Nvidia RTX 3060 Ti review: ray-tracing performance

We have the results of testing in three ray tracing enabled titles to share with you today: Control, Metro Exodus and Battlefield 5. Note that while all three games feature DLSS, this has been left disabled to give an apples-to-apples comparison with cards that don't include the feature. That means in Control, Metro and Battlefield 5, you can expect significantly faster frame-rates - and varying image quality - if you choose to use DLSS on the 3060 Ti. Note as well that we're testing each game at an intermediate resolution, 2560x1440, as this offers the best combination between image quality and workable frame-rates.

Control

Control is the showcase for ray tracing features on PC thus far, and we suggest you take a look at Alex Battaglia's video deep dive if you haven't seen it - you really get a sense of how much RT can make a difference when it's done right! Control includes individual settings for ray traced global illumination, reflections and shadows - pretty much all of the RT features available - and each has a significant cost. Of course, we're turning all the knobs to max, so let's look at the results.

Well, the 3060 Ti does a lot better than the RX 6000 series we tested most recently. In fact, as we run through the 'Corridor of Doom', the 3060 Ti manages to outgun the RX 6800 XT, a flagship-grade card that costs £600, by a comfortable four per cent. Compared to the RX 6800, the 3060 Ti is nearly 20 per cent faster - and remember, that's with performance-boosting DLSS disabled, so the margin could be even greater if you're willing to accept a softer-looking image. Checking out the other RTX 30-series cards, the 3060 Ti delivers 89 per cent of the performance of an RTX 3070, but only 63 per cent of the power of the flagship RTX 3080. Finally, compared to the RTX 2080 Super, the 3060 Ti is a massive 12 per cent faster.

Metro Exodus

We return to the fire and flames to the Metro Exodus standalone benchmark, but this time we've got the game's RTX global illumination and emissives enabled. With fewer RT features in use, we'd expect a smaller advantage for the 3060 Ti over last-gen hardware - and indeed, the margin between the 3060 Ti and 2080 Super drops from 12 per cent in Control to seven per cent here. The AMD cards also perform better, with the 3060 Ti averaging five per cent faster than the RX 6800 and around 10 per cent slower than the 6800 XT.

Battlefield 5

Our final RT test comes in Battlefield 5, during the opening cutscene and gameplay of the Tirailleur campaign. Only RT reflections are used here, but these are intense enough that we see a nine per cent lead for the RTX 3060 Ti over the 2080 Super. The 3060 Ti also manages to achieve 91 per cent of the result of the 3070, making it a good value candidate. The RX 6800 series' RT woes continue, with the 3060 Ti beating the RX 6800 XT by a hair and the 6800 by a solid 15 per cent.

As expected, the 3060 Ti's second-gen RT cores allow it to perform much better than its closest competitor, the 2080 Super, in games where ray tracing is used. The 3060 Ti also beat or matched the 6800 XT in two of three of our tests, underscoring the work that AMD will need to do to close the gap against Nvidia in Team Green's home turf. Now, let's wrap things up.

Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Ti Analysis

• Introduction, Hardware and Power Analysis
• Doom Eternal, Control, Borderlands 3, Shadow of the Tomb Raider - Game Benchmarks Part 1
• Death Stranding, Far Cry 5, Hitman 2, Assassin's Creed Odyssey - Game Benchmarks Part 2
• Metro Exodus, Dirt Rally 2, Assassin's Creed Unity - Game Benchmarks Part 3
• Control, Metro Exodus, Battlefield 5 - RTX Game Benchmarks [This Page]
• Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Ti - the Digital Foundry verdict