3DMark Launches Solar Bay Extreme: A New Cross-Platform Ray Tracing Benchmark

UL Solutions, the developer behind the popular benchmarking application 3DMark, announced on August 20th the launch of a new cross-platform ray tracing performance test: Solar Bay Extreme. This new benchmark is designed to push the capabilities of modern hardware by building upon the original Solar Bay test with an increased workload and additional scenes.

Solar Bay Extreme introduces a more demanding graphical load, making it a suitable test for lightweight yet powerful devices equipped with ray tracing capabilities. The benchmark incorporates advanced graphical features, including ray-traced specular reflections and glass reflections across all surfaces, as well as ray-traced soft shadows from directional light sources, providing a more realistic and visually complex scene.

To further enhance the test, the benchmark includes a new scene area that adds a dynamic element to the test. This new section features a rival team, with both teams competing to assemble a solar panel array as quickly as possible. This not only increases the visual complexity but also adds a narrative layer to the benchmarking process.

One of the key features of Solar Bay Extreme is its extensive cross-platform support. The benchmark is available for Windows (both x86 and Arm architectures), macOS, iOS, and Android operating systems. This wide compatibility allows for direct performance comparisons across a diverse range of devices, from desktop PCs to smartphones and tablets.

In a move that will be welcomed by the community, UL Solutions has made the Solar Bay Extreme benchmark available as a free DLC update for all existing owners of 3DMark. This ensures that users can immediately access the new test and begin evaluating the ray tracing performance of their hardware without any additional cost.

The release of Solar Bay Extreme marks a significant step forward in cross-platform ray tracing benchmarking. By increasing the graphical workload and introducing new visual features, it provides a more challenging and accurate tool for assessing the real-world gaming performance of the latest generation of devices.

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