The arrival of the $599/£589 GeForce RTX 4070 continues a trend of Nvidia's RTX 40-series GPUs: performance remains strong, thanks to the efficient Ada Lovelace architecture at its heart, but in terms of 'frames per currency unit' this is more of a sideways step than the genuine generational leap that the 3070 and 3080 provided. After all, the RTX 4070 aims only to match 3080 performance, whereas the 3070 had a loftier goal: matching the previous-gen flagship card, RTX 2080 Ti.
We can't gloss over the fact that the RTX 4070 is significantly more expensive than its predecessors, hence the focus on RTX 3080 performance. Price comparisons here are actually quite challenging as the 3080 is hard to find at its nominal $699/£649 MSRP - and it has been right across the product's lifespan. Amazingly, even in 2023 a $750/£700 retail price is more common. So, assuming the RTX 4070 hits its $599/£589 target (and Nvidia is bullish on this), you at least are paying a good degree less for this performance tier.
You're also getting a richer product in terms of features: there's an extra 2GB of VRAM, plus you're receiving massively improved power efficiency and DLSS 3 frame generation. That said, it's difficult to avoid the fact that RTX 40-series is somewhat reminiscent of the 20-series launch with more of a focus on features that still need widespread adoption, while overall performance for the money remains relatively static. The difference this time, however, is that frame generation is receiving a higher degree of early-doors support - and with the arrival of Cyberpunk 2077's path-traced lighting upgrade, 40-series opens the door to an experience which just doesn't work that well on older cards.