When it comes to Deepcool's latest all-in-one closed-loop liquid cooler, there is a great deal to like. The Gamer Storm Castle 360EX is well built—my sample has no flaws. The radiator is clean with no bent fins, and the cold plate, while not a mirror-finish smooth, has less milling marks than most as of late. There is also the fact that it has Deepcool's pressure adjustment, or "Anti-leak", technology. While I can't say for certain that it does anything end users will care about or even notice, it should, at least according to Deepcool, improve the overall reliability of their liquid cooler, which they have backed with a three-year warranty.

The Castle 360EX is also quite easy to install. It is far from the easiest installation, but is still a straightforward process that requires a bit of patience since the backplate must be held in place when first installing the pump. Better yet, due to only the pump being illuminated, the RGB cable mess is kept to a minimum, and unlike the Cooler Master ML240P Mirage, the simple in-line control hub is quick and easy to set up if your motherboard doesn't have a +5 volt RGB header for direct motherboard software control.

Still, like most RGB-illuminated liquid coolers, the price is quite high at $159.99, and performance isn't quite as good as I would have liked. That is not to say performance is awful. In fact, it performs similarly to other liquid coolers on the market I have reviewed. I was just hoping for a bit more performance from a 360 mm design at this particular price point. I will also point out that the cooler, while not loud, is still fairly audible at maximum RPM and falls just beyond the 45 dBA threshold at 30 cm I consider acceptable for daily use. In most situations, you should not hear the Castle 360EX; however, if you push a CPU with a substantial enough overclock, you will hear the fans on this model.

As for the RGB aspect, I found it quite appealing. Rather than being in your face with more LEDs than glow sticks at a rave, Deepcool's offering has a tastefully illuminated pump with the rest of the design being black. This is much more subtle and pleasing in my opinion and straddles the fine line between too much or not enough in regards to RGB lighting. As always, not everyone will be pleased; however, I feel Deepcool has done an excellent job here all the same.

Overall, if you want a closed-loop liquid cooler that offers decent performance, acceptable noise levels, and RGB lighting that won't keep you up at night, it is fair to say Deepcool has you covered with the Gamer Storm Castle 360EX.