Microsoft's new ray-tracing tech will make your games look better with less VRAM

A new patent from Microsoft showcases a way to reduce ray-tracing memory usage and boost overall performance. This technology is a great discovery because the VRAM requirements are increasing, especially for newer games. So, we need a common ground because getting a new GPU is expensive, especially with over 10GB of VRAM. That’s why the new Microsoft Tech patent proposes using Level of Detail (LOD) techniques in the RT process.

How will the new Microsoft ray-tracing technology work?

The Microsoft ray-tracing technology uses the relation between your character and the position of the elements. So, the effect will be similar to the viewing distance. As a result, the system will use more resources to trace closer elements with high details. Also, it will use less memory to performlow tracing on the further elements.

Additionally, the patent for the ray-tracing technology will use a residency map corresponding to a Bounding Volume Hierarchy to determine the importance of the objects. On top of that, the elements that require more rays will be the first ones on the list.

By the way, did you know that game developers are also using the LOD technique in 3D games to minimize resource usage? For example, you might have noticed a performance boost while looking underneath your character or above to decrease the amount of details rendered. After all, this is one of the easiest ways to get rid of lag in crowded places.

Ultimately, this technology could help gaming consoles with less memory use the ray-tracing technology without sacrificing performance. In addition, it could save us from upgrading our hardware for newer games. After all, it could make high-end specifications more bearable. However, Microsoft should allow us to switch from dynamic to high-tracing.

What are your thoughts? Are you going to try the ray-tracing technology if it becomes available? Let us know in the comments.