Tag Archives: Ray tracing

Quake 2 RTX Now Supports Vulkan Ray Tracing!

Quake 2 RTX now supports Vulkan Ray Tracing, which means it will also work on AMD graphics cards! Here are the details!

 

Quake 2 RTX : What Is It?

Initially released in June 2019, Quake II RTX revamps the classic first-person shooter game with ray-traced lighting, shadows and reflections.

In addition to the ray tracing effects, NVIDIA also introduced new path-traced visual effects, improved texturing and dozens of other changes and improvements.

 

Quake 2 RTX Now Supports Vulkan Ray Tracing!

Quake 2 RTX originally supported only NVIDIA RTX cards, but the newly-released version 1.4.0 adds support for the new Vulkan Ray Tracing API.

Quake 2 RTX 1.4.0 will dynamically between the pre-existing NVIDIA VKRay and the new Khronos Vulkan ray tracing extension, making it the world’s first cross-vendor ray tracing Vulkan game!

This means it can now run on any GPU that supports the “VK_KHR_ray_tracing_pipeline” extension, including the recently-launched AMD Radeon RX 6000 series graphics cards.

The Quake 2 RTX 1.4.0 also adds temporal upscaling, TAAU, for improved image quality at lower resolution scales.

 

Quake 2 RTX : Vulkan Ray Tracing Requirements

To try out its new Vulkan Ray Tracing capability, this is what you require :

  • Download and install Quake 2 RTX 1.4.0 or newer
  • AMD
    – Requires Radeon RX 6000 series, or future RDNA 2, cards.
    – Upgrade to Radeon Software Adrenalin 2020 Edition 20.11.2 Beta or newer
  • NVIDIA
    – Requires GeForce RTX / Quadro RTX graphics cards.
    – Upgrade to Game Ready Driver 460.89 (Windows) or 460.27.04 (Linux), or newer

 

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AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT : Ultimate Big Navi @ Just $999!

The AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT is here, and it only costs $999… if you can find one!

Here is what you need to know about the ultimate Big Navi graphics card!

 

AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT : Official Tech Briefing + Q&A Session

AMD claims that the Radeon RX 6900 XT is the ultimate 4K graphics card, thanks to its new RDNA 2 architecture with 80 enhanced Compute Units and 16 GB GDDR6 memory.

Let’s start with the official tech briefing and Q&A session with Nish Neelalojanan, Senior Manager of Gaming Product Management at the AMD Radeon Technologies Group.

 

AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT : Key Features

The AMD Radeon RX 6000 series graphics cards are built on the new RDNA 2 architecture, which features an enhanced Compute Unit, a new visual pipeline with Ray Accelerators, and the new AMD Infinity Cache.

Recommended : AMD RDNA 2 Architecture : Tech Highlights!

AMD Smart Access Memory

This is an exclusive feature that is enabled when a Radeon RX 6000 series graphics card is paired with the Ryzen 5000 series processor and an X570 motherboard.

The Ryzen 5000 processor is given greater access to its GDDR6 graphics memory, providing up to 13% better performance when combined with the new Rage Mode one-click overclocking setting.

Recommended : AMD Smart Access Memory (PCIe Resizable BAR) Guide

AMD Infinity Cache

The AMD Infinity Cache is a new and very large 128 MB data cache. Think of it as an L3 cache for the GPU.

AMD added it to dramatically increase memory bandwidth, which reducing memory latency and power consumption.

They claim it delivers up to 3.25X the bandwidth of the 256-bit GDDR6 memory, and up to 2.4X more effective bandwidth per watt.

Recommended : AMD Infinity Cache Explained : L3 Cache Comes To The GPU!

DirectX 12 Ultimate Support

They will support the next-generation games with greater realism through DirectX Raytracing (DXR) and Variable Rate Shading.

New Ray Accelerator

Every RDNA 2 computer unit has a new fixed-function Ray Accelerator engine to deliver real-time lighting, shadow and refection realism through DirectX Raytracing (DXR).

It can be paired with AMD FidelityFX to enable hybrid rendering, offering a combination of rasterised and ray-traced effects for a blend of better image quality and higher performance.

Variable Rate Shading (VRS)

Variable Rate Shading dynamically reduces the shading rate for areas of the frame that do not require a high level of visual quality, improving performance at little to no perceptible loss in image quality.

Microsoft DirectStorage Support

They will support the future DirectStorage API for faster load times, and high-quality textures.

 

AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT : Specifications

The AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT headlines the Radeon RX 6000 series :

  • Radeon RX 6900 XT : 80 CUs, 80 RAs, 320 TMUs, 128 ROPs, 16 GB DDR6
  • Radeon RX 6800 XT : 72 CUs, 72 RAs, 288 TMUs, 128 ROPs, 16 GB DDR6
  • Radeon RX 6800 : 60 CUs, 60 RAs, 240 TMUs, 96 ROPs, 16 GB DDR6

Here is a table comparing their key specifications :

Specifications RX
6900 XT
RX
6800 XT
RX
6800
Transistors 26.8 billion
Fab Process 7 nm
Total Graphics Power 300 W 250 W
Compute Units 80 72 60
Ray Accelerators 80 72 60
Stream Processors 5120 4608 3840
Game Clock 2015 MHz 2015 MHz 1815 MHz
Boost Clock 2250 MHz 2250 MHz 2105 MHz
TFLOPS 23.04 20.74 16.17
TMUs 320 288 240
Max. Texture Rate 720 GT/s 648 GT/s 505 GT/s
ROPs 128 96
Max. Pixel Rate 288 GP/s 202 GP/s
Infinity Cache 128 MB
Graphics Memory 16 GB GDDR6 (16 Gbps)
Bus Width 256-bit
Bandwidth 512 GB/s
PCIe Interface PCIe 4.0 x16
PCIe Power 2 x 8-pin

 

AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT : Price + Availability

At launch, the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT has a SEP (Suggested E-tail Price) of US$999, which is approximately £749 / A$1,349 / S$1,339 / RM4,069.

As far as we can tell, it will only be available in the AMD reference design, although custom designs may be available at a later date.

 

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RX 6800 XT Smart Access Memory Performance Comparison!

Find out what AMD Smart Access Memory is all about, and how much of a performance effect it really has on the Radeon RX 6800 XT graphics card!

 

RX 6800 XT Smart Access Memory : How Does It Improve Performance?

Smart Access Memory is really a marketing term for AMD’s implementation of the PCI Express Resizable BAR (Base Address Registers) capability.

CPUs are traditionally limited to a 256 MB I/O memory address “window” for the GPU frame buffer.

Turning on Resizable BAR or Smart Access Memory removes that small access window, letting the CPU directly access the Radeon RX 6800 XT‘s graphics memory.

While the AMD graphics above suggest that Smart Access Memory will widen the memory path, and thus memory bandwidth, between the CPU and GPU, that’s not true.

It does not increase memory bandwidth. Instead, it speeds up CPU to GPU communications, by letting the CPU directly access more of GPU memory, instead of using the usual 256 MB “window”.

Recommended : AMD Smart Access Memory – How To Enable It?

 

RX 6800 XT Smart Access Memory : 3DMark

The 3DMark benchmark results don’t show any significant performance difference, with Smart Access Memory enabled.

 

RX 6800 XT Smart Access Memory : Game Performance Summary

But let’s look at its effect on the real world gaming performance…

Let’s start with a bird’s eye look at the performance effect of Smart Access Memory on the Radeon RX 6800 XT‘s performance.

For more detailed look at Smart Access Memory’s effect on each game, please click to the next page.

1080p Resolution (1920 x 1080)

At 1080p, Smart Access Memory improved frame rates by about 4.33%, and does not always give a performance boost to the Radeon RX 6800 XT.

It had virtually no performance effect in World War Z, The Division 2 and Star Control : Origins.

On the other hand, it delivered up to 16% better frame rates in Total War : Troy.

1440p Resolution (2560 x 1440)

Smart Access Memory had a bigger (5.22% average) effect on the Radeon RX 6800 XT at 1440p.

It had no effect in four games – Metro Exodus, World War Z, The Division 2 and Star Control : Origins.

But it has a large 10%-11% performance boost in F1 2019, Total War : Troy, Dirt 5 and Gears Tactics.

2160p Resolution (3840 x 2160)

At the 4K resolution though, the average performance boost from Smart Access Memory dropped to just 3.11%.

Most of the games had insignificant boosts in frame rates of 2-3%. Oddly enough, World War Z received a significant 4% boost in frame rate at 4K.

F1 2019 received the biggest boost from Smart Access Memory – a large 14% boost in frame rate!

Next Page > RX 6800 XT Smart Access Memory Game Performance

 

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RX 6800 XT Smart Access Memory : Gaming Performance

F1 2019

F1 2019 really benefited from Smart Access Memory, with significant boosts in frame rates :

  • 1080p : +6.0%
  • 1440p : +10.8%
  • 2160p : +14.0%

Metro Exodus

On the other hand, Smart Access Memory had no effect on Metro Exodus.

World War Z

World War Z had uneven results with Smart Access Memory, with the greater effect at 4K :

  • 1080p : -1.3%
  • 1440p : +0.5%
  • 2160p : +4.0%

Total War : Troy

Total War : Troy benefited greatly from Smart Access Memory, especially at the 1080p and 1440p resolutions.

  • 1080p : +15.7%
  • 1440p : +10.0%
  • 2160p : +4.0%

The Division 2

The Division 2 actually performed slightly worse with Smart Access Memory enabled :

  • 1080p : -0.6%
  • 1440p : No difference
  • 2160p : -1.5%

Dirt 5

Dirt 5 benefited the most at the 1440p resolution :

  • 1080p : +4.0%
  • 1440p : +10.3%
  • 2160p : +2.5%

Shadow of the Tomb Raider

Shadow of the Tomb Raider 5 benefited the most at the 1080p and 1440p resolutions :

  • 1080p : +7.9%
  • 1440p : +5.5%
  • 2160p : +4.0%

Gears Tactics

Gears Tactics benefited the most at the 1080p and 1440p resolutions :

  • 1080p : +5.7%
  • 1440p : +9.6%
  • 2160p : +3.3%

Star Control: Origins

Smart Access Memory had no effect on Star Control: Origins.

 

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Cyberpunk 2077 : Updated PC Specifications For RTX Gaming

NVIDIA just released updated PC specifications for RTX gaming on Cyberpunk 2077!

Check out these updated requirements to make sure you are ready to turn RTX on when Cyberpunk 2077 launches!

 

Cyberpunk 2077 : Updated PC Specifications For RTX Gaming

NVIDIA today revealed their updated system configurations for RTX gameplay.

CPU

  • 1080p : Intel Core i7-4790 or AMD Ryzen 3 3200G
  • 1440p or 4K : Intel Core i7-6700 or AMD Ryzen 5 3600

Graphics Card

Graphics Memory

  • 1080p : 6 GB
  • 1440p : 8 GB
  • 4K : 10 GB

System Memory + Storage

  • All resolutions : 16 GB RAM + 70 GB SSD

This is what NVIDIA says about RTX gaming on Cyberpunk 2077 :

The minimum GPU for Ray Tracing, at 1920×1080, is the GeForce RTX 2060. Gamers will explore Night City with Medium Ray Tracing Preset powered by DLSS.

At 2560×1440, we recommend a GeForce RTX 3070 or GeForce RTX 2080 Ti. Ray tracing is taken to Ultra, which greatly increases the fidelity of the aforementioned effects, and the distance at which they are visible, while DLSS provides boosted frame rates with uncompromised image quality.

And with rasterized settings also being cranked to Ultra, GeForce RTX 3070 and 2080 Ti gamers receive an incredible experience at the highest detail levels, unmatched by any other platform.

And finally, if you’re playing at 4K or beyond, the GeForce RTX 3080 and GeForce RTX 3090 deliver the performance to play Cyberpunk 2077 with ray tracing at Ultra at this incredibly demanding resolution.

Both GPUs are powered by Ampere — NVIDIA’s 2nd gen RTX architecture — with dedicated RT Cores for ray tracing, and Tensor Cores for DLSS AI acceleration, delivering an unrivaled cinematic-quality experience.

 

Cyberpunk 2077 : Updated PC Specifications With RTX Off

What if you don’t feel the need to turn on ray tracing in Cyberpunk 2077?

Here are the recommended system specifications to game on Cyberpunk 2077 with RTX off :

CPU

  • 1080p : Intel Core i7-4790 or AMD Ryzen 3 3200G
  • 1440p or 4K : Intel Core i7-6700 or AMD Ryzen 5 3600

Graphics Card

Graphics Memory

  • 1080p or 1440p : 6 GB
  • 4K : 8 GB

System Memory + Storage

  • All resolutions : 16 GB RAM + 70 GB SSD

 

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series : Where To Buy?

Malaysia

RTX 3070 : ZOTACZOTAC | MSI | Colorful | GIGABYTE | ASUS
RTX 3080 :
ZOTAC | GIGABYTE | ASUS |
RTX 3090 : ZOTAC | ZOTAC | GALAX | Leadtek | PNY | INNO 3D | MSI | EVGA | ASUS

Singapore

RTX 3070 : ZOTAC | MSI | ASUS | ASUS
RTX 3080 : PALIT
| PALIT | PALIT | GIGABYTE | MSI | GIGABYTE | MSI | AORUS | AORUS
RTX 3090 : ZOTAC
| ZOTAC | ZOTAC | ASUS | GIGABYTE

United States

RTX 3070 : MSI | MSI | ZOTAC | MSI | GIGABYTE | EVGA | ASUS | ZOTAC | ASUS
RTX 3080 : EVGA | ASUS | ZOTAC | MSI | ZOTAC | MSI | ASUS | MSI | NVIDIA | ASUS
RTX 3090 : EVGA | ASUS | MSI | ASUS | MSI | ZOTAC | EVGA | NVIDIA | PNY | GIGABYTE

United Kingdom

RTX 3070 : MSI | PNY | GIGABYTE | GIGABYTE | GIGABYTE | MSI | ZOTAC | MSI | GIGABYTE | ASUS
RTX 3090 : MSI | MSI | ZOTAC | ASUS | GIGABYTE | PALIT | PNY

Australia

RTX 3070 : GIGABYTE | GIGABYTE | MSI | MSI | MSI | ASUS | GIGABYTE | ASUS | ZOTAC | Palit
RTX 3080 : MSI | ASUS | MSI | MSI | NVIDIA | EVGA
RTX 3090 : MSI | MSI | GALAX | MSI | ASUS | MSI

 

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Cyberpunk 2077 Behind The Scenes RTX Gameplay Interview!

While you wait for Cyberpunk 2077 to arrive in 2020 or 2077, here is an interview with CD PROJEKT RED developers, as well as new RTX gameplay scenes!

 

Cyberpunk 2077 Behind The Scenes RTX Gameplay Interview!

Will Cyberpunk 2077 finally launch on 10 December 2020? Or will it end up debuting in 2077? Who knows?

But to whet your appetite while you wait, here is an interview with CD PROJEKT RED developers, as well as new RTX gameplay scenes!

As NVIDIA’s Andrew Burnes notes, “With RTX On, Night City is transformed. Glorious ray-traced reflections are cast on every possible surface; substantially improved shadows naturally soften and sharpen; shops, streets and buildings are realistically illuminated with diffuse lighting; and in general the world is more immersive and detailed, enhancing your Cyberpunk 2077 experience.

 

Cyberpunk 2077 : RTX Gameplay Recommendations

NVIDIA also revealed today their recommended system configurations for RTX gameplay.

This is what NVIDIA says about RTX gaming on Cyberpunk 2077 :

The minimum GPU for Ray Tracing, at 1920×1080, is the GeForce RTX 2060. Gamers will explore Night City with Medium Ray Tracing Preset powered by DLSS.

At 2560×1440, we recommend a GeForce RTX 3070 or GeForce RTX 2080 Ti. Ray tracing is taken to Ultra, which greatly increases the fidelity of the aforementioned effects, and the distance at which they are visible, while DLSS provides boosted frame rates with uncompromised image quality.

And with rasterized settings also being cranked to Ultra, GeForce RTX 3070 and 2080 Ti gamers receive an incredible experience at the highest detail levels, unmatched by any other platform.

And finally, if you’re playing at 4K or beyond, the GeForce RTX 3080 and GeForce RTX 3090 deliver the performance to play Cyberpunk 2077 with ray tracing at Ultra at this incredibly demanding resolution.

Both GPUs are powered by Ampere — NVIDIA’s 2nd gen RTX architecture — with dedicated RT Cores for ray tracing, and Tensor Cores for DLSS AI acceleration, delivering an unrivaled cinematic-quality experience.

 

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series : Where To Buy?

Malaysia

RTX 3070 : ZOTACZOTAC | MSI | Colorful | GIGABYTE | ASUS
RTX 3080 :
ZOTAC | GIGABYTE | ASUS |
RTX 3090 : ZOTAC | ZOTAC | GALAX | Leadtek | PNY | INNO 3D | MSI | EVGA | ASUS

Singapore

RTX 3070 : ZOTAC | MSI | ASUS | ASUS
RTX 3080 : PALIT
| PALIT | PALIT | GIGABYTE | MSI | GIGABYTE | MSI | AORUS | AORUS
RTX 3090 : ZOTAC
| ZOTAC | ZOTAC | ASUS | GIGABYTE

United States

RTX 3070 : MSI | MSI | ZOTAC | MSI | GIGABYTE | EVGA | ASUS | ZOTAC | ASUS
RTX 3080 : EVGA | ASUS | ZOTAC | MSI | ZOTAC | MSI | ASUS | MSI | NVIDIA | ASUS
RTX 3090 : EVGA | ASUS | MSI | ASUS | MSI | ZOTAC | EVGA | NVIDIA | PNY | GIGABYTE

United Kingdom

RTX 3070 : MSI | PNY | GIGABYTE | GIGABYTE | GIGABYTE | MSI | ZOTAC | MSI | GIGABYTE | ASUS
RTX 3090 : MSI | MSI | ZOTAC | ASUS | GIGABYTE | PALIT | PNY

Australia

RTX 3070 : GIGABYTE | GIGABYTE | MSI | MSI | MSI | ASUS | GIGABYTE | ASUS | ZOTAC | Palit
RTX 3080 : MSI | ASUS | MSI | MSI | NVIDIA | EVGA
RTX 3090 : MSI | MSI | GALAX | MSI | ASUS | MSI

 

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AMD RDNA 2 Architecture : Tech Highlights!

The success of the AMD Radeon RX 6000 series graphics cards is entirely due to the new RDNA 2 architecture.

Take a look at what’s new in the AMD RDNA 2 architecture!

 

AMD RDNA 2 Architecture : Tech Highlights!

The AMD Radeon RX 6000 series graphics cards are built on the new AMD RDNA 2 architecture, which features an enhanced Compute Unit, a new visual pipeline with Ray Accelerators, and the new AMD Infinity Cache.

AMD Infinity Cache

The AMD Infinity Cache is a new and very large 128 MB data cache. Think of it as an L3 cache for the GPU.

AMD added it to dramatically increase memory bandwidth, which reducing memory latency and power consumption.

They claim it delivers up to 3.25X the bandwidth of the 256-bit GDDR6 memory, and up to 2.4X more effective bandwidth per watt.

Recommended :AMD Infinity Cache Explained : L3 Cache Comes To The GPU!

New Ray Accelerator

RDNA 2 introduces a new Ray Accelerator – one for each Compute Unit.

The Ray Accelerator is a fixed-function ray tracing acceleration engine to deliver real-time lighting, shadow and reflection realism through DirectX Raytracing (DXR).

It will calculate the intersections of the rays with the scene geometry as represented in a Bounding Volume Hierarchy, sort them, and return the information to the shaders for further scene traversal or result shading.

Each Ray Accelerator can calculate up to 4 rays per box intersections or 1 ray per triangle intersection per clock cycle.

Variable Rate Shading

Variable rate shading allows the GPU to better use its limited processing capability by focusing on the most important parts of the frame.

AMD RDNA 2 has variable rate shading built throughout the entire pixel pipeline, with 1 x 1, 2 x 1, 1 x 2 and 2x 2 shading rates.

RDNA 2 also allows for very fine granularity – a different shading rate can to be selected for every 8 x 8 pixels region.

Hardware Decoding + Encoding

RDNA. 2 also introduces support for hardware 8K and AV1 decoding, allowing you to stream and watch video with virtually no performance impact.

Codecs Decode Encode
VP9 4K @ 90 fps
8K @ 24 fps
H.264 1080p @ 600 fps
4K @ 150 fps
1080p @ 360 fps
4K @ 90 fps
H.265 1080p @ 360 fps
4K @ 90 fps
8K @ 24 fps
1080p @ 360 fps
4K @ 60 fps
AV1 8K @ 30 fps

 

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RX 6900 XT, RX 6800 XT, RX 6800 : Features + Specifications!

The AMD Big Navi cards are here – Radeon RX 6900 XT, Radeon RX 6800 XT and Radeon RX 6800!

Take a look at their key features and specifications!

 

Radeon RX 6900 XT | RX 6800 XT | RX 6800 : Key Features

Thanks to its new RDNA 2 architecture, the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT, Radeon RX 6800 XT and Radeon RX 6800 graphics cards offers these key features :

AMD Infinity Cache

This is a large 128 MB last-level data cache built into the die to dramatically reduce memory latency and power consumption.

AMD Smart Access Memory

This is an exclusive feature that is enabled when a Radeon RX 6000 series graphics card is paired with the Ryzen 5000 series processor and an X570 motherboard.

The Ryzen 5000 series processor is given greater access to its GDDR6 graphics memory, providing up to 13% better performance when combined with the new Rage Mode one-click overclocking setting.

DirectX 12 Ultimate Support

They will support the next-generation games with greater realism through DirectX Raytracing (DXR) and Variable Rate Shading.

New Ray Accelerator

Every RDNA 2 computer unit has a new fixed-function Ray Accelerator engine to deliver real-time lighting, shadow and reflection realism through DirectX Raytracing (DXR).

It can be paired with AMD FidelityFX to enable hybrid rendering, offering a combination of rasterised and ray-traced effects for a blend of better image quality and higher performance.

Variable Rate Shading (VRS)

Variable Rate Shading dynamically reduces the shading rate for areas of the frame that do not require a high level of visual quality, improving performance at little to no perceptible loss in image quality.

Microsoft DirectStorage Support

They will support the future DirectStorage API for faster load times, and high-quality textures.

 

Radeon RX 6900 XT | RX 6800 XT | RX 6800 : Design

AMD used the same design for all three models, with the same triple-fan cooler, and dual 8-pin PCIe power connector.

The only difference really is the thicker heatsink for the RX 6900 XT and RX 6800 XT, which results in a bulkier 2.5 card profile.

The Radeon RX 6800 has a thinner heatsink, and a slimmer 2-slot card profile :

 

Radeon RX 6900 XT | RX 6800 XT | RX 6800 : Specifications

Here is a table comparing their key specifications :

Specifications Radeon RX
6900 XT
Radeon RX
6800 XT
Radeon RX
6800
Transistors 26.8 billion
Fab Process 7 nm
Total Graphics Power 300 W 250 W
Compute Units 80 72 60
Ray Accelerators 80 72 60
Stream Processors 5120 4608 3840
Game Clock 2015 MHz 2015 MHz 1815 MHz
Boost Clock 2250 MHz 2250 MHz 2105 MHz
TFLOPS 23.04 20.74 16.17
TMUs 320 288 240
Max. Texture Rate 720 GT/s 648 GT/s 505 GT/s
ROPs 128 96
Max. Pixel Rate 288 GP/s 202 GP/s
Infinity Cache 128 MB
Graphics Memory 16 GB GDDR6 (16 Gbps)
Bus Width 256-bit
Bandwidth 512 GB/s
PCIe Interface PCIe 4.0 x16
PCIe Power 2 x 8-pin

 

Radeon RX 6900 XT | RX 6800 XT | RX 6800 : Price + Availability

All three Radeon RX 6000 series graphic cards will be available at these prices :

  • Radeon RX 6900 XT : US$999 (8 December 2020)
  • Radeon RX 6800 XT : US$649 (18 November 2020)
  • Radeon RX 6800 : US$579 (18 November 2020)

It looks like the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT will only be built using the AMD reference design.

Custom Radeon RX 6800 XT and Radeon RX 6000 boards will be available from brands like ASRock, ASUS, Gigabyte starting in November 2020.

 

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AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series : What You Need To Know!

AMD just revealed the Radeon RX 6000 Series, featuring the Radeon RX 6900 XT, Radeon RX 6800 XT and Radeon RX 6800 graphics cards.

Here is what you need to know about these AMD Big Navi graphics cards, built on the new RDNA 2 architecture!

 

AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series : New RDNA 2 Architecture

The AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series is built upon the new RDNA 2 architecture, which introduces an enhanced compute unit, a new visual pipeline, and the all-new AMD Infinity Cache!

RDNA 2 promises to deliver up to 54% better performance per watt over the last-generation RDNA, and up to 2.17X more bandwidth with its new Infinity Cache.

The enhanced RDNA 2 compute unit also comes with a Ray Accelerator, which offers hardware acceleration of ray tracing workloads.

 

AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series : Key Features

Thanks to its new RDNA 2 architecture, the AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series graphics cards offers these key features :

AMD Infinity Cache

This is a large 128 MB last-level data cache built into the die to dramatically reduce memory latency and power consumption.

AMD Smart Access Memory

This is an exclusive feature that is enabled when a Radeon RX 6000 series graphics card is paired with the Ryzen 5000 series processor and an X570 motherboard.

The Ryzen 5000 processor is given greater access to its GDDR6 graphics memory, providing up to 13% better performance when combined with the new Rage Mode one-click overclocking setting.

DirectX 12 Ultimate Support

They will support the next-generation games with greater realism through DirectX Raytracing (DXR) and Variable Rate Shading.

New Ray Accelerator

Every RDNA 2 computer unit has a new fixed-function Ray Accelerator engine to deliver real-time lighting, shadow and refection realism through DirectX Raytracing (DXR).

It can be paired with AMD FidelityFX to enable hybrid rendering, offering a combination of rasterised and ray-traced effects for a blend of better image quality and higher performance.

Variable Rate Shading (VRS)

Variable Rate Shading dynamically reduces the shading rate for areas of the frame that do not require a high level of visual quality, improving performance at little to no perceptible loss in image quality.

Microsoft DirectStorage Support

They will support the future DirectStorage API for faster load times, and high-quality textures.

 

AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series : Models + Specifications

AMD is introducing three models in the Radeon RX 6000 series :

  • Radeon RX 6900 XT : 80 CUs, 80 RAs, 320 TMUs, 128 ROPs, 16 GB DDR6
  • Radeon RX 6800 XT : 72 CUs, 72 RAs, 288 TMUs, 128 ROPs, 16 GB DDR6
  • Radeon RX 6800 : 60 CUs, 60 RAs, 240 TMUs, 96 ROPs, 16 GB DDR6

Here is a table comparing their key specifications :

Specifications Radeon RX
6900 XT
Radeon RX
6800 XT
Radeon RX
6800
Transistors 26.8 billion
Fab Process 7 nm
Total Graphics Power 300 W 250 W
Compute Units 80 72 60
Ray Accelerators 80 72 60
Stream Processors 5120 4608 3840
Game Clock 2015 MHz 2015 MHz 1815 MHz
Boost Clock 2250 MHz 2250 MHz 2105 MHz
TFLOPS 23.04 20.74 16.17
TMUs 320 288 240
Max. Texture Rate 720 GT/s 648 GT/s 505 GT/s
ROPs 128 96
Max. Pixel Rate 288 GP/s 202 GP/s
Infinity Cache 128 MB
Graphics Memory 16 GB GDDR6 (16 Gbps)
Bus Width 256-bit
Bandwidth 512 GB/s
PCIe Interface PCIe 4.0 x16
PCIe Power 2 x 8-pin

 

AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series : Price + Availability

All three Radeon RX 6000 series graphic cards will be available at these prices :

  • Radeon RX 6900 XT : US$999 (8 December 2020)
  • Radeon RX 6800 XT : US$649 (18 November 2020)
  • Radeon RX 6800 : US$579 (18 November 2020)

It looks like the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT will only be built using the AMD reference design.

Custom Radeon RX 6800 XT and Radeon RX 6000 boards will be available from brands like ASRock, ASUS, Gigabyte starting in November 2020.

 

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NVIDIA RTX A6000 + Omniverse : Specs + Details!

At GTC 2020, NVIDIA announced both the new Ampere-based RTX A6000 GPU and the Omniverse 3D platform.

Here are the specifications of the NVIDIA RTX A6000, as well as details and a demo of NVIDIA Omniverse!

 

NVIDIA RTX A6000 : Powered By Ampere!

Like the recently-announced GeForce RTX 30 Series, NVIDIA RTX A6000 is based on the new NVIDIA Ampere architecture.

But unlike the gaming-centric GeForce RTX 30 Series, RTX A6000 is a flagship GPU for creators with a massive 48 GB GDDR6 memory buffer.

With dedicated RT Cores and improved CUDA performance, NVIDIA claims the RTX A6000 will deliver up to 2X better performance than current renderers.

Its second-generation RT Cores add hardware acceleration for ray-traced motion blur rendering, offering up to 7X faster performance than the last generation.

Its third-generation Tensor Cores provides up to 5X the training throughput over the previous generation. In addition, hardware support for structural sparsity doubles the throughput for inferencing.

The NVIDIA RTX A6000 also comes with the PCI Express 4.0 interface, doubling the transfer rate between the GPU and the PC.

 

NVIDIA RTX A6000 : Specifications

Specifications NVIDIA RTX A6000
GPU GA102
CUDA Cores 10,752
TMUs 336
Tensor Cores 336
RT Cores 84
ROPs 112
Base Clock 1.455 GHz
Boost Clock 1.86 GHz
Max. Texture Rate 625 GT/s
Max. Pixel Rate 208 GT/s
Graphics Memory GDDR6 with ECC
Memory Size 48 GB
Memory Speed 16 Gbps
Memory Speed 384-bit
Memory Bandwidth 768 GB/s
Display Interface 4 x DisplayPort 1.4
Graphics Interface PCI Express Gen 4 x16
NVLink 2-way
Form Factor Dual Slot
Size 4.4-inch high
10.5-inch wide
Power Consumption 300 W max.

 

NVIDIA RTX A6000 : Availability

The RTX A6000 will be available through NVIDIA sales channels starting in mid-December 2020, and through their OEM partners early 2021.

 

NVIDIA Omniverse : Powered By Ampere!

Together with the RTX A6000, NVIDIA also announced Omniverse – their new RTX-based simulation, collaboration and rendering platform for 3D workflows.

NVIDIA Omniverse users can collaborate on their 3D workflows live between applications, without imports and exports, and then render them using NVIDIA RTX.

Even though their Marbles At Night demo above highlights the performance of the RTX A6000, Omniverse will work on all NVIDIA RTX hardware, including NVIDIA Studio laptops and RTX-powered workstations and servers.

You will be able to sign up later in Q4 2020 for the open beta.

 

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SYNCED : Off-Planet – Everything On Tencent’s PvPvE Game!

Tencent just unveiled their first-ever AAA game with real-time ray tracing and Siren digital character technologySYNCED : Off-Planet!

Here is EVERYTHING you need to know about Tencent’s upcoming PvPvE sci-fi game, including its gameplay, CG and trailer videos!

 

SYNCED : Off-Planet

Developed by Tencent NExT Studios, SYNCED : Off-Planet is a brand-new PvPvE franchise that has players fighting each other, while surviving over a thousand Nanos!

Set in a future where humanity’s mechanical and technological evolution went violently wrong, players compete against other survivors of the apocalypse to secure resources for their day-to-day survival, and for a chance to escape planet Earth.

Human settlements now struggle to survive the new dangers of the world, while they try to locate transport shuttles that can take them… off-planet.

Officially unveiled at the NVIDIA Gamescom 2019 showcase, SYNCED : Off-Planet will feature a massive PvPvE gaming experience with up to 48 players, and over a thousand Nanos – corrupted human cyborgs.

 

SYNCED : Off-Planet Gameplay

Every round in SYNCED : Off-Planet lasts 20 minutes, with 16 teams of three players each. There will also be 1,500 Nanos that will be introduced into the map in “AI-driven bursts”.

The goal will be to capture a shuttle leaving Earth, and defend it against other teams and the Nanos, of course.

Here is the first gameplay video Tencent NExT Studios revealed, showing off its ray-traced graphics.

Players will earn XP (Experience Points) after every match, which can be used to upgrade both active and passive skills.

However, a team’s ability to gather resources and eliminate other teams will also be important. Resources can be used to upgrade your equipment, as well as your home base.

You will be able to chat with other players and teams in the Haven, a pre-match area where you can also organise your team, and purchase accessories.

 

SYNCED The Horde To Get Off-Planet!

The name itself is a hint on how it differentiates itself from other battle royale or zombie games

For greater situational awareness of the battlefield, players will have the ability to sync with other players, as well as control groups of Nanos by hacking them.

To hack a horde of Nanos, you will need to find a Nano with a vulnerable node and shoot it out. Then you need to hold down a button (which leaves you defenceless) until the malware activates.

Then every nearby Nano comes under your control, and will automatically attack “unhacked” Nanos and enemy players. You can also send them to a designated spot.

The hack or sync will last a minute, after which the hacked Nanos will fall to the ground… dead.

Because the bodies of dead Nanos will lie where they fall and persist in the game, you can use them to build obstacles. You can literally stack them up to block access.

 

SYNCED : Off-Planet Graphics

This is the first official AAA game by Tencent that will feature NVIDIA RTX real-time ray tracing technology to deliver photo-realistic image quality with ray-traced reflections and shadows.

It will also feature the Siren digital character technology that Epic Games showed off at GDC 2018.

It is based on Cubic Motion’s motion capture technology that uses a live actor to instantaneously create digital facial animation, making the characters look remarkably life-like.

 

SYNCED : Off-Planet Ray Tracing Comparisons

Here are the first official SYNCED : Off-Planet ray tracing screenshots and comparisons!

Lakes, puddles, wet surfaces, shiny surfaces and numerous other objects and game elements will naturally reflect surrounding detail.

And all shadows will feature realistic contact hardening and softening, as you see in the real-world.

 

SYNCED : Off-Planet Price + Availability

According to NExT, SYNCED : Off-Planet will be monetised through micro-transactions, but they haven’t decided whether to charge for the game upfront, or make it free-to-play.

But NExT Creative Director, Clark Jiayang Yang, said, “We’re not going to do pay-to-win for sure. I hate those pay-to-win games. As long as it’s fair for everyone, I think that’s fine.

They are planning to host a closed beta and early access period next year, where player feedback will determine their final monetisation decision.

 

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The Two Colonels DLC for Metro Exodus Details Confirmed!

4A Games just launched The Two Colonels DLC for Metro Exodus at Gamescom 2019, and it’s now available for purchase!

Here is everything you need to know about this new Metro Exodus DLC, including the game trailer, and the first six screenshots, with and without ray tracing enabled!

 

The Two Colonels DLC for Metro Exodus

Metro Exodus is a first-person shooter game set in the post-apocalyptic wasteland of the former Russian Federation.

Playing Artyom, you have to flee Moscow Metro to the Far East on the locomotive Aurora. Wielding a variety of hand-made weapons, you must battle mutated creatures sand hostile humans along the way.

The Two Colonels DLC takes place in the tunnels of the Novosibirsk Metro, before the arrival of the Aurora crew…

Colonel Miller retraces the steps Colonel Khlebnikov took in his final days, as he made his way back to his son Kirill a year ago, on New Year’s Eve.

You will experience those harrowing days, where the radiation is getting worse and mutant attacks are on the rise. It will reveal the horrors that took place in the doomed station.

The DLC will also add a new weapon – the flamethrower, to help you in your quest!

 

The Two Colonels DLC Game Trailer

4A Games released this game trailer for The Two Colonels DLC at Gamescom 2019.

 

The Two Colonels DLC Ray Tracing Showcase

Metro Exodus already makes use of real-time ray tracing in the form of global illumination.

The Two Colonels DLC will add the ray-traced global illumination with emissive lighting to the game.

In addition, global illumination will also be applied to area lights, point lights and emissive lights.

Here are the first six screenshots from the DLC, with and without ray tracing enabled.

 

The Two Colonels DLC Price + Availability

The Two Colonels DLC is part of a two-story DLC expansion plan, and is available starting 20 August 2019.

The second DLC, Sam’s Story, is slated for release in early 2020. It will follow the adventures of a US Marine trying to make it home from the Moscow embassy, where he was serving when the bombs fell.

You can pre-purchase both DLCs using the Metro Exodus Expansion Pass for $19.99 / ~£16.50 / ~A$29.99 / ~RM 83.50.

The Two Colonels DLS is available separately for $7.99 on the Epic Games Store and Steam.

 

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Minecraft Ray Tracing : Everything You Need To Know!

Microsoft and NVIDIA just announced at Gamescom 2019 that Minecraft will get a FREE real-time ray tracing upgrade!

Here is everything you need to know about the upcoming Minecraft ray tracing upgrade – how it works, the official trailers, and comparisons!

 

Minecraft Gets FREE Ray Tracing Upgrade!

Mojang will soon release a free update for the Windows 10 version of Minecraft, which adds real-time ray tracing support using Microsoft DXR.

Players will get to enjoy photorealistic renders of their worlds, with more realistic shadows, lighting and colours… without resorting to complicated mods.

 

How Ray Tracing Will Work In Minecraft

Working with NVIDIA, Mojang is adding a form of real-time ray tracing called path tracing to Minecraft.

Path tracing simulates the way light travels throughout a scene, and offers a unified lighting model that replaces the different lighting effects that have traditionally been implemented using rasterised or hybrid renderers.

Here are some of the traditional lighting effects that path tracing in Minecraft will replace :

  • Direct lighting from the sun, sky and various light sources, including emissive surfaces such as glowstone and lava
  • Realistic hard and soft shadows depending on the size, shape and distance of the light source
  • Per-pixel emissive lighting
  • Indirect diffuse illumination (diffuse global illumination)
  • Indirect specular illumination (reflections)
  • Transparent materials with reflection, refraction and scattering (stained glass, water, ice)
  • Atmospheric scattering and density (volumetric fog, light shafts, realistic sky)

There is one caveat though – you will need a GeForce RTX graphics card to run Minecraft with real-time ray tracing. Like the new GeForce RTX SUPER cards.

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Minecraft Ray Tracing Comparisons

 

Minecraft Ray Tracing Availability

Mojang and NVIDIA did not give an exact date, only that the ray tracing upgrade will be available in 2020.

However, attendees at the special NVIDIA Gamescon 2019 event will be able to play-test the beta version for themselves, and even capture and share their game play!

 

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Watch Dogs : Legion – Everything You Need To Know!

After wowing everyone at E3, Ubisoft just showcased the real-time ray tracing capabilities of Watch Dogs : Legion at Gamescom 2019!

Here is our sneak peek of Watch Dogs : Legion, including the new ray tracing game trailer and showcase!

 

Watch Dogs : Legion

The third instalment of the Watch Dogs franchise, Legion is set in post-Brexit London full of organised crime and pervasive surveillance.

There is no longer a central protagonist. Instead, you can recruit anyone… literally, ANYONE, from the streets and play that character.

Customise Your Team!

You can assemble a team of up to 20 DedSec members, assigning each of them to one of three distinct classes – Enforcer, Infiltrator or Hacker – each with a unique skill set.

Enforcers – can use heavier weapons like assault rifles, and have a shock sticky mine skill!

Infiltrators – can cloak themselves or knock-out enemies by hacking their augmented-reality implants!

Hackers – have access to the Spider Bot, and can hijack military drones!

Take your new operatives out on missions to level up, and gain perks that can be used to modify their class-specific skills!

Fight To Take Back London!

Watch Dogs : Legion also boasts an improved melee system with punches, grapples and dodges. Not only are operatives with melee-boosting traits now more valuable, the whole game can be completed using only melee attacks!

That’s because enemies will only escalate to match your attacks – if you don’t use your guns, enemies won’t use theirs.

The cover-shooting system has also been improved, with a number of non-lethal guns and four non-lethal ammo types – shock, concussion, gas and tranquilliser.

This is important because when your operatives die, they are gone for good. Before they die though, you will get a chance to decide whether to keep fighting (to the death) or surrender.

Get the people of London to join the DedSec resistance and take back their city when Watch Dogs : Legion launches on March 6, 2019!

 

Watch Dogs : Legion Will Use Real-Time Ray Tracing!

Ubisoft and NVIDIA also jointly announced that the GeForce RTX will be the official graphics platform for Watch Dogs Legion.

This collaboration means that Legion will be utilise real-time ray tracing and other NVIDIA gaming technologies to deliver ultra-realistic visual effects.

Recommended : NVIDIA Ray Tracing Techniques – Showcase + Explanation!

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The First Watch Dogs : Legion Ray Tracing Game Trailers!

NVIDIA shared with us two Legion game trailers to show off the photo-realistic, real-time ray traced reflections.

In these ray-traced footage, they replaced cube maps and screen space reflections, allowing windows, water puddles, cars and other reflective surfaces to accurately reflect their surroundings.

 

Watch Dogs : Legion Ray Tracing Showcase

Here are the first two official Watch Dogs : Legion ray tracing screenshots for our comparison!

 

Watch Dogs : Legion Price + Availability

This third instalment of the Watch Dogs series will be released on 6 March 2020, with these pre-order prices :

Edition Platform US UK AU
Standard Edition PC / PS4 / Xbox One $59.99 £49.99 A$89.95
Gold Edition PC / PS4 / Xbox One $99.99 £83.99 A$149.95
Ultimate Edition PC only $119.99 £99.99 A$179.95
Collector Edition PC / PS4 / Xbox One $189.99 £149.99 A$279.95

 

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NVIDIA Gamescom 2019 : Ray Tracing Trailers + Showcase!

It was a ray tracing galore at Gamescom 2019, where NVIDIA revealed that a whopping NINE new games will feature real-time ray tracing!

Here is everything you need to know about the 9 new or upcoming games that will feature real-time ray tracing, including their trailers and comparisons!

 

NVIDIA @ Gamescom 2019 : Ray Tracing Galore!

Real-time ray tracing was the buzz term at Gamescom 2019, thanks to NVIDIA who revealed a whopping NINE new games that will introduce NVIDIA real-time ray tracing!

 

Gamescom 2019 Ray Tracing Trailer + Showcase Of Minecraft!

Once Mojang releases the Minecraft ray tracing update, players will get to enjoy photorealistic renders of their worlds, with more realistic shadows, lighting and colours… without resorting to complicated mods.

Recommended : Minecraft Ray Tracing : Everything You Need To Know!

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Gamescom 2019 Ray Tracing Trailer + Showcase Of Control

Remedy will be using three NVIDIA real-time ray tracing effects in Control :

  • Ray-Traced Translucent Reflections
  • Ray-Traced Indirect Diffuse Lighting
  • Ray-Traced Contact Shadows

Recommended : Control : What You Need To Game With Ray-Traced Graphics!

Next Page > Gamescom 2019 Trailer + Showcase (SYNCED : Off-Planet | The Two Colonels DLC)

 

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Gamescom 2019 Ray Tracing Trailer + Showcase Of SYNCED : Off-Planet!

Developed by Tencent Next Studios, SYNCED : Off-Planet is a brand-new PvPvE franchise that has players fighting each other, while surviving over a thousand Nano Zombies!

It will use NVIDIA RTX real-time ray tracing technology to deliver photo-realistic image quality with ray-traced reflections and shadows.

Lakes, puddles, wet surfaces, shiny surfaces and numerous other objects and game elements will naturally reflect surrounding detail.

And all shadows will be upgraded with realistic contact hardening and softening, as you see in the real-world.

Recommended : SYNCED : Off-Planet Ray Tracing Trailer + Showcase!

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Gamescom 2019 Ray Tracing Showcase Of The Two Colonels DLC

Metro Exodus already makes use of real-time ray tracing in the form of global illumination.

The Two Colonels DLC will add the ray-traced global illumination with emissive lighting to the game.

In addition, global illumination will also be applied to area lights, point lights and emissive lights.

Recommended : The Two Colonels DLC for Metro Exodus – First Screenshots!

Here are the first six screenshots from the DLC, with and without ray tracing enabled.

Next Page > Gamescom 2019 Trailer + Showcase (Wolfenstein : Youngblood | Bloodlines 2)

 

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Gamescom 2019 Ray Tracing Showcase Of Wolfenstein : Youngblood

Wolfenstein : Youngblood launched without real-time ray tracing support, but that will soon change.

Bethesda Softworks and MachineGames are preparing a major update that will enhance the game with ray-traced reflections and ray-traced ambient occlusion shadowing!

Ray-Traced Reflections

Ray-Traced Reflections will accurately simulate the way light reflects on glossy and metal surfaces by tracing a single bounce of reflection rays across the scene.

Materials affected include smooth, natural mirrors, like windows and water, but also rougher surfaces like brushed metal.

Ambient Occlusion

Ambient Occlusion adds contact shadows where two surfaces or objects meet, and where an object blocks light from reaching another nearby game element.

Without Ambient Occlusion, scenes look flat and unrealistic, and objects appear as if they are floating.

Here are two screenshot comparisons to demonstrate the effect of real-time ray tracing in Wolfenstein : Youngblood!

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Gamescom 2019 Ray Tracing Trailer + Showcase Of Bloodlines 2

Paradox announced their partnership with NVIDIA to introduce real-time ray tracing to Vampire : The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2.

In addition, they will also introduce DLSS, which would allow gamers to use higher resolutions and image quality, while enjoying fast and smooth frame rates.

Recommended : Vampire Bloodlines 2 – First Ray Tracing Trailer + Showcase!

Next Page > Gamescom 2019 Trailer + Showcase (Watch Dogs : Legion | CoD : Modern Warfare | Dying Light 2)

 

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Gamescom 2019 Ray Tracing Trailer + Showcase Of Watch Dogs : Legion

The third instalment of the Watch Dogs franchise, Legion is set in post-Brexit London full of organised crime and pervasive surveillance.

There is no longer a central protagonist. Instead, you can recruit anyone… literally, ANYONE, from the streets and play that character.

At E3, Ubisoft and NVIDIA announced that Watch Dogs : Legion will be utilise real-time ray tracing and other NVIDIA gaming technologies to deliver ultra-realistic visual effects.

Real-time ray-traced reflections will replace cube maps and screen space reflections, allowing windows, water puddles, cars and other reflective surfaces to accurately reflect their surroundings.

Recommended : Watch Dogs : Legion Sneak Peek + Ray Tracing Showcase!

 

Gamescom 2019 Ray Tracing Trailer + Showcase Of Call of Duty : Modern Warfare

In June 2019, Activision and Infinity Ward announced their partnership with NVIDIA to introduce real-time ray tracing, NVIDIA Adaptive Shading, and other NVIDIA gaming technologies in Call of Duty : Modern Warfare.

Recommended : Call of Duty : Modern Warfare Ray Tracing Trailer + Showcase!

 

Gamescom 2019 Ray Tracing Showcase Of Dying Light 2

NVIDIA and Techland declined to reveal much, only that Dying Light 2 will feature real-time ray tracing. They showed off this single screenshot comparison.

 

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Control : What You Need To Game With Ray-Traced Graphics!

Control, the action adventure game, is almost here! But are you ready to play Control with ray-traced graphics?

Here is our guide on ray tracing in Control, and what you need to enjoy it. We will also share with you the first ray-traced Control game trailer and showcase!

 

Control Is Almost Here!

Developed by Remedy Entertainment and published by 505 Games, Control is one of the two games bundled with every NVIDIA RTX Super graphics card.

You play Jesse Faden, the new Director of the Federal Bureau of Control (FBC) – a secret U.S. government agency that studies and contains phenomena which violate the laws of reality.

Set inside the shape-shifting Oldest House, the featureless skyscraper HQ of the FBC in New York, you must battle an otherworldly threat to regain control and prevent the public from learning of the supernatural.

 

The First Ray-Traced Control Gameplay Trailer!

Here is the first ray-traced Control gameplay trailer that Remedy and NVIDIA unveiled at Gamescom 2019!

 

The Ray Tracing Effects In Control

NVIDIA revealed that Remedy will be using three high-fidelity real-time ray tracing effects in Control :

Ray-Traced Translucent Reflections

Control is the first game to feature ray-traced translucent reflections.

Unlike screen space techniques which can only reflect what’s on screen , ray-traced reflections incorporate the entire scene around the character, and can accurately represent objects outside the camera view, or facing away from the camera.

Within the Control game, the reflections bounce off of opaque materials like brushed metal, but more importantly, off of translucent materials like windows so we can see what is behind the glass too.

Ray-Traced Indirect Diffuse Lighting

Indirect diffuse lighting is light bouncing between non-glossy surfaces, which gives the scene a more realistic lighting effect.

Ray-traced indirect diffuse lighting in Control is composed of two parts :

  • For nearby surfaces, Control will trace a ray to evaluate one bounce of real-time (dynamic) diffuse reflection.
  • If no nearby surfaces are found, Control will use the ray information instead to sample pre-computed global illumination information at a more optimal location.

The end result is a more natural lighting feel, with objects that sit better in the scene.

Ray-Traced Contact Shadows

This is a hybrid technique where Control traces shadow rays to add accurate shadowing on any surface that is close to the shadow caster.

This enhances surface and contact details, and fixes problems associated with traditional shadow mapping techniques like aliasing, freckling and disconnected shadows.

Further away from the shadow caster, we blend with traditional rasterized soft shadows using shadow maps.

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Control : Ray Tracing System Requirements

Remedy is recommending the following system requirements if you wish to turn on all three ray tracing features in Control :

CPU : Intel Core i5-7600K / AMD Ryzen 5 1600X, or better
GPU : NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060, or better
RAM : 16 GB
OS : Windows 10 64-bit

If you wish to turn on all three ray tracing features, with maxed-out graphics, Remedy recommends the following system requirements :

CPU : Intel Core i5-8600K / AMD Ryzen 7 2700X, or better
GPU : NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080, or better
RAM : 16 GB
OS : Windows 10 64-bit

Control will be released on 27 August 2019, so you will soon be able to enjoy it with ray-traced graphics!

 

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Call of Duty : Modern Warfare Ray Tracing Trailer + Showcase!

Call of Duty : Modern Warfare is coming soon! To slake your thirst for updates on this hotly-anticipated game, here are the first ray tracing game trailer and showcase!

 

Call of Duty : Modern Warfare

Call of Duty : Modern Warfare is the 16th instalment of the Call of Duty series of first-person shooter games.

Slated for released on 25 October 2019, it will feature a modern setting, and the first CoD title to support cross-platform multiplayer capability!

 

Call of Duty : Modern Warfare – First Ray Tracing Trailer!

In June 2019, Activision and Infinity Ward announced their partnership with NVIDIA to introduce real-time ray tracing, NVIDIA Adaptive Shading, and other NVIDIA gaming technologies in Call of Duty : Modern Warfare.

Check out the first ray-traced Modern Warfare gameplay released by Activision and NVIDIA at Gamescom 2019!

 

Call of Duty : Modern Warfare Ray Tracing Showcase

Here are the first official Call of Duty : Modern Warfare ray tracing screenshots and comparisons!

 

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Vampire Bloodlines 2 – First Ray Tracing Trailer + Showcase!

Vampire : The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 is set for release next year, but we can now share with you the first ray tracing trailer and showcase!

 

Vampire : The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2

Vampire : The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 is the highly anticipated sequel to the 2004 vampire-themed RPG, that is slated to be released in April 2020.

At Gamescom 2019, Paradox announced their partnership with NVIDIA to introduce real-time ray tracing to Vampire : The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2.

In addition, they will also introduce DLSS, which would allow gamers to use higher resolutions and image quality, while enjoying fast and smooth frame rates.

 

The First Bloodlines 2 Ray Tracing Trailer

This is the first Bloodlines 2 ray tracing trailer, unveiled at Gamescom 2019 by Paradox and NVIDIA.

According to NVIDIA, all suitable surfaces will accurately reflect surrounding detail in real-time. The look of each reflection is determined by the properties of the material on the affected object or surface.

In the case of windows, reflections have full transparency, enabling you to see detail beyond the glass, as well as the reflection itself, as in the real world.

Here’s the extended Bloodlines 2 game trailer, without real-time ray tracing…

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Bloodlines 2 Ray Tracing Showcase

Here are the first official Vampire : The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 ray tracing screenshots and comparisons!

 

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NVIDIA Ray Tracing Techniques – Showcase + Explanation!

NVIDIA just briefed us on their ray tracing methods, with four animations to better demonstrate them. Join us for a primer on how these ray tracing techniques can greatly enhance your gaming experience!

 

NVIDIA @ GDC 2019 – Real-Time Ray Tracing, DXR + More!

Ever since NVIDIA introduced real-time ray tracing with their GeForce RTX graphics cards, they have working hard to promote real-time ray tracing.

Just last month, they announced these exciting ray tracing news at GDC 2019 :

  • Unreal Engine and Unity will support real-time ray tracing features!
  • GeForce GTX graphics cards will support real-time ray tracing!
  • They introduced GameWorks RTX – a comprehensive set of tools and rendering techniques to help game developers add real-time ray tracing to their games.
  • New games that showcase real-time ray tracing, like Dragonhound and Quake II RTX

 

NVIDIA Ray Tracing Techniques Explained!

First, we have Tony Tamasi (Vice President of NVIDIA Technical Marketing) explaining the ray tracing methods that NVIDIA uses.

They also shared four animations with us, which we used to create this ray tracing showcase :

 

GeForce GTX Now Supports Ray Tracing!

At GDC 2019, NVIDIA announced that they would be adding ray tracing support to Pascal-based GeForce GTX graphics cards.

Today, that promise has been realised with the introduction of a new NVIDIA Game Ready Driver!

This new driver allows GeForce GTX 1060 6GB or higher GPUs to execute ray-tracing instructions on traditional shader cores, albeit at lower RT quality settings and resolutions.

They also announced that these GeForce GPUs are now DXR-capable :

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And laptops with equivalent Pascal and Turing-architecture GPUs!

 

NVIDIA Ray Tracing Presentation Slides

For those who want more information, here is the complete set of NVIDIA’s ray tracing presentation slides :

 

Recommended Reading

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How & Why NVIDIA Calculates RTX-OPS For GeForce RTX!

When it comes to performance, everyone knows what GigaPixels/s, GigaTexels/s, GB/s or even TFLOPS mean. But what the heck is RTX-OPS? And how did the GeForce RTX 2080 Ti get 78 Tera RTX-OPS of performance?

In this article, we are going to share with you exactly what RTX-OPS means, and how NVIDIA arrived at the magical 78 Tera RTX-OPS figure for the flagship GeForce RTX 2080 Ti graphics card. You will also learn why RTX-OPS cannot be compared with any other performance metrics out there…

 

NVIDIA RTX-OPS

When NVIDIA first announced the GeForce RTX specifications, one performance metric that stood out was RTX-OPS per second. It was easy enough to understand the other new metric – Giga Rays per second, but what the heck is RTX-OPS?

Is that a measure of the overall performance of the GeForce RTX card? Or just the new Tensor and Ray Tracing cores? What exactly does it mean to have 78 Tera RTX-OPS per second of performance?

 

Jeff Yen Explains RTX-OPS Calculations

In this short video, NVIDIA Director of Technical Marketing for APAC, Jeff Yen, explains how they calculate RTX-OPS, and the rationale behind creating it.

 

Why NVIDIA Created RTX-OPS

The NVIDIA Turing architecture is quite different from NVIDIA Pascal. Here are some improvements that prevent a direct performance comparison between the two GPU families.

  1. The new Turing SM (Streaming Multiprocessor) can execute integer and floating-point instructions simultaneously, using independent execution units.
  2. Turing-based GPUs have new Turing Tensor Cores that are optimised for inferencing operations, with support for much faster but less precise INT8 and INT4 modes.
  3. Turing also enables real-time ray tracing capabilities for the first time, with dedicated Turing RT Cores.

The performance of these separate components are measured differently. The GeForce RTX 2080 Ti (US | UK | Malaysia), for example, boasts :

  • Floating-point performance of up to 28.5 TFLOPS (FP16) or 14.2 TFLOPS (FP32).
  • Tensor core performance of up to 113.8 TFLOPS.
  • Ray tracing performance of up to 10 Giga Rays per second or 100 tera-ops per second.

So where does 78 Tera RTX-OPS come in?

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In a game that uses hybrid rendering – combining traditional shader operations with real-time ray tracing and AI inferencing, the different “engines” in the Turing GPU can work simultaneously. Hence, their depiction of the Turing frame :

This is based on NVIDIA’s analysis of a typical hybrid rendering workload with DLSS enabled.

  • Deep neural network processing of DLSS using the Tensor cores takes about 20% of the frame time.
  • FP32 shading using the CUDA cores take about 80% of the frame time.
  • Ray tracing takes about half the FP32 shading time, but are performed by separate RT cores.
  • The new integer execution units (independent of the floating-point units) take up about 28% of the frame time.

In a hybrid rendering situation, the performance of the separate engines will not tell us what the actual performance will be. Hence, NVIDIA invented RTX-OPS – a workload-based estimate of the Turing GPU’s overall performance.

 

This Is How NVIDIA Calculates RTX-OPS (In Detail)

Using their analysis of the typical hybrid rendering workload, NVIDIA derived a formula that they feel will give us a better representation of the Turing GPU’s overall performance.

RTX-OPS is basically calculated using this formula :

Peak FP32 performance (in TFLOPS) x 80%
+
Peak INT32 performance (in TFLOPS) x 28%
+
Peak Ray Tracing performance (in tera-ops per second) x 40%
+
Tensor core performance (in TFLOPS) x 20%

When you plug in the individual performance figures for the GeForce RTX 2080 Ti (rounded up), you will get :

(14 x 80%) + (14 x 28%) + (100 x 40%) + (114 x 20%)
= 78 Tera RTX-OPS

So that, ladies and gentlemen, is how NVIDIA calculates RTX-OPS! Now you see why it cannot be used to compare the performance of GeForce RTX cards with the previous-generation GeForce GTX cards, or any other graphics cards in the market.

What do you think of their new performance metric, and the formula that created it? Is this a useful metric for you? Tell us in the comments!

 

Where To Purchase The GeForce RTX?

Here are some GeForce RTX 2080 Ti and GeForce RTX 2080 purchase links in Malaysia :

  • GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 2080 Ti WindForce OC 11G : RM 5,699
  • GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 2080 Ti Gaming OC 11G : RM 5,799
  • ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 2080 Ti Triple Fan : RM 5,379
  • ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 2080 Ti AMP : RM 5,639
  • GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 2080 WindForce OC 8G : RM 3,899
  • GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 2080 Gaming OC 8G : RM 3,999
  • ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 2080 Blower : RM 3,699
  • ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 2080 Twin Fan : RM 3,719
  • ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 2080 AMP : RM 3,859

Here are some GeForce RTX 2080 Ti and GeForce RTX 2080 purchase links in the US :

  • EVGA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti FTW3 DT Gaming 11GB : $819.99
  • NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Founders Edition : $954.00
  • ASUS GeForce RTX 2080 08G Dual Fan OC Edition : $948.99
  • EVGA GeForce RTX 2080 XC Ultra Gaming 8G : $949.00
  • GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 2080 Gaming OC 8GB : $919.99
  • GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 2080 WindForce OC 8GB : $789.99
  • ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 2080 AMP 8GB : $839.99

Here are some GeForce RTX 2080 Ti and GeForce RTX 2080 purchase links in the US :

  • KFA2 GeForce RTX 2080 Ti OC Black : £1,703.85
  • ASUS GeForce RTX 2080 Dual O8G : £845.87
  • GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 2080 GAMING OC 8G : £984.61
  • GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 2080 WindForce OC 8G : £983.71
  • PNY GeForce RTX 2080 XLR8 OC Twin Fan : £916.53
  • ZOTAC Gaming GeForce RTX 2080 AMP 8GB : £645.51

 

Recommended Reading

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NVIDIA Turing Unleashes RTX Hybrid Graphics Capability!

At Gamescon 2018, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang took the covers off NVIDIA Turing, and announced the NVIDIA GeForce RTX series, the first gaming GPUs based on the new NVIDIA Turing architecture and the NVIDIA RTX platform. Find out how Turing delivers new RTX hybrid graphics capabilities for the next-generation of games!

 

NVIDIA Turing Unleashes RTX Hybrid Graphics Capability!

NVIDIA Turing enables a new hybrid graphics capability, which fuses next-generation shaders with real-time ray tracing and all-new AI capabilities.  This hybrid graphics capability represents the biggest generational leap ever in gaming capability.

NVIDIA Turing claims to deliver 6X more performance than its predecessor, Pascal, allowing it to deliver 4K HDR gaming at 60 frames per second on even the most advanced titles.

“Turing opens up a new golden age of gaming, with realism only possible with ray tracing, which most people thought was still a decade away,” said Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of NVIDIA. “The breakthrough is a hybrid rendering model that boosts today’s computer graphics with the addition of lightning-fast ray-tracing acceleration and AI. RTX is going to define a new look for computer graphics. Once you see an RTX game, you can’t go back.”

 

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX Family of Gaming GPUs

The new NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti, RTX 2080 and RTX 2070 GPUs are packed with features never before seen in a gaming GPU, including: 

  • New RT Cores to enable real-time ray tracing of objects and environments with physically accurate shadows, reflections, refractions, and global illumination. 
  • Turing Tensor Cores to perform lightning-fast deep neural network processing. 

  • New NGX neural graphics framework integrates AI into the overall graphics pipeline, enabling AI algorithms to perform amazing image enhancement and generation. 
  • New Turing shader architecture with Variable Rate Shading allows shaders to focus processing power on areas of rich detail, boosting overall performance.
  • New memory system featuring ultra-fast GDDR6 with over 600 GB/s of memory bandwidth for high-speed, high-resolution gaming. 
  • NVIDIA NVLink, a high-speed interconnect that provides higher bandwidth (up to 100 GB/s) and improved scalability for multi-GPU configurations (SLI).

  • Hardware support for USB Type-C and VirtualLink, a new open industry standard being developed to meet the power, display and bandwidth demands of next-generation VR headsets through a single USB-C connector. 
  • New and enhanced technologies to improve performance of VR applications, including Variable Rate Shading, Multi-View Rendering and VRWorks Audio. 

Next Page > NVIDIA Turing Game Support, GeForce RTX Price + Availability, Founders Edition

 

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NVIDIA Turing Game Support

The world’s top game publishers, developers and engine creators have announced support for the NVIDIA Turing and the NVIDIA RTX platform to bring real-time ray tracing and the power of AI to gamers everywhere. They include Battlefield V, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Metro Exodus, Control, and Assetto Corsa Competizione.

The NVIDIA RTX platform is also being adopted by a large number of developers of professional rendering applications, including Adobe, Autodesk and Pixar.

 

GeForce RTX Price + Availability

The new RTX 2080 Ti and RTX 2080 graphics cards are available for pre-order starting 20 August 2018, with retail availability on 20 September 2018. The RTX 2070 graphics cards will be available only in October 2018.

Here are their launch prices :

  • RTX 2080 Ti Founders EditionUS$ 1,199 / RM 4,799
  • RTX 2080 Ti : US$ 999 / RM 3,999
  • RTX 2080 Founders Edition : US$ 799 / RM 3,199
  • RTX 2080 : US$ 699 / RM 2,799
  • RTX 2070 Founders EditionUS$ 599 / RM 2,399
  • RTX 2070 : US$ 499 / RM 1,999

NVIDIA will also offer the GeForce RTX NVLink Bridge at US$ 79.

 

Founders Edition

NVIDIA is releasing special Founders Edition versions of the new GeForce RTX GPUs. Designed and built to the company’s high standards, the GPUs’ key features include:

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  • Factory-overclocked design out of the box, with a next-gen 13-phase iMON DrMOS power supply and sub-millisecond power management for maximum overclocking.
  • Dual 13-blade axial fans produce 3x higher airflow and ultra-quiet acoustics.
  • Forged and machine-finished diecast aluminum cover with diamond-cut edge detailing provides a rigid, lightweight frame for an open design with beautifully smooth, continuous curves.
  • First full-card vapour chamber, which is 2x larger to maximize heat spreading and heat transfer to the finstack.
  • Enhanced DisplayPort 1.4a with DSC allows a single connector to drive an 8K monitor at 60Hz.

Next Page > NVIDIA Turing + GeForce RTX Presentation Slides, Suggested Reading

 

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NVIDIA Turing + GeForce RTX Presentation Slides

Here is the complete set of NVIDIA Turing and GeForce RTX presentation slides that Jensen Huang used in his presentation at Gamescon 2018.

 

Suggested Reading

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NVIDIA RTX Real-Time Ray Tracing Technology Explained!

NVIDIA just announced the NVIDIA RTX real-time ray tracing technology at GDC 2018. It promises to bring real-time, cinematic-quality rendering to content creators and game developers. Find out what NVIDIA RTX is all about, and what it means to all of us!

 

The Holy Grail For Photorealism

Ray tracing is the gold standard for creating realistic, lifelike lighting, reflections and shadows. It adds a level of realism far beyond what is possible using traditional rendering techniques.

Real-time ray tracing replaces a majority of the rendering techniques used today, with realistic optical calculations that replicate the way light behaves in the real world. But until today, it has been too computationally-demanding to be practical for real-time, interactive gaming.

 

NVIDIA RTX Real-Time Ray Tracing Technology

NVIDIA RTX is a real-time ray tracing technology that promises to deliver real-time ray tracing with high frame rates and low latency.

It runs exclusively (at the moment) on the NVIDIA Volta GPUs. Applications that run on the newly-announced Microsoft DirectX Raytracing (DXR) API will support NVIDIA RTX when used with an NVIDIA Volta graphics card.

 

GameWorks For Ray Tracing

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NVIDIA also announced that the NVIDIA GameWorks SDK will include a ray tracing denoiser module. This suite of tools and resources will help developers increase realism and shorten product cycles for titles developed using the new Microsoft DXR API and NVIDIA RTX.

The upcoming GameWorks SDK — which will support Volta and future generation GPU architectures — enables ray-traced area shadows, ray-traced glossy reflections and ray-traced ambient occlusion.

With these capabilities, developers can create realistic, high-quality reflections that capture the scene around it and achieve physically accurate lighting and shadows.

 

Broad Industry Support

Industry leaders such as 4A Games, Epic, Remedy Entertainment and Unity featured NVIDIA RTX in their technology demonstrations at the Game Developers Conference 2018. They showed how real-time ray tracing can provide amazing, lifelike graphics in future games.

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NVIDIA Brings Near Real-Time Ray Tracing To The Masses

At a regional tech briefing in Singapore on Friday, NVIDIA revealed the power of the NVIDIA ProViz computing platform. Leveraging on the parallel computing capabilities of the NVIDIA Quadro graphics cards to power the NVIDIA Iray technology, they are now able to deliver near real-time ray tracing.

In this video, Bob Pette, VP and General Manager of the NVIDIA Quadro team, explains how NVIDIA Iray and MDL (Material Definition Language) allow for predictive design through near real-time ray tracing. Check out how they help cut down the time to render ray traced images from hours to mere seconds!

More importantly, NVIDIA is finally making this available to the end-users via NVIDIA Iray plugins. Starting now, NVIDIA is offering Iray plugins for both 3ds Max 2016 and Maya 2016. The plugins for 3ds Max 2015 and 3ds Max 2014, as well as the plugin for Maya 2016 for Linux will be available in January 2016. There will also be NVIDIA Iray plugins for Autodesk Revit, Maxon Cinema 4D and Rhino in the spring or summer of 2016.

All these plugins will be sold directly by NVIDIA to end-users for $295 per year, with a 90-day free trial. According to Bob Pette, this price will be the upper limit, with these NVIDIA Iray plugins offered by their partners at lower price points in their own bundles.

 

Ray Tracing & Predictive Design

Ray tracing has been around for decades, and offers the most photorealistic rendering of any 3D image. However, it is computationally intensive which means real-time rendering is not remotely possible. In fact, the workflow is arduously long and more importantly disconnected.

The disconnect is a big problem, because it means the designer cannot immediately see the results of his/her work. Instead, he/she will have to wait for the final render to be delivered before making changes, and the process repeats until the design is accepted.

Thanks to the highly-parallelised nature of ray tracing, NVIDIA Quadro family of professional graphics cards can deliver almost real-time ray tracing capability via their NVIDIA Iray technology.

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This capability allows a much quicker “Predictive Design” process, because the designer can now predict what the final output would be. Instead of waiting for a render to be finalised at some off-site location, the designer can almost instantly produce a ray-traced view of the design.

Best of all, this capability does not require the designer to physically have access to a powerful render farm, or even high-powered workstations with multiple NVIDIA Quadro graphics cards. In fact, less capable devices, like the NVIDIA Shield tablet, can remotely access those capabilities.

Don’t believe us? Well, take a look at the NVIDIA Iray “Predictive Design” Demo On The NVIDIA Shield Tablet!

 

How Is This Important?

As far as gaming is concerned, the photorealism derived from ray tracing is not worth the effort and cost. The current “Predictive Design” capability offered by NVIDIA Iray offers a glimpse of what might be possible for PC gaming maybe a decade or two down the line.

[adrotate banner=”4″]What NVIDIA Iray offers now is a much faster and better workflow for designers, whether they are in the engineering or architectural industry. They can now design better products and even buildings faster, because they can see the effects almost immediately.

In his presentation (which we will be posting shortly), he demonstrated how the lack of such ray tracing capabilities have resulted in design faux pas like the infamous Walkie Talkie skyscraper (now nicknamed Walkie Scorchie!), which melted cars in London with its “death ray”.

The remote rendering capability that Bob demonstrated in this amazing video will also be appealing to companies that offer customisation of their products – like cars, apparel and jewellery. Their sales staff can now change colour and material and almost instantly render the final product image for the client to view and approve on-the-spot. Impressive, isn’t it?

NVIDIA Iray “Predictive Design” Demo On Shield Tablet

NVIDIA today revealed the power of the new NVIDIA Iray “Predictive Design” capability in a regional tech briefing in sunny Singapore. Bob Pette, VP and General Manager of the NVIDIA Quadro team flew in to give us a live demonstration of almost-live ray tracing on an NVIDIA Shield tablet.

 

Ray Tracing & Predictive Design

Ray tracing has been around for decades, and offers the most photorealistic rendering of any 3D image. However, it is computationally intensive which means real-time rendering is not remotely possible. In fact, the workflow is arduously long and more importantly disconnected.

The disconnect is a big problem, because it means the designer cannot immediately see the results of his/her work. Instead, he/she will have to wait for the final render to be delivered before making changes, and the process repeats until the design is accepted.

Thanks to the highly-parallelised nature of ray tracing, NVIDIA Quadro family of professional graphics cards can deliver almost real-time ray tracing capability via their NVIDIA Iray technology.

This capability allows a much quicker “Predictive Design” process, because the designer can now predict what the final output would be. Instead of waiting for a render to be finalised at some off-site location, the designer can almost instantly produce a ray-traced view of the design.

Best of all, this capability does not require the designer to physically have access to a powerful render farm, or even high-powered workstations with multiple NVIDIA Quadro graphics cards. In fact, less capable devices, like the NVIDIA Shield tablet, can remotely access those capabilities.

 

NVIDIA Iray Predictive Design Live Demo

In this video, NVIDIA Quadro VP and General Manager, Bob Pette, demonstrates the NVIDIA Iray “Predictive Design” capability on an NVIDIA Shield tablet. The tablet does not actually render the image, but merely acts as a display and interface. The actual rendering work is performed on the workstation you see behind, powered by two NVIDIA Quadro M6000 graphics cards.

Currently, the NVIDIA Iray technology allows this demo setup of dual NVIDIA Quadro M6000 graphics cards to serve up to 3 tablets simultaneously. With some optimisation, Bob says they should have no issues supporting up to 5 tablets at the same time. It can also work with NVIDIA GRID.

When even more powerful graphics cards on the horizon arrive (courtesy of the forthcoming NVIDIA Pascal microarchitecture), he says it’s not inconceivable for a single workstation to support 10 tablets or laptops at the same time.

 

How Is This Important?

As far as gaming is concerned, the photorealism derived from ray tracing is not worth the effort and cost. The current “Predictive Design” capability offered by NVIDIA Iray offers a glimpse of what might be possible for PC gaming maybe a decade or two down the line.

[adrotate banner=”4″]What NVIDIA Iray offers now is a much faster and better workflow for designers, whether they are in the engineering or architectural industry. They can now design better products and even buildings faster, because they can see the effects almost immediately.

In his presentation (which we will be posting shortly), he demonstrated how the lack of such ray tracing capabilities have resulted in design faux pas like the infamous Walkie Talkie skyscraper (now nicknamed Walkie Scorchie!), which melted cars in London with its “death ray”.

The remote rendering capability that Bob demonstrated above will also be appealing to companies that offer customisation of their products – like cars, apparel and jewellery. Their sales staff can now change colour and material and almost instantly render the final product image for the client to view and approve on-the-spot. Impressive, isn’t it?