The graphic revolution that is putting games

If you're in your 30s and still remember the pixelated graphics of the SNES, it's almost surreal to imagine how far gaming technology has come. Today, we're in the era of Ray Tracinga technology that, if you haven't tried it yet, will completely transform the way you see games. And no, that's not an exaggeration. Ray Tracing is what separates the charts that “look real” from the charts that they are real.

What is Ray Tracing and why is it so important?

The technology of Ray Tracing Ray tracing is basically a method of simulating the way light interacts with objects in a digital environment. Rather than using traditional lighting techniques, which essentially “fake” where the light is coming from, ray tracing literally traces the paths that light rays take. This means that shadows, reflections, and even ambient occlusion (i.e. the blocking of light by objects) are calculated accurately, creating a much more realistic look.

For those who grew up playing on CRT screens where every pixel screamed for attention, the leap to Ray Tracing It's like comparing a photo from a disposable camera to a 4K Hollywood movie. In games, this means that metallic surfaces shine like they do in real life, reflections appear naturally, and dark environments look truly spooky.

The visual revolution in AAA games

Games you've used Ray Tracing raised the visual standard for the rest of the industry. Let's take as an example Cyberpunk 2077. This is one of the titles that embraced Ray Tracing technology from the beginning and, boy, what a difference it makes! In the version without Ray Tracing, you still have beautiful graphics, but with it activated, Night City looks like a digital painting, where every light source – be it the neon on the streets or the sun reflecting off the glass buildings – behaves as it should.

But do you know where Ray Tracing also makes a huge difference? In older games that have been updated with this technology. When NVIDIA released RTX Minecraftit was a moment of pure magic. Suddenly, the square and simple world of Minecraft brought to life with realistic reflections on water, accurate shadows in dark caves, and even firelight illuminating the scene in a whole new way.

And the consoles, poor things?

It wouldn't be fair to talk about Ray Tracing without making our traditional comparison between the PC Master Race and the consoles. Oh, the consoles… the poor things. Although the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X have arrived with promises of Ray Tracing, the truth is that, in practice, they offer a “lite” version of the technology. This is because, while the PC can handle Ray Tracing complete, in 4K and with framerate high, consoles often need to cut details here and there to keep gameplay stable.

Want examples? Here we go. In games like Spider-Man: Miles Morales on PS5, the Ray Tracing It's there, but don't expect miracles. While PCs are running at max settings, 60 FPS, and seeing reflections on every glass you find in New York City, on consoles you do get reflections, but with reduced resolution and often without the light precision that Ray Tracing on PC delivery.

Curiosity: The development of Ray Tracing

The technology Ray Tracing may seem new in the gaming world, but it has been used in cinema for years. Productions such as Toy Story and other Pixar animated films used primitive versions of ray tracing to render realistic lighting and shadows. The problem? Bringing this technology to real-time gaming was tricky, since the amount of processing power required to render light in real time is gigantic.

It was only with the launch of the plates NVIDIA RTX that the Ray Tracing has finally become a viable reality for gaming. And of course, with DLSS helping to optimize performance, ray tracing can now be enjoyed in a wide range of titles without destroying your PC’s performance.

Why Ray Tracing is the Real Evolution

While many people think of ray tracing as just a “cool visual effect,” the truth is that it represents a much more profound change in the way games are developed. With ray tracing, developers can now create worlds that are not only visually stunning, but also immersive in a whole new way. Instead of projecting artificial, predefined lights, the game reacts according to the “physics” of light in the real world. This transforms fight scenes, exploration, and even cutscenes into more immersive experiences.

And of course, the ones who benefit from this are us, PC gamers. While consoles are limited by the lack of hardware flexibility, PC Master Race continues to push the boundaries of what is possible in game graphics. Whether Ray Tracing with 120 FPS? On PC you can. Want 4K with DLSS and Ray Tracing together? It works too. That's why the Ray Tracing It’s not just a passing trend; it’s here to stay and will forever change the way we play.

The future is bright… with Ray Tracing

If you haven't tried a game with Ray Tracingit's time to get up to speed. This technology is the next big thing in game graphics and, as always, the PC Master Race is leading this revolution. We're not just playing games; we're experiencing digital worlds that are getting closer and closer to reality. And while consoles are trying to keep up, we're here, at the top, enjoying every reflection and shadow cast by Ray Tracing.