Every now and then a component comes along that just nails the brief, without you having to add a big disclaimer to the end of your recommendation. The Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 did it (before it sold out), the Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 did it, and now the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D has done it in quite spectacular fashion. After the lackluster Zen 5 launch, AMD has pulled out all the stops with this new gaming CPU, fixing the app performance of the 7800X3D, and making its new chip even quicker in games. Is this latest AMD chip the new best gaming CPU? In a word, yes. Not only does it leave Intel Arrow Lake in the dust, but it's also notably quicker than its predecessor, especially in application software, but also in games. I've tested this new X3D chip in several games over the last couple of weeks, while also putting it through its paces in video encoding and rendering tests, and it's a genuinely great processor. Continue reading AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D review: A truly great gaming CPU MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Ryzen 7 7800X3D review, Best gaming CPU, Radeon RX 7800 XT review