3dLabs is the only company that has 512 MB cards available.

DirectX 8.1 with vertex shader 1.1 and pixel shader 1.2

doom3 is effectively a dx7 level game... dx8 support does not mean much therefore... there are a coupla advanced lighting shaders and the like which make doom3 more complex/advanced than most dx8 level games but it should run just fine on most cards of a gf3 level and above (things powerful enough to handle the calculations for the shadows)

The introduction of a programmable pipeline to DirectX allows far greater control over how objects are rendered to the screen. DirectX 8 introduced two new programmable sections, the Vertex Shader, and the Pixel Shader. The vertex shader can control vertex positions, colors, and texturing coordinates. The pixel shader provides control over the way each individual pixel is rendered to the screen.

The keys to the GeForce3's new approach to rendering are two of the chip's main functional units, dubbed vertex and pixel shaders.

BTW, you might want to check that again. Shaders were not introduced until Direct X 8. The DX 7 T&L was the hardware T&L unit which was present in the GeForce 256 and GeForce 2 GTS...

Course the point is mote anyhow, as it's a OGL game...

Edit: Little info

http://www.cfxweb.net/modules.php?na...ticle&sid=1305

http://tech-report.com/reviews/2001q...3/index.x?pg=1

that is precisely why I said it was effectively a dx7 level card... most of the tech in doom3 is of a dx7 level... its an OGL game remember and thats how to correlate relevant tech...

the shaders for the game are probably comparable with some dx9 shaders... i just don't think saying ps 1.1 or 1.3 or 1.4 really says much when talking about doom3...

Actually, Pixel Shaders didn't exist at all in Direct X 7... Pixel Shader 1.0 was introduced in Direct X 8.0 As I remember, and I could look this up, Direct X 7.0 only had the hardware T&L unit (aka games like MDK2 and what not used this, though there weren't many). The GeForce 3 included the hardware T&L unit for backward compatibility, but the Geforce 3 was a Direct X 8, not a DX 7 card... The GeForce 256 was a DX 7 card...

You see, comparing it to a DX 7 game (equivalent), leaves me scratching my head a bit Because if it uses shaders, and DX 8 was the very first version of Direct X to introduce shaders...to be equivalent to DX 7 level tech, wouldn't it be using the hardware T&L unit that existed on the GeForce 256, or be doing functions that the hard wired T&L unit, aka pre-GeForce 3 could provide?

no... i very clearly stated that the doom3 engine is basically a dx7 level tech...

I very clearly stated if you are playing on a gf3 and above you should be fine to play the game...

But then the game shouldn't use shaders... Shaders are DX8 level tech. PS 1.1, 1.2, etc has nothing to do with it. That they're used does... And if one is saying they're used, but implies this is DX 7 level tech, well, hmm... If shader support is required of the hardware, that for me would be the demarcation point between DX7 level and DX8 level tech

And how does this have anything to do with it being the equivalent of DX7 level tech A DX 7 level game was MDK 2, and it ran on a GeForce 256. I would contend that a DX7 level game should not require a GF3, except perhaps for a performance boost, but should be perfectly capable of being run on a GeForce 2 GTS, albeit perhaps very slowly. To be the equivalent of a DX7 game, it should not require hardware that a DX8 level card can only supply...

Ah well, considering it's a OGL game anyway...the point perhaps is a bit mote. I consider you a friend, so I'd rather not argue with you openly as such. Just thought I'd point something out, is all...

But then the game shouldn't use shaders... Shaders are DX8 level tech. PS 1.1, 1.2, etc has nothing to do with it. That they're used does... And if one is saying they're used, but implies this is DX 7 level tech, well, hmm... If shader support is required of the hardware, that for me would be the demarcation point between DX7 level and DX8 level tech