I’m upgrading from an older GTX 1080 rig that is honestly still usable, but there have been a few newer titles here and there that I’ve been putting off playing.
What are some beautiful and demanding hardware wise games you guys would recommend? Bonus points for underrated games or hidden gems.
Ahhh I remember the feeling of upgrading to a new GPU after ditching my 1050 earlier this year. Here’s some games that can stress test your new rig:
- God of War
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Cyberpunk 2077
- Control
- Forza Horizon 5 or Dirt 5
Also while Elden Ring isn’t as demanding as technically impressive as other games it can look quite beautiful.
Nice, RDR2, Control and Spooderman are specifically the titles I’ve been putting off until I built a new PC, thank you. Even though I beat RDR2 on PS4 a couple years back, I’m very down to revisit in 144hz.
I might give CP2077 another go too, beat that on release and it ran surprisingly well on a 1080 aside from all the goddamn bugs, but I’m curious to revisit it again with all the bells, whistles and patches. Forza 5 and God of War also ran spectacularly well on the older hardware as well, but I’m probably due for a replay of those too.
I’ll have to check out Returnal, I’ve heard mixed reviews but haven’t actually looked into it. Thank you.
It’s worth checking out CP2077 again. They fixed a ton of bugs and added new features as well. Perfect timing before the expansion comes out.
Control is excellent and also has a mod from one of the developers that adds stuff like HDR, support for newer versions of DLSS, better raytracing etc.
+1 for RDR2
The fact that Horizon: Zero Dawn hasn’t been mentioned yet is a travesty.
Is the sequel out on PC yet?
Not yet, no release date yet either. Probably won’t be until the end of next year at least
That’s one of the games I’ve been putting off. I bought it when it came out, but couldn’t run it well enough and got a refund. Will definitely rebuy it on the new rig.
Its one of the few games I’ve played through twice
If you’re just looking for something graphically Impressive you probably have to put Cyberpunk 2077 with full Path Tracing on the list, if your new rig can handle it.
Not really a hidden gem but it probably looks spectacular.
I also went from a 1080 and I’ve really enjoyed playing the following on ultra now: Doom eternal, cyberpunk 2077, mount and blade 2, ready or not, and I was planning on replaying the revamped metro series as well as death stranding
The newest Metro game and Death Stranding are on my list too, thank you.
SCORN is very aesthetically pleasing if you enjoy the eerie, haunting landscapes by Giger or Beksinsky. The game itself is meh at best, but the sights are great.
I think Hitman 3 looks quite nice
Minecraft…
…with shaders.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is pretty amazing to look at
100% forgot about it, but I loved the first one. Thank you.
It’s it fixed yet?
whats wrong with it? I’ve only just made it to the village on the first planet. The first boss fight was awesome.
On launch it would stutter, could not hit reliable 60fps, had glitches and bugs all over. If you were ok playing at 30fps it would somewhat chug along, but for any smoother experience it just could not hit the marks.
Console versions still suffer from terrible screen tearing (and unlike PC they don’t have a vsync toggle).
plays pretty smooth so maybe they solved it or my hardware isnt affected
Read Dead 2, Last of Us, Uncharted 4
Atomic Heart! Both gorgeous and well optimized
Red Dead Redemption 2 is literally the best cowboy game ever made and up there with the other top tiers.
If you went high tier, did you leave enough coin for a Quest 2 headset? With a cheap, dedicated router you can stream wirelessly and the experience is mind blowing. Games like HL:Alyx are ridiculous; I just wish there were more native ports to VR.
No, I won’t ever buy a Meta/Facebook product.
I was at one point really excited about VR (2016/2017) and actually built this rig I have right now in big part for it, but ended up returning an Oculus Rift after my very disappointing experience with it. And other than HL: Alyx, Beat Saber and a couple other titles, there don’t really seem to be many really captivating titles that justify the cost and space requirements for a proper VR setup. I’m open to maybe getting a VR headset in the future if something compelling comes along, but a Quest ain’t it. Thanks for the recommendation though, I hear HL: Alyx is fantastic.
Elden Ring + Doom Eternal
Is Elden Ring still locked to 60hz?
Yes. It’s not the most graphically demanding game so hardware wise it isn’t much of a test of a new PC. It is, however, rather aesthetically beautiful and worth going for in the context of what you’re going for, IMO.
That’s unfortunate, but locked framerate is a deal breaker for me, so pass. Thanks for the rec.
Metro Exodus with RT
Kingdom Come: DeliveranceEDIT:
ControlGlad someone else mentioned Metro, those games look fucking amazing. Last Light on 360 looks like an early PS4 game it’s so good.
Risk of Rain 2. Just from the sheer chaos of having so many enemies on screen without low graphics.
This is me right now. God of War (2018) looks breathtaking.
