Remedy Runs Real-Time Ray Tracing in Northlight With Nvidia RTX
NVIDIA GeForce
Nvidia RTX and Microsoft DirectX Raytracing eliminate reliance on pre-baked lightmaps by enabling dynamic indirect lighting and contact shadows in real time.
AI-assisted summary of NVIDIA RTX Real-Time Ray Tracing Tech Demo From Remedy Entertainment — original source. Check the original for full context.
Source published:
Key ideas
- Remedy Entertainment demonstrated real-time ray tracing running inside its proprietary Northlight engine. (0:15)
- The showcase leverages NVIDIA RTX technology running on Volta-architecture GPUs via Microsoft's DirectX Raytracing (DXR) API and the GameWorks SDK. (0:15)
- NVIDIA announced an upcoming GameWorks SDK ray-tracing denoiser module to automatically remove film grain-like noise without manual developer overhead.
Detailed notes
## Background Published by NVIDIA GeForce on YouTube on March 19, 2018, this video presents an early technology demonstration of real-time ray tracing developed by Remedy Entertainment. According to the description, the demo runs on Remedy's Northlight engine using NVIDIA RTX technology, Volta-architecture GPUs, the GameWorks SDK, and Microsoft's DirectX Raytracing (DXR) API to showcase significant advancements in in-game lighting and shadowing.
## TL;DR The showcase demonstrates the graphical capabilities of real-time ray tracing within Remedy Entertainment's proprietary Northlight engine. Powered by Volta architecture and the DirectX Raytracing API, the sequence exhibits dynamic lighting, contact shadows, and complex indirect illumination without relying on traditional pre-baked lightmaps or screen-space approximations. The visual presentation highlights how these combined technologies elevate graphical fidelity, supported by an upcoming GameWorks SDK denoiser module designed to clean film grain-like noise without added development overhead.
## Atmosphere & style The presentation is wordless and contemplative, completely omitting spoken dialogue or technical narration in favor of an atmospheric, tension-filled soundscape. Accompanied by swelling instrumental music and deep, resonant vocal drone chants, the demonstration carries an eerie and meditative mood. Watching it feels like a moody cinematic art piece where the solemn, echoing audio accentuates the realism and subtle dynamics of the shifting light and shadows.
## Bulletin - [00:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkhBlmKtEAk&t=15s) Remedy Entertainment demonstrated real-time ray tracing running inside its proprietary Northlight engine. - [00:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkhBlmKtEAk&t=15s) The showcase leverages NVIDIA RTX technology running on Volta-architecture GPUs via Microsoft's DirectX Raytracing (DXR) API and the GameWorks SDK. - NVIDIA announced an upcoming GameWorks SDK ray-tracing denoiser module to automatically remove film grain-like noise without manual developer overhead.
## Key takeaways - [00:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkhBlmKtEAk&t=15s) Remedy Entertainment created a real-time ray tracing tech demo powered by their in-house Northlight game engine. - [00:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkhBlmKtEAk&t=15s) The technological pipeline relies on NVIDIA RTX, Volta-architecture GPUs, the GameWorks SDK, and Microsoft DirectX Raytracing (DXR). - [00:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkhBlmKtEAk&t=15s) Real-time ray tracing significantly enhances fidelity in lighting, contact shadows, and ambient reflections within gaming environments. - [00:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkhBlmKtEAk&t=15s) The Northlight engine calculates complex indirect illumination dynamically without depending entirely on pre-baked lightmaps or screen-space tricks. - An upcoming ray-tracing denoiser in the GameWorks SDK will eliminate grain-like noise to produce cleaner visual results effortlessly. - [00:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkhBlmKtEAk&t=15s) The demonstration opts for an eerie, ambient musical score with resonant choral drone tones instead of spoken commentary. - [00:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkhBlmKtEAk&t=15s) Dynamic lighting and contact shadowing immediately react to environmental changes throughout the runtime demo. - [00:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkhBlmKtEAk&t=15s) The project serves as an early architectural showcase for hardware-accelerated real-time ray tracing in next-generation video games.
## Detailed walkthrough ### [00:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkhBlmKtEAk&t=15s) Real-Time Ray Tracing Showcase and Ambient Audio
This tech demonstration presents real-time ray tracing running in Remedy Entertainment’s Northlight engine, powered by NVIDIA RTX technology, Volta-architecture GPUs, the GameWorks SDK, and the Microsoft DirectX Raytracing (DXR) API. Rather than featuring spoken dialogue or developer commentary, the presentation unfolds entirely through visual demonstration accompanied by atmospheric background music and ambient, resonant vocal chanting tones. The audio creates a moody, tense soundscape that builds across the demonstration, underscoring the dynamic lighting, reflections, and shadowing capabilities of the engine.
As the music swells and shifts into deep ambient tones, the demo highlights the leap in visual fidelity made possible by real-time ray tracing in games. The lighting and contact shadows react dynamically within the environment, illustrating how the Northlight engine handles complex indirect illumination without relying solely on traditional pre-baked lightmaps or screen-space approximations. The soundtrack maintains an eerie, meditative atmosphere throughout the sequence, featuring deep choral drone tones that resolve into the closing moments of the showcase.
- The tech demo showcases real-time ray tracing developed by Remedy Entertainment utilizing their proprietary Northlight engine. - Key underlying technologies enabling the real-time lighting and shadows include NVIDIA RTX, NVIDIA Volta-architecture GPUs, the GameWorks SDK, and Microsoft's DirectX Raytracing (DXR) API. - The video presentation contains no spoken narration or dialogue, relying on an instrumental score with ambient vocal drone sounds. - According to the accompanying production notes, an upcoming ray-tracing denoiser module within the GameWorks SDK is designed to eliminate film grain-like noise without demanding additional development overhead.
## Mentioned NVIDIA, NVIDIA GeForce, NVIDIA RTX, Remedy Entertainment, Northlight engine, Volta, GameWorks SDK, Microsoft DirectX Raytracing
## Video description NVIDIA RTX Technology, Volta-architecture GPUs, the GameWorks SDK, and the Microsoft DirectX Raytracing API make real-time ray tracing a reality for games. Check out this Northlight-engine tech demo from Remedy Entertainment for an early look at how real-time ray tracing can vastly improve the quality of lighting and shadowing in games. Learn more on GeForce.com: https://www.geforce.com/whats-new/articles/nvidia-rtx-real-time-game-ray-tracing
Please note that a ray-tracing denoiser module is coming to the GameWorks SDK, which will enable developers to remove film grain-like noise without any additional time-sapping development work, meaning the end result will look even better.
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[Source](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkhBlmKtEAk)