Forward-looking: Game developers often make excited fans wait years for remastered versions of their favorite titles after announcing them. However, this problem may soon be a thing of the past. Nvidia has announced that its RTX Remix toolkit is going open source, opening up a slew of possibilities for gamers with a soft spot for the classics.
RTX Remix is Nvidia's modding suite that allows enthusiasts to apply cutting-edge graphics technologies like ray tracing to older DirectX 8 and 9-era games. It has already been used to stunning effect on titles like Half-Life 2, SWAT 4, Max Payne, and Need for Speed Underground 2.
RTX Remix consists of two main components: a runtime renderer that expands game rendering capabilities and a toolkit for modding assets and materials. The renderer was open-sourced last year, and now the toolkit is following suit.
According to Nvidia, RTX Remix has already attracted over 20,000 modders who have crafted more than 100 remasters. By making the platform open source, the company hopes to enable the community to push boundaries even further. The full toolkit will be available for download later in June, with a beta already out for eager users.
Nvidia has added some fresh features, including a new REST API that lets you connect RTX Remix to popular digital creation tools like Blender for working on 3D assets. You'll also be able to integrate generative AI apps like ComfyUI to automate some of the remastering grunt work. Developers are getting an SDK as well, allowing RTX Remix's renderer to be deployed into other DirectX 8/9 applications and games.
During the open-source announcement, Nvidia showcased RTX Remix's new capabilities by running it on the original 2007 Portal game in real-time. They demonstrated intelligent upscaling of textures, applying physically-based rendering for more realistic lighting, and even using AI text prompts to customize the game's look on the fly.
For gamers, this could be a game-changer. Even if you have zero modding skills, the most basic form of RTX Remix can now seamlessly upscale your favorite old game's textures and apply vastly improved lighting. Modding experts can go much further, creating full remasters, like the recent work done with Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell by modder Skurtyyskirts.
There is one potential downside – for now, actually developing RTX Remix mods still requires Nvidia GPU hardware due to proprietary tech dependencies. AMD GPU owners can enjoy the finished remasters, but they may have to wait for more open-source solutions to get in on the creation side.
Nvidia's RTX Remix goes open source, giving classic games an AI-powered remastering renaissance
