Nvidia's latest behemoths, the GeForce RTX 2080 Ti and RTX 2080, are finally here to show their worth. For $1,199 and $799, respectively, these high-end cards promise 4K gaming and realistic effects like we've never seen before. But how does that translate on paper?
Our sister-site Tom's Hardware put these monsters to the test on multiple gaming benchmarks against their GTX predecessors, as well as the Titan series and AMD's Radeon RX line. Be sure to check out the Tom's Hardware reviews of the RTX 2080 Ti and RTX 2080 for a more thorough look at each graphics card and even more gaming benchmarks.
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In many ways, Nvidia proved that the RTX cards are the masters of 1440p, 4K and even HDR, but do the numbers justify the upgrade? Let's take a closer look at the benchmarks:
Rise of the Tomb Raider
On the Rise of the Tomb Raider benchmark (Very High, 1440p), the RTX 2080 Ti nailed 97.8 frames per second, flying by its predecessor, the GTX 1080 Ti (78.4 fps), and its competitor, the monstrous Titan V (90.3 fps). The RTX 2080 (78.7 fps) similarly beat the GTX 1080 (60 fps), but the Titan X ran a tighter race, achieving 78.2 fps.
Turning this baby up to 4K yielded some interesting results. The RTX 2080 Ti (80.4 fps) wrecked the GTX 1080 Ti (65.2 fps), but the gap tightened between RTX 2080 Ti and the Titan V (76.9 fps). Meanwhile, the RTX 2080 (65.3 fps) did even better against the GTX 1080 (48.1 fps), and the Titan X (64 fps) continued to keep up with the RTX 2080.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
On the Witcher 3 benchmark (Ultra, 1440p), the RTX 2080 Ti blasted its competitors, with a whopping 156.3 fps, while the GTX 1080 Ti (117.6 fps) could barely keep up and the Titan V (140.3 fps) fell behind by a few frames. As expected, the RTX 2080 (132.6 fps) destroyed the GTX 1080 (88.7 fps) and even broke the tight competition with the Titan X (113.6 fps).
At 4K, the RTX 2080 Ti lost a third of its frames but still managed a solid 94.1 fps, narrowly beating the Titan V (89 fps), while leaving the GTX 1080 Ti (65.9 fps) in the dust. The RTX 2080 hit 76.5 fps, which knocked out the GTX 1080 (49.8 fps) as well as the Titan X (66.8 fps).
Grand Theft Auto V
Grand Theft Auto V's benchmarks were the most interesting, as all the GPUs performed within a few frames of one another. At Very High 1440p, the RTX 2080 Ti averaged 99.7 fps, the Titan V hit 95.5 fps and the GTX 1080 Ti nipped at both of their heels, with 93 fps. The RTX 2080 (91.8 fps), however, actually lost to the Titan X (93.4 fps) but still jumped ahead of the GTX 1080 and its 76.6 fps.
When bringing Rockstar's hyper-realistic city up to 4K, the frames stayed pretty consistent, as the RTX 2080 Ti secured 97.7 fps. The Titan V (93.4 fps) was still close, but the GTX 1080 Ti fell further down the poll, with 84.8 fps. On the other side, the RTX 2080 (86.7 fps) once again lost to the Titan X (86.8), by just a hair, and the GTX 1080 fell further down, to 70.1 fps.
Destiny 2
The RTX 2080 Ti sped through the Destiny 2 benchmark (Highest, 1440p) at 163.2 fps, sailing past the Titan V (143.2 fps) and the GTX 1080 Ti (129.8 fps). Its little brother, the RTX 2080, got 133.5 fps and took back the throne from the Titan X (125.3 fps), while defeating the GTX 1080 (100.7 fps) by a considerable margin again.
Those frames drop in 4K just as fast as Guardians do, as the RTX 2080 Ti fell down to 91.6 fps, while still retaining its top spot. The Titan V followed close behind, at 86.1 fps, and the GTX 1080 Ti dropped further down, to 68 fps. Meanwhile, the RTX 2080 held a steady 73.5 fps, just barely defeating the Titan X (71.7 fps), while outrunning the GTX 1080 (53.8 fps).
How does the RTX handle frames in 4K HDR, you ask? Pretty damn well. The RTX 2080 Ti dropped only a few frames, to 85 fps. That pattern was consistent with the performance from the RTX 2080 (68.2 fps) and the GTX 1080 Ti (64.2 fps).
Far Cry 5
With the RTX 2080 Ti, you'll be able to parachute into Hope County in Far Cry 5 (Ultra, 1440p) at a smooth 118.4 fps. The Titan V isn't far behind, with 110.2 fps, but the GTX 1080 Ti couldn't make it to the triple digits, reaching 99.3 fps. The gaps were similar with the RTX 2080 (102.7 fps), the Titan X (97.4 fps) and the GTX 1080 (79.9 fps).
4K is once again the frame killer, slicing the RTX 2080 Ti down to 71.7 fps, with the Titan V (66 fps) and the GTX 1080 Ti (52 fps) following behind. The RTX 2080 fell under the 60-fps standard of quality, dropping to 57 fps, while the Titan X averaged 53.6 fps and the GTX 1080 dropped to 42.3 fps.
Chopping down cultists is going to cost you a few extra frames in 4K HDR. The RTX 2080 Ti hit a solid 69.1 fps, while the RTX 2080 fell to 55.5 fps and the GTX 1080 Ti did slightly better than in the previous test, with 52.2 fps.
Bottom Line
The RTX 2080 Ti is an absolute powerhouse, ripping apart multiple games at over 60 fps at 4K HDR on the highest settings, but the difference between the RTX 2080 and the GTX 1080 Ti is quite small. That's not to mention that at $1,200 and $800 for the 2080 Ti and 2080, respectively, these cards can cost as much as a budget gaming laptop.
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If you're already rocking a high-performance GPU like the GTX 1080 Ti, you're not getting a big upgrade, but if you have something with lower performance, like the GTX 1070, then you have something to consider. These chips come at a high price, but the RTX 2080 Ti and RTX 2080 dominate their predecessors and make 4K easily achievable without sacrifice.
Credit: Tom's Hardware
