Our 8K test system
Motherboard: Asus ROG Strix B850-I Gaming Wi-Fi
Processor: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D (8-core)
CPU Cooler: Corsair iCUE LINK TITAN 240mm
GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 FE
Storage: 1TB WD_Black SN7100, 2TB XPG Gammix S70 Blade
Case: Acer Predator MI900
RAM: G.Skill Trident Z5 Royal Neo 96GB DDR5
PSU: Corsair SF1000
Screen: LG 55NANO966PA
After DOOM: The Dark Ages launched earlier this year, I’ve been desperate to whack it on our 8K test PC and see how the beastly Nvidia RTX 5090 graphics card handles the latest installment of maybe the most iconic PC gaming franchise in history.
For various reasons, I’ve not been able to do that… until now. That’s because the game has just been updated with some big graphical improvements and better support for Nvidia’s RTX 5000 series of GPUs and their exclusive features.
These include path tracing for much more accurate and immersive lighting, shadows and reflections, plus the addition of in-built support for Multi Frame Generation. The latter is an AI-powered feature which I’ve found to be a game-changer when it comes to hitting high frame rates at the same time as having all the graphics settings turned up to 11.
So, this is the perfect time to load the game up to see what these new graphical features add – and to see if the RTX 5090 is up to the challenge of demon slaying at a resolution of 7680 × 4320.
What’s path tracing?
DOOM: The Dark Ages is a game that prioritises both speedy gameplay and stunning graphics, so when you throw in super-high resolutions and complex lighting effects, even the most powerful gaming GPU in the world (which is what we have in our 8K test system) is going to struggle.
Before I get to the raw numbers, it’s worth mentioning what’s new in the game, especially path tracing.
Like an increasing number of games, DOOM: The Dark Ages launched with ray tracing effects which can’t be turned off, so if your GPU doesn’t support the advanced lighting effects (or struggles with how demanding they are), then you’re out of luck.
By enforcing ray tracing, it does mean the entire esthetic of the game has been designed to make use of it. The new update, meanwhile, adds path tracing, which takes the (already impressive) lighting effects of the game and makes them even more realistic.
While normal ray tracing is great at showing realistic lighting effects when the light from a source hits a surface, path tracing goes further by continuing to render the light after it has bounced or reflected off the first surface, allowing multiple surfaces to be affected in real-time.
It can result in some incredibly impressive and realistic shadows and reflections, especially in indoor areas of games where light sources from signs, lamps, and candles can bounce off floors walls and objects while also being reflected in pools of water.
As you might expect, this complex recreation of how natural light behaves can be extremely taxing on your hardware, which is why the addition of Nvidia‘s Ray Reconstruction to DOOM: The Dark Ages is essential.
This is a part of Nvidia’s suite of DLSS tools that use AI to generate pixels alongside the pixels your GPU renders (and with Frame Generation, entire frames). In the past, these tools have dramatically improved the performance of some games, and Ray Reconstruction does a similar job, using AI to generate additional rays (as in rays of light) alongside those that the GPU is rendering.
This takes the load off the graphics card with the aim of improving performance, while not impacting image quality too much.
DLSS stress test
As these features have been designed by Nvidia, it means they are exclusive to Team Green’s graphics cards. While AMD RDNA 4 GPUs can support path tracing, AMD has yet to release a tool like Ray Reconstruction that takes the load off the graphics card – and that could mean while the game will look great, it won’t run well.
Even with the power of the Nvidia RTX 5090, it’s clear that DLSS and AI generation is required to allow the game to have both Path Tracing effects and a remotely playable frame rate.
At 8K resolution with graphical settings at their highest and with DLSS set to ‘Quality’ (which prioritzes graphic fidelity over performance, meaning the image is upscaled by AI from a larger initial resolution), I was only getting 16fps (frames per second) – a far cry from the 60fps I aim for at a minimum.
So, even with the help of DLSS, which has enabled many modern games to hit 60fps at 8K in the past, this level of lighting effects combined with the ultra-high resolution simply proved too much.
Before giving up in despair, there were a few more tricks to try.
As part of the new update, support for Multi Frame Generation has also been added to DOOM: The Dark Ages.
I’ve found Multi Frame Generation to make a drastic impact on frame rates in the titles, but the feature has proven to be controversial. It uses AI to generate and insert frames (essentially still images) between each frame generated by the GPU.
With Multi Frame Generation this can mean an additional three frames generated per each frame rendered by the GPU, which in turn boosts the frame rate. However, as the number of AI-generated frames increase, so too does the likelihood that image artefacts and other issues appear.
I’ve been impressed with how the recent Multi Frame Generation works; in the games I’ve tested it in, the generated frames aren’t as noticable as they were in the earlier Frame Generation (which generated a single frame). That said, there can be a softness and slight blurriness to the overall look of certain games when used extensively.
I won’t get into the debate a lot of gamers seem to be having about ‘real’ and ‘fake’ frames, but I’m of the opinion that if these frames make games run better without compromising image quality (or replacing anyone’s job), then there’s no reason why I wouldn’t use the feature.
Turning on Multi Frame Generation at its highest setting, 4x (which refers to the one rendered frame and three generated frames), the frame rates immediately jumped to 54fps on average (I was playing in a mix of indoor and outdoor game locations with lots of enemies).
However, despite the leap in frame rates, the game felt like it was playing in slow motion. It was quite an odd experience, as it wasn’t like when graphics cards struggle with games, leading to drops in frame rates. Here, gameplay was still smooth, but it just felt like the slow motion effect the game employs during some attacks was permanently on.
I changed the DLSS setting to ‘Performance’, which renders the game at a lower resolution, then uses AI to generate more pixels to upscale the resolution, and the frame rate jumped to 83fps on average. Crucially, the game once again felt fast, frantic and responsive.
Turning off Path Tracing saw the frame rates leap to 143fps, which at 8K is incredibly impressive and also shows how much of a performance impact Path Tracing can have, even with Ray Reconstruction turned on.
Turning Path Tracing back on and setting DLSS to Ultra Performance got me 145fps at 8K, and while there was a bit of a hit to image quality, it was an excellent overall experience.
It’s also worth noting that the 8K TV I use to test these games, the LG 55NANO966PA, maxes out 8K resolution at 60Hz, which means the benefits of frame rates above 60fps become less pronounced, though it can help reduce latency.
Because of that, having DLSS set back to ‘Performance’ is the sweet spot here, as it boosts image quality without a noticeable impact to how the game runs.
Is Path Tracing worth the performance hit?
With Path Tracing making such a big impact, is it worth enabling, even if you’re not playing at 8K?
It’s an interesting question, especially with a game such as DOOM: The Dark Ages, which already looks fantastic and prioritizes speed and reflexes in its fast-paced action.
However, I found it was definitely worth it – the lighting effects really make a huge difference to how the game looks, and how immersive it is. In the moody setting of the medieval-inspired planet of Argent D’Nur, where the game takes place, having lamps and candles flicker and throw shadows and illuminate objects and surfaces adds a huge amount of atmosphere.
Projectiles thrown at you by enemies also benefit from the effect, lighting up the surroundings as they hurtle towards you.
For people who have GPUs that will struggle to hit high frame rates alongside Path Tracing effects, then this trade off isn’t worth it, as the game really relies on fast and smooth violence against the demonic hordes.
However, if you have one of the best graphics cards that’s up to the task, then I really recommend turning it on and enjoy playing a game that while inexorably tied to PC gaming’s past also hints at what the future holds.
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matthew.hanson@futurenet.com (Matt Hanson)
