MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries – RTX Beta Analysis

Late last month, Piranha Games’ MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries receives support for Nvidia’s DLSS 2.0 technology, allowing the power of AI to be used to boost in-game framerates without any noticeable drops in image quality. Now, MechWarrior 5 has gained support for DXR-based raytracing, adding beta options for raytraced shadows and raytraced reflections into the game. 

In this article, we will be looking into the graphics and performance impacts of raytracing within MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries, and judging whether or not raytracing is a worthwhile addition to the game at this time. As mentioned before, MechWarrior 5’s DXR support is currently in beta, which means that there is plenty of room for improvement, both quality and performance-wise, with future versions of MechWarrior 5. 

Raytraced Reflections

Most reflections in modern PC games are generated using “Screen Space” techniques, which use already rendered aspects of a scene to create accurate reflections. 

The problem with Screen Space techniques is that they rely on screen-space data, which means that reflections can break or disappear whenever reflected objects are blocked from view or removed from a game’s screen space. Look at screen space reflections in a game and then force your character to look down slowly. You should see reflections break and disappear at a certain point, highlighting a flaw in this often-used technique. 

Raytraced Reflections use ray tracing to create accurate reflections using simulated light, which can be reflected off surfaces and onto the objects that a game should be reflecting, even if they sit outside of screen-space. This allows reflections to be rendered without fear of inaccuracy or “breaking” under specific conditions. 

Below, you can see how ray tracing impacts the Hanger in MechWarrior 5, with the reflections on the puddles and glass surfaces highlighting the game’s use of ray-traced reflections.