Written on February 18, 2008 by John Conner
Game Server Reviews: Nuclear Fallout
Filed Under Server Reviews
Over the next couple of months I will be reviewing a series of GSP’s or Game Server Providers, at first I’ll start with the big guys, then work my way through some of the less known providers. Hopefully this will shed some light on the unknown, and enable you to choose the best provider. With that being said, join me as we tackle our second GSP - Nuclear Fallout.
Performance
- Dual Intel Xeon x5355 (quad-core) processors (eight cores total)
- 15,000 RPM hard drives
- 6 GB of the fastest available RAM
Server providers are taking advantage of the continuous fall in hardware prices. Today the top server providers use very similar hardware - if not the same. Nuclear Fallout demonstrated the raw power of eight cores, their server preformed very well. The raw consistency of server FPS was the first thing I noticed in-game, I don’t think it ever fell below 500, which is quite amazing for 7 PM with 10 players in the server. The ping times were very low. I live in Virginia and was playing on a New York server with a 20 ping - very good. The server was smooth, registered well, and received no choke or loss. Overall I must say these servers perform, if you’re looking for consistent FPS, Nuclear Fallout provides.
Pricing
Counter-Strike: Source - 12 Slots
- 250 FPS - $38.38
- 500 FPS - $58.38
- 2000 FPS - $88.38
Nuclear Fallout has very reasonable prices - except their 2000 FPS option which runs a whopping $88. Despite the super boosted server costing an arm and a leg, the more popular 500FPS options is right on par with most other providers. One thing I find interesting is the CPU Priority option, which gives your server priority over other servers. This seems to raise two problems. What if everyone on your box has CPU priority except you, your $58 is a waste and your server will lack true performance. And number two, what if everyone on the box has CPU priority, then who gets priority - everyone? Despite this “flaw,” Nuclear Fallout provides servers at a very reasonable price.
Control Panel
Features
- The ability to start and stop the server
- A live status link to see the server’s status from the perspective of our web server, and usage graphs to show its player history
- Simple, direct file editing through a built-in File Manager, and an FTP link for game servers to make more advanced changes (with full access to the server)
- An “Easy setup” page for many game types that makes initial server setup a breeze
- Multiple user support with logging
- A free website and email, with every game server
- The ability to monitor CPU and memory usage.
When we talk about control panels, you expect to hear the same old features; however Nuclear Fallout is different. They have taken the liberty to develop a custom control panel that sports many features you won’t find with many providers, such as the ability to monitor CPU and memory usage - which I find to be quite nice. The interface is attractive and user friendly, so if you’re not technically inclined, no worries. Out of all the server providers, I have not seen a control panel to match Nuclear Fallout’s; personally I believe they have the best in the business.
Support
For those of you who are not experts when it comes to game servers, Nuclear Fallout has you covered. They have a section on the website dedicated to helping you get your server up and running, and staying that way. As for their IRC support I found them to be quite helpful, although I did feel one of the support agents wasn’t helping me to his fullest extent - but we won’t go there. They have a separate channel that’s geared towards support, which I like, because it allows them to see who is in need of support, verses who is just idling the channel. I’m sure this contributed to the ultra fast support response on IRC. If you don’t have IRC, or prefer getting support online, you’re in good hands; there is a link to live support directly on the control panel. Overall Nuclear Fallout does a good job covering support, not only do they have fast response times, they also provide a library of common questions with answers on their website.
Summary
It was hard to find something wrong with these guys; they seem to have everything in order. The bottom line is: They provide great performing servers at a reasonable price. If you have an extra couple bucks, I would throw CPU priority on your server, just in case everyone else has it. Do you already own a Nuclear Fallout, or have you owned one in the past? Please comment below with your experiences, I’m sure the community would love to hear what you have to say!
And as always, stay tuned next week as I review another GSP.
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NFO’s have poop reg because they’re supposedly overloaded per box. boooo they are not 10 performance.
Dinger, are you basing your judgement of them overloading their boxes from a reliable source, are simply going off of rumors?
NFo has really increased their performance the past year. Before that, they weren’t that good, but recently I have noticed the performance increase.
My team’s next server will most likely be an NFo.
I think NFO server are great. They are very quick/lag free servers with a very dedicated staff behind them. I also give them a 9/10. -1 for price
I’m actually pretty surprised with you rating NFo over velocity I’ve purchased many different GSP’s and I could honestly say performance wise as well as support wise NFo was by far the worst I’ve ever bought from in fact if I had the choice to buy a counter strike.com server I would. Not only is much cheaper but performance wise I think its better as well when I had my NFo for the entire month it would randomly crash…Registry would go down the tube and kids would assume it was a counter strike.com server and complain (It was the 500 fps boosted Chicago) and when I complained and tried to seek help from a customer service agent he insulted my intelligence and talked down to me and also insulted me many times. As a result I complained to the owner who offered us our money back as well as a free month I took the money back but did not accept the free month as I could not stand those servers and bought from velocity which I to this day have never had a problem with and like you mentioned in there review the staff was very helpful and seemed happy to be of service this is just my personal opinion.
I’ve had several servers over the years with my various teams. I’ve even hosted my own servers. I used Aim2Game for a long time since they sponsored CEVO, but I switched to NFo when a2g’s servers and service started getting poor (CEVO also switched to NFo around that time, coincidentally). Since then I have never looked back. NFo’s performance is pretty good for the price, especially with the 500+ FPS servers, and their service is actually pretty amazing. Those of you who left comments dogging their support must be real jerks or clowns because they’ve always been extremely helpful anytime I needed anything.
And I totally agree with the assessment about the CP… it’s really good. I’ve never seen another CP even halfway decent. A2G didn’t even have one
I always had to contact them in IRC whenever I needed my servers reset.
Yeah I got to agree, NFo has REALLY improved and when I had it it was just an amazing server. No problems at all and it was at 250 FPS w/ NO High Priority so just imagine 500+ FPS w/ High Priority :).
Their control panel is a bit odd in my opinion - beyond that kudos for the review.
wbmiktfl…
wbmiktfl…
I would Have To Say, Velocity are the best by far, everytime im in IRC with them there always active (Some More Then Others:P).
But ive played in many velocityservers and i have to say, performance = 11/10
Support 11/10 No matter what, theres always support, everyday no matter what.
And DreamEvil, you got insulted by NFO ive, flipped out a few times with velocity, and still NEVER EVER been insulted off them EVER!
there all knind and friendly i recommend everyone to use Velocity!
There website: http://Www.Velocity-Servers.Com
Dedicated Servers: http://Www.Colocrossing.Com
They Even Offer Live Phone Support (Tested Ive Rang There At 3am And Still Got An Awnser!)
oo ya i think theres also
http://www.velocity-deals.net also.
Thanks.
CHRISFINLAYSON
Dinger WTFS WITH http://www.goatse.fr/ thats fucked up..
http://www.VELOCITY-SERVERS.NET
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Your blog is interesting!
Keep up the good work!