Need Advice on $1000 Gaming Build

[awesq]

Hi all, I'm looking too build my first computer after having been convinced by this friendly community. It's great to see all the help that you guys offer to newbies, and I appreciate all the responses in advance.

You can find the list of parts below. I also wanted to make a few points in advance:

• 
  ■ I'm looking to use this computer for gaming and work. My most demanding game will probably be CoD: Ghosts. Having been someone who's always bought prebuilt computers, I finally want something that I can upgrade piecemeal. I would like to have the option of overclocking and SLI in the future
  ■ The price comes in at $1230 right now, but I'm hoping to get closer to the $1000 mark (I realize that part of the problem is that I have an SSD and I have to buy an OS, so worst case, I can always skip the SSD for now if I have to)
  ■ I am planning to get some parts at a Microcenter nearby, but would otherwise prefer online vendors like Amazon or Newegg just because I know they're reliable. Open to other vendors if people have had good experiences
  
  ■ Motherboard: This was one of the areas I had no idea about. I know I would like the the 4670K Haswell to future proof myself a bit, but I wasn't sure if the ASUS Z87-A was a good choice
  ■ Video Card: I'm not tied down at all to the 760, so I'm open to suggestions for better value
  ■ PSU: I suspect that the 850W may be a bit overkill for my planned system, but the price after rebate was $129.99, which was close to some of Corsairs 600Ws with the same gold ratings
  ■ Case: A friend suggested this case, and it seems to have great reviews. My only concern is whether I should be getting a full size case if I want to SLI down the line or if this case would have plenty of room

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($144.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($63.75 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($127.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.99 @ Microcenter)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($259.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: Corsair Professional 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($97.27 @ TigerDirect)
Total: $1230.92
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-04 14:41 EST-0500)

Any comments/suggestions in terms of cutting down the price or for better value parts are more than welcome. Look forward to hearing what you guys think.

 

[sora]

You could save if you downgraded to a Samsung 830 128GB SSD although I don't think it matters as the price difference would be ~$10.

 

[awesq]

You could save if you downgraded to a Samsung 830 128GB SSD although I don't think it matters as the price difference would be ~$10.

If anything, I might just scrap the SSD and save $128. Still leaves me a bit above the 1000 mark though.