ray tracing
This term describes a computationally intensive process used primarily in high-end gaming and cinematic visual effects. It is distinguished from rasterization, which approximates lighting, by its ability to calculate precise light bounces, refractions, and shadows, resulting in a level of photorealism that mimics the physical world.
In technical discussions, the term is often paired with "real-time" to specify that the rendering happens instantaneously during gameplay, as opposed to "offline" or "pre-rendered" ray tracing used in animated films where each frame can take hours to compute.
Meanings
A computer graphics rendering technique that simulates the physical behavior of light to produce highly realistic images by tracing the path of light rays as they interact with objects in a scene.
The new graphics card supports hardware-accelerated ray tracing for more realistic reflections.