Performance in extensively graphically intensive games was a bit tempered: the Genesis Midtower saw an average of 32 frames per second in S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat, and an average of 24 frames per second in Just Cause 2. Keep in mind that all of these results are run at a resolution of 2560-by-1600, with the highest possible settings, on 30-inch displays. Adjust the settings or the resolution, and you'll get a smoother experience.

Like , the new Genesis midtower is packed into a rather plain case. It isn't unattractive by any means. But after spend a fair bit of time futzing with the Origin Genesis' remote-controlled light show, the single blue LED bar illuminating the Midtower's innards is something of a let down. But you can't expect too many frills, if you're going to shave $4000 off of the bill.

So the luxury lighting is gone. But the Lian-Li PC-8NWX chassis doesn't skimp of on features, packing a tool-free design in its relatively spacious shell. There's a single free hard drive bay left, and room for two more 5.25-inch drives -- the machine ships with a DVD-burner. There are two more DIMM slots available on the motherboard, a single free PCIe x16 slot, and a pair of PCI slots. The motherboard's third PCIe x16 slot is blocked by an internal USB card. Fitting a second GTX 570 into the chassis isn't entirely out of the realm of possibility, though it'll take a bit of rearranging, and dissipating all of that heat might become a concern.

The overclocked CPU is kept in check by a beefy Asetek radiator. It's attached to the rear of the chassis, and while large doesn't block anything of importance. Like the larger Genesis, the wiring job is meticulous: all of the cables are tied down, sleeved, and tucked out of the way. This is great for airflow -- the CPU may be liquid cooled, but that GTX 570 will need room to breathe.

The case is fairly accessible, overall. The front offers a multiformat card reader (with a USB port), the expected headphone and microphone jacks, a pair of USB 3.0 ports, and 1 eSata port. Having advanced connectivity options front and center is great, and USB 3 has becoming increasingly common in desktops across all categories.