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NVIDIA RTX 5090 GPU purportedly 33% to 50% faster in 3DMark, actual gameplay is more like 20%

Leaked benchmarks show some eye-opening synthetic gains, but real-world gaming is more like a 20% uplift on average compared to NVIDIA's RTX 4090.

NVIDIA RTX 5090 GPU purportedly 33% to 50% faster in 3DMark, actual gameplay is more like 20%
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Tech Reporter
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TL;DR: NVIDIA's RTX 5090 GPU shows a major performance increase in synthetic benchmarks over the RTX 4090 based on apparent leaked benchmarks, but real-world gaming gains are around 20% (with DLSS 4 put to one side). Some gamers might be disappointed here to an extent, but we need to wait for the reviews, which are supposedly imminent.

NVIDIA's RTX 5090 GPU has seen a few purported benchmarks aired at this point - hardly surprising as the reviews are almost here, if the grapevine is to be believed - and we've caught another, but this time it's a gaming-related effort.

Enthusiast gamers are hoping for a big leap with the NVIDIA RTX 5090 graphics card (Image Credit: Pexels)

Enthusiast gamers are hoping for a big leap with the NVIDIA RTX 5090 graphics card (Image Credit: Pexels)

Not an in-game benchmark, sadly, but nonetheless it's interesting to see a 3DMark result for the Blackwell flagship, albeit with all the usual caveats attached to any such rumors.

This comes from VideoCardz which has obtained 3DMark data from a few reviewers. We're told that the uplift for the RTX 5090 compared to the RTX 4090 is 33% in Time Spy, 36% in Fire Strike, and 46% in the other tests (Port Royal, Speed Way, and the newest effort, Steel Nomad - creeping over 50% in the latter).

That sounds impressive enough - for results not involving DLSS 4, certainly - but the catch is that synthetic benchmarks put the RTX 5090 in a better light than actual real-world testing.

While we don't get any figures for comparative in-game benchmarking, VideoCardz says that reviewers indicate that the rough overall level of performance gain for real-world gaming benchmarks is about 20% - but obviously take that assertion with even more salt. VideoCardz adds that this is just a vague average, and it can vary significantly from game to game (of course), but also with different resolutions and graphics settings.

A disappointing showing?

A generational increase of 20% is way below the weighty figures that the rumor mill put in our heads throughout the development of the Blackwell GeForce line-up. If you recall, the likes of 50% to 70% were mentioned for the gen-on-gen increase with the flagship RTX 5090.

What that might well reflect, however, is the performance boost seen when the RTX 5090 (and other Blackwell GPUs) get a huge increase from DLSS 4 and its new frame generation feature (MFG). In these scenarios, according to NVIDIA's own benchmarks, we're looking at a doubling of frame rates in some games (or even more); but this isn't an apples-to-apples comparison (with the frame generation seen in DLSS 3).

So, while a 20% uplift in gaming overall might sound a bit disappointing, it'll vary a fair bit, and there are going to be huge gains - as we've already seen - from DLSS 4 where it's supported.

Ultimately, we'll have to wait until the reviews come out - seemingly tomorrow - before we can get a more rounded picture of how the RTX 5090 shapes up versus the RTX 4090. Although we already know a couple of important points, of course: the new flagship uses a lot more power (575W, or more with higher-end third-party boards) and it'll damage your wallet a fair bit more, too.

There's no doubting it'll be the best gaming graphics card around for those who can afford it, though - or indeed find stock, which might be tricky if other chatter from the grapevine is correct.

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Darren has written for numerous magazines and websites in the technology world for almost 30 years, including TechRadar, PC Gamer, Eurogamer, Computeractive, and many more. He worked on his first magazine (PC Home) long before Google and most of the rest of the web existed. In his spare time, he can be found gaming, going to the gym, and writing books (his debut novel – ‘I Know What You Did Last Supper’ – was published by Hachette UK in 2013).

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