AMD is set to make a significant leap in ray tracing technology with its upcoming RDNA 4 architecture. The company has been playing catch-up to Nvidia in this area, but the new details emerging about RDNA 4 suggest a determined push to close the gap. At the heart of these improvements is a doubled Ray Tracing Intersect Engine. Doubling this engine’s power promises a substantial boost in ray tracing performance.
This news comes as we eagerly await the RX 8000 GPU release date, currently slated for Q3 2024. We’ve already heard rumors of greatly improved ray tracing performance, as AMD aims to make the 8000 series more of a ‘refresh’ than a massive generational jump. Plus, next-gen might not even have high-end GPUs as part of this effort.
New changes for RX 8000 series
Beyond this, AMD is introducing several optimizations designed to improve the efficiency of ray tracing calculations. These include enhancements to how the GPU handles groups of objects (RT Instance Node Transform), increased memory for ray tracing data (64B RT Node), and refinements to the way triangles are processed (Ray Tracing Tri-Pair Optimization).
Additionally, AMD is expanding the types of objects that can be efficiently ray-traced to include more complex shapes. These improvements are expected to be incorporated into both AMD’s upcoming Radeon RX 8000 series graphics cards and the next-generation PlayStation 5 Pro console. This means good news for gamers and console enthusiasts alike.
Importance of a ray tracing upgrade
Ray tracing is a technique that simulates how light behaves in the real world, resulting in incredibly realistic lighting, shadows, and reflections in games. While Nvidia has been leading the charge in this area, AMD’s RDNA 4 architecture shows promise in delivering a competitive ray tracing experience.
It’s important to note that these details are based on leaks and rumors. While they paint an exciting picture, we’ll need to wait for official announcements and benchmarks to get a clear picture of RDNA 4’s capabilities. If these promises are to be true, AMD could be poised to finally offer a compelling alternative to Nvidia’s RTX lineup.
