VisionTek Radeon R9 280X Video Card Review

In Battlefield 3 you take the role of Marine SGT Blackburn in the hunt for terrorists threatening a nuclear detonation. Through some interesting twists and turns it’s a pretty compelling story line. We used the latest version and set the game to use Direct X 11. For this test we used the mission Rock and A Hard Place. You start off in a Tank rolling through the desert a tank battle ensues, eventually you will have to get out of the tank and do some exploring and combat.

In Battlefield 3 we see a similar 8-10% lead, which is expected with the SLI setup. In terms of raw power the VisionTek Radeon R9 280X Video Card fairs well.

Bio Shock Infinite is the latest release of the BioShock series. Instead of being underwater you are whisked away to a city in the clouds. The game features impressive visuals. We used 3 settings in BioShock infinite. For this test we used the level where you’ll need to get to the celebration that is happening. This level features large amounts of people, outside and inside spaces.

The power of the VisionTek Radeon R9 280X starts to come to light in Bio Shock Infinite. While at the High settings the SLI setup pull a head a little bit, the extra 1 GB of ram on board the VisionTek Radeon R9 280X starts to come into play. With SLI & CrossFire the amount of memory is basically split. For example, I have two cards that each have 2GB ram on board. The textures get loaded on both cards. So in this case the additional 1GB ram on board the VisionTek Radeon R9 280X gives it a 7% frame rate increase over the SLI setup.

Crysis 3 is labeled as the GPU killer. Just like the Original Crysis had crying for their mommy so does Crysis 3. Crysis 3 brings back Prophet to New York in 2047. Crysis 3 uses the latest Cryengine for stunning visuals. We tested at both high and ultra settings. The level we chose was just after entering the tunnels. This features good visuals and a mixture of environments as well as a good firefight towards the end.

In Crysis 3 the VisionTek Radeon R9 280X takes a 7% lead over the SLI setup. At ultra settings a very playable 61 FPS was attained.

FarCry 3 is a 1st person shooter set in a tropical island. While on vacation Jason Brody and his friends are kidnapped by the local gang. FarCry 3 features MMO style menus with skills, experience points and crafting.  The level we chose to test on was the level where you go after boss #1. This features an open area, building to building firefight, psychedelic final battle as well as lots of baddies to mow down. We used the ultra and high settings here.

In FarCry 3 the VisionTek Radeon R9 280X takes a 9% lead over the SLI setup.

Hitman Absolution is the latest game in the HitMan series. Once again you reprise your role as Number 47. In this series your handler goes rogue. There’s some good plot twists and turns in the game. Hitman Absolution uses IO game engine Glacier 2. The game is fully DX 11 capable. For Hitman Absolution we chose to use the China Town mission. This area features a medium open area with lots of civilians and baddies. Fighting takes place both inside and outside. Ultra and High options were selected for this test.

In Hitman Absolution the VisionTek Radeon R9 280X outpaces everything that I have on the test bench and takes a decent lead. With larger textures in the Ultra settings the lead is more pronounced.