EVGA 8800GT - Artifacts & Locking up, Probable new card required

While playing a game of Assassins Creed II the other night my display suddenly froze and turned a blue-ish shade of psychadelia. On rebooting, I began to get strange artifacts on the display, and the resolution was reduced to something not seen since the 80s.

Through the garbled mess of the screen, Device manager reported that the computer had encountered an error with the EVGA 8800GT and disabled it. On rebooting again, everything seemed to work fine at first. Then the artifacts appeared and before too long the computer again locked up. Now the artifacts are there from the POST screen onwards and I'm lucky to last 30 seconds on the desktop before the computer seizes up.

I've noticed that the rear fan on the case has failed too. Is this the likely cause - fan failure leading to the card overheating and burning out? With a new fan installed the problem remains, and my old 6600GT is now back in place and working fine. So before I take the plunge into a new card, is there any chance my 8800GT can be recovered? It's not just some weird driver problem or compatibility problem?

If not then what would be a good upgrade? I'm looking for something that will last at least couple of years before becoming redundent.

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: This week

USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Games (Assassins Creed, Modern Warfare, Eve Online), Video Editing (Sony Vegas)

CURRENT GPU AND POWER SUPPLY: EVGA 8800GT, OCZ StealthXStream 600W

OTHER RELEVANT SYSTEM SPECS: Intel Q6600, 4GB DDR3, Gigabyte P35DS3R

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Anything in the UK

OVERCLOCKING: No SLI OR CROSSFIRE: No

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1024x768, 1280x1024, 1440x900, 1600x1200, 1680x1050, 1920x1080, 1920x1200

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Not looking for a top of the range card. I was happy with my EVGA 8800GT and what it gave me. Despite playing some gfx demanding games, Graphics aren't the be all and end all. Just something that will give me a decent quality, isn't too expensive (£100-£150) but will still be able to handle games a couple of years down the line.

Thanks in advance.

Thanks for the reply. I've been looking at some cards and may take your advice on the 5750. Would I be better paying the extra £30's (~$45) for the 5770? And does it matter which brand I get, or are they all similar in terms of performance?

Am I right in thinking there won't be any problem using the PCI-express 2.0 cards on an PCI-express 1.0 Motherboard?

how hot is the card getting!

5770, less wattage than a 8800GT,?DUDE, DO SOME RESEARCH,5770-108, 8800GT105, albeit slightly less but it is less,

thanks

look like mousey delete my post where i totally embarrassed you since ill state it again

here's RESEARCH of the 5770 drawing less watts then the 8800GT

http://www.anandtech.com/show/2856/13

next time have the balls to post your own and don't call me dude, im not a friend of losers like you!

calm down, guys...

Getting back on topic, thanks for the replies. I think I'll go for a 5770. Any brands I should go for/avoid?

I'm also wondering if there will any problems with my case, since it has just the 1 120mm exhaust fan at the rear. Should I think to upgrade that, or will it be fine as it is?

And is it worth going that extra mile (maybe $25) for the Hawk or VaporX?

I think the 5770 Hawk is shorter than the 8800GT I had, so it looks to be okay on that front.

Thanks to everyone who replied. I've gone for the MSI 5770 Hawk. Hopefully that'll keep me going for a while.