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A revolution in gaming realism and performance
Gamers excited by the release of the new RTX games cards
The newest graphics cards released by Nvidia this month have been called “a revolution in gaming realism and performance”.
But, as with any cutting-edge technological revolution it comes with a price, according to some experienced gamers.
The new 20 series Nvidia cards come with built-in support for real-time ray tracing, a rendering and lighting technique for photorealistic graphics. The technology has hitherto only been used by the film industry for visual effects because it is extremely computationally intensive but clearly Nvidia is expecting Game Developers to introduce photo realistic graphics into this year’s new games.
This point is picked up in an extensive review by pcgamesn.com, which questions whether it is in fact such a new innovation that they might wait a while before introducing it into their games. In development terms it is likely to be a costly exercise for them, particularly when their target market is consoles rather than PCs.
The second issue is that the cards are not cheap. The various versions in the series range from $500 to as much as $1200, and that, suggests pcgamesn, may be a lot to shell out before the Game Developers have really adopted the new technology into their new releases.
So far, on the games they have tested using the new cards, performance has been mixed.
It will possibly be a while before gamers see all the promised improvements in their gaming experience.
Latest gaming news for the nostalgic gamer
Sony has announced the release of its Playstation Classic as a mini-console in time for Christmas. So for those now grown-up gamers turned parents who want to pass on the experiences of their “mis-spent” youth to the next generation this is your chance.
Nintendo Switch – a happy marriage of innovation with nostalgia?
Many of Nintendo’s original fans are now adults who still have a sneaking affection for the Nintendo games and their characters.
Perhaps this has been a factor in the successful March launch of the company’s newest games console – the Switch, which sold three million units in its first month.
But the success must also be due to its innovative three-way features, which allows the console to be as a handheld device or as a table top gadget when travelling, or when at home as a console via the TV.
Reviewers have been generally positive about this versatility and the ease of being able to “switch” mid-game from one mode to another mid-game.
But it may be that the nostalgia element will guarantee Switch’s longer-term popularity as those same now-adult fans introduce their children to the joys of Super Mario and Zelda.
The Switch version of Zelda, Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, is “one of the best games ever created”, according to one review by the BBC
A new and already popular game, Arms, is out this month. It’s a fighting game with ten cartoon characters to choose from. Their weapons are their arms, which are stretchy and each with their own special characteristics. According to reviews who have tried it managing the creatures requires a good deal of skill with the controls:
“Nintendo’s nifty controllers offer enough precision that a twist of either wrist arcs your virtual blows left or right, useful for trying to land punches on moving enemies.” (Wired)
“Arms is unique, colourful, and accessible, with enough complexity to tempt a competitive scene but not so much to make anyone feel alienated.” (Guardian Tech)
Who doesn’t love Super Mario?
The next game to be released will be Super Mario Odyssey in October this year. According to the BBC review, players will be able to roam around and do tasks on their own, follow the main story, or divert into other missions.
Not only that, but Mario has a new hat, called Cappy, and players can use the Switch dual-motion controllers to throw the cap in any direction either to defeat enemies or to interact with other objects.
All Nintendo games are produced in house and consoles do not accept games designed outside, but it looks like there are enough innovative developments in their well-known games to keep the next generation – and their parents – happy.