Do I need a GPU to launch ray?

Steve Dent
Associate Editor

All players in the PC market or graphics cards are asking the same thing. It is a potentially expensive decision. At the moment, the only option is the new NVIDIA RTX family, and the cards are paying. For example, the RTX 2060 GPU costs $ 349, or $ 100 more than the GTX 1060 at launch. The RTX 2080 costs $ 800, against $ 600 for the GTX 1080 on arrival.

If you measure performance according to the speed of games and graphics programs, the new cards are 10 to 30% faster than the old ones. For example, at 1440p on the "highest" setting on Shadow of the Tomb Raideryou can expect about 84 frames per second with the RTX 2080, versus 63 frames per second with the GTX 2080 – a decent but not huge increase.

So you pay the extra money, mostly for ray tracing, which gives reflections, shadows and other effects that make the games more attractive. Unfortunately, there is exactly one game that supports ray tracing: Battlefield V. Others, like Shadow of the Tomb Raider, arrive later, but we still do not know when. Up to now, more than six months have passed since the announcement of the first card, with no additional game available. Another feature promised by RTX called DLSS – another way to make games more attractive by smoothing the edges – is also available for a single title (wait for it): Battlefield V.

It's worth paying for a feature you can not use, but ray tracing in games is probably here to stay. For example, AMD has promised to offer its own ray tracing system on future Radeon GPUs, showing its confidence in the idea. This raises another problem, however. If both GPU manufacturers have their own exclusive ray tracing systems, it makes things difficult for both game developers and buyers.

Which brings us back to your question. If you're looking for a new card and you can afford it, buy the RTX GPU that fits your needs and budget. You will gain speed and by the end of the year you should be able to choose from at least half a dozen games that support ray tracing and / or DLSS. If you are satisfied with the card you have now, it might be best to wait for the promised games and see how they will behave. Another reason to hang: rumors have it that NVIDIA will launch a GTX 1660 Ti card faster, but without ray tracing and, presumably, at a lower price.