The Falcon Northwest FragBox 8500 ($1,895 direct) is a gaming system without apologies. Outwardly, the latest model in the FragBox line resembles its predecessors (a good thing in our eyes), but it brings the price down into the "more affordable" gaming range. In fact, the FragBox 8500 is almost reasonably priced, yet after extensive testing I can tell you it still deserves its high-powered moniker.

The FragBox's exterior is mostly unchanged, with the same black metal case, clear side windows, and bottom-lit, carved front panel. This model came with the FragBox skull logo on it, rather than the Falcon Northwest logo of its predecessor. The internals are compact but neatly put together, and the GeForce 8800 GTS graphics card is prominently featured in one of the clear side panels. The unit is portable, thanks to the built-in handle, but not light: It weighs about 20 pounds. Though heavier than the largest laptops, it's certainly lighter than some high-end PCs that weigh in at 50 pounds. This is a system that plainly states the intention (à la John Carpenter's They Live): "I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass... and I'm all out of bubblegum."

The FragBox I tested came with the new Wolfdale-based Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 processor, along with an EVGA-branded nVidia GeForce 8800 GTS graphics card. This combination means that you will definitely be able to play the DX10-heavy versions of Crysis and World in Conflict at very decent frame rates. These are current-generation components, not what generally come to mind when you think of a budget system. Nonetheless, some trade-offs were made to keep the FragBox's price down. Instead of loading the system with an overclocked quad-core processor, Falcon opted to shift some of that expense to the graphics card. So even though the FragBox utilizes a dual-core processor—the E8500—instead of the quad-core power many of its competitors boast, you still have the power you crave, especially when you factor the graphics into the equation. The overclocked (670-MHz, up from a stock 650-MHz) 512MB EVGA GeForce 8800 GTS is the focus of the FragBox: It allows the system to achieve smoothly playable scores on the hard-hitting DX10-based Crysis and World in Conflict tests. This is a rare feat for any system, not just ones in this price range.

The FragBox attained an excellent 71 fps running Crysis at 1,280-by-1,024 resolution. That rock-solid score means that game play should be fluid while you frag your opponents on the game grid. Contrast this with the Velocity Micro Edge M40, which achieved only 47 fps using two formerly top-of-the-line ATI Radeon HD 3870 graphics cards. That's right, even though the GeForce 8800 GTS card is the "more affordable" graphics card in the 8800 line, it still manages to outperform the more powerful and expensive GeForce 8800 Ultra and 8800 GTX cards handily, thanks to the 8800 GTS's faster clock speeds. Likewise, the FragBox gets an excellent score of 66 fps on World in Conflict at 1,280-by-1,024 resolution, again edging out the Velocity Micro Edge 40 (39 fps). The FragBox stutters at the high 1,920-by-1,200 resolution (the scores were 5 fps for Crysis and 20 fps for World in Conflict). But, as our tests have shown, 1,920-by-1,200 resolution is a level that no gaming machine can bear (yet). The takeaway: The FragBox is the first gaming system I can recommend without reservations for playing Crysis at 1,280-by-1,024 resolution. Previous "DX10-ready" systems couldn't hit this level of performance, even at this less-taxing setting.

While the FragBox isn't a day-to-day system, we did test it using our mainstream multimedia and SYSmark 2007 Preview benchmark tests. While overclocked quad-core rigs like the Polywell Poly X3800 outpaced the FragBox on the more business-like tasks in the SYSmark 2007 Preview suite, the FragBox 's score of 174 was quite respectable for a dual-core system. It was able to complete our Windows Media Encoder test in an impressive 51 seconds and clocked in at a speedy 24 seconds on our Photoshop CS3 test (almost as quick as the Polywell Poly X3800, and faster than quad-core systems like the Gateway FX7020 and the Velocity Micro Edge M40). Even if you get this system with a "lesser" graphics card, like the nVidia GeForce 8800 GT, you'll still have a multimedia performance powerhouse on your hands.

There are cons, but these are mostly addressable. For instance, there's no SLI or CrossFire support, since there's only one PCIe x16 slot, but you can get one of the new GX2 or X2 cards from ATI or nVidia if you need more graphics power. There's not a lot of internal expansion space in general, but you're giving that up for portability (compared with your average 50-pound tower, anyway).

The FragBox's closest competitor (in spirit) is the Dell XPS 630. The XPS 630 also comes with a Wolfdale dual-core processor and a relatively high-end graphics card. The version of the Dell system we tested (E8200 processor, 2GB of RAM, and 8800 GT graphics) did come in at a lower price. Yet, when you bring it up to the level of the FragBox by bumping the processor to an E8500, the RAM to 4GB DDR2-800, and select a 750GB hard drive and 8800 GTX graphics (I didn't see the 8800 GTS on Dell's Web site), then the XPS 630 is more expensive. You can also bring the FragBox down to the XPS 630's price levels by dropping the graphics card to a similar spec. Now, if you consider the $100 to $200 street price difference between the 512MB 8800 GTS and 768MB 8800 GTX, then the price difference is too close to call.

So which system to choose? A few other factors set the FragBox apart. The Dell XPS 630 wins style points for its sleek ATX-style chassis, but the FragBox's design is solid as well, having stayed unchanged over the life of the line. The Falcon certainly gets the "cred" edge: It's a hand-built performance model from a respected gaming rig manufacturer, as opposed to a factory special from a mainstream PC maker. Both are available with XP as well as Vista, and both have very little bloatware (though you do have to click "no productivity software" on Dell's site or let the sales rep on the phone know you don't want it).

All things considered, naming the Falcon Northwest FragBox 8500 the new Editors' Choice in this category was a no-brainer. Most important, you can play Crysis on it. It's the system to buy right now if you're interested in a Wolfdale-powered gaming PC but don't want to break into the $3,000-plus stratosphere. You'll be paying a bit more than budget gamers for performance and portability, but you won't regret it. The FragBox is here to kick ass. Let it be your opponent's.

Benchmark Test Results
Check out the Falcon Northwest FragBox 8500's test scores.

Video
Watch the Falcon Northwest FragBox 8500 Video Review!

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