EA has recently made F1 25 accessible to players who opted for its Iconic Version, showcasing the game’s capabilities powered by the advanced EGO Engine. With support for both Ray Tracing and Path Tracing, the game promises to elevate the visual experience, particularly when benchmarked on the formidable NVIDIA RTX 5090.
Benchmarking Performance
For our testing, we utilized a robust setup featuring an AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D processor, 32GB of DDR5 RAM clocked at 6000MHz, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Founder’s Edition, all running on Windows 10 64-bit with the NVIDIA GeForce 576.40 WHQL driver.
Codemasters has introduced a plethora of graphics settings to fine-tune the gaming experience. The integration of Ray Tracing enhances shadows, reflections, ambient occlusion, and global illumination, while also supporting AMD FSR 3.1, NVIDIA DLSS 4, and Intel XeSS.
In our benchmarks, we chose the Singapore track during a rainstorm, known for its intricate lighting and shadow-casting buildings, making it one of the most demanding environments in the game. Interestingly, while other tracks like Qatar perform significantly better, Singapore serves as an effective stress test for the system.
Without the enhancements of Ray Tracing, F1 25 achieves a minimum of 173FPS and an average of 189FPS at Native 4K with Ultra Settings on the NVIDIA RTX 5090. This performance suggests that many PC gamers can enjoy the game without the need for advanced graphical features.
When Ray Tracing is enabled, the NVIDIA RTX 5090 impressively maintains over 70FPS at Native 4K, making it a standout title for modern ray-traced gaming. Notably, this is the only current title that consistently exceeds 60FPS at Native 4K with comprehensive Ray Tracing effects.
By activating DLSS 4 Quality Mode, we observed frame rates soaring to between 90-100FPS. Additionally, employing Multi-Frame Generation (MFG) X4 allowed us to reach an impressive 300FPS, albeit not in a traditional sense. This enhancement provides a smoother gaming experience, particularly beneficial for competitive play.
Path Tracing, while visually striking, proves to be more demanding. At Native 4K, we recorded a minimum of 29FPS and an average of 35FPS. However, utilizing DLSS 4 Quality Mode facilitated a smoother experience on our G-Sync monitor. For those seeking consistent frame rates above 70FPS, DLSS 4 Performance Mode is recommended, even without Frame Generation.
The MFG X2, X3, and X4 modes significantly enhance performance when using Path Tracing, with DLSS 4 Performance Mode providing optimal results. Fortunately, the latest iterations of MFG do not exhibit major visual artifacts, a notable improvement from previous versions.
Visual comparisons between Ray Tracing and Path Tracing reveal substantial differences, particularly in F1 25. The absence of these features makes the game appear dated, and while the distinction between Ray Tracing and Path Tracing is evident, a side-by-side comparison is often necessary for full appreciation.
However, it is important to note some visual issues that currently plague the game. The NVIDIA Ray Reconstruction feature has been reported to produce undesirable effects, particularly with rain appearing smeared or painted in darker areas. Similarly, Path Tracing introduces its own set of visual anomalies, such as exaggerated raindrops and flickering effects during motion.
Combining Ray Reconstruction with Path Tracing exacerbates these issues, resulting in visually unappealing rain effects. Codemasters will need to address these concerns promptly, as they detract from the overall experience. For now, the optimal way to enjoy F1 25 is by utilizing Ray Tracing effects without Ray Reconstruction, which offers a significant visual upgrade while avoiding the current pitfalls of Path Tracing.
