Many people see the Source engine as an antiquated relic. They compare it to other contemporary game engines, and they try to prove that, according to some subjective standards, it is somehow “uglier“. That’s an argument that will most likely never end (at least not until Valve reveals Source 2, or something).

I suppose the reason for this perceived outdatedness – in both graphical quality and technical features – is that, at the end of the day, it’s best to make sure that your game is able to impress as many people as possible, rather than trying to impress a scant few with unoptimized eye candy. Those scant few will eventually journey to other games in search of their next graphical fix anyway, so what’s the point?

So Valve’s approach makes a lot of sense, when you look at it from a strictly objective point of view. Besides, the Source engine has got a lot of horsepower in it yet, although much of it remains untapped. Some of this horsepower isn’t all about… well, speed. It’s also about achieving better… handling, so to speak. Just like the sort of horsepower I am about to introduce you to!