Benchmark Results: Hardcore Details
With Hardcore details enabled, the game looks subtly better than it does with the Advanced setting. As we mentioned previously, the demo had been disabled before we could take comparative screenshots, so it’s difficult to be more precise than that. We’ll have another look at the difference when we have our hands on the full release version. But for now, you can see what kind of hardware is necessary to run Crysis 2 at maximum visual fidelity:
At this setting, the GeForce GTX 460 and Radeon HD 6850 are able to muster a minimum frame rate over 30 FPS, although the Radeon HD 5750, 5770, GeForce 550 Ti, and GT 450 come close, achieving more than 25 FPS minimums. The lesser cards can’t even reach 20 FPS when the going gets tough.
As the resolution is raised, only the GeForce GTX 460, Radeon HD 6850, and higher-priced options remain viable. Lesser models get eliminated, but we’re still seeing sub-$200 graphics cards able to deal with the highest level of detail at this respectable resolution. Certainly, this was not the case with the original Crysis.
Here we see the highest settings and resolution tested, and the GeForce GTX 460 and Radeons 6850 and 6870 are left out with minimum frame rates below 30 FPS (although the Radeon HD 6870 almost makes the cut with 27 FPS). If smooth performance is what you’re looking for at 1080p with maximum detail, you’re going to need a GeForce GTX 560 Ti or Radeon HD 6950, at least.