Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti boosts No Man’s Sky, Biomutant, Crash Bandicoot

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti has been out for less than a week, but it’s already received its first major update. Whatever else you can say about Nvidia, the company works fast. If you’re one of the lucky few who got their hands on an RTX 3080 Ti GPU, you may want a copy of No Man’s Sky to go along with it. With the latest 3080 Ti driver, No Man’s Sky now supports Nvidia DLSS: a sophisticated AI algorithm that improves game performance on existing hardware. The new driver also delivers optimizations for a handful of other games, including Biomutant, Escape from Tarkov and Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time.

That information comes courtesy of a Nvidia press release, in which technical marketing content editor Andrew Burnes details the 3080 Ti’s first major driver update. While No Man’s Sky is the star of the show, the update also introduces Nvidia Reflex — a technology that helps optimize latency in competitive shooters — to Escape from Tarkov and War Thunder. Granted, barely anyone has a 3080 Ti at the moment, but it’s not as though these features will go away when the GPU becomes more widely available.

For No Man’s Sky, Nvidia DLSS aims to improve both the standard and VR experiences. On a standard Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080, DLSS can boost the frame rate from 78 frames per second to 122 fps at 4K resolution. Nvidia claims that the 3080 Ti patch can “double” No Man’s Sky’s performance, including maintaining a 90-fps frame rate in the VR version on an Oculus Quest 2.

War Thunder already incorporates DLSS technology; Escape from Tarkov doesn’t. But both of them will get Nvidia Reflex in this driver update. Nvidia claims that Reflex can reduce latency “by up to 43%,” which could be the difference between a vital shot connecting with its target, or missing completely.

Smaller updates include optimization settings for a variety of games. Chivalry 2 and Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 will have Game Ready updates, which should improve performance right out of the gate. Aim Lab, Biomutant, Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, Everspace 2 and Redout: Space Assault will now have “Optimal Settings” in the Nvidia GeForce Experience program. These tailor a game’s graphic presets to your individual system in order to improve performance.

Granted, all of this information sounds nice if you have a 3080 Ti — and perhaps a little esoteric if you don’t. The semiconductor shortage is still in full swing, and there’s no indication that the 3080 Ti will be any more widely available than the standard 3080 has been. Still, it’s good to know that when supply eventually increases, these GPUs will be ready to hit the ground running with a variety of games.

Marshall Honorof was a senior editor for Tom's Guide, overseeing the site's coverage of gaming hardware and software. He comes from a science writing background, having studied paleomammalogy, biological anthropology, and the history of science and technology. After hours, you can find him practicing taekwondo or doing deep dives on classic sci-fi.