With its ability to create incredibly lifelike lighting, shadows, and reflections that give virtual environments life, real-time ray tracing has completely changed gaming.
Modern RTX-enabled games provide unparalleled visual accuracy and immersion, from the neon-lit city streets of Cyberpunk 2077 to the engrossing jungles of Shadow of the Tomb Raider.
These games demonstrate the state-of-the-art capabilities of next-generation graphics technology, whether you’re exploring open landscapes, fighting in shooters, or building in Minecraft RTX Edition.
Key Point
| Game | Key Point (Ray Tracing Feature) |
|---|---|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | Uses real-time ray-traced reflections, global illumination, and shadows for ultra-realistic futuristic city visuals. |
| Control | Pioneering ray-traced reflections, accurate shadows, and ambient occlusion enhance its supernatural environment. |
| Minecraft (RTX Edition) | Adds fully ray-traced lighting, reflections, and shadows, transforming blocky graphics into photorealistic scenes. |
| Metro Exodus | Implements ray-traced global illumination, reflections, and detailed environmental lighting for cinematic realism. |
| Battlefield 2042 | Ray-traced reflections and shadows improve immersion in dynamic combat environments. |
| Quake II RTX | First fully path-traced version of a classic game, with complete ray-traced lighting, shadows, and reflections. |
| Watch Dogs: Legion | Real-time ray-traced reflections and ambient lighting elevate the modern London cityscape. |
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | Uses ray-traced shadows for realistic foliage, character, and environment interaction with light. |
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019) | Ray-traced shadows and reflections enhance realism in multiplayer and campaign scenes. |
| Fortnite | RTX support includes ray-traced reflections, shadows, and global illumination on selected maps for photorealistic visuals. |
1. Cyberpunk 2077
With its implementation of real-time ray tracing and the hyper-realistic visuals In the NOVA game, Cyberpunk 2077 is regarded for extending the graphical boundaries. With ray tracing shadow, global illumination, and shadow reflections, Cyberpunk 2077 has RTX.
RTX is used in the dense and overarched futuristic City of Night City is the where, environment is located with environment and neon lights, glass, and, puddles.
NVIDIA DLSS performs without loss of gameplay quality, so you can obtain an elevated gameplay experience without sacrificing RTX is beneficial in both the open exploration and cutscenes of this benchmark ray tracing title. .
Cyberpunk 2077 Key Features
- Open-world RPG set in Night City
- Exceedingly customizable character and a many-way branching storyline
- First-person combat, with a variety of guns, hacks, and cyber-abilities
- Immersive city design, with several options for vertical exploration
- Depending on the player, there are multiple possible endings
Pros
- Immersive quest writing and equally-excellent quest writing
- Visually and atmospherically stunning
- Excellent voice acting, and soundtrack
- Many systems (crafting, hacking, combat variety, and more) are very dense
Cons
- There are many technical bugs, and the performance leaves much to be desired
- The AI and cop systems are very underdeveloped
- Some mechanics (driving, economy) are unpolished
2. Control
Control redefined the benchmark for ray-traced lighting in video games. Advanced ray-traced reflections, shadows, and ambient occlusion allow for the redefining of the supernatural Federal Bureau of Control headquarters.
Dynamic lighting creates environmentally responsive interactions to moving objects. Control’s RTX technology, in conjunction with NVIDIA’s DLSS, allow for highly ray traced reflections, Dynamic shadows, and ambient occlusion to be processed with very little performance hit.
Control’s RTX technology will be most obvious in reflections, highly polished metals, and clear glass. Immersive exploration is par for the course in the Control.
Control is able to combine paranormal storylines and physics-driven environments, which is an incredible display of the power of real-time ray tracing. This is largely why Control is undoubtedly one of the best games with real-time ray tracing.
Control
Key Features
- Supernatural action adventure, third-person
- Telekinetic abilities, and shapeshifting weapon
- The Oldest House, with its brutalist architecture
- Tied to the deep and expansive lore of the paranormal
- Explorative, nonlinear with many hidden areas
Pros
- Telekinesis and firearms create unique combat
- Surreal, atmospheric, and well designed world
- Strong supporting and protagonist cast
- Rich lore and exploration-rewarding collectibles
Cons
- The in-game map is very confusing to navigate
- Older systems suffer from drops in performance
- Enemy encounters can be repetitive and boring
3. Minecraft (RTX Edition)
Minecraft RTX Edition has changed the way we see this blocky sandbox of a game. Every light source, reflection, and shadow is simulated in a realistic way. Instead of the traditional voxels, you can see the world as a photorealistic landscape.
Sunlight filters and bounces realistically through the trees, water reflects its surroundings, and global illumination improves artificial light sources. NVIDIA’s RTX and DLSS work together to make it so you don’t have to worry about the higher requirements to run it.
Minecraft RTX Edition gives you the ability to build and explore in a world where the lighting, reflections, and refractions look as realistic as the game itself.
This drastically improves the way you see the game as a whole. This game is on the top of the list for educational, creative, and fun games with real time ray tracing.
Minecraft (RTX Edition) Key Features
- Real-time ray tracing with global illumination
- Reflective water and emissive textures
- DLSS support for performance boost
- Enhanced physical materials for realism
- Works with creator-built RTX worlds
Pros
- Jaw-dropping visual upgrade
- Retains creative sandbox freedom
- DLSS balances performance and fidelity
- Free RTX worlds available for download
Cons
- Requires high-end RTX GPUs
- Limited to Windows 10/DirectX devices
- Performance dips in large builds
4. Metro Exodus
Metro Exodus has been regarded for its highly engaging story, and its environment has been built with the latest real-time ray-tracing global illumination, reflection, and shadow technology to provide the most realistic experience to date.
The realistic environment combines volumetric lighting and real-time ray-tracing to simulate realistic clouds, sunlight, and shadow movement throughout the weather changes.
The Nvidia DLSS enabled graphics preserve frame rates and allow the player to experience the game more fully.
Metro Exodus provides an immersive experience with its combination of real-time ray tracing, story-driven missions, and survival gameplay. The game is highly recommended for anyone looking for the best games with real-time ray tracing.
Metro Exodus Key Features
- Post-apocalyptic survival across Russia
- Semi-open world with sandbox levels
- Crafting and scavenging systems
- Strong narrative following Artyom’s journey
- Dynamic weather and day-night cycle
Pros
- Gorgeous visuals and atmosphere
- Engaging survival mechanics
- Expansive levels encourage exploration
- Emotional character-driven story
Cons
- Story weaker than earlier Metro titles
- Some pacing issues in open areas
- Occasional technical glitches
5. Battlefield 2042
Battlefield 2042 uses ray tracing for reflections and shadows, which increases realism for large scale multiplayer battles. Water, metal, and glass surfaces will show real-life reflections depicting all elements of the environment, improving awareness and realism.
Weather and lightning effects will immerse players deeper into the battlefield. Smokes, explosives, and destructible environments will not only be more realistic but will also be augmented with real time ray tracing.
With RTX and DLSS, players will be able to experience up to 64 player matches with high frame rates. With the competitive and large scale nature added to the RTX features, Battlefield 2042 is one of the best real time ray tracing games.
Battlefield 2042 Key Features
- Large-scale multiplayer battles (up to 128 players)
- All-Out Warfare and Hazard Zone modes
- Dynamic weather events (tornadoes, storms)
- Specialists with unique abilities
- Cross-platform play support
Pros
- Destruction
- Huge Maps with Verticality
- Fast-Paced, Chaotic Multiplayer Fun
- Cross-Play
Cons
- No Single-Player
- Specialist Imbalance
- Bugs
6. Quake II RTX
Ray tracing showcases ray tracing in all its glory. Quake II RTX offers every possible ray traced solution including geo-illunimation, ambient occlusion, reflections, and dynamic lighting. It takes Quake II’s original 1997 graphics and elevates them to state of the art photorealism.
In conjuncture with the original 1997 gameplay. It utilizes NVIDIA RTX technology for accurate light propagation around the environment and to simulate the lighting of gunfire.
The combination of 90s nostalgia and modern graphics make it one of the best games with real-time ray tracing.
Quake II RTX Key Features
- Fully ray traced remake of Quake II
- Path tracing, lighting, shadows, and reflections
- Classic FPS Gaming
- Free shareware levels, included
- Multiplayer, but you must purchase
Pros
- Nostalgic gameplay
- Real-time Path tracing
- Free demo levels
- Well designed gameplay
Cons
- RTX hurts mid-range GPUs
- Dated content design
- Purchase required
7. Watch Dogs: Legion
In Watch Dogs: Legion, ray tracing reflections and ray tracing ambient lighting help to improve the visual quality of the open world game set in the city of London in the future. Glass surfaces, water, and wet floor real-time reflections help the player become more immersed in the open world game.
Vehicles, explosions, and other elements of the environment dynamically change the lighting in the game, and help to improve the realism of the urban city environment.
NVIDIA DLSS helps increase the frames per second, and allows RTX effects to be displayed without a significant change to the performance of the computer.
The combination of stealth, hacking, and open world gameplay allows the game to be one of the best games with real-time ray tracing.
Watch Dogs: Legion is a game with a lot of gameplay and visual features, and combines all of them to develop game on the next level.
Watch Dogs Key Features
- “Play as Anyone” recruitment mechanic
- Open-world London setting
- Hacking gameplay
- Multiple factions and resistance building
- Online multiplayer modes
Pros
- Innovative recruit-anyone
- Detailed London environment
- Fun hacking mechanics with diverse character abilities
Cons
- Weak story and writing
- Bugs at launch
- Repetitive mission structure
8. Shadow of the Tomb Raider
Shadow of the Tomb Raider uses ray tracing to improve the realism of shadows in the environments. The lighting in the game interacts with the foliage, the water, and the structures.
The shadows cast from the environments are dependent on the time of day, making them more dynamic. With the improved lighting, the characters have more realistic textures on their faces, clothing, and other body parts.
The immersion when exploring the tombs, jungles, and caves is improved significantly with ray tracing. The game features NVIDIA DLSS as well, making it possible to easily achieve high resolutions with RTX on.
The combination of adventure, puzzle-solving, and stunning environments gives the game some of the highest story and graphics quality and is one of the best games with real-time ray tracing.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider Key Features
- Final chapter in Lara Croft’s origin story
- New mechanics for enhanced stealth gameplay
- Improved environments, including jungles and ruins
- Expansion of the puzzle tombs and exploration hubs
- Mayan themes evoke emotional narratives
Pros
- Environments are stunning and immersive
- Strong performance as the heroine
- Puzzles are difficult, but rewarding
- Engaging stealth gameplay
Cons
- Narrative and story are poorly paced
- Combat is dull and repetitive
- Numerous technical bugs
9. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019)
The game also has ray tracing which makes it even more realistic. The game has ray tracing on urban maps which makes the game more realistic. Modern Warfare has great reflections on the urban maps. Great reflections on the urban maps, Ray tracing has great reflections on urban maps.
There is also NVIDIA DLSS for high performance. There is also depth perception, which is great for the multi-player mode. The game also has great RTX which helps you see more. Modern Warfare is one of the greatest games that has real time ray tracing. The game uses cinematic ray tracing, which is great for tactical shooters.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Key Features
- Start of a revamped Modern Warfare series
- Campaign with dark, mature themes
- New engine for lifelike graphics
- Multiplayer with a range of game modes
- Cooperative missions in Spec Ops
Pros
- Visually and sonically stunning
- Campaign is thought provoking
- Multiplayer is robust and varied
- Gun mechanics are smooth
Cons
- Spec Ops mode is underdeveloped
- Textures pop in
- Campaign is controversial
10. Fortnite
Fortnite also has ray tracing for reflections, and ray tracing for shadows and global illumination. Fortnite has RTX on certain maps which makes the game realistic. Movement also has dynamic shadows which is reactive.
Fortnite also has DLSS which keeps the game smooth, and enhances graphics. Fortnite’s RTX transformation makes the game more realistic and more visual clear during fast paced game. RTX is great for animated graphics, and is great for casual and competitive gamers. Fortnite is one of the greatest games that has real time ray tracing.
Fortnite Key Features
- 100 player Battle Royale
- Combat strategy incorporates building
- Seasonal updates and events
- Modes: Creative and Zero Build
- Cross-platform and free
Pros
- Replayable and addictive
- New content is frequent
- Building mechanics add depth
Cons
- Building has a steep learning curve
- Optimising your game can be costly
- Your game may perform poorly on lower-end devices
How To Choose the Best Games With Real-Time Ray Tracing?
Here is a concise guide on selecting suitable games using real-time ray tracing.
Look for RTX Support: Check if the game has real-time ray tracing capabilities for reflections, shadows, and global illumination, as these games showcase next-gen graphics on NVIDIA RTX compatible GPUs.
Look for Graphics Quality: Choose games with graphics rich in high-fidelity textures, and lifelike defended immersive environments and stunning lighting with ray tracing on, and avoid games with good graphics.
Look for Required Specs: Ensure your gaming rig fulfills the minimum GPU, CPU, and RAM specs so RTX effects can be run smoothly and your graphics settings and frame rates can be set high.
Look for Type of Gameplay: Choose games where the realism improvement the game offers is most differentiable, i.e. in large open worlds, and for first-person shooters, or in games with rich storylines.
Look for Full Patches: Look for games where ray traced patches and performance patches are continually added as the ray traced elements or effects require optimization to have good performance without stuttering.
Look for Built-in DLSS: Ray tracing in RTX games can be seen without much lag as long as NVIDIA DLSS is used, so the graphics are very beautiful and playable.
Explore the Community and Reviews: Reviews from real users will show how the RTX enhances the graphics and performance of ray tracing in real time, and which games utilize ray tracing the best.
Find the Best Trade-off: Look for games that are going to showcase ray tracing without heavy workloads to the computer. This way you will achieve the best smooth performance while still enjoying the realistic graphics.
Think About Game Features: Games that have RTX and also possess large creative & multiplayer worlds, or deep stories will be worth more for the long run with amazing visuals.
Look for Games that Will Stay Updated: Games that are able to be modified alongside the use of ray tracing will continue to be valuable with the advancement of GPUs and software to utilize ray tracing.
Conclusion
With evidence demonstrating that visually engrossing games like Cyberpunk 2077, Control, and Minecraft RTX Edition produce noticeably improved graphical quality and realism, real-time ray tracing has emerged as a key component of next-generation gaming.
Benchmarks indicate that RTX-enabled reflections, shadows, and global illumination enhance environmental immersion by up to 40–50%, while NVIDIA DLSS support helps maintain playable frame rates on modern GPUs.
Ray tracing enhances visual appeal and gameplay clarity in a variety of game genres, including competitive shooters and open-world adventures. RTX-supported games are an essential option for both enthusiasts and performance-driven gamers, since players who prioritize visual realism, dynamic lighting, and responsive landscapes stand to gain the most.
FAQ
What is real-time ray tracing in games?
Real-time ray tracing (RTX) is a rendering technology that simulates how light interacts with surfaces, creating realistic reflections, shadows, and global illumination in games. It significantly enhances visual immersion.
Which GPUs support ray tracing?
NVIDIA RTX series GPUs (e.g., RTX 20, 30, and 40 series) and select AMD RDNA 2 or newer GPUs support ray tracing. Performance varies depending on GPU power and game optimization.
Do all games with RTX need high-end PCs?
While RTX improves visuals, games like Fortnite or Shadow of the Tomb Raider can run on mid-range GPUs using DLSS, though high-fidelity titles like Cyberpunk 2077 demand high-end hardware.
How does DLSS help in RTX games?
NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling) boosts frame rates by rendering at lower resolutions and upscaling using AI, allowing smooth gameplay without losing the quality of ray-traced effects.
Are ray-traced effects worth enabling?
Data shows ray tracing enhances realism by up to 40–50%, improving reflections, shadows, and lighting, making gameplay more immersive, especially in open-world or cinematic games like Metro Exodus and Control.
