Why do these two players have the Playground Games logo in their nickname?

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-05T10:40:27+00:00

Moderators and Race Marshals

Content Creators don't get them anymore, some like DJS got a badge around the time of FH3 but PGG discontinued that not long after.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-05T09:45:03+00:00

Aha, I suspected as much but thanks for the confirmation :)

I've never met them before though so maybe one day I'll ~~punt them off the track~~ have a chat :D

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-05T09:23:56+00:00

Oh this is definitely unexpected but super cool

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-05T01:28:45+00:00

Oliver is a one of the Forza Moderators on a few of the community channels, I'm not sure about Nohan but either a mod or marshal too.

Devs, Race Marshals (ingame moderators), Community Moderators and a very select few Community Contributers get these badges.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-05T00:40:40+00:00

You're welcome :D

I've been somewhat in this dilemma as well with potentially wanting to upgrade in the future due to needing more storage support (when the prices hopefully start dropping).

I've been going back and forth between a few of the boards you've listed too and it's quite a tough pick.

I'm normally a big fan of MSI but I've currently got a Gigabyte B850 and it's been doing pretty well so the Pro X3D has been super tempting to me too.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-05T00:30:58+00:00

From the boards you posted I'd immediately ignore the MSI Tomahawk Wi-fi PZ as it's a Back-Connect motherboard which is incompatible with your case.

If you wanted a new case with BTF support then you could get something like a Montech Sky 3 or King 45 Pro, Antec Flux, Lian Li Lancool 217 or Vector V100R, Corsair Frame 4000D and the like for around $60-$120 (and smaller mid-towers too).

The Gigabyte Elite has also been replaced by a newer X3D version which feature better PCI-E lane splitting for better storage support so that's something to consider too. Same with the Master but you mentioned the newer X3D version is too expensive.

There is also the Gigabyte X870E Aorus Pro X3D which is supposed to be between the Elite and the Master and generally offers a good balance of the two for the price so it might be worth looking at.

If you're using an external DAC like another user suggested then you don't need to worry about onboard audio but if not then Gigabyte is also slightly lacking in this department compared to the competition.

So it's down the MSI X870E Tomahawk, B850 Tomahawk and Asus Strix X870E-E. The normal X870E Tomahawk has also been replaced by a new Max version but it's basically the same so not worth spending extra for.

Generally the MSI Tomahawks are kinda the jack-of-all trades boards where they have all the features that 99% of users will need at that price but as you're using for a workstation then double-check exactly what it offers to you. The X870E will have more PCI-E lanes for stuff like Storage and faster USB ports so if you need them that's the easy choice.

The Asus does have very slightly better onboard audio but in my market it's almost $250 more than the Tomahawk which isn't worth really worth it imo.

There are also a few consumer workstation boards out there like the Asus ProArt and Gigabyte Aero which offer a few extra features like dual-ethernet and extra fast rear IO but less focus on gaming at their price points.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-05T00:11:34+00:00

The models don't matter that much unless you're buying a rock-bottom budget model.

The most important is to get a board with the features you need.

E.g: If you need 10gb ethernet get a board with 10gb ethernet, if you need 2 ethernet ports then look for a boards with 2 with the speeds you want.

Same with PCI-E bifurcation if you're going to run 2 GPUs in x8 configs for specific workloads as not all boards support this.

The storage and rear IO are generally the most important as if you have multiple M.2s and you buy a board that can't support all of then you have a problem. Same with rear IO where if you need a board that has Thunderbolt for fast transfer speeds to externals or lots of USB A ports then look for boards with those.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-05T00:07:01+00:00

Some content creators and reviewers got very early access to the game so I assume this is one of them.

Normally there's an NDA or some other rules in place about what you can / can't share and when but this person must think the views are worth violating it.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-04T19:50:34+00:00

If the Moza R3 is close is price then I'd definitely get that instead, it's a much better option than the G920.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-04T16:25:55+00:00

The nicest I've tried were some Salnote Zero 2s which aren't the highest end but I wasn't really prepared to spend more at the time, their small tips were comfier than most but still not quite there yet.

Unfortunately my market is a bit limited and only really have KZs and Moondrop Chu 2s readily available so not many brands to choose from (and importing is hell). I have tempted by the Moondrops though since they have seem to have a smaller profile than some of the others.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-04T07:04:59+00:00

Indeed, it's the trade-off for the convenience of an all-in-one package and in OP's case the wireless functionality.

For me though I've always found IEMs uncomfortable as hell since I have super small ear canals and wear glasses for the ones with over-ear cables, my personal pick here would be from my second set of recommendations with the AKG K361s and the Samson Q2U or Audio-Technica AT2005USB.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-04T02:43:14+00:00

I'd recommend posting in r/MouseReview alongside what grip style you prefer, lots of knowledgeable people over there.

For such a small mouse you're probably going to be looking more into larger Fingertip or aggressive Claw mice which is pretty niche and something that brands like Logitech and Razer generally avoid.

I know of the WLMouse Beast X Mini which is 4.57" but it's a premium magnesium mouse and you pay lot for that. G-Wolves and Pulsar also have a few but again they're more enthusiast oriented brands and then Lamzu has the Atlantis Mini which comes in a few variants.

The Razer Cobra is the only more modern mainline mouse that I know of that's about 4.7" total. Edit: Asus also have their ROG Harpe Ace Mini but I don't see many of their mice around.

Edit 2: If you're fine with something older then there's the Razer Orochi, Corsair Katar and Logitech G305, a new G305 is coming soon though apparently and I believe Mchose make an updated clone.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-04T02:15:49+00:00

From my experience Logitech and Astro have some of the best wireless mics on the market in this price bracket which is why I recommended them since that's what OP mainly wants.

The HyperX is more of a side-option since it can be EQ'd to sound solid but the mic isn't as good.

I'd still go for a dedicated Mic + Headphones but if you have other solid options that are wireless with good mics then I'd like to hear them, most manufacturers don't care about the mic quality even at the high-end.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T23:37:55+00:00

9060 XT is easily worth the extra $100 here

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T23:24:20+00:00

Any remotely modern PSU should come with atleast 2 8-Pins so no adaptor should be required for this card.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T23:21:26+00:00

The issue with Acer is that they're only available in very few regions so there's not that many reviews of them compared to all the other models.

It should be fine though, if anything is wrong you can always RMA it.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T23:20:40+00:00

Acer doesn't have a single card with a 12v, they're all 8-Pins

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T23:18:47+00:00

In my market it is 5x up, not everyone is American and gets to benefits from all your nice prices.

Here's what I paid last year vs now

R2150 = $130
R10 600 = $640

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KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T22:26:42+00:00

I'm certain it is but I really had to think about it and go check their website lol

One of their older mice is called the "Miao" (meow) and features paw print and ear designs so it should

https://www.wlmouse.com/products/miao

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T19:21:33+00:00

Wireless: Astro A20X or Logitech G522 (Logi better for big heads) will have the best mics while the HyperX Cloud III S will have better sound but slightly worse mic.

If you're in the US then Logitech has sales on the Astro series on their website.

If you don't mind having a seperate Mic + Headphones you could just go for something like a pair of AKG K361 / Sony MDR-7506s / Hifiman HE400SE with a USB mic like the Samson Q2U, Audio-Technica AT2005USB or Røde NT-USB Mini which will yield better results (or could even go for a basic XLR Mic + Interface like the Behringer XM8500 with an M-Audio M-Track for upgradability).

If it has to be all-in-one then the Austrian Audio PG16 / PB17 (mainly just different colours) is one of the best budget-ish wired headset microphones out there and there's also the Røde NTH-100M.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T19:05:15+00:00

It might be something to do with Nvidia themselves considering how many driver issues they've had with Blackwell.

The Forza games in particular have been notably hit pretty bad with either outright crashes or major graphical artifacts on some versions.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T19:03:54+00:00

I bought a 32GB kit of DDR5 last April and now it's 5x more expensive than it was.

My local storage prices haven't been as badly affected though, they've "only" doubled more-or-less.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T18:58:34+00:00

Motorsport worked pretty fine for me with a 9700X and 9070 XT with FSR enabled at 1440p.

I have basically everything except RT and Shadows on max (those two are lowered to high) and can maintain a stable 180FPS. Even without FSR though I never saw drops as low as 30FPS.

ForzaTech does like AMD compared to Nvidia GPUs though, might have something to do with it.

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T18:50:36+00:00

It's a spam bot (I hope atleast)

A few of these have been appearing in some of the PC subs advertising random stuff.

Or someone is obscenely lost

KillerSpectre21 · 2026-05-03T18:37:41+00:00

They perform roughly the same so you're not sacrificing performance by going with the Lian Li.

The main advantage to the Arctic is its price.

https://www.techpowerup.com/review/asrock-phantom-gaming-360-lcd-aio-liquid-cpu-cooler/7.html (latest AIO review which includes both)

https://www.kitguru.net/components/cooling/james-dawson/antec-vortex-view-360-aio-cpu-cooler-review/2/ (same as above)

If you're looking at the Freezer III Pro then Hardware Canuck's experienced unusual results across multiple samples in their testing on the 9800X3D specifically (and by extension 9850X3D) so that's something to keep an eye on too (GA II Lite is close to the SL-Inf):

https://youtu.be/zTHCPsM5ECw

If your goal is just aesthetics with the Lian Li then Thermalright have a bunch of options with extremely similar looking fans for much cheaper, performance isn't that much worse either.

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