Crysis: Warhead:

And now, to my favorite part of the testing, the Crysis: Warhead bench.  In addition to our 4870X2 and 5870 numbers, we have also included the numbers for the 4890 2GB and the 5770.

Both GPUs ran through the same sequence that we have been running for the last year.  Each run consisted of multiple resolutions and AA settings, so that we could get a good feel as to how well the cards scaled.  All other settings were maxed out.  Click the pictures for a larger version. 

(click for full size image)

You are definitely going to want to take a look at the larger graph for this one.  The thick lines of each color represent the average framerate for each card, while the smaller lines of the same color above and below represent the minimum and maximum values. 

What we found here was the exact opposite from what we saw last week.  While the 4890 opened a can of whoop-ass on the 5770, the new architecture in the 5870 definitely showed the 4870X2 who is boss.  In fact, the 5870 leads by 20% or more at 1280x1024, 15% at 1680x1050, and 10% at 1920x1200 with 0xAA or 4xAA applied.  After this, the two cards seesaw for dominance, until 2560x1600 with 8xAA, where pretty much every card tanks.  There is no doubt that the HD5870 dominates in this benchmark.  

Benchmark Data:

Intro Card Layout Test Setup and Methodology 3DMark Unigine S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Clear Sky X3: Terran Conflict Crysis: Warhead Overclocking Conclusion