AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT review: the typical performance upgrade spectrum

We conclude our testing of traditional, rasterised game performance with AC Unity, released in 2014 and currently enjoying a new lease of life on Xbox Series X's back-compat catalogue - plus two fresher titles, Metro Exodus (note: not the Enhanced Edition!) and Dirt Rally 2.0.

In order to deliver precise results, our performance data is more than just a readout of an average frame-rate at the end of a test. Instead, we use the FCAT tool built into Rivatuner Statistics Server (RTSS), which overlays a coloured border to the left side of the screen. Each new frame is represented by another coloured box in the sequence - and its height signifies the time it took to generate. We capture a direct feed of the game footage and border from the graphics card we're testing, analysing the resultant video file with our own tools to essentially write down the frame-time for each frame. This metadata is uploaded to the Eurogamer site, then rendered by the server into the live widgets you see below, allowing us to choose the comparisons you'll find most interesting - while giving you the power to make your own selections too.

Metro Exodus

The Metro Exodus benchmark is a convenient way to adjudge expected in-game performance, and can be found as a standalone program ('Benchmark.exe') in the game's install directory. From here, you can choose from a wide range of presets, settings and resolutions, plus run the game several times in a row to guarantee accurate results - you even get a nice frame-time graph at the end. We're using the Ultra preset here, if you want to play along, and we have RT results on the next page.

Amusingly, the new card's 1080p Metro performance falls exactly between the RTX 3060 and 3060 Ti: 18 percent faster than the 3060, but the 3060 Ti is 18 percent faster than the 6600 XT. The new AMD card is also six percent faster than the outgoing RX 5700 XT, so you're getting better performance while paying a little less than that card launched for. The RX 6600 XT nails a 60fps average at 1440p, but the 3060 Ti is 23 percent faster here and the gap from the 6600 XT to the RX 5700 XT falls to three percent.

Dirt Rally 2.0

Dirt Rally 2.0's benchmark is hard to set up, but runs a treat once you've got the XML files figured out. It's also plenty long, encompassing an a full section of a point-to-point rally race, making it one of the longest repeatable stretches of actual gameplay in an integrated benchmark. This is one of the better RX 6600 XT results too, with a commanding 22 percent advantage for Team Red's newest recruit over the six-month-old RTX 3060. The RTX 3060 Ti remains on top in the sub-$400 category though, with a 12 percent advantage at Full HD. If we opt for Quad HD, the advantage the 3060 Ti holds over the 6600 XT stretches to 21 percent. The 6600 XT really runs out of stamina at higher resolutions, huh?

Assassin's Creed Unity

AC Unity made its DF reputation by showcasing CPU limitations and highlighting issues with driver limitations, and this venerable member of the 2021 GPU test suite still has the power to trip up modern graphics hardware. The RX 6600 XT records one of its best results against the RX 5700 XT, with a 19 percent lead at 1080p, while the RTX 3060 Ti is just eight percent faster than the Red Devil card we tested. Again though, the RX 6600 XT struggles at 1440p, with the 3060 Ti's advantage growing to a massive 28 percent.

So that's the standard benchmark suite out of the way. Now, let's see how the 6600 XT performs in RT workloads.

AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT analysis

• Introduction and hardware 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 [This Page]
• Control, Metro Exodus, Battlefield 5 - RT game benchmarks
• AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT - the Digital Foundry verdict