Ahead of a feature delving deeper into the NVIDIA RTX-powered ray-tracing featured in Metro Exodus, we though we'd share an example that shows a pretty major 'RTX On' and 'RTX Off' difference. With Metro's implementation of the groundbreaking tech used for global illumination we found an off-the-beaten-path outdoor location that showcases just how well ray-tracing, err, shines a light on the future of gaming.

In non-technical terms, how it works in Metro is that light rays from a global source - aka the sun - is used to light an environment. In the 'RTX On' part of the clip below as light rays come in through the windowed openings they bounce around to light up the location in the sort of shadowy way that looks incredibly realistic. Like a complex CGI clip. In the 'RTX Off' part of the clip, the scene looks flatter, brighter, and like a game.



A pretty drastic example no doubt, but it's an effect that adds to the immersion. Which is perfect for a game like Metro Exodus. It's worth pointing out though that this is but one moment in a large game. Here's an RTX On image of an outdoor location.



And here's the same location with RTX Off.



Here the effect is more subtle because ray-traced or not the lighting in Metro Exodus is fantastic. As an inverse example the ray-traced scene is brighter because light bouncing off the snow adds more depth and light to objects. In the end, subtle or not, the effect really becomes apparent the longer you play - where the entire image begins to feel more natural, and again, like that of a CGI film. The immersion is sustained as you move from indoor to outdoor environments in a way we've never seen before.

Without a doubt, a glimpse at the future.