Show Us Your Rig: Robot Entertainment's Eric Best

Show us your rig
Eric Best, Lead Programmer of Orcs Must Die!

Each week on Show Us Your Rig, we feature the PC game industry's best and brightest as they show us the systems they use to work and play.

Orcs Must Die! Unchainedat Robot Entertainment, has a setup that might drive a weaker man crazy. With his computer in the middle of his family's living room, Eric is never gaming alone, which I imagine can be a blessing and a curse. Eric was kind enough to show off his still powerful setup, as well as his adorable dog, Spots. Spots may not be a gargantuan cat, but just look at that face. How can you resist a face like that?

What's in your PC? CPU - Intel i5-3570 at 3.80 GHz Motherboard - Gigabyte Z77-DS3H Memory - 16 GB in 2x Crucial Ballistix DD3 at 1600 MHz Video - Gigabyte Radeon HD 7870 2 GB Power Supply - Corsair CX750M Case - Thermaltake Chaser MK-1 SSD - Corsair 128 GB SSD SATA3 Hard drive - 2x Western Digital 1 TB SATA3 Display - Vizio E390 Mouse - Logitech MX 518 Keyboard - Microsoft Ergonomic 4000

This rig is almost two years old but it has been performing so well (and it’s so stable) that I've just not been drawn to updating it yet. I use the SSD for my "now playing drive. " It kinda forces me to clean up the machine a couple times a year. I also keep one of the 1 TB drives only for video capture. I use OBS to bulk capture; at the end of the night I pick out what I want and then can just dump the entire drive. I've tried a bunch of other (fancier) mice over the years and I always end up coming back to the 510 (or whatever its current variant is).

What is the most interesting/unique part of your setup?

It is in the middle of my living room. Playing games (video games and board games) together and hanging out is a big part of my family life. When I was first married and had a "proper computer room, " we rarely saw each other. So now we always put all the computers, TVs, consoles, and board games in the same room. Sometimes you have to headphone up to be able to hear yourself think but we are always all together.

Eric and spots

What's always within arm's reach on your desk?

Spots and Maker’s Mark.

The dog is always around hoping someone will drop something to eat. The drink is there because... my entire family is always in the same room together.

What are you playing right now?

I skipped Pandaria but with the Warlords of Draenor release I've gotten back in playing a lot of World of Warcraft. For my shooter fix, I have put a ton of hours in over the years in APB:Reloaded, but more recently been scratching that itch with Payday 2. In the evenings (if I get home in time) it’s always fun to jump in the Orcs Must Die:Unchainedmatchmaker and see if I get on one of Nananea's twitch streams.

What is your favorite game and why?

The game I probably have the most hours in over the most years is Dwarf Fortress. I can't resist open-ended gameplay with such a massively detailed sim. It does have a steep learning curve but there is help! The Lazy Newb Packpackages up the latest release with external tools and graphic sets. To learn the game, Captain Duckhas a GREAT series of tutorials.