Black Myth: Wukong runs across a wide range of PC graphics hardware in rasterized mode, but its optional Very High full ray tracing is exceptionally demanding and favors high-end Nvidia GPUs in the August 2024 tests. For a useful estimate of how your current setup plays the game, run its free standalone benchmark with settings that match how you intend to play. Treat the published results as historical comparisons, not a 2026 GPU ranking.
What the Black Myth: Wukong PC benchmarks establish
Two independent 2024 benchmark campaigns tested the game across broad GPU selections: Tom’s Hardware tested 23 graphics cards, while TechSpot covered up to 41 GPUs across its configurations and resolutions. Both show why a benchmark result is meaningful only alongside its settings. Rasterized play and full ray tracing are very different workloads, and upscaling or frame generation can change what an FPS number represents.
The practical takeaway is that full ray tracing is optional. Tom’s Hardware found the game attractive in rasterization mode, where it uses software-based Lumen lighting when full RT is off. Its assessment was that Very High full RT is aimed at roughly RTX 4070-class hardware or faster in that test context. This is a recommendation for players prioritizing that demanding feature, not a minimum requirement to play the game.
In its August 23, 2024 test, Tom’s Hardware used a system with an Intel Core i9-13900K, 32 GB of DDR5 memory, and Windows 11. It tested 23 GPUs from Nvidia, AMD, and Intel with Nvidia preview driver 560.87 (which it said had the same game optimizations as public driver 560.94), AMD Adrenalin 24.7.1, and Intel driver 5971. Settings included manually selected 67% scaling, Medium and Cinematic presets, rasterization baselines, and Low and Very High full RT. These are historical test conditions, not a current driver-to-driver comparison.
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TechSpot’s separate campaign used two Ryzen 7 7800X3D systems and Nvidia driver 560.87 or AMD Adrenalin 24.7.1. Its Very High RT test paired the Cinematic preset with 75% upscaling and frame generation; it also tested Medium RT and native configurations without upscaling, frame generation, or ray tracing. Those different test configurations are useful for understanding the game, but their FPS figures cannot be compared as though the conditions were identical.
How to check how well your current setup plays the game
The game has a free standalone benchmark that can help you assess your PC before buying or adjusting the full game. Tom’s Hardware says the utility uses the same built-in benchmark as the game; TechSpot describes it as a free Steam download. Tom’s Hardware measured its benchmark sequence at about 145 seconds in its 2024 test.
- Get the free standalone benchmark from Steam. It is intended to let you check your system’s performance without treating an online chart as a prediction for every PC.
- Choose the settings you actually plan to use. Set the output resolution, graphics preset, upscaler and scaling percentage, ray-tracing level, and frame-generation state before you run it.
- Run the benchmark and assess the result in context. A run reflects that sequence and those settings; it is not a guarantee of performance in every gameplay scene.
- Change one setting at a time if performance is unsatisfactory. For example, compare rasterization with full RT disabled, or reduce the resolution or rendering scale, then run the benchmark again to see the effect on your own system.
How to compare GPU benchmark results fairly
Before comparing two published FPS figures, verify that the tests match on each of these axes. A difference in even one can change performance substantially.
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- Output resolution: compare like with like, such as 1440p against 1440p, rather than assuming a 4K result predicts 1440p performance.
- Preset: Medium and Cinematic do not impose the same workload.
- Ray tracing: note whether full RT is off, Low, Medium, or Very High.
- Upscaling and render scale: record the upscaler and percentage. Native rendering is not equivalent to a 67% or 75% render scale.
- Frame generation: distinguish generated output FPS from the base rendered frame rate. TechSpot cautions that rates reported with frame generation enabled overstate the underlying rate.
- Test system and software: note the CPU, driver, benchmark sequence, and test date; the named 2024 results used particular hardware and driver versions.
- Source of the result: separate independent measurements from figures reported by a GPU vendor.
Frame generation can make displayed output smoother, but a higher generated FPS figure is not the same as rendering that many frames directly. When judging responsiveness or comparing GPUs, look for the base rate and whether generation was enabled, rather than reading the largest FPS number in isolation.
What Very High full ray tracing means for different GPUs
Rasterized play
Players who want to play the game without full path tracing have a wider range of graphics hardware to consider. Tom’s Hardware said the game remains visually appealing in pure rasterization mode and recommended that AMD and Intel GPU owners generally stick to rasterization based on its 2024 tests. That is a conclusion about the tested implementations and drivers, not a claim about every later update or GPU.
Very High full ray tracing
Tom’s Hardware found that Very High full RT substantially improved visual detail but sharply reduced performance, especially on non-Nvidia GPUs. It positioned the mode around RTX 4070-class hardware or faster in its test context. The game does not require an RTX GPU: the distinction is whether a player specifically wants this optional, particularly demanding rendering mode.
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Tom’s Hardware also observed more ghosting and artifacts with the FSR implementation it tested than with DLSS. That is a reported image-quality observation from its August 2024 test, not a universal comparison of current versions of either upscaler.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.NVIDIA’s DLSS 3 figures are vendor claims, not independent benchmark results
NVIDIA’s August 2024 GeForce News page reported nearly 100 FPS at 4K for the RTX 4090, 74 FPS for the RTX 4080 SUPER, and 66 FPS for the RTX 4070 Ti SUPER, with full ray tracing and settings maxed. NVIDIA attributes those figures to DLSS 3. They should not be read as native-resolution, frame-generation-off results or as measurements from either independent test campaign.
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|---|---|---|---|
| GeForce RTX 4090 | Nearly 100 FPS at 4K | Full ray tracing; settings maxed; DLSS 3 enabled | Vendor-reported launch-era figure, not a native or frame-generation-off independent result. |
| GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER | 74 FPS at 4K | Full ray tracing; settings maxed; DLSS 3 enabled | Vendor-reported launch-era figure, not directly comparable to independent test charts. |
| GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER | 66 FPS at 4K | Full ray tracing; settings maxed; DLSS 3 enabled | Vendor-reported launch-era figure; the cited page does not make it a native, generation-off result. |
These NVIDIA numbers describe its launch configuration, while Tom’s Hardware and TechSpot report independent results under their own systems and settings. Compare them only when the resolution, preset, RT level, scaling, frame-generation state, and measurement source are clear.
Quick Recap
Sources and test context
- Tom’s Hardware, Jarred Walton, “Black Myth Wukong PC benchmarks: A tour de force for Nvidia’s ray tracing hardware [Updated],” August 23, 2024 — GPU test methodology, hardware and driver conditions, performance comparisons, and image-quality observations.
- TechSpot, “Black Myth: Wukong GPU Benchmark,” August 19, 2024 — separate GPU test campaign and discussion of upscaling and frame-generation conditions.
- NVIDIA GeForce News, “Black Myth: Wukong Out Now With Full Ray Tracing & DLSS 3,” August 2024 — vendor feature guidance and DLSS 3 performance claims.
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