Lock On

Lock On doesn’t use complex pixel shaders, but it is anyway a resource-hungry game, producing rather complex special effects like multi-layer clouds. Besides that, the game is rather wayward as concerns its graphics quality settings – sometimes it’s not possible to set the same settings for different platforms and/or graphics cards. The GeForce 6800 Ultra and the overclocked ASUS AX800 XT share the top place here; the AX800 XT at its regular frequencies shares the next step of the podium with the GeForce 6800 GT.

The ASUS delivers the performance of the GeForce 6800 Ultra in the eye candy mode, and adds 10% more at overclocking.

Colin McRae Rally 04

The engine of this auto simulator makes an extensive use of complex pixel shaders to create various visual effects. So, the result can be expected – the ASUS AX800 XT deservedly takes its first place. Overclocking brings a considerable speed boost here as the speed of processing pixel shaders directly depends on the GPU clock rate.

Unlike in IL-2: Sturmovik, the eye candy mode of Colin McRae Rally 04 is without surprises: the higher load on the memory subsystem allows the ASUS AX800 XT to show its best. Overclocking is rewarding here, too.