NVIDIA  nTeresting Newsletter – 26 August 2013

In this Issue:

· NVIDIA SHIELD gets more great reviews, and more great games. With Asphalt 8: Airborne you can drive the NVIDIA Tegra-equipped Tesla Model S on your Tegra-powered SHIELD. True story.
· GeForce owners are Game Ready with day-of-launch driver drops. This week we roll out with Splinter Cell: Blacklist.
· A new spin on an old NVIDIA idea. The new Kegerator.

SHIELD Making Waves

Since launch, NVIDIA SHIELD has been blazing a trail through the gaming world. The latest wave of coverage around NVIDIA’s beastly device has only served to amplify the conclusion that SHIELD is a force to be reckoned with in mobile gaming. Reviewers have been raving about the smooth and immersive gameplay experience and the first-rate feel of the device itself.

It doesn’t end there. Reviewers have made a point to express the true game changing nature of SHIELD. The coverage almost reads as a laundry list of impressive capabilities; whether users want to stream games from their PC, unleash the power of Tegra 4 with Android games or handle their multimedia needs in apps like Hulu and Netflix – SHIELD does it all.

“[SHIELD] is an extremely good mobile gaming console, better than both the 3DS and the PlayStation Vita (both of which I’ve owned).”

“I dare you to find something else in this space that does half of what the SHIELD does and looks half as good doing it.”

“To be clear, the Shield is, first and foremost, a gaming device, and it’s a powerful one at that.”

“The SHIELD sounds like the future made manifest–a Tegra 4-powered handheld with the ability to display graphics that put the 3DS and Vita to shame.”

“With each title, I was impressed at how great the graphics looked on the SHIELD’s 720p HD screen. There weren’t any hiccups in performance, even for the more graphics-heavy games like AVP: Evolution…”

A round-up of SHIELD review videos can be found here.

The list of Android games playable on SHIELD is growing rapidly. Gameloft added support when it launched Asphalt 8: Airborne, which one reviewer noted, “it showcases just how awesome Android gaming truly is.”

Meanwhile, Sega has updated Crazy Taxi with SHIELD controls “and it’s fantastic.”

NVIDIA has decided to offer up a friendly challenge. The Extreme SHIELDing photo contest asks users to submit a photo of SHIELD in the most extreme location possible for the chance to win the Ultimate NVIDIA Gaming Package; including a GeForce GTX 780-powered Falcon Northwest Tiki PC, a SHIELD (w/ carrying case), Beats by Dre headphones, and $50 Google Play gift card.

Splinter Cell: Blacklist is out, GeForce is Ready

When the new Splinter Cell: Blacklist dropped for PC, NVIDIA was ready with Splinter Cell: Blacklist drivers.

“This morning, NVIDIA released version 326.80 of its Game Ready GeForce Drivers. NVIDIA says that the update offers the best gaming experience for Splinter Cell Blacklist.”

Splinter Cell: Blacklist is packed full of GeForce goodness such as NVIDIA TXAA Anti-Aliasing and NVIDIA SLI, the smoothest and fastest multi-GPU solution available. You also get support for NVIDIA HBAO+, which dramatically improves upon existing AO techniques to add richer, more detailed, more realistic shadows around objects that occlude rays of light.

Beer and Video Games Go Together

In 2011 NVIDIA showed off one PC modders work at CES with what became known as the NVIDIA Kegerator.

“As I got closer, I noticed that the tower was actually attached to what looked like a little keg with all of the components for a CPU inside. This was crazy!!

Now Dream Arcade is taking our gaming keg idea to the next level.

“Catering directly to 30- and 40-somethings, Dream Arcades has invented what it calls the “ultimate party machine.” The “Kegerator Pro 60” comes with a built-in fridge, a keg with three taps, and more than 140 of the most popular classic video games. The arcade also has a massive 60-inch HDTV screen.”