Quake 2 Performance Conclusions
The first, if not most obvious, conclusion you can come to with the Quake 2 performance numbers is that the G400 is extremely CPU dependent. It's performance at speeds lower than a Pentium II 400 is bordering disappointing in comparison to what the TNT2 and Voodoo3 are capable of accomplishing, at the same time it can be argued that the G400 isn't intended to be competing with the TNT2 and Voodoo3 on that level of gaming. It depends entirely on how fast you're looking to play your games, the image quality is there with the G400 as is the performance, but how much is another question.
Older Pentium II owners may want to steer shy of the G400 if you're remotely concerned with performance, 3dfx seems to still be king of the lower performing market, and Matrox is definitely far from it.
The instability of the OpenGL ICD on AnandTech's Super7 test bed was a bit disappointing, luckily the Direct3D tests came through, with not too disappointing numbers. Overall, the Quake 2 numbers speak for themselves, the G400 is geared towards the balanced user that needs a healthy dosage of games and work and enjoys getting the most out of both. Another key thing to keep in mind is the negligible performance drop when jumping to 32-bit color from 16-bit when running with a 16-bit Z-buffer. We'll have to wait for 32-bit Z tests under OpenGL, hopefully Matrox will have their updated drivers ready for release soon.
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