Windows 7 series: NVIDIA and AMD Graphics and Gaming Performance

High-end: Left 4 Dead

Developed by a new team of Valve’s, Left 4 Dead is a single or multi-player game that encompasses the most automatic story for a shooter: zombie apocalypse.  The team aspect of the title, based on Valve’s Source engine, really makes this a unique gaming experience that I think all PC gamers should be required to play.



The Valve: Source engine supports in-game demos that can be played back as fast as possible (fixed frame count) or in real-time (variable frame count) to simulate a more real-world experience.  I chose the last stage of the Farm House “movie” and played through the cornfield section to get the majority of the level in the FRAPS run through. 





While we see a slight decrease in overall performance for the NVIDIA GTX 285 card in Windows 7 versus Vista, the AMD 4870 X2 card with the Catalyst 9.3 driver has equal performance in both.  Overall performance is moderately better with the HD 4870 X2 card though honestly, even at 2560×1600, the GTX 285 has more than enough graphics horsepower.