Alongside the introduction of the RTX 40 Series graphics cards, Nvidia has released a new tool that, if works as what’s being described and takes off, can really be a game-changer for game modding. In particular, 32-bit-based PC games running DirectX 8 or 9.
Nvidia has created Nvidia RTX Remix, which allows users to easily remaster supported DirectX 8 or DirectX 9 games with fixed function graphics pipelines.
The tool is created as a response to the graphic card chip maker (and also now an AI solutions company) taking a hand in modding Quake II to support ray-tracing features, to promote the first RTX 20 Series cards. Trying to add such tech in older, 32-bit games is hard, even for them, which had access to all the source code of the game.
The way that RTX Remix works is that it can “capture” graphical assets from supported games. This is done by the RTX Remix Runtime, which intercepts draw calls from the D3D9 runtime. The captured assets can then be imported to the Universal Scene Description (USD) 3D framework, which the Nvidia Omniverse platform is built on.
The assets can also be imported to any other Omniverse app or connector, and this includes industry-standard tools like Adobe Substance 3D Painter, Autodesk Maya, 3ds Max, Blender, SideFX Houdini, and Epic Games’ Unreal Engine.
The workflow is designed for collaboration, so mod teams can easily improve the captured assets together.
It’s not just the textures and models too. Modders can also add ray-tracing and other graphical effects in the environment.
Games like Mount & Blade and Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind can now have ray-tracing mods with this tool- and the extra lighting effects make the rather dark and muddy-looking graphics (by today’s standards) looks much more pleasant.
This sounds almost too good to be true, given the complexity of mod making (and game making) in general. RTX Remix making sounds as if it’s easy sounds scary, in a way, especially if modders do find it as easy as being presented here.
While Nvidia showed examples of RTX Remix in action on those titles, the game that has this feature completed is Valve’s Portal.
Portal With RTX will be released as DLC- free for owners of the game- this November. Nvidia created Portal with RTX all using Nvidia RTX Remix.
Previously, Nvidia also added ray-tracing in Minecraft, of all things.