We're on the precipice of a new generation of graphics in games. PC gamers have already equipped their rigs with powerful new DirectX 11 cards--but so far, very few games actually take advantage of that power. Futuremark, developers of 3DMark, has announced a new DirectX 11 benchmark will be available later this year. An accompanying video shows off what we can expect when we start testing our rigs.

The next 3DMark for Windows will be "the world's first unified graphics benchmark," as it will allow testing of DirectX 9, 10, and 11 capable hardware. It is "expected to be released after the launch of Windows 8," but it will also be compatible with Windows 7 and Windows Vista.

Futuremark's James Gallagher points out that the demo shares one similarity with Unreal Engine 4 and Luminous Studio: "it looks like swirling fire embers are THE must-have next-gen feature." Particle effects sure are mesmerizing. Make sure you look for tessellation and "advanced volumetric lighting using real-time light scattering" in the following video.