Dirt 4 Notebook and Desktop Benchmarks
Technology
While Dirt 4 looks amazing on screenshots, the engine behind the game - Codemaster's EGO version 4 - does show significant signs of aging, though not in the fully detailed, nicely textured cars with their very detailed and physically accurate damage engine, but rather in the surroundings and on the sides of the track. Despite lush vegetation and an impressive long-distance view, it leaves a lot to be desired. On closer inspection, you will notice the ground is somewhat mushy and soft even on maximum details.
The effects, on the other hand, are definitely worthy of praise. Whether it is smoke, dust, or the weather – the often dirty and gritty atmosphere of rally-sports has been captured very well. Lighting and illumination could use some improvement, though, in particular in regards to shadows.
Graphics settings are copious, and as was the case in previous iterations (Dirt Rally, Grid Autosport . . .) there are tons of tweaks and settings available that spread over four graphics menus (see screenshots below). Besides gamma, five so-called quality presets modify a total of 21 different settings in the “Advanced Graphics” menu. Obviously, these can also be adjusted individually.
Resolution, picture mode, and refresh rate are configured in a menu called “Video Mode”. Settings for vertical synchronization, anti-aliasing (CMAA or MSAA), and anisotropic filtering can be found here as well. All settings are applied immediately, and restarting the game is not necessary (fortunately, the intro videos can be skipped).
We liked the optional hints that explain each and every single graphics setting and the atmospheric soundtrack in particular. Loading times are decent, especially when started from an SSD. The game’s size was shocking though – a whopping 36 GB after installation are above average for a racing game.
Benchmark
Unfortunately, the settings menu does not contain an integrated benchmark option anymore. In previous games and the F1-series, the benchmark ran between 2-3 minutes and was well suited for testing older and less capable GPUs thanks to its continuous and repetitive cycle. Thus, we had to find an alternative, and our benchmarks are based on the first race in career mode (Dirt Clubman Cup) taking place on a cloudy day in a wooded area in Michigan. Using Fraps, we have captured the race up to the second checkpoint. A recording can be seen in the video below.
Since performance varies depending on track, weather conditions, and the race itself (for example: a GeForce GTX 960M had massive problems in the grass) and the game is usually played in third- or first-person perspective, we would recommend at least between 35-40 fps on average. The game seemed really smooth at around 60 fps.
Results
The slightly aged engine has a distinct advantage: it works well even on older hardware. Thus, Dirt 4 can be enjoyed on older integrated GPUs, such as the Intel HD Graphics 4600, at 1280x720 on minimum details. Medium details at 1366x768 are smooth on a GeForce 940M, and medium details at 1920x1080 require at least a GeForce GTX 950M.
FHD resolution at high details and 2x MSAA requires a GeForce GTX 960M or higher. The “Ultra” preset and 4x MSAA will be smooth on a GeForce GTX 970M, and 4K gaming on maximum settings without anti-aliasing will require at least a GeForce GTX 980. Optically, the differences between the various presets are not as obvious as one might think. While going from “Ultra Low” to “Medium” is immediately obvious (spectators, shadows . . .) the differences are less pronounced between the higher presets. We found the “Medium” preset to be decent enough and worked pretty well overall.
Dirt 4 | |
3840x2160 Ultra Preset AF:16x 1920x1080 Ultra Preset AA:4xMS AF:16x 1920x1080 High Preset AA:2xMS AF:8x 1920x1080 Medium Preset AF:4x 1366x768 Medium Preset AF:4x 1280x720 Ultra Low Preset | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 (Desktop), 6700K | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (Desktop), 6700K | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 Mobile, 6820HK | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980, 6700K | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (Desktop), 6700K | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 Mobile, 6820HK | |
AMD Radeon RX 480 (Desktop), 4790K | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970, 4790K | |
AMD Radeon RX 470 (Desktop), 4790K | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M, 4700MQ | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i7-7700HQ | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M, 4700MQ | |
AMD Radeon R7 370, 4790K | |
AMD Radeon RX 460 (Desktop), 4790K | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i7-7700HQ | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M, 6700HQ | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M, 4720HQ | |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M, 6700HQ | |
NVIDIA GeForce 940MX, 6700HQ | |
NVIDIA GeForce 940M, 5700HQ | |
AMD Radeon R9 M280X, FX-7600P | |
NVIDIA GeForce 920M, 2970M | |
Intel HD Graphics 4600, 4700MQ |
Overview
Test Systems
System | Graphics Card | Processor | RAM | Operating System |
---|---|---|---|---|
Desktop-PC I | MSI GeForce GTX 1080 (8 GB GDDR5X) MSI GeForce GTX 1070 (8 GB GDDR5) Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB GDDR5) Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 (4 GB GDDR5) |
Intel Core i7-6700K | 2x 8 GB DDR4 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
Desktop-PC II | Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti (11 GB GDDR5X) Asus GeForce GTX 980 Ti (6 GB GDDR5) XFX Radeon R9 Fury (4 GB HBM) Sapphire Radeon R9 290X (4 GB GDDR5) Sapphire Radeon R9 280X (3 GB GDDR5) MSI Radeon R7 370 (2 GB GDDR5) |
Intel Core i7-4790K | 2x 4 GB DDR3 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
Asus G752VS | Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 (8 GB GDDR5) | Intel Core i7-6820HK | 4x 16 GB DDR4 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
MSI GT62VR | Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB GDDR5) | Intel Core i7-6820HK | 4x 8 GB DDR4 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
MSI GE72 | Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti (4 GB GDDR5) | Intel Core i7-7700HQ | 2x 4 GB DDR4 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
Asus GL753VD | Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 (4 GB GDDR5) | Intel Core i7-7700HQ | 2x 8 GB DDR4 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
MSI GL62 | Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 (2 GB GDDR5) | Intel Core i7-7700HQ | 2x 4 GB DDR4 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
Schenker W504 | Nvidia GeForce GTX 980M (8 GB GDDR5) Nvidia GeForce GTX 970M (6 GB GDDR5) |
Intel Core i7-4700MQ | 2x 4 GB DDR3 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
MSI GE72 | Nvidia GeForce GTX 965M (2 GB GDDR5) | Intel Core i7-6700HQ | 1x 8 GB DDR4 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
Schenker XMG A505 | Nvidia GeForce GTX 960M (2 GB GDDR5) | Intel Core i7-4720HQ | 2x 4 GB DDR3 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
MSI PE60 | Nvidia GeForce GTX 950M (2 GB GDDR5) | Intel Core i7-6700HQ | 2x 4 GB DDR4 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
MSI GP62 | Nvidia GeForce 940M (2 GB DDR3) | Intel Core i7-5700HQ | 1x 8 GB DDR3 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
MSI CX61 | Nvidia GeForce 920M (2 GB DDR3) | Intel Celeron 2970M | 1x 8 GB DDR3 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
Asus N551ZU | AMD Radeon R9 M280X (4 GB GDDR5) | AMD FX-7600P | 2x 4 GB DDR3 | Windows 10 64 Bit |
4K Display | Nvidia driver | AMD driver | Intel driver |
---|---|---|---|
2 x Asus PB287Q | ForceWare 382.53 | Crimson 17.6.1 | 15.40.34.4624 |