On behalf of the Showdown LAN team and the crew at PC Gamer and Maximum PC, thank you to everyone who took part in, sponsored and helped plan the LAN in San Mateo!!

We hope all of you who were able to join us in person enjoyed the experience and met some new friends. And congratulations to everyone who won the tournaments and other contests.

If you have any suggestions or comments about this year's Showdown LAN, please let us know. You can email us directly at showdown (at) futureus (dot) com, or hit up the forums if you'd rather share your thoughts there. Either way, we'd like to hear from you.

And thanks again to Dylan Fitterer of Audiosurf and all of the sponsors who took part in Showdown: Intel, Antec, BFG Tech, cdv/Sacred2, NVIDIA, ET Game Hosting, BAWLS, FSP Group, SLAPPA, TN Games and ZipZoomfly.com.

Be sure to stop by the NVIDIA booth at Showdown LAN, and prepare to be blown away!

NVIDIA will be giving demos of their latest immersive technologies, PhysX and GeForce 3D Stereo, and you won't want to miss this chance to  see them upclose and personal. It'll be an intense graphical experience that will make your gameplay even more exciting.

You may even walk away with a cool prize because NVIDIA will be hosting impromptu contests at their booth throughout the weekend.

Showdown LAN opens at 6pm today, so we look forward to seeing you there!

Even though we've already announced over $60K in prizes, we're not done yet because FSP Group has also signed on as a sponsor of Showdown LAN. Which means even MORE GREAT PRIZES!

FSP will be hosting a Power Plug N' Play contest at Showdown that will be open to all LAN attendees. We'll explain the contest rules on-site, but it'll be a fun way to win FSP logo items and power supplies -- including their Kingcraft 1000W power supply and their Everest 900W model.

If you missed the deadline for online registration, you can still participate in Showdown LAN by buying a ticket at the door. See you there!

As a reminder, the last day to register online to buy a Showdown LAN ticket for only $40 is Monday, September 15th! After midnight on Monday, you'll have to buy your ticket at the door for $60.

Aside from saving some cash, signing up by that deadline is the only way to reserve a specific seat at the LAN in advance. So make sure to buy your ticket today to be part of the fun!

PC Gamer and Maximum PC are pulling out all of the stops to make this LAN the best Showdown yet, with lots of contests, giveaways, a special presentation by AudioSurf developer Dylan Fitterer and, of course, plenty of tournament action. There will be over $65,000 in prizes and swag, including Intel Core 2 Extreme processors, Antec cases, BFG graphics cards, games, gift certificates and other gear.

We hope to see you there!

We're happy to announce that BFG Technologies, makers of NVIDIA-based graphics cards and premium power supplies, will once again be sponsoring Showdown LAN!

BFG will be on-hand to show off the latest power supply and graphics technology in top-end demo systems, so be sure to stop by their booth at Showdown to learn more (and pick up some free BFG swag and prizes while you're there...t-shirts, flashlights, etc.)

BFG will also be sponsoring the Call of Duty 4 tournament, and will be kicking in BFG GeForce(r) GTX 260 OC(tm) 896MB PCI Express 2.0 graphics cards worth over $300 each for all of the first place CoD4 winners (that's on top of the Intel processors)!!

That's not the only chance you'll have to win cool BFG gear though! BFG is hosting a Showdown LAN scavenger hunt that everyone can participate in as well. First place in the scavenger hunt will win a BFG ES-800 800W premium power supply with frequency conversion technology and second place will score a BFG LS-680 (680W) power supply.

Raffle winners can get in on the action too because BFG will be giving away another BFG GeForce(r) GTX 260 OC(tm) 896MB PCI Express 2.0 graphic card in the raffle, along with two more ES-800 power supplies and six more LS-680 power supplies. Plus, those prizes include BFG's 24/7/365 technical support and their True Lifetime Warranty coverage.  

Thanks to TN Games, three lucky raffle winners at each Showdown LAN will be going home with a free 3rd Space FPS gaming vest! 

The vest, which sells for $169, uses cutting-edge technology to allow you to experience the impact, motion and speed of your game play in a realistic, intense way. And it's compatible with over 20 game titles, including CoD4, F.E.A.R. and Bioshock!

TN Games has built in eight active zones in each vest that simulate the direction and forces of bullet fire, crushing explosions and even finger taps as they occur in the game. It's mind-blowing gear that is designed to make what happens in the virtual world seem eerily real. 

It's just another reason why you won't want to miss this year's Showdown LAN. 

Here's the announcement many of you have been waiting for:

The prizes for the four official tournaments are lined up, and you and your teammates will have a chance to win over $20,000 in prizes at each Showdown LAN -- including high-performance Intel Core 2 Extreme processors that retail for more than $1,000!! 

Just check out the specs on Intel's QX9650 quad-core processor running at 3GHz: 12MB of total L2 cache, 1333 MHz front side bus, LGA775 package, cutting-edge 45nm technology.

Thanks to sponsors like Intel, Antec, BFG, ETGameHosting.com, ZipZoomfly.com and others, this year's tournament prizes rock! Below is a look at exactly what you can win.

Call of Duty 4 - Sponsored by BFG

1st prize: Each team member will receive an Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650 processor. In addition, BFG will give each 1st place winner a special prize that will be announced on-site.

2nd prize: Each team member will receive an Antec Twelve Hundred case.

BONUS: The 3rd place team will receive free game server and voice server rental for three months from ETGameHosting.com.

Team Fortress 2 

1st prize: Each team member will receive an Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650 processor.

2nd prize: Each team member will receive an Antec Twelve Hundred case.

Counter-Strike: Source 

1st prize: Each team member will receive an Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650 processor.

2nd prize: Each team member will receive an Antec Twelve Hundred case.

StarCraft: Brood War

1st prize: Each team member will receive an Antec 1200 case AND an Antec Signature 850 power supply

2nd prize: Each team member will receive a $100 gift certificate from ZipZoomfly.com

There will also be additional prizes for third place winners, on top of the thousands of dollars in items that we'll be giving away in the raffle and other contests. Great stuff like ASUS laptops, cases of BAWLS, free games, SLAPPA gear and more!

ETGameHosting.com has signed on as a Showdown LAN sponsor and will be offering an awesome prize package that includes free game server and voice server rental for three full months! This prize, valued at $470, will be awarded to one of the teams in the Call of Duty 4 tournament (more details will be available when we announce the complete prize line-up).

ETGameHosting.com offers affordable, reliable game servers for players around the country, and we're happy to have them join us as a Showdown LAN sponsor. Every Showdown attendee will be given a special discount at the LAN, so check out their Web site to learn more about ETGameHosting.com's servers.

As many of you already know, BAWLS + gaming = highly caffeinated fun. Which is why we're psyched that BAWLS is now an official Showdown LAN 2008 sponsor! 

They'll be providing each Showdown LAN with over 25 cases of their BAWLS Guarana energy drink to keep you bouncing. So, stay tuned for more info on how you can get your hands on cases of BAWLS (we'll be announcing more details on the prizes soon).

We are very excited to announce that one of the hottest indie games of the year, Audiosurf, will be part of Showdown LAN in San Mateo! Thanks to the generous participation of Audiosurf developer Dylan Fitterer, San Mateo attendees will receive an exclusive, free competition version of this award-winning music game that is being created specifically for Showdown -- w00t!

You'll get access to the Showdown-only version when you arrive at the LAN on Friday and will be able to play throughout the weekend with special tournament artwork and songs that are part of this custom build. And as an added bonus, the top-scoring players will win fun prizes.

Dylan will also be at Showdown LAN to meet attendees and answer questions. He'll be participating in a live podcast with the PC Gamer crew on Saturday afternoon, and will be at the mic on the Showdown stage at 11pm on Saturday. So, all of you aspiring developers and avid Audiosurf fans, don't miss this opportunity to talk shop with Dylan.

Audiosurf is one of the coolest ways we've come across to enjoy your favorite tunes. If you haven't tried it yet, check out this GamesRadar.com review that calls it a "near-religious musical gaming experience." Or, head over to Audiosurf's site or Steam to play for yourself.

A brief but important announcement:

If you're planning to attend Showdown LAN in San Mateo but haven't bought your ticket yet, make sure to register by midnight on September 15th to take advantage of the discounted rate of $40. That will be the last day to sign up online and, while you'll still be able to register in person at the San Mateo County Expo Center during Showdown, the cost for walk-ins is $60 per ticket.

See you there!

We're excited to announce that SLAPPA has signed on as a Showdown LAN 2008 sponsor, which means you'll have a chance to win some awesome prizes to protect your digital gear!

SLAPPA will offer the grand prize winner of each Showdown LAN case mod contest a $250 gift certificate that can be used to purchase ultra-cool products at SLAPPA.com, including laptop bags, headphone cases, and CD/DVD cases (we'll also include a photograph of the winning rig from each Showdown LAN in upcoming issues of PC Gamer and Maximum PC magazines).

In addition, SLAPPA will give away the following items to lucky winners at each Showdown LAN party:

• HardBody PRO headphone cases (Two winners per city)
• HardBody PRO 160 d2i CD cases (Two winners per city)
• 17" Ballistix laptop sleeves (Two winners per city)
• HardBody PRO 40 d2i DVD cases (Two winners per city)

Learn more about SLAPPA online, and stay tuned for more swag alerts and sponsor announcements.

When we wrote about Antec's Skeleton case yesterday, we mentioned that Antec would also be contributing prizes as part of its Showdown LAN sponsorship. What we weren't able to share until now is that they're kicking in a whopping $10,000+ in gear for prizes this year!! Thank you to Antec!!

In addition to raffling off items like a must-have bundle that includes the Twelve Hundred case and 850 Signature series power supply, Antec will be providing the Twelve Hundred case to tournament winners in every Showdown LAN city. More details on exactly what prizes will be available to first, second and third place winners in all four official tournaments will be available soon. But you can't go wrong with one of these gaming cases. Check out Antec's site for specs.

As you may have already heard, Antec has been hard at work developing a new open-air case called the Skeleton that is unlike anything you've seen from them before. It's a radical new spin on enclosure design, and we're psyched to announce that Showdown LAN attendees will be able to preview the Skeleton at Antec's booth.

It includes four drive bays, seven expansion slots, a front 92mm fan, top 3-speed 250mm fan with multicolor LED customization and layered component trays. The photos below will give you an idea of what the futuristic design is like, but don't miss your chance to get an exclusive sneak peek upclose and personal at Showdown LAN!  As a Showdown sponsor, Antec will also be giving away some amazing prizes at the LAN.

We promised another announcement about prizes today, and here it is:

One of the items we will be raffling off at Showdown LAN is a fully-loaded ASUS U3S laptop worth over $1,500, courtesy of Microsoft Vista Ultimate! I was lucky enough to get my hands on one yesterday to preview it, and I wish I was eligible for the raffle because I want one!!  

It's a sleek ultra-portable machine that weighs less than four pounds, and comes packed with Intel's Centrino Core 2 Duo processor, Nvidia's GeForce 8400M G graphics card, 1.5G of RAM and other bells and whistles. Check out these specs for more info (it looks like the one in the photo, except it's white).

You get one raffle ticket for each Showdown LAN ticket you purchase, so make sure you're signed up to get a chance to take home this laptop -- and keep checking back for more updates on prizes and swag.