I'm of the opinion that the GPU is obsolete. The CPU is the future of the 3D game. Why - software will to increase astronomically in complexity. Complex physics equations, complex lighting equations. What's the point of such a vastly simplified equation-solving system, when the game is basically a 3D simulation? Precisely.
Current 3D rendering:
The future of 3D rendering:
Just my opinion. The CPU is superior at handling complex code. The front-end has been designed by Intel for handling complex code - and improved over several decades.
Which brings me to my next opinion. 3D software is too simple. Hardly any physics or complex interactions. The person can not destroy large sections of the world for instance. Still basically linear. Why - the GPU is a simple processor by definition. It is massively parallel, with hundreds of pipelines. Therefore can perform only simplistic operations for 3D rendering.
Current 3D rendering:
Slow - 1 ghz
Simple - in-order, no significant caches
Massively parallel - hundreds of pipelines
The future of 3D rendering:
Fast - 4 ghz
Complex - out-of-order instruction dispatch, massive caches
Not massively parallel - 12-24 cores
Just my opinion. The CPU is superior at handling complex code. The front-end has been designed by Intel for handling complex code - and improved over several decades.
Which brings me to my next opinion. 3D software is too simple. Hardly any physics or complex interactions. The person can not destroy large sections of the world for instance. Still basically linear. Why - the GPU is a simple processor by definition. It is massively parallel, with hundreds of pipelines. Therefore can perform only simplistic operations for 3D rendering.