Using a naming convention that will keep fans swapping "GTX" side to side, NVIDIA's newest generation of video cards has just been announced over press waves. The GeForce GTX 280 and the GTX 260 are the initial models pushed out by the graphics manufacturing company for the new line known officially as the GTX 200 (note how the GTX prefixes the model numbers). This new family is an old idea improved - it's based on similar G80 architecture, but significantly improved in computing power. More details can be had at the full story.

For those of you itching to know if your gaming rigs can handle Crytek's upcoming shooter, Crysis, without needing three Cray Supercomputers hooked up for support and a piped-in nitrogen tank for cooling, here's something that should put your fears to rest: the unofficial minimum requirements for Crysis, as "accidentally released" by Electronic Arts. Here they are:

CPU: Intel P4 2.8Ghz or AMD equivalent
RAM: 1GB
Video Card: 6800GT (256mb) or ATI/AMD Radeon 9800 Pro (256mb)
HDD Space: 16GB
OS: Microsoft Windows
Sound Card: DirectX 9.0c Compatible

Now, before you do anything drastic (like throw a party or throw your PC out the window), be reminded that the requirements posted above are not the official ones, as EA themselves have cautioned that they may be subject to change. Besides that, if your PC fits the bill, then consider yourselves one of the lucky many able to potentially run Crysis at a decent clip.

Just make sure you have enough disk space, though - that 16 gigabyte requirement is sure to cramp up your drive some.