More than 500 games already feature ray tracing technology

Ray tracing, a real-time rendering technique that simulates how light interacts with objects in game environments, has revolutionized the way images are created in the video game industry.

Since its debut with Nvidia’s RTX 20 series in 2018, ray tracing has evolved in complexity, allowing for more realistic graphics, but also significantly increasing the hardware demands to run it properly.

Today, more than 500 games have integrated ray tracing related technologies, which has led to many new titles being released with this option enabled by default.

Ray tracing revolutionizes real-time graphics in video games

This means that players need to invest in modern graphics cards, especially from the RTX 50 and RDNA 4 series, to effectively experience the benefits of this technology. However, performance may be affected, requiring AI scaling solutions like Nvidia’s DLSS or AMD’s FSR to maintain playable frame rates.

Ray tracing is not just an aesthetic improvement. This technique allows for effects such as soft shadows, ambient occlusion, global illumination, and real-time reflections, transforming immersion in games. Through a complex algorithmic process, ray tracing provides more accurate images by simulating how light rays behave in a digital environment.

However, the adoption of this technology is not without challenges. Users of older or mid-range cards may experience a decrease in performance unless they use advanced scaling methods, which may require compromises in resolution and graphic quality.

In addition, while ray tracing has become more commonly integrated into video game development, it is expected that the demand for more powerful hardware and AI technologies will continue to grow, making this technique a standard in the visual quality of future releases.