What makes the ID Tech engine so optimized?

[Iggy Wolf]

This game, alongside its sequel and the Wolfenstein reboot games that also run on ID Tech are REALLY well optimized. I'm curious what exactly makes it more optimized than other engines of its kind or even in different genres? Is it the culling? Or that the engine is more GPU dependent than CPU dependent?

I mean, it's one of the few games to look really good while also allowing the FPS to reach as high as most high refresh rate monitors (144, 165, and 240 Hz monitors). It seems like it has more to do with the fact that apart from enemies, there's no much else being rendered other than environmental effects and shadows and lights. Basically, not much done on the CPU side, and everything that's on the GPU side doesn't really push most GPUs.

[chill out]

It's funny because when this game was new, I was surprised it ran as bad as it did given it didn't really look that much better than what came before it.
The fact of the matter is, newer games do more math on each pixel, regardless of if it's optimal or not. If you compare the featureset this game provides against contemporaries from the PS360 era, you can go from 25% load at 500mhz to 25x the clockspeed and more than double the usage in this game. Does it really look fifty times better?

TL:DR diminishing returns hit a long time ago for rasterization.

[Limygeorge]

Yes, that's very true. I remember at launch in 2016 there were many technical complaints.
But it got better over time - can't remember if that "time," was due to optimization or simply it took so long that later generations of hardware auto solved the problem?

One thing I am sure about, except for the date, was the addition of an extra super high graphics setting called "nighmare mode." It would only show up on the settings menu if GPU had in excess of - 8GB Vram. My old but great gtx 1080ti Pascal had 11GB, so I could use it.
Can't remember if it was better though.

What annoys me, is a bit off topic, but it is 3 gens of gpu back and all GTX 1080ti had a full 11GB DDR5X vram.

Now I own a RTX 3080ti Asus Strix gaming OC, but all time time later it only has 12GB vram.
I know there is more to it like faster vram, blah blah.. but I don't buy it. An addition of 1GB over several years and two full gpu generations certainly isn't impressive!

[Wiesshund]

Originally posted by Limygeorge:

Now I own a RTX 3080ti Asus Strix gaming OC, but all time time later it only has 12GB vram.
I know there is more to it like faster vram, blah blah.. but I don't buy it. An addition of 1GB over several years and two full gpu generations certainly isn't impressive!

I dont think you'd like the price if it had 24gb of VRAM, VRAM is not cheap
Not sure why nightmare mode would only show up if you had in excess of 8gb VRAM?
it doesnt use up 8gb

[Limygeorge]

No it doesn't use that much, it may have been 6GB. But it was like that. VRAM wasn't as fast then and only top end cards could play maxed out - ALL settings.

I think I wasn't clear, sorry. I don't mean nighmare mode game play. It was an extra graphics setting, just one, SHADOWS, which adds one level above level Ultra. But that only appears with either 6 or 8 GB cards. It makes sense, in 2016, people were still using 2GB cards at the low end. 4GB was kind of normal. 7 years ago!

About comparing video card vram from then and now - I was being sarcastic. Guess it doesn't work in text - sarcasm I mean.

I just played now, last post I hadn't started yet so my memory is poor. Great thing is I maxed out all graphics, and used the "nightmare," Shadows setting and man, on modern gear it is smooth. My monitor is 170Hz, but I set to Max 150fps. It never dropped even once! Next time I'll run it at monitor max.

Still a fantastic game.

[Wiesshund]

i know it has nightmare in gfx settings
but with it on, it doesnt even touch 8gb of vram

maybe the limit was 6 as you said? it does go over 6
a 4gb card would not cut it vram wise

I used to run it on another PC with an RX 580
Ran great on it, did not look as pretty since the game only lets you set what options will fit in 4gb vram, but it ran well, at 1440p too.

Eternal looks great too with everything maxed out

[Limygeorge]

Yeah, although I have over 150 hours logged, today was the first time I played for years.

My memory sucks so I won't guess anything.

I do want to say though, that playing it again today was great. Next play all maxed out at 165 fps limit.

Id forgotten how much enjoyment it can give!!