Elden Ring Ray-Tracing: Mediocre Implementation, PC Gaming Still an Afterthought to FromSoftware

Another Underwhelming PC Implementation

Elden Ring’s ray tracing update, while arriving over a year after release, falls short of expectations. This underwhelming implementation, mirroring previous FromSoftware PC ports, highlights a persistent pattern of neglecting PC players’ needs. The update, version 1.09, offers subtle visual enhancements focused primarily on shadows and ambient occlusion. While these improvements are noticeable in certain areas, the overall visual impact is quite modest, disappointing players who had hoped for a more significant upgrade. This situation underscores the continued disconnect between console and PC development priorities for the studio. Bandai Namco and FromSoftware have consistently demonstrated a lack of respect for the PC gaming community, prioritizing console output over PC optimization, a trend troublingly evident in past releases like Dark Souls.

Lack of Upscaling Support

• The absence of upscaling technologies like DLSS, FSR, or XeSS is a critical omission.
• These technologies are vital for mitigating the performance hit imposed by ray tracing. Without them, PC gamers are forced to compromise between visual quality and smooth gameplay.
• Bandai Namco’s PC system requirements, potentially overly conservative, are not able to resolve the issue.
• Lower-tier GPUs might struggle to maintain a consistent frame rate with ray tracing enabled, highlighting the limited accessibility for a significant portion of the PC audience.

Poor Ray-Tracing Performance

Performance benchmarks demonstrate a considerable performance drop when ray tracing is activated. The impact is substantial across various resolutions and graphics cards, particularly noticeable on lower-end models. Tests show noticeable frame rate decreases, causing gameplay issues like stuttering and reduced smoothness. For example, the RTX 3070 experiences a 25% performance drop at 1440p with ray tracing enabled. Crucially, only high-end GPUs, specifically the RTX 4090, consistently maintain a stable 60fps experience at 1440p or 4K with maximum ray tracing settings. This performance gap underscores the fact that the visual improvements are limited in their reach, rendering the feature inaccessible to many PC players. It’s clear that FromSoftware prioritized visual fidelity over a balanced PC player experience. The result is a feature that significantly benefits high-end systems while negatively impacting many other PC users.

Overall, the implementation of ray tracing in Elden Ring is a significant disappointment. The modest visual improvements do not justify the substantial performance drop for a significant portion of PC gamers. While ray tracing offers a limited visual upgrade, the performance cost creates a less than optimal experience for the majority of the PC player base, highlighting a continued and frustrating pattern of prioritizing console output over PC performance. This absence of upscaling support and the noticeable performance penalties severely limit the accessibility and enjoyment of this feature, reflecting a lack of consideration for the needs and capabilities of the PC gaming community.