Build of the week: a PUBG diorama that can run PUBG

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Every Monday, Build of the week highlights a unique rig from the web’s most dedicated PC building communities.

The last diorama I made was a scene of the Missouri River, circa Lewis and Clark stuff. You should've seen the thing. Saran wrap colored blue and squished up to imitate moving water. Little plastic people carrying canoes upriver. A hillside of plaster and newspaper beneath it all, history brought to life in the palm of a 4th grader's workmanlike hands. It was my craft. It was my passion. But I should have listened to my father. He was right. There is 'no such thing as diorama school, boy.'

The universe self-corrects though. The geniuses as Designs by IFR and Tech Modified have discovered what I, an editor at PC Gamer, should have realized a long time ago. Computers are also dioramas, their PUBG-themed PC, Project PUBG, as testimony.

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Check this beauty out. It's a dilapidated brick building with a little garage attached. There's some diorama-ass-lookin' ground, all warped and exaggerated to drive home the groundness of the ground, and some cute little PUBG easter eggs spread about. My favorite touch is the boy scout derby car with a spinning wheel, a small touch that tells a short story and thus creates history. Through what means did that car end up tilted, a single wheel left in perpetual rotation? Why is that graphics card the size of a van (supposing the diorama diegesis is maintained)? What natural process left this logo imprinted on the earth's surface? I prefer to keep my dioramas a little mysterious.

Don't be like me, fellow diorama-heads. Next time you're neck deep in a hardcore gaming sesh, take a break and pop your PC open. Find the little stories inside. Call your dad and tell him he was wrong. Put some little plastic men in there. Sleep soundly for the first time in years.

Project PUBG specs:

CPU: Intel Core i5 8600k
GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 GPU (x2)
Mobo: MSI Z370 Gaming Pro Carbon Motherboard
RAM: 16GB Apacer Panther series DDR4 Memory
SSD: Apacer Panther Series
PSU: Cooler Master v850 PSU
CPU cooler: Cooler Master MasterLiquid Maker 240
Chassis: Cooler Master H500P Case

James is stuck in an endless loop, playing the Dark Souls games on repeat until Elden Ring and Silksong set him free. He's a truffle pig for indie horror and weird FPS games too, seeking out games that actively hurt to play. Otherwise he's wandering Austin, identifying mushrooms and doodling grackles.