On December 17, 2021, the SupNerd crew was invited to take part in the AMD x Aftershock streamer challenge as “Team Aftershock”. They were tasked with completing custom-made missions in the world of Forza Horizon 5, and had to race against time in a four-hour streamer challenge that was streamed live on Twitch.
It was an action-filled event, which included live commentary from Australian casters Conky and Komodo.
The challenges
A five-man people from the SupNerd crew took part: Adam, Carlo, Gareth, Kym, Victoria. Each of them played solo in their own instance of the map, and had to complete three sets of challenges.
The first challenge involved being the first to three-star a Speed Trap, Danger Sign, Speed Zone and Drift Zone.
The second challenge required participants to find three hidden landmarks on the map, while only being given screenshots of each. To qualify, players had to find each location and take a photo using the in-game camera. These landmarks ranged from a beachfront rock formation, a hidden temple, and a dam.
The third and final challenge was to see who could successfully complete these five races first: Baja Cross Country Circuit Pro, Playa Azul Circuit Rookie, Cascada Trail, Horizon Callejera, and Festival Drag Strip.
What was the experience like?
The entire streaming challenge was a fun one, and the live commentary added an additional air of excitement for the team. It’s one thing to try and beat your friends. It’s a whole different ballgame when you’re also thinking about putting on a good show for the audience and casters.
“It was my first time in such a high profile streaming event with casters and it was an absolute privilege,” said Gareth. “It helped me appreciate just how hard streamers and casters have to work to put on an entertaining show.”
So, who won?
Kym took down the first challenge, Gareth won the second, and Adam killed it in the third.
“I talked a lot of trash in the lead-up, but couldn’t back it up,” said Carlo. “I got too lost in the mountains and valleys of Mexico, and for the life of me couldn’t properly complete the speed zone challenge. I could have probably chosen an easier one, but I’m stubborn as hell and couldn’t take not being able to three-star the first one that I tried.”
Victoria joined me in the no-win group, but still had a blast: “I don’t play that many racing games, but there was definitely something special about Forza Horizon’s open world. The variety in biomes was surprising, and the game’s soundtrack really keeps you in the moment. It’s one of those games that I enjoyed simply for the exploration.”
Talking about the gear
Setup for the event involved putting together the gear for the challenge, which included:
- Laptops or desktops were provided by Aftershock, which ran RX 6600 cards and R5 5600X processors from AMD
- Streamcams and Blue Yeti mics from Logitech
- Secretlab TITAN EVO 2022 chairs
We all had a positive experience testing the systems provided by Aftershock.
“Running Forza on the Aftershock REVO 16 didn’t feel like I was running it on a laptop. It’s amazing how far laptops have come to desktop replacements and I’m all for it,” shared Kym. “You’re getting desktop performance from a laptop form factor that you can literally unplug and take anywhere. The game held an impressive 60fps running on Ultra settings for 4 hours straight without any issues – definitely something to write home about.”
“Another reason why the experience was top-notch for me was because I finally got my hands on a proper gaming PC, and running a massive open-world game like Forza Horizon 5 was as easy as booting up the game and diving into it,” said Adam. “Throughout the whole challenge (the stream took about 4 hours plus), I had no technical issues, even with the game running on ultra.”
“The Logitech camera is extremely handy for anyone just starting out streaming – it’s clear, has 1 input and, being Logitech, is dead easy to set up,” added Kym. “I’m not the biggest audiophile but I do know when a mic is giving clean sound – the Yeti mics from Logitech are the baseline for solid streaming mics in my opinion and after some filtering, offer significant gains over your standard laptop mic.”
“Personally, I enjoyed the TITAN EVO 2022 chair the most,” said Carlo. “I already own a Secretlab chair, but the new ones are even more comfortable. The magnetic head pillows are easier to manage than the old ones that came with a band, too.”
Parting thoughts
The AMD x Aftershock streamer challenge was a lot of fun. Forza Horizon 5 was the perfect world to drop into, and the SupNerd team thoroughly enjoyed the variety of challenges. Carlo and Victoria may not have won that day, but they’ll be gunning for Adam, Gareth, and Kym the next time a challenge like this rolls around.
