Min-spec, 1080p/30 FPS with a GeForce GTX 1060: The Medium, first next-gen exclusive title on PC, has steep requirements

Bloober Team recently revealed updated system requirements for their upcoming next-gen exclusive The Medium. The game's steep minimum requirements could be a sign of things to come as we leave the cross-gen era, and as the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S/X become the baseline platforms. 

According to the updated requirements, The Medium demands a GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER or GeForce GTX 1060 for a min-spec, 1080p/30 FPS experience with graphics settings. While the GeForce GTX 1060 is getting a bit long in the tooth, it still delivers a solid 1080p experience in most AAA titles. Even Cyberpunk 2077 can run at 50-60 FPS, with a bit of settings management. 

The steep minimum requirements mean that owners of previous-gen workhorse cards like the RX 580 and the GeForce GTX 1050 Ti might not get a playable experience without dropping resolution and visual settings as low as they go. 

Owners of top-end cards like the Ampere GeForce RTX 3080 and the Radeon RX 6800 XT might have reason to rejoice, however: The Medium's built from the ground up for next-gen specs, meaning the top-end experience isn't just a refined version of what's running on eighth-gen consoles. 

Bloober's ray-tracing specs, in particular, could be cause for celebration for GeForce RTX 3080 owners. The "RT High" requirements are for a 4K/30 FPS experience. However, both the GeForce RTX 3080 and Radeon RX 6800 XT are included here as viable options. If the RX 6800 XT is able to reliably hit 30 FPS with ray-tracing maxed out, this means GeForce RTX 3080 owners actually have a decent shot at a 4K/60 FPS with DLSS. In Cyberpunk 2077, in contrast, the RTX 3080 was only good for a sub-40 FPS experience with ray-tracing and DLSS. RT functionality isn't even supported on RDNA2 cards hinting at truly appalling performance levels. 

The Medium arrives on January 28th. We should know more about its performance profile next week! 

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