Nvidia has made a significant shift in its support for legacy technologies with the announcement that 32-bit implementations of PhysX will no longer be supported on its new RTX 50 series graphics cards. This decision effectively removes 32-bit CUDA application support on the latest GPUs, marking the end of an era for some older games that rely on this technology.
For gamers who enjoy titles from the 2000s and early 2010s, this change means losing some of the advanced particle and clothing effects that were originally powered by PhysX. Iconic games like Mirror’s Edge, Mafia II, and Batman: Arkham City will be affected, and while there’s a quick workaround, the move has left many wondering about the future of older game performance on modern hardware.
>>>BAT-EDA40K for Honeywell BAT-EDA40K
What Does This Mean for PhysX?
PhysX is Nvidia’s physics engine, responsible for creating dynamic, realistic effects like cloth simulation and particle systems in games. When 32-bit CUDA applications were phased out on the RTX 50 series cards, users immediately noticed the effects in classic games that depend on this engine.
As highlighted on Nvidia’s forums (via PCGamesN), one user encountered issues when trying to run PhysX with their RTX 5090. PhysX attempted to use hardware acceleration through the CPU instead of the GPU, significantly impacting performance. Nvidia staff responded, confirming that the issue stemmed from the deprecation of 32-bit CUDA support on the new RTX 50 series GPUs.
The performance loss can be seen in some older titles like Borderlands 2, where the implementation of PhysX is used to enhance environmental dynamics, such as adding cloth textures and dust particles. One Reddit user shared their experience, reporting a significant drop in frame rates when trying to run PhysX on their RTX 5090 FE paired with an AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor. The frame rate dipped to around 60 fps, showcasing the impact of this change.
While turning off PhysX does make the game feel more static and less immersive, it does not render the game unplayable. However, for some games, like Borderlands 2, there currently isn’t an easy way to disable PhysX, forcing users to rely on CPU-based physics acceleration.
A List of Affected Games
A major list of games that rely on 32-bit PhysX support was posted on ResetEra, with several popular titles on the list. These include Metro: Last Light, Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag, and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2. While the technology had some notable implementations, such as in Batman: Arkham City and Mirror’s Edge, its performance was often criticized. The reliance on Nvidia-only PhysX cards and the significant work required to make it run meant that it was always a niche feature, rather than a standard.
>>>954642 for Hikvision 3-BT-V1.1
What Can You Do About It?
If you’re one of the lucky few with an RTX 5080 or RTX 5090, there are three major ways to work around the lack of 32-bit PhysX support:
- Use a secondary PhysX-supported card: You can plug in an older Nvidia GPU specifically for PhysX support.
- Turn off PhysX in 32-bit games: This might cause the game to feel a bit more static, but it can improve performance.
- Wait for a community solution: Given the backlash, it’s possible that the community may create workarounds to enable support for older games.
The removal of support for 32-bit applications on Nvidia cards has been a long time coming. While this is one of the bigger losses for gamers who enjoy classic titles with advanced PhysX features, it’s part of a broader trend toward more modern, efficient architectures. Nvidia has been gradually phasing out legacy support as it moves towards more cutting-edge technologies.
Despite the transition, the community is often quick to come up with solutions. So, while official support is ending, there’s hope that third-party fixes will surface to keep older games running smoothly on new hardware.