Gaming graphics have advanced considerably over the last three decades, with consoles and PCs now capable of producing realistic gameplay in 4K, if you’ve got the right tech. With the technology improving, it’s only logical that games have advanced to guzzle up more processing power, which is why we’ve gathered up the most graphically demanding games.
Flight Simulator 2020
Microsoft’s Flight Simulator 2020 is a mammoth of a game, taking up around 150GB, which means it can take some time to install. This game has incredible real-world graphics and turned the simulation genre on its head when it was released. To facilitate this game, data is pulled from satellites to make the flying experience as close to real as possible. Not only are the graphics incredible, but Bing Maps is also used to make the earth’s landscapes realistic, which means you can fly over your own house for a birds-eye view.
Cyberpunk 2077
Cyberpunk 2077 broke the internet when it was first released, and not for good reasons. The game was extremely buggy on consoles and budget PCs and the game became an instant meme. However, CD Projekt Red has since released patches to iron out a few of the kinks, with only low-spec devices now struggling with the game. If you want to play the game on a console, you will need to have the Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5 for the best experience. Alternatively, you can get yourself a high-powered PC, like these Intel Gaming NUCs; the minimum recommended spec is a 6GB GPU paired with 16GB RAM.
Grand Theft Auto V
Grand Theft Auto V has been on the run for over 7 years, but it’s still got first-class graphics when ultra is activated. The game has an extensive story, which means it takes up 65GB of space; older console editions took 2 discs to run. Over the years, the multiplayer community has blown up, with people still signing in to enjoy San Andreas and Los Santos.
Halo Infinite
Halo Infinite is the latest release in Microsoft’s flagship franchise and brings veterans and new players into the world of Master Chief. Unfortunately, the story element of the game doesn’t quite stand up to previous entries, but the graphics more than compensate for this. You can play this game on an Xbox Series S|X or a high-end computer.
Forza Horizon 5
The Forza franchise is another Microsoft giant, with the popular Forza Horizon spinning off the Forza Motorsport games. Horizon takes people to a racing festival and is onto its 5th instalment, which takes drivers to Mexico. There are over 700 cars in this game and the map is extensive and almost 100% traversable. This game is extremely detailed and is arguably the best within the racing genre, which means you’ll benefit from having a high-end gaming PC.
Technology has improved graphics capabilities enormously over the last three decades, which means games now take much more to operate. The titles listed above are arguably the most graphically intense games on the market, but they’re all worth a play.