I don't understand how people can say that ATI cards blow. The X850 XT I have runs Doom III, Far Cry, HL2, and other games great minus my processor overheating.
Of course Nvidia will win in Doom and Fear which uses shaders instead of high quality textures. It is a total matter of preference. And don't say that Doom 3 uses high quality textures. I turned up the brightness on my comp to see what everything looks like and minus the models it all looked disgusting on. They use tricks to cover up under-detailed items with darkness and cover it up in plastic-fake-looking shaders in really small, cramped rooms. HL2 is all about big environments and scenery. Let's see results with Doom and FEAR with that!
I have a roomate who uses two 6800 GTs in SLI and compared to my X850 XT in HL2 the image quality is the same if not better. That may be because he has a mid-grade LCD and I have a high-end viewsonic, but who knows. two 6800 GTs costs like $600+ and the X850 XT cost me $320 off ebay. Most of you anti-ATI people apparently don't know how to price hunt.
I don't know if any of you noticed but on ATI's site there is a big article about ATI and Crytek developers (the engine used to make Far Cry) working together on next-gen games. Wait until after FEAR and see the games that come out. FEAR and Doom are just shader-dominated games that have low-quality textures. I like Counter-Strike Source where on high textures you can actually read info on small models like the 609 cleaner solution. In FEAR the bullet holes creted look so freaking fake it is not even funny. The effects are cool, yes, but they look fake. IF you shoot a metal barrel in Counter Strike Source the bullet mark decals are very realistic.
And from what I have read ATI does better in HL2 and Far Cry. I think those two games have infinitely better gameplay and moving in the right direction for gfx over Doom which gets annoyingly repetitive with small cramped rooms and then just one big reactor room. Garbage. Total garbage.
Althought I must say this: If you prefer Doom or FEAR gfx/environments go ahead and use Nvidia. You will be disappointed when you see that there are only indoor levels.
Far Cry and HL2 make me waaay happier.