FarCry 1.2: Testbed and Methods

In order to show our readers benefits the Shader Model 3.0 can provide to the GeForce 6800-series graphics cards we decided to run benchmarks using six demos made on “Training”, “Research”, “Regulator”, “Pier”, “Catacombs” and “Volcano” levels. Each demo was meant to reflect performance of actual gaming process.

• AMD Athlon 64 3400+ CPU (2.20GHz, 1MB L1 cache);
• ASUS K8V Deluxe mainboard;
• OCZ PC-3200 Platinum EB DDR SDRAM (2x512MB, CL2.5-3-2-8);
• Seagate 7200.7 HDD (Serial ATA-150, 8MB buffer);
• Creative SoundBlaster Audigy 2 audio card;
• Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP2, DirectX 9.0c;
• Drivers: NVIDIA ForceWare 61.45, ATI CATALYST 4.6.

Please keep in mind that NVIDIA’s drivers, FarCry 1.2 patch along with Microsoft DirectX 9.0c are not released commercially at this time. Therefore, the results achieved by us today may be different from those produced by the final versions of the software.

What you should keep your eyes on at this time is speed boost delivered by Shader Model 3.0 to the GeForce 6800-series. While not all games can be optimised using Shader Model 3.0, those that are complex and graphics intensive are likely to be optimized and get a speed increase comparable to what the FarCry got.