Who Is Responsible For The Poor Performance Of Your Games These Days?

“But can it run Crysis?” Many of you are familiar with this meme, which is burned into the minds of most gaming veterans. However, what was the exception back then is now becoming the norm for most AAA games. In this article, we’ll discuss some of the factors that prevent you from playing the games you’re so interested in lately, even with the latest hardware.

Are You Among The Top 10%?

Steam frequently assesses player systems through surveys and analysis to gauge their hardware capabilities. The data reveals that only about 10% of all players possess hardware in line with the recommended specifications for numerous modern AAA games. In contrast to earlier times when an RX 970 could serve you well for years, a new trend is developing nowadays. It’s becoming more common that even recent or last-generation graphics cards fail to deliver stable frame rates, despite people shelling out large sums of money to purchase them. This isn’t a secret plot by AMD and NVIDIA, but instead, it’s the developers who are responsible for this predicament. You can view the latest survey results for yourself at the following link.

Ray Tracing: It’s Impossible To Ignore

These days, you’re likely to hear the term “ray tracing” repeated numerous times during any hardware presentation. Essentially, ray tracing is a method for calculating light effects, as its name implies. By simulating the journey of individual light rays and determining how they interact with objects through reflection or refraction, this technique creates lifelike visuals. Initially employed in the movie industry since the late 1990s, advancements in computer hardware have enabled real-time display of ray tracing. Previously, game developers might have crafted unique lighting effects (shout out to Half-Life 2), but today they predominantly rely on this light simulation.

AI Everywhere

An additional aspect to consider is a technique called upscaling. Regardless if it’s DLSS, FSR, or XeSS, the underlying principle remains consistent: Instead of directly rendering the game in high resolutions like 4K, AI takes a lower resolution and enhances details within the image to make it appear nearly as good as native 4K.

For many gamers, this method might seem like a trick, as it can result in artifacts and flickering, particularly during rapid movements. However, for game developers, upscaling offers them an additional advantage they can boast about: “Why should I optimize my game for high resolutions when most users rely on upscaling instead?

Just Imagine A Few Frames Extra

Discussing artifacts and image issues in relation to artifact generation: Regrettably, rather than being a convenient bonus, frame generation has proven essential. What AI-based frame generation accomplishes is the creation of an entirely fresh frame between two pre-existing ones, based on motion data. However, it’s important to note that artificial intelligence can’t predict your future actions. This results in delays and, as you might expect, image issues, particularly during rapid movements. The issue lies in the fact that the newly generated frames cannot adapt to user input.

Unreal Engine 5 For Everything

The unveiling of Unreal Engine 5 by Epic Games in 2020 had us all excited about the potential it held. Never before have games looked so crystal-clear, intricate, and artfully illuminated. The engine seems capable of delivering everything you could ever desire from your ideal game, though it requires a significant amount of computational power (a slight overstatement). Developers have been working tirelessly to optimize every facet of the presentation to ensure it runs smoothly on your PC. However, the success of UE5 will largely depend on its ability to handle all these complexities. A prime example of a game that has managed to strike a balance between optimization and visual appeal is Metal Gear Solid 5. Using the Fox Engine, the game was specifically designed to run seamlessly on both PC and console without compromising on its stunning looks.

What Happens Next?

As hardware native performance enhancement becomes more challenging, it falls upon developers to prioritize enhancing the gaming experience by incorporating advanced technologies like frame generation and upscaling as optional features. This way, these technologies can be utilized when performance is subpar, rather than making them mandatory for a reasonably smooth gameplay. Not everyone can constantly afford top-tier graphics cards such as NVIDIA’s latest models, and ultimately, the opinions of individual gamers about the game are what truly matter – not reviews that seem to be based on data analysis reminiscent of NASA operations.

How about you? Which games do you really want to play but can’t because of your hardware?

2025-05-01 17:10