Developer/publisher Bethesda Softworks has had a lot of success with the three previous Elder Scrolls games and the third game in the series, Morrowind, really is one of earliest examples of a true open world style game. Beth Soft has learned from making the first three games for Oblivion and as a result the fourth Elder Scrolls series is by far the best in the line and in my view is the clear winner for the best PC game released in 2006. The fantasy world depicted in Oblivion is vast and it also happens to be one of the best looking games released this year. You immediately have the option to make your playable character in Oblivion pretty much however you want. While you can focus on the main storyline, Oblivion gives you the option to just go nuts after the first hour or so and explore and take on the entire game world of Tamriel if you want.
It helps that combat, both in melee and in magic modes, is fast and furious rather than the slow and tedious way most RPGs handle these aspects. Production values are high (getting Patrick Stewart among others to be voice actors for the game was quite a coup) and if you happen to play through the entire content of the shipped version of Oblivion you have the choice of downloading the paid extra content from BethSoft or download any of the free third party mods that people have made for Oblivion. I’m not normally an RPG fan but its hard to turn yourself away for just one more hour playing this game and that’s why I’m selecting it as my pick for best PC game of 2006.
AMD's Phenom 9950 Black Edition and 9350e CPUs
Earlier this week AMD slashed prices on their lineup of Phenom and Athlon CPUs to make room for the Phenom 9950 Black Edition and 9350e. See how these CPUs perform in this article!
ATI Radeon HD 4870/4850 Performance Preview
Armed with new 8xMSAA and custom filter AA benchmarks, we set out to test the Radeon HD 4850 and 4870 against NVIDIA's latest GeForce GTX and 9800 GPUs. How do the new ATI cards stack up to NVIDIA? You'll be very impressed!
Radeon HD 4850 512MB and GeForce 9800 GTX+ Performance Quick Take
In one corner we have the new and improved 800 shader, Radeon HD 4850. In the other, NVIDIA's improved 55-nm GeForce 9800 GTX+. We've also thrown in GeForce GTX 260, GeForce 8800 GT, 8800 GTX/Ultra, and the original 9800 GTX. See where the cards stack up in performance inside!
Haze Review
Set in the not to distant future, Haze comes from the makers of Timesplitters. But does Free Radical's shooter deliver? Brett doesn't think so...
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280/GTX 260 Performance Preview
With 240 stream processors, a 512-bit memory interface, and 1.4 billion transistors, NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 280 is built for the enthusiast who craves maximum performance. Just how fast is it? Find out inside!
Mass Effect PC Review
BioWare's hit RPG shooter for the Xbox 360 has finally found its way to the PC. In this article Brett takes a look at the game and finds it offers a mixed experience.
NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB Roundup
With 128 stream processors and clocks that are only slightly slower than the 9800 GTX, the GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB is built to perform. And with street prices on cards often falling below $250, the GTS 512MB is also an extraordinary value. In this article we've rounded up seven different GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB cards. Read our top picks inside!
![Top 5 Games of 2006 [ @ 1024 x 768 ] > View Full-Size in another window.](images/13-s.jpg)
![Top 5 Games of 2006 [ @ 1024 x 768 ] > View Full-Size in another window.](images/14-s.jpg)
![Top 5 Games of 2006 [ @ 1024 x 768 ] > View Full-Size in another window.](images/15-s.jpg)
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