The XPG Starker is an interesting case in more than one way. It is a bit taller than traditional mid-tower cases to give you room for potent liquid cooling in the ceiling without much compromise. On top of that, the front is built well, further adding to the sturdy feel with its magnetic metal front cover while being well engineered both functionally and visually. The ability to pull up its dust filter is great for removal and cleaning, while the two ARGB strips feel very much a part of the design instead of simply an afterthought.

On the inside, you find solid steel all around, with the space on top of the shroud offering versatility most brands ignore. You may use it for storage, active cooling, or vertical GPU mounting. Instead of trying to offer both horizontal and vertical expansion, which tends to result in a slightly wider case, XPG includes a bracket to convert the seven horizontal slots into four vertical ones. If you are willing to invest the money for the right ribbon cables, you could install a 2.5-slot GPU and up to two additional expansion cards this way. While that may not be in line with their target audience as the ribbon cables alone would cost as much as the whole case, having this possibility is certainly a nice touch. XPG also manages to tie things together inside the case with good compatibility for potent hardware, radiator support, and clean cable routing with grommets on all major cable-routing holes and well-placed hooks for zip ties. This is good as the ARGB controller setup results in a bit of a cable mess.

That brings us to the flip side. Besides the cable mess, most cases of this price range come with 3, 4 or even 5 fans out of the box, which is where the XPG Starker falls short. It would be interesting to see a variant with a mesh front and more fans in the front for a small price premium, potentially ARGB.

Overall, the XPG Starker is a functional, well-built, and adequately priced chassis, so we can certainly recommend it, especially if you aim to go with an AIO, which would fit into the ceiling beautifully.