According to new rumors, the Source 2 engine by Valve may be getting RTX/RayTracing support in the future. The rumor comes from Twitter user Pavel Djundik (@thexpaw) who took to Twitter with a very interesting finding he discovered.
The information released by Pavel Djundik (@thexpaw) shows Valve the last Artifact beta received “Raytracing Shader” and “RTX” strings, archived via GitHub. There is currently no additional evidence regarding the news of ray tracing indeed coming to the Source 2 engine, the mere idea is enough to get fans exciting and buzzing about its potential applications.
Source 2 is possibly getting RTX/Raytracing support.
Last Artifact Beta got "Raytracing Shader" and "RTX" strings added.https://t.co/UEuBP6PEue pic.twitter.com/k6Ks1Q8DWJ
— Pavel Djundik (@thexpaw) January 14, 2021
Currently, Valve owned games like Half-Life Alyx, Dota 2, DOTA Underlords, and Artifact all run on the Source 2 engine, with Counter-Strike: Global Offensive long rumored to receive an engine upgrade to Source 2 as well.
Currently, it is not well known what exactly, these recent update strings mean officially, but we can only hope that it could translate to big things on their way. Who knows that it is the first of many leaks for the Source 2 getting RTX support?
Artifact, which is a relatively graphically light game, could be the perfect testing ground for a new feature like this one as well, with unsuspecting users none the wiser. There’s no official word on the subject or any hint from Valve that this rumor could hold water, but it remains an exciting prospect, nevertheless. We will have to keep our eyes open about any further rumors that pop up here and there.
Imagining Half-Life or Half-Life 2 with ray tracing might just be the healing salve we all need to remind us of Half-Life 3, which is not known if it ever releases after all, and they could be just around the corner if this rumor is to be believed.
Would you like to see RayTracing or RTX support come to the Source 2 engine? Let us know in the comments section below.
