News Summary

• Real-time ray tracing hasn't been around for a decade yet, and yet you can already see clear distinctions between the technology's initial support and the widespread, in-depth implementations it enjoys now in modern video games.
• What started as a way for Nvidia to sell new graphics cards has become an entirely fundamental shift in how various parts of video games are rendered.
• You don't need to explore open world games like Spider-Man 2 or Ghostwire: Tokyo for long before noticing the crisp reflections in rain-slicked roads you're walking on or thousands of skyscraper windows you're whizzing past.
• Contrast that with Minecraft and you can see that it the technology isn't just for games targeting photorealism -- ray tracing has a lot to offer wherever lighting is involved, and that's pretty much everywhere.