Ray-tracing technology might not be a new thing in video games, however, there are but a few considerable titles that support it, and only a handful of recently released AAA titles have an option to turn on the real-time ray tracing. However, Nvidia and id Software decided to show off what this technology is capable of with an old remastered game from 1997. Here’s your first look at Quake II RTX:
Quake II RTX will be available to download for free starting June 6th for Linux and Windows PC. If you’ve never played the original Quake II you’ll only get access to the first three levels of the game. However, those who already own a copy of Quake II will be able to enjoy the full campaign and multiplayer mode with ray-tracing on.
There are some interesting details about the remastered version of Quake II in the official post on Nvidia’s website. According to the post, Quake II RTX will demonstrate the possibilities of the technology and will offer a glimpse into the future of gaming, featuring real-time lighting, shadows, and effects.
In addition to these RTX related updates Nvidia also provided the full list of Quake II RTX add-ons and enhancements:
– Improved Global Illumination rendering, with three selectable quality, presets, including two-bounce GI
– Time of day options that radically change the appearance of some levels
– New weapon models & textures
– Real-time reflectivity of the player and weapon model on water and glass surfaces, and player model shadows, for owners of the complete game (the original Shareware release does not include player models)
– All 3,000+ original game textures have been updated with a mix of Q2XP mod-pack textures and our own enhancements
– Updated effects with new sprites and particle animations
– Dynamic lighting for items such as blinking lights, signs, switches, elevators and moving objects.
Of course, to enjoy Quake II RTX to the fullest you’ll need a PC with RTX graphics card. Recommended settings note that you’ll need to have at least GeForce RTX 2060 card to play Quake II RTX.
