TechPowerUp has released a comprehensive review of the ASUS GeForce RTX 5090 Matrix Platinum, an impressive 800-watt flagship graphics card. This card ranks at the peak of Nvidia’s RTX 50-series lineup. Its power consumption alone means it requires specialized PSU setups that most gaming rigs simply can’t accommodate.
The RTX 5090 Matrix Platinum represents ASUS’s top-tier version of Nvidia’s GB202 GPU. With a TDP of 800W, it nearly doubles the power draw of the already power-hungry RTX 4090 Founders Edition, which sits at 450W. This hefty power budget allows for significantly higher boost clocks and improved cooling, featuring what ASUS refers to as a triple-slot, triple-fan cooling solution.
Choosing Assassin’s Creed Shadows as a benchmark isn’t random. This open-world action game is one of the most demanding titles released in 2025. Plus, with Nvidia announcing DLSS 5 in mid-2026, reviewers are increasingly testing whether current hardware can handle these games at native 4K before AI upscaling comes into play. Shadows provides a consistently tough workload, especially in its intricate feudal Japan settings.
The game launched on March 20, 2025, at a standard retail price, but it’s currently listed on Steam for just $0.99 — a promotional price that contrasts sharply with the community’s outrage over its DLC pricing. Ubisoft has faced ongoing criticism for tying 100% completion achievements to additional purchases that reportedly add up to around $90 USD. This issue has become a major point of frustration in the game’s recent Steam reviews.
For hardware reviewers, Shadows serves as a dependable synthetic-adjacent load. Its combination of vast open worlds, detailed foliage rendering, and ray-traced lighting gives graphics cards like the RTX 5090 Matrix Platinum a solid challenge. Whether the game’s commercial success impacts its standing as a benchmark title is a different matter from whether the card can exceed 100 fps at 4K ultra settings — and based on the specs, it likely can.
| RTX 5090 Matrix Platinum TDP | 800W |
| RTX 4090 FE TDP (reference) | 450W |
| AC Shadows release date | March 20, 2025 |
| AC Shadows current Steam price | $0.99 |
| Reported DLC cost for 100% completion | ~$90 USD |
Community feedback on Assassin’s Creed Shadows leans negative on Steam, mainly due to that DLC model. One reviewer shared: “Avoid. If you hunt to get 100% completions, prepare to shell out $90 USD in DLC to get the last achievement for that hundo.” This sentiment appears throughout multiple reviews, highlighting a common frustration for completionists.
What To Watch
- DLSS 5 adoption: With Nvidia’s DLSS 5 framework now announced, keep an eye on new benchmark tests that compare native 4K performance against AI-enhanced output on the RTX 5090. This could change how reviewers look at raw rasterization numbers.
- AC Shadows DLC rollout: A reportedly leaked Black Flag DLC date for PS5 indicates that Ubisoft’s post-launch content calendar is still in play. How they price and package this content will either calm or escalate the ongoing community backlash.
- 800W power delivery standards: The RTX 5090 Matrix Platinum’s 800W requirement challenges the current ATX 3.0 PSU capabilities. Watch to see if board partners and PSU manufacturers respond with high-wattage bundles as this GPU tier becomes more mainstream.
Sarah Chen
Sarah Chen is the Reviews and Guides Editor at Explosion.com. With a background in game design studies and 6 years of gaming journalism, Sarah brings technical insight to her reviews and creates comprehensive guides that help players get the most out of their games. She has reviewed over 200 titles across PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo platforms. Her current obsessions include FromSoftware titles and indie roguelikes.
