Ultra Graphics Settings Are a Scam: Why High Is Good Enough, if Not Better, for Most Players

A hardware reviewer for IGN tested several visually demanding games to determine whether "Ultra" graphics presets are worth the performance cost, concluding that most players would be better served by dropping to "High" settings instead. Despite having access to top-tier hardware, including an AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D and a Radeon RX 7900 XTX, the author argues that modern upscaling technology makes the visual gap between Ultra and lower presets negligible for most players, while the framerate gains are substantial.

The test method involved running games at their highest playable settings (at least 30 frames per second) with different upscaling levels, then comparing them against settings turned down one notch, such as High instead of Ultra. In Cyberpunk 2077, for example, maxing out ray tracing and path tracing at 4K with quality upscaling produced only around 20 frames per second, whereas switching to balanced upscaling made the game playable with barely any noticeable visual difference. The article, part of a wider four-game test, argues that the pursuit of Ultra settings is largely marketing hype rather than a meaningful visual necessity for most gamers.