20 December 2022

Analyse This: Does RAM speed and latency make a difference for gaming...? (Part 3)

Who runs 3 dimms?!


Over the last two entries, I've taken a look at the effect of RAM speed, latency and bandwidth on a few gaming applications as well as synthetic gaming benchmarks. Across a Zen 3 and Intel 12th gen platform, I found that DDR4 memory optimisation had effectively zero effect on the minimum, average, and maximum fps values in the applications tested.

There were those pesky fluctuations in Unigine's Heaven benchmark scores and random-looking maximum fps waverings in both Spider-man and Assassin's Creed: Valhalla that could be explainable by conventional wisdom; manual-nature of the Spider-man benchmark; run-to-run fluctuation in Valhalla and Heaven's case... but I'm not content with that.

This time, I'm going to try and apply a statistical look at what I've obtained during the testing of Spider-man for all the various memory optimisation testing I performed in order to see whether I am correct in wanting the review industry to take a more statistical approach to reviewing hardware and software.

5 December 2022

Analyse This: The Story of Hyper Light Drifter... (Part 5)

Four lands surrounding a central plan upon which a crown sits...

I think I've covered a lot of things so far in this series. It's really a testament to how much there is in this game to dissect and absorb. Here in this final entry, I'm going even further than last time into mythical and historical parallels that I have seen on display in the world of Hyper Light Drifter. Stay a while and listen...
Just a reminder: this series discusses aspects of the game Hyper Light Drifter and will veer wildly into spoiler territory from the get-go.