AMD vs Nvidia benchmarks reveal if their old GPUs can keep up in new games
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AMD’s latest RX 9070 GPUs have managed to undercut Nvidia’s RTX 50-series alternatives in raw performance, with popular YouTube reviewer Hardware Unboxed calling it a “no-brainer” compared to its closest rival, the RTX 5070 Ti. But while AMD seems to be making solid progress with its current-gen GPUs, many are now wondering whether the “Fine Wine” effect still applies to AMD’s older graphics cards or if that reputation has started to fade.
Since AMD no longer provides regular performance-boosting driver updates for older architectures like Polaris (RX 400/500 series) and Vega (RX Vega 56/64, Vega 7, etc.), it's fair to ask how well these GPUs really hold up in modern gaming. To put the discussion to rest, YouTuber AMD APU Gaming pitted the RX 580 8GB against Nvidia’s GTX 1060 6GB in four modern AAA titles to see which one still offers decent or at least playable performance.
And your winner is…
First on the list was Activision’s Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, where benchmarks showed the RX 580 leading with over 60 FPS during both gameplay and cutscenes. The GTX 1060, on the other hand, lagged behind by about 20 FPS, averaging around 40–45 FPS during gameplay. Next was Monster Hunter Wilds, which has faced backlash since launch due to its poor optimization, even on high-end hardware. For both of these GPUs, performance was barely playable with tons of texture issues, but the RX 580 still managed to pull ahead with 26 FPS, around 10 FPS more than the 1060.
As for the recently launched Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, which can even push GPUs like the RTX 5090 to their limits at the highest settings, but with settings tweaked down, both the RX 580 and GTX 1060 managed to deliver 30+ FPS. A similar scenario played out in Expedition 33: Clair Obscur, a title that has been making waves lately, where both GPUs averaged between 24 and 26 FPS.
That said, based on the scores, it's clear that AMD takes the lead once again, proving that its GPUs do indeed age like fine wine (as long as the game is optimized to some extent). With the latest comparison, the score stands at AMD: 2, Nvidia: 1, which means that it's now a race to see whether Nvidia can close the gap or if AMD will pull even further ahead. Interestingly, this also ties into the current GPU situation, with questions surrounding how Nvidia can recover from the RTX 50 series debacle.
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