AMD's Athlon XP 1900+ (1.6GHz): Still #1

3D Gaming Performance (continued)

3D Gaming Performance Max Payne - 640 x 480 AMD Athlon XP 1.60GHz (1900+) AMD Athlon XP 1.53GHz (1800+) AMD Athlon XP 1.47GHz (1700+) AMD Athlon XP 1.40GHz (1600+) AMD Athlon-C 1.4GHz AMD Athlon XP 1.33GHz (1500+) Intel Pentium 4 2.0GHz Intel Pentium 4 1.9GHz Intel Pentium 4 1.8GHz Intel Pentium 4 1.7GHz Intel Pentium 4 1.6GHz Intel Pentium 4 1.5GHz 112.9 111.5 109.7 108.7 106.7 105.4 100.3 96.9 94.9 93.8 88.4 85.5 | 0 | 23 | 45 | 68 | 90 | 113 | 135

After introducing Max Payne as a benchmark in our graphics card reviews we were contacted by one the game's talented developers who shed some light on some of the quirks of the engine. One of those happened to be how very CPU bound the game is, making it the ideal gaming benchmark for a CPU comparison don't you think?

The story is no different from the RTCW tests; the Athlon XP and even the regular Athlon-C do very well in this game and offer a good lead over the Pentium 4. Part of this performance advantage is due to the VIA KT266A which gives the Athlon a high performing platform to run on.

3D Gaming Performance Serious Sam 1.02 - 640 x 480 AMD Athlon XP 1.60GHz (1900+) AMD Athlon XP 1.53GHz (1800+) AMD Athlon XP 1.47GHz (1700+) AMD Athlon XP 1.40GHz (1600+) AMD Athlon XP 1.33GHz (1500+) AMD Athlon-C 1.4GHz Intel Pentium 4 2.0GHz Intel Pentium 4 1.9GHz Intel Pentium 4 1.8GHz Intel Pentium 4 1.7GHz Intel Pentium 4 1.6GHz Intel Pentium 4 1.5GHz 132.9 129.9 126.5 122.7 118.2 116.2 96.7 92.4 89.2 86.0 82.1 77.7 | 0 | 27 | 53 | 80 | 106 | 133 | 159

Our final gaming benchmark is Serious Sam and the story told is no different. The Athlons continue to perform very well and the 1900+ is once again just icing on the cake.