat Enterprises are thrilled at the amount of attention we have been receiving recently.  Its less than a year and our blog has already had several requests from international magazines for reprints of some of our articles.  We however had to decline these reprints, we enjoy keeping our content exclusive and free for all.  Also our Company has received windfall profits from our anti-addiction WoW (World of Warcraft) clinics in undisclosed Eastern European countries.

To conclude this post I would like to share some stats with you..

The 3 most popular countries our readers are located in are: USA, Germany, and Poland

The 4 most popular browser software used are: Firefox, Google Chrome, and Opera

The 3 most popular operating systems are: Windows, Mac, and Linux

The blog received the most ever hits on March 28, 2010

And the 3 most popular posts are: Top 10 of the Last Decade, Game review: Dragon Age: Origins, Game Review: Uncharted 2

I take from this that we have a very "tech minded" crowd that is on top of the new internet software and products.  What we have to look forward to is more game reviews, computer reviews, relevant technology reviews and opinions posts.  I hope everyone is enjoying the blog and a big congrats to our most popular writer XL.

PS:  Wtf people, you dont like Trololo Cat?!

Top 50 PC games of all time. 20-11.

20. Quake (1996)
-developer: ID Software

Doom might have been the father of all FPS but it was another ID Software game that will define online death matches for future FPS. Quake was released when internet was just coming onto its own, it quickly garnered popularity as many people started to play the game competitively over the internet. It is hard to imagine this now but the game rely on fast paced action and precise controls but was played on somewhat primitive 32k and now many people even had internet back then. Never the less enough people got the thrill of killing enemies that were controlled by real life opponents rather than the same old bots and thus the internet ownage and trash talking have started.


19. Dragon Age Origins (2009)
-developer: Bioware

Touted by Bioware as the spiritual successor to perhaps one of the greatest and most beloved RPG of all time, Dragon Age had high expectations and big shoes to fill when it was announced. And Bioware did not disappoint as it was almost everything any cRPG fans would ever wanted. Now it might not be as big, expensive and rich as some of Bioware's older games but we live in a time where games are all about graphics and little about game play. Bioware gave us a little taste of what they are still capable of in Dragon Age. Even though you could say Dragon Age was merely a fraction of what Baldur's Gate 2 was but I will still gladly take this game over majority of the games out today.


18. Deus Ex (2000)
-developer: Ion Storm Inc.

Besides the fact you can not pronounce this games name there are several things about this that was out of the ordinary when it came out in 2000. It was one of the few FPS/RPG hybrid and it was so well done through out the whole game you do not feel like you were playing a game but rather going through an epic experience. Its an action packed game unlike many RPGs at time which were slow paced and were rigorous in combat. And then the story, puzzles, interactions and the choices you can make easily rivals the best RPGs out there.


17. EverQuest (1999)
-developer: Sony

EverQuest was the first truly Massive MMORPG on the market, it had massive worlds, massive raid encounters, massive player community and massive amount of contents. The technology part of the game at the time was quite impressive as the game was first real main stream MMO that you could play. And it also was the first real addictive MMOs on the market as millions and millions people subscribed to the game and played 24/7, you can say EverQuest was the WoW before WoW was here.


16. Unreal Tournament (1999)
-developer: Epic Games

Long before the battle between Call of Duty and Battlefield started for the console kids to argue which is the better FPS, the original battle between the two greatest FPS franchises torn the PC community in half. Quake or Unreal, it was the question. Not only did the two play very similar they also looked similar, and the battle don't just end with the game play as they were also fighting for the dominance of their respective graphic engines for the next two decades. In the end Unreal won and to some people dismay many games today uses the Unreal engine. This great victory also earned nerds like Clifford Bleszinski cool nicknames such as Cliffy B and Dude Huge as well as his own wikipedia page.


15. F.E.A.R. (2005)
-developer: Monolith Production

A truly brilliant game is one that ruins other truly brilliant games for you. After playing FEAR, the inability to kick enemies in the face in every other FPS makes it feel like our legs are tied together. How can any game not have a slow-mo key? Why don't other shotguns feel this right? Why, more importantly, don't they literally blow your enemies in twain? Why can't everything be a little more like FEAR?


14. Day of the Tentacle (1993)
-developer: Lucas Arts

Funny and brilliantly written, but more to the point it had ingenious puzzles. Playing three characters trapped in different periods of time, you twigged that simple and ridiculous actions in the past could have life-saving consequences in the future. It makes me sad that games today has lost the touch of fresh, unique and awesome game play rather then the same old graphic war. This game also makes me realize that we need Tim Schaffer to make more games such as this and Grim Fandango.


13. Civilization 4 (2005)
-developer: Firaxis Games

It's that time when, playing as the Britons, you sacked Rome. Or when playing as Germany, you invaded west - through Poland and France, into Britain, and didn't stop, across the Atlantic, through the US, and into Russia. Whether founding your own religion, seeking the counsel of Great People, or assimilating enemy cities by making your own too wondrous to resist, Civ IV creates more memorable moments than any of its predecessors.


12. Neverwinter Nights (2002)
-developer: Bioware

Not the greatest singleplayer RPG ever, but Neverwinter Nights was so much more. Dedicated Dungeon Masters could create and run their own D&D campaigns without all those pesky dice and bits of paper, and Neverwinter was also the prime source of peoples Co-Op fun before more sophisticated online RPGs have arrived. So many people ended up making unique maps and mods for this game that after the main game has long fallen off the face of the earth there are people still playing customized Neverwinter Nights games.


11. Half Life (1998)
-developer: Valve

It was 12 years old we were introduced to the voiceless Gordon Freeman and perhaps the greatest FPS Half Life. Well where should I start with this game? First FPS with a story, a purpose, a well crafted cast, a game play that involves more than just run to the end of the corridor and shoot, a game with scripted events which was very rare at the time...well you get the idea. Not only that the game was so popular that even the mods of the game became extremely popular now how about that.

Top 50 pc games of all time. 30-21.

Continue of my top 50 pc games of all time after I was interrupted by a rage post.


30. Battlefield 1942 (2002)
-developer: Dice

The FPS genre is flooded on the PC and especially the WWII themed ones, and I have to say we can all thank EA for that. Battlefield 2 was certainly miles better than the original but battlefield 1942 is the game that started this WWII frenzy. It wasn't just another FPS back in the day with mindless killing in an arena styled map but this game had large open maps with two factions involving various vehicles ranging from jeeps to tanks, even aircraft. Playing in a real landmark from WWII in a objective based multiplayer mode made you feel like your victory meant something in a historical setting.


29. Ultima Online (1997)
-developer: Origin Systems

So this is where it all started, Ultima online officially opened the door to a land known as Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game. It was based on the expensive fantasy world that was in the previous Ultima games. To many extend this game is very much like the modern MMORPGs that it had a monthly fee structure, thousands of players were playing in the same open world from a game server, there was a player vs enemy and player vs player combat structure, and the online community is monitors by whats called Game Masters. So all the MMOs today can thank Ultima online for making them billions.


28. Age of Empires (1997)
-developer: Ensemble Studio

Like many other RTS on this list, game play wise Age of Empires does not strait away from the basic RTS element but what make it different is that it also had that simulation element built in the game. You are not only building your resources and units just to win that round or that map but you are also building your empire. As the game progresses you the king or emperor will conquer more and more land, and it is up to you to successfully rule your entire empire. It also had different time periods in history thus adding another element to the game play.


27. The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind (2002)
-developer: Bethesda Game Studio

Bethesda always had their special way of doing an RPG like Bioware. They seem to aim in creating the biggest world possible and allow you to roam the world as you see fit, and Morrowind was no different. Although Technically Morrowind was a much smaller world than their previous work Daggerfall but Morrowind improved on just about everything. The world felt much more livelier with bigger variety in the NPCs, and the combat along with the story of the game was much better as well. Although Bethesda was never known for well structured quests and story telling in their games, Morrowind was probably their best attempt as one of the most rich RPG experience at the time.


26. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (2003)
-developer: Bioware

It was not the first time Bioware ported or developed a game for the console but this is the game that made them a household name. Possibly the best game using the Star Wars license Bioware stayed true to their nature, crafting a completely new and original Star Wars Universe that complete different from the movies and yet believable to the fans. The world of Kotor was big and expensive with many many unique characters, and it was said that there were enough dialog to fill 2 novels. It was a game that made you wish Bioware writers did the Star Wars prequel trilogy instead of George Lucas, and it had everything that is great about Star Wars and a Bioware game.


25. Counter Strike (1999)
-developer: ???/valve

The only game on this list that is not even a proper game. It all started as a Mod to one of the greatest FPS ever then realizing the popularity of this Mod, Valve promptly bought the rights to it. Counter Strike continues to be one of the most played online FPS ever and is used in many competition as a measuring stick for someone's mad skills. It also did a number for future team based tactical shooters and more mods for Valve developed Half Life.


24. Rome: Total War (2003)
-developer: The Creative Assembly

From a handful of soldiers to international diplomacy and everything in between: Total War has always done scale brilliantly. Rome is the series' peak. Successfully besieging Rome itself, overcoming its towering walls and charging thousands of men and horses through its streets is one of PC gaming's sweetest moments. Endless hours of sweating over the strategy map pay off on the battlefield in spectacular style.


23. System Shock 2 (1999)
-developer: Looking Glass Studio

"Hurry, run!" - words that still send a chill down the spine of anyone who's played the scariest FPS/RPG ever made. It was the urgent groan of the pipe-wielding zombies who roamed the corridors of the huge spaceship Von Braun - just before they clubbed you to death. They were warning you about themselves. Somewhere inside there was a helpless human being, aware of the atrocity it was about to commit. This is a game to play if you wonder where Bioshock came from.


22. Thief 2 (2000)
-developer: Looking Glass Studio

When you think of great PC games of the past a lot of FPS, RPG and RTS will pop in your head. Those genres make up majority of PC games but every once awhile a different type of game like Thief makes you say this game is awesome. When ask about the great stealth games to today's console kids they will likely say that either Metal Gear Solid or Splinter Cell is the best stealth game and that's when you laugh at them by showing them a picture of Thief 2, as well as educating them on why PC gamers are like glorious master race and console gamers are like dirty peasants.


21. Doom (1993)
-developer: ID software

The father of all modern FPS. Doom started it all with the first person gun view, the 3D game play, the networked multiplayers and eventually the modification of a game. designer John Carmack won a life time achievement award for making this game as most his later works with ID software are pretty much the same plotless, mindless shooters. I have also heard that all the bitches want him for that he is the creator of doom, could be just a rumor though. Doom can also be used as a trivia question as many of the console generations today thinks Halo is the first ever FPS made.

The Harrowing Tale of Building my New PC or: How I Learned to Love the Newegg Part 2

Ive discussed the fun I had with the monitors, now for the fun Ive been having with the actual computer!

I ordered from Newegg and a couple days later everything is waiting for me:

Original parts list:

• Dual Radeon HD 5970 Graphic Cards
• EVGA E758-A1 3-Way SLI Motherboard
• 2 640Gb + 1 720 Gb WD Caviar Black Hard drives
• Intel Core i7 930 Processor
• 6 Gb OCZ Gold DDR3 RAM
• CoolerMaster HAF 932 Full tower Case
• Enermax Galaxy EVO 1250 Watt Power Supply
• Coarsair H50 Watercooler

So I set out to get everything pieced together:

And get it all together:

This looks great, but my room was turned into a disaster zone:

I fire it up and it won't POST. I probably should have just put in the processor and some RAM and tested it but it sure does look pretty when everything is put together. Anyways, I take out all but 1 stick of RAM and remove one of the graphics cards. POST's just fine. Add in the RAM and try again, and it won't POST again. I know for a fact that the RAM is good because it literally just came out of my other computer which was running it just fine. So I start fiddling and I find out that it will POST with memory in slots 1 and 5 but not 3. So I think its a bad motherboard. I get my old computer running again and RMA the board through Newegg.

Couple days later the new motherboard arrives and what do you know, same issue. So I have my friend come over and start really getting into this issue. We test every stick of RAM in every slot. Turns out slots 3 and 4 are bad. We figure the chances of getting 2 boards with the same issue are incredibly low so we think maybe the memory controller on the processor is bad. We swap processors but my board still has the same problem, and his board boots up just fine. I have no choice but to RMA another board. After some complaining and reminding Newegg of how much I spend there they give me a refund and I buy a Gigabyte board.

So instead of the EVGA board, the semi-final parts list contains a

• Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5 motherboard

Couple more days later the new board arrives. I build everything up and try to fire it up. Fans turn on for a second then everything dies. At this point I want to kill someone. I take it to my friends house for some extreme troubleshooting and as it turns out I'm an idiot. I had screwed in all the motherboard spacers, which caused a short circuit. We took out all the unnecessary spacers and the board fired up no problem.

At this point, I have my computer at stock speeds and a single 1920x1080 monitor. Games run extremely well with max settings. In my next post I will talk about overclocking and Eyefinity and some of the trouble I had with those.

Top 50 PC games of all time. 40-31

Continued from last part.


40. Gothic (2001)
-developer: Piranha Bytes

It was a time when PC gaming was in transition from 2D to 3D and Gothic was the first RPG to do so, it had beautiful 3D towns filled with different NPCs minding their own businesses. It had life of its own a world that you can believe in and not just another lifeless virtual land. It definitely wasn't the best Western RPG ever made but it did well as one of the first 3D high fantasy game paving the way for many others to follow.


39. Mass Effect 2 (2010)
-developer: Bioware

A lot big budget modern games receive a lot of hype especially the multi platform ones from Activision or EA. Bioware was never one that hypes its game very much in fact the original Mass Effect received almost zero media coverage prior to launch, but now that Bioware has been purchased by EA something has to give right? Well two years prior to the launch of Mass Effect 2 a 30 sec teaser trailer was shown as the official announcement for the game and it caused a huge internet uproar. Months before the launch you can not visit a site without some kind of Mass Effect 2 video and video game site are filled with the game's coverage. It was a hype train that stretched longer than the great wall. But in the end Bioware did live up to that hype where many others would have failed.

38. Crysis (2007)
-developer: Crytek

Some called this a Tech demo and others called this the greatest first person shooter ever made, whatever you take away from playing Crysis or the inability of playing it is that Crysis was way ahead of its time in terms of Graphics and Tech. No game has ever pushed boundary between virtual and reality as far as Crysis has and like I said its a shame its so ahead of its time because 3 years of its initial launch its still almost impossible to play Crysis on HD resolution with highest possible setting and Frame rates.


37. Tribes (1998)
-developer: Dynamix

Speaking of ahead of its time back in 1998 Tribes was truly revolutionary in its team based game play with guns that shoots Frisbee, jet packs and player controlled turrets. We see those interesting game play elements in many of today's acclaimed FPS such as Team Fortress 2 and Battlefield Bad Company 2 but this was almost 13 years ago with 3D graphics still in its infancy.


36. MechWarrior (1989)
-developer: Dynamix

It just seems that big customizable robot duking it out with each other makes a perfect sense for a good video game...today. Then you look at the date for the original Mechwarrior, its almost shocking that 20 years ago Dynamix made that popular Mech simulation that no one today could duplicate, talk about being ahead of its time and feeling like I have been repeating myself.



35. PlanetSide (2003)
-developer: Sony

Believe or not Sony made a lot of games back in the day, especially online MMOs so you could say that Sony foresaw something in the MMO genre but unfortunately MMOs are a very niche genre and very expensive to develop so one small error it could be its a goner, sometimes even good MMOs have a hard time staying alive. Planetside remains a special game in many ways that its one of a few FPS MMOs and one of a few that incorporates Sci-Fi elements.


34. Command of Conquer (2005)
-developer: Westwood Studio

Real Time Strategy games and PC are like Bread and Butter. Command and Conquer is one of the most recognizable RTS series out there, it single handily made RTS what it is today and popular among gamers. Since then the C & C series have sprouted into many different games ranging from Sci-Fi to realistic to god knows what but one thing it has retained is the same great epic game play from day one.



33. Alien Vs. Predator (1999)
-developer: Rebellion

Most of the time games that are made from movies suck, there is no other way to say it. But once in a new moon movie based games that turns out so good Hollywood decides to turn the game into a movie and that is exactly what happened with AVP. A game with two biggest Sci-Fi monsters on screen going head to head in a game except this time the game is good and the movies suck. You get to play all three factions and get exact feeling you would expect from playing. As predator you feel mighty and powerful and sometimes invincible, as an Alien you feel like a deadly monster prowling in the shadow, and as a marine you feel helpless. The atmosphere was dead on in the game as it was in the movies.


32. Homeworld (1999)
-developer: Relic Entertainment

Majestic. Soulful. Atmospheric. Downbeat. Not words we usually associate with strategy games. Homeworld is different. It is the only strategy game on this list that manages to create a mood other than euphoria or tension. Homeworld is important not just because of its mechanics, not just because it was the first time players asked to control vast fleets in space. It was important because it made our battles matter.


31. Grim Fandango (1998)
-developer: Lucas Arts

Damn Lucas Arts again? Well the truth is without designer Tim Schaffer there would be no Lucas Arts and now that he is gone I am right, Lucas Arts has turned into shit. This classic adventure game is one of the greatest game ever made not just on PC, but saying it is does not do it justice. It had many firsts in a game, one of first great 3D game, one of the first game that the character would actually look at the direction of the NPC that he is talking to, and one of the first where you will engage in a conversation in a style of conversation tree to learn more about the story and progress...strange this all sounds like one of my current favorite game Mass Effect, and speaking of Mass Effect.



30. Mass Effect (2007)
-developer: Bioware

The game had very little fanfare at the time of the release, it was a launch game for a new console where everyone had doubts about the game being able to sell, it was a game that was condemned to fail by bitter fanboys because Bioware refused to do a sequel to Knights of the Old Republic and lastly it was going to fail because critics said you couldnt combine Sci-Fi, tactical shooter and a Western RPG in one game. In the end the game was not perfect but it had a certain charm that you just want to love it and play it again and again. It definitely is not one of Bioware's best games but it sure is one of their most lovable franchise today.

Top 50 PC games of all time. 50-41

Now that I am back in the PC gaming world it is only natural to look back at the all the great games made for the PC platform. Today PC exclusives are almost an oxymoron as developers desperately want that piece of the console pie that is known as the mass market. Game industry has changed it is no longer a niche market and while most indie companies still chooses PC as its starting point, most big name developer have profits in mind.

50. Flight Simulator X (2006)

-developer: Microsoft Game Studio

Its rare seeing a quality game from Microsoft Game Studio, or any game for that matter but the flight sim series that started in 1982 is truly the best aircraft simulation game on the market. It has won numerous awards and held the test of time as Microsoft tends to push out a new one every a few years to update its engine. If you want to virtually pilot a plane across the country as realistic as possible, then this game is it.

49. Sim City 2000 (1993)

-developer: Maxis

Lets be honest, there are a lot of sim city games and I could have easily picked anyone of them but this is the first one that had all the details modern sim city games would have. All the cool buildings to build, a neighboring city to trade with and entertaining newspaper to read. It felt like a real live city that is in control of you hands.

48. The Sims (2000)

-developer: Maxis

Okay so there are a lot of simulation games on the PC and that genre was a big part of PC game back in the day. They are usually huge in size, expensive in the details and well played best with a keyboard and mouse. Lastly they were almost all made by Maxis. The sims let you live a virtual life from day to day stand point in a customized neighborhood. Like your real life does not suck enough you have to endure the same issues in this virtual life like getting married, eating, sleeping and even go to bathroom for godsakes. But overall its another step toward virtual life style like many other simulation games.

47. Grand Theft Auto (1997)

-developer: Rockstar

Before all the controversies and news reports Rockstar North made a little niche game on PC called Grand Theft Auto. It was nice little game that allowed you to run around in couple of the city streets killing pedestrians and fighting cops. It was a pretty violent game even back then but it never was very realistic and popular in a sense that not many people knew about Rockstar or this PC game. The game later was ported to PS1 and Gameboy but as far as I know the franchise started this crusade against violent video games started on PC.

46. Need for Speed (1994)

-developer: EA

This was a time when EA still made games rather than just buying bunch other game studios and destroy their games. Need for Speed was one of the first big time racing game on the PC with realistic cars and realistic mechanics. Nowadays every other game allows you to drive a dream car but back then this was the one and only that had cars like a Lambo or Porsche. It eventually sprouted into many other different versions of Need speed and with time just like every other EA franchise, it turned into shit.

45. Star Wars TIE fighter (1994)

-developer: Totally Games

Space dog fights and Star Wars, what could go wrong with that concept? Actually it goes wrong quit often for Star Wars related games. But this wasn't one of them as the game was very balanced on the game play and the Star Wars setting helped its cause as well. Several things such as the HUD and flight mechanics made it feel very real like what piloting a TIE fighter in Star Wars would feel like. It also helps that you are playing as the bad guys.

44. Monkey Island 2 (1991)

-developer: Lucas Arts

Its unthinkable that studios like Lucas Arts and EA used make games, and good ones at that. The secrete of Monkey Island is one of the most acclaimed point and click adventure game series on PC, it had good action and puzzles and it was one of the first to pave the way for this genre on PC. I mean think about it, how hard would it to play a point and click adventure game on a console?

43. Sid Meier's Pirates (1987)

-developer: Microprose

this game should probably be rated a lot higher on this list but most gamers today don't even know about this game or who Sid Meier is. He is a legend in PC gaming and this game is the first game with a open ended world with non-linear story line. Today games like that is like a given but Pirates is the first to pave that road making action/adventure game focus on a good experience overall rather than the shallow go through a corridor and kill everything that moves types of game it had been to that point.

42. Call of Duty (2003)

-developer: Infinity Ward

At a time when PC gaming seemed to be defined and only defined by its vast and unoriginal backlogs of First Person Shooters, Activision decided it was necessary to make another one and based on the overly done WWII theme none the less. Well it went head on with the popular Battlefield Franchise from EA and it was truly a battle of the Titans, not the two games but the two corporation that made gaming into a business rather than entertainment. Its hard to say who has won in the end after about 80 billion literation of both franchises but they sure have made their mark in gaming history, good or bad.

41. Dawn of War (2004)

-developer: Relic Entertainment

Warhammer is one of the oldest PC fantasy setting and Dawn of War is one of the most acclaimed real time strategy games on PC but you cant help but feel that they have been overshadowed by someone else doing exactly the same thing. I am not here to argue who stole whos idea but its hard to dismiss the similarities between Warcraft with Warhammer and Dawn of War with Starcraft. However we can all agree Relic is still that same niche PC developer from day one that makes incredible RTS games.