Wow, PC graphics have really come a long way.
YouTube user PerfectHandVideos created this fascinating, 130-minute-long collection of real-time PC graphics, using Nvidia demos, graphics benchmarks and in-game benchmarks in chronological order from 2000 to present day.
The 3DMark 2001 Matrix scene still looks stunning, that's for sure.
The Evolution Of Real Time PC Graphics [YouTube]
DISCUSSION
What I'm getting from this is that in the year 2000, Nvidia was able to make a tree with actual individual leaves rather than a bunch of big, random sprites arranged in a vaguely tree-like shape when viewed from certain angles, and yet in Far Cry 3 all we get are big, random sprites arranged in a vaguely tree-like shape when viewed from certain angles.