Intel’s Arc Battlemage GPUs Aim to Shake Up the Budget Gaming Scene

For years, PC gamers on a budget have suffered. The combination of the pandemic, cryptocurrency mining, and the rise of AI has created a perfect storm, driving up the prices of graphics cards to exorbitant levels. What was once considered a budget GPU now costs $300 or more, often with crippling memory configurations that restrict gaming to 1080p resolution unless visual quality is sacrificed.

But Intel is stepping up to the plate with its new Arc "Battlemage" GPUs, promising to deliver affordable performance that doesn’t compromise on features. The company recently unveiled the Arc B580, priced at $249 and launching on December 13th, and the Arc B570, coming on January 16th for $219.

The Arc B580 is particularly noteworthy. Intel claims it not only surpasses Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 4060 in raw frame rates but also boasts a 12GB memory system designed specifically for 1440p gaming. This is a significant advantage over the RTX 4060, which suffers from a meager 8GB of memory despite its higher price tag.

XeSS 2 and XeLL: Enhancing Performance and Reducing Latency

As if the price and performance weren’t appealing enough, Intel is further sweetening the deal with XeSS 2, a new version of its AI super-resolution technology. XeSS 2 introduces frame generation, similar to Nvidia’s DLSS 3, to boost performance even further. In addition, Intel is introducing Xe Low Latency (XeLL), a feature designed to significantly reduce latency in supported games.

The combination of raw power, ample memory, AI-enhanced upscaling, and latency reduction makes the Arc B580 a potentially game-changing option for budget-conscious PC gamers. It’s an upgrade that those still using older cards like the GTX 1060 should seriously consider.

Battlemage Architecture: Efficiency and Performance Improvements

Intel’s initial foray into the GPU market with its "Alchemist" Arc cards in late 2022 was met with the inevitable bugs and issues associated with first-generation products. However, Intel has been diligently addressing these problems with consistent driver updates, significantly improving performance and squashing bugs.

According to Intel Fellow Tom Petersen, software efficiency was a major focus during the development of Battlemage. The goal was to optimize the software to fully unleash the potential of Intel’s hardware. Battlemage incorporates several architectural improvements, such as transforming vector engines into a single structure, supporting native SIMD16 instructions, and enhancing the ray tracing and XMX AI capabilities of the Xe core. These enhancements contribute to smoother and better overall performance.

The performance gains from Battlemage’s hardware efficiency are illustrated by comparing the rendering of a Fortnite frame on the new Arc B580 versus the previous-generation A750. The time required to render a frame decreased from 19ms to a much smoother 13ms.

The Arc B580 delivers a remarkable 70 percent increase in performance per Xe core compared to the last-generation Arc A750 and a 50 percent increase in performance per watt. These are significant leaps in performance from a single generation.

Memory Configuration: A Key Advantage

The memory configuration of the Arc B580 and B570 is a key differentiator. Nvidia and AMD’s current budget gaming options typically come with only 8GB of VRAM connected to a limited 128-bit bus. This effectively forces gamers to stick to 1080p resolution. The Arc B580, on the other hand, boasts 12GB of fast GDDR6 memory over a wider 192-bit bus. This makes it genuinely suitable for 1440p gaming, unlike its competitors.

The Arc B570 scales things down slightly to achieve its $219 price point but still retains the same fundamental memory advantages. The new Intel GPUs use a standard 8-pin power connector, avoiding the complexities of the 12VHPWR connectors.

Intel plans to release Limited Edition reference GPUs for the B580, featuring a new, smaller design with blow-through cooling. Custom cards from third-party partners will also be available. The B570 launch will be exclusive to custom boards, with no Limited Edition reference model planned.

Overclocking and Gaming App

Intel is also introducing a redesigned gaming app that offers advanced overclocking capabilities, including the ability to adjust voltage and frequency offsets.

Performance Claims

Intel claims that the Arc B580 offers an average of 25 percent faster performance than the previous-generation, higher-tier Arc A770 across a test suite of 40 games. Compared to Nvidia’s RTX 4060, Intel states that the Arc B580 is approximately 10 percent faster on average, particularly at 1440p resolution.

The limited 8GB of RAM and 128-bit bus of the RTX 4060 can significantly impact performance in demanding games. In Forza Motorsport at 1440p resolution, the RTX 4060 initially holds an advantage at High settings. However, as the settings are increased to Ultra with ray tracing enabled, the Arc B580 takes a clear lead, demonstrating the limitations of the RTX 4060’s memory configuration.

Intel has also improved the underlying technologies for ray tracing by 1.5x to 2x in Battlemage compared to the first-generation Arc "Alchemist" cards. This suggests that Intel could be a strong competitor in ray tracing performance within the $250 price range. For those still using older cards like the GTX 1060 or 1650, the Arc B580 would be a substantial upgrade in both speed and advanced features like ray tracing.

XeSS 2 and XeLL: Enhancing Performance and Reducing Latency

Intel’s XeSS technology is an AI upscaling solution that rivals Nvidia’s DLSS. XeSS renders frames at a lower resolution internally and then uses AI to upscale the final result, achieving higher performance with minimal visual quality loss. XeSS 2 builds upon this technology by adding frame generation, similar to DLSS 3.

While DLSS 3 requires specific hardware found only in RTX 40-series GPUs, Intel’s XeSS 2 leverages AI and Arc’s XMX engines, making it compatible with previous-generation Arc cards and Xe-based integrated graphics in Intel’s Lunar Lake laptops.

The performance improvements from XeSS 2 can be significant. In Intel’s internal F1 24 tests with the B580, activating XeSS 2 with supersampling and frame generation improved performance by 2.8x to 3.9x, depending on the quality setting. A game running at 48fps without XeSS 2 enabled could reach 186fps with XeSS 2’s Ultra quality setting enabled.

To counteract the increased latency that can result from frame generation, Intel has developed Xe Low Latency (XeLL). XeLL streamlines the rendering process, allowing the GPU to render frames faster. By enabling XeLL alongside XeSS 2, the latency introduced by frame generation is mitigated. Intel requires developers to include XeLL as part of the XeSS 2 package, similar to Nvidia’s approach with DLSS 3 and Reflex.

Conclusion

The Arc B580 and B570 have the potential to disrupt the budget GPU market. They provide a compelling 1440p gaming option that is both affordable and feature-rich. If Intel delivers on its promises, the Arc B580 could offer better-than-RTX 4060 performance with 12GB of VRAM for just $250. This, combined with significant improvements to ray tracing performance and advanced features like XeSS 2 and XeLL, makes it a promising option for budget-conscious gamers.

While it’s essential to approach vendor numbers with caution and wait for independent benchmarks, Intel’s Battlemage architecture and the Arc A580 appear to be a step in the right direction for providing value to mainstream gamers.