Have you ever wondered how they rate gaming laptops and desktops? Well, aside from a bunch of hand-waving and pseudo-intellectual discussion, most hardware reviewers depend on a few important benchmarks, including 3DMark 11. 3DMark traditionally pounds graphics processors and CPUs with all kinds of great stuff – I remember running 3DMark in 2001 and seeing some amazing graphics including a fun space battle scene that pre-dated Halo 2 – and then it spits out a number.
FutureMark is releasing a new version of the software that will attack PCs with DirectX 11 graphics including new tessellation techniques to add amazing depth and detail to newer games.
The new software will appear at Computex and will be available for use in Q3 2010. A free version will also be available for stay-at-home amateur hardware pundits.
3DMark® 11 Announced, Trailer and Images Released
Deep Sea Tech Demo to be Shown at Computex, Taipei
2010 COMPUTEX TAIPEI
HELSINKI–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Futuremark®, the developer of the world’s most popular benchmarking software, today announced 3DMark® 11, the latest version of their industry standard benchmark for real-time 3D graphics. Designed to measure the performance of DirectX 11 gaming PCs, 3DMark 11 uses a native DirectX 11 engine created in-house. To accompany the announcement Futuremark has released a trailer and screenshots taken from a 3DMark 11 tech demo called “Deep Sea”.“So we are especially excited to announce 3DMark 11 and show the possibilities of DirectX 11 with the release of the Deep Sea trailer.”
Deep Sea is a demonstration of DirectX 11 technologies created using an early development build of the 3DMark 11 engine. The Deep Sea trailer features submersibles exploring the sea floor. Volumetric lighting illuminates the seabed with tessellation used to add rich detail to the rock, coral and manmade structures. Post processing delivers depth of field and other lens effects. The music is an original composition.“For over 10 years 3DMark has shown gamers what to expect from the next generation of real-time 3D graphics,” said Jukka Mäkinen, Futuremark CEO, “So we are especially excited to announce 3DMark 11 and show the possibilities of DirectX 11 with the release of the Deep Sea trailer.”
The trailer, a selection of screenshots and further information about 3DMark 11 can be found on a newly launched website: http://www.futuremark.com/benchmarks/3dmark11/teaser/
The 3DMark 11 Deep Sea tech demo will be shown publicly for the first time on the MSI booth at Computex in Taipei, from June 1 – 5.
3DMark 11 will be released in the third quarter of 2010. There will be a free edition available at launch. 3DMark 11 will join existing Futuremark benchmarks 3DMark Vantage for DirectX 10 and 3DMark06 for DirectX 9. Please visit the official website for more details.