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👩🦳 Nvidia introduces RTX Hair, a PC-specific graphical feature for realistic hair rendering
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👀 It aims to deliver lifelike hair in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle without significant performance impact
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📉 Previous attempts like HairWorks were visually impressive but caused performance issues
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🙌 RTX Hair marks a return to hardware-specific graphical enhancements in PC gaming
PC gaming may be seen as the place where gamers live harmoniously, never arguing over exclusivity or which console is best. But where’s the fun in that?
There used to be a time when Nvidia and AMD would offer specific graphical features that added something extra to a game. And no, I don’t just mean boring upscaling or frame generation tech.
Nvidia had PhysX – something I sorely miss. AMD had stuff like TressFX, which gave Lara Croft flowing, voluminous locks. TressFX was less impactful, admittedly, but boy did it look good.
Being able to switch on certain features added some magic to certain PC games. It also gave people more a reason to upgrade than simply eking out a few more FPS here and there. Batman: Arkham Asylum isn’t the same game with PhysX off, for example.
Thankfully, it seems like Nvidia is willing to experiment with PC-specific graphics-enhancing tech once again. And yes, it’s focusing on hair (again).
Remember Nvidia HairWorks? Well, now we’re getting RTX Hair on 5000 Series cards – a more boring name, admittedly, but it promises to make Indy’s hair in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle look more realistic.
Hair has always been tricky for developers to implement effectively. Creating convincing hair is taxing for a graphics card. And unfortunately, Nvidia’s first attempt, HairWorks, was also notorious for tanking performance in games like The Witcher 3.
RTX Hair promises more lifelike hair, without destroying your GPU. We’ll have to see whether RTX Hair is the real deal when an update comes to Indiana Jones and the Great Circle in September.
Adam Vjestica is The Shortcut’s Senior Editor. Formerly TechRadar’s Gaming Hardware Editor, Adam has also worked at Nintendo of Europe as a Content Marketing Editor, where he helped launch the Nintendo Switch. Follow him on X @ItsMrProducts.
