Gaming Archives | DirectX Developer Blog

Demystifying Fullscreen Optimizations

Hannah FisherDecember 17, 2019Dec 17, 201912/17/19

We wrote this article to explain the difference between Fullscreen Exclusive and Fullscreen Optimizations. This article goes details the roll out and the benefits that come with Fullscreen Optimizations.

DirectX Raytracing and the Windows 10 October 2018 Update

Jacques van RhynOctober 2, 2018Oct 2, 201810/2/18

DirectX Raytracing and the Windows 10 October 2018 Update The wait is finally over: we’re taking DirectX Raytracing (DXR) out of experimental mode! Today, once you update to the next release of Windows 10, DirectX Raytracing will work out-of-box on supported hardware. And speaking of hardware, the first generation of graphics cards with na

Announcing new DirectX 12 features

Jacques van RhynNovember 7, 2017Nov 7, 201711/7/17

Announcing new DirectX 12 features We’ve come a long way since we launched DirectX 12 with Windows 10 on July 29, 2015. Since then, we’ve heard every bit of feedback and improved the API to enhance stability and offer more versatility. Today, developers using DirectX 12 can build games that have better graphics, run faster and that are mor

GPU plugins, improved SDK layers, and hang debugging: Bringing DirectX 12 tools to the next level

D3D TeamMarch 1, 2017Mar 1, 201703/1/17

If you are a Windows game developer using DirectX 12, you know that great tools are essential for getting the most out of the graphics hardware. In the past few months, we’ve been making rapid progress on delivering the tools you’ve requested. At the Game Developers Conference today, we demoed new features for both PIX, our premier tool fo

New DirectX Shader Compiler based on Clang/LLVM now available as Open Source

Chas BoydJanuary 23, 2017Jan 23, 201701/23/17

The DirectX HLSL (High Level Shading Language) compiler is now available as an open source project built on the Clang/LLVM framework. Microsoft drives the leading GPU shader language Since 2002, HLSL has been a key focus of industry collaboration on GPU programming. As the shader language for the popular DirectX12 API, HLSL is at the forefront

DX12 performance tuning and debugging – PIX on Windows (beta) released!

D3D TeamJanuary 17, 2017Jan 17, 201701/17/17

Continued commitment to gaming on Windows 10 With Windows 10, we promised to build an OS designed for PC gaming, with DirectX 12 as one of the cornerstones of the Windows 10 gaming experience. In the 18 months since our release, DirectX 12 has seen very rapid adoption, with nearly 20 AAA games now available with DirectX 12 support. Much of th

Rise of the Tomb Raider, Explicit DirectX 12 MultiGPU, and a peek into the future

Andrew Yeung - MSFTJuly 8, 2016Jul 8, 201607/8/16

Rise of the Tomb Raider is the first title to implement explicit MultiGPU (mGPU) on CrossFire/SLI systems using the DX12 API. It works on both Win32 and UWP. Using the low level DX12 API, Rise of the Tomb Raider was able to achieve extremely good CPU efficiency and in doing so, extract more GPU power in a mGPU system than was possible befo

DirectX 12 Multiadapter: Lighting up dormant silicon and making it work for you

Andrew Yeung - MSFTApril 30, 2015Apr 30, 201504/30/15

Are you one of the millions of PC users with a laptop or a desktop system with an integrated GPU as well as a discrete GPU? Before Windows 10 and DirectX 12, all the performance potential from the second GPU goes unused. With DirectX 12 and Windows 10, application developers can use every GPU on the system simultaneously! Are you an elite

DirectX 12 – Looking back at GDC 2015 and a year of amazing progress

Andrew Yeung - MSFTMarch 9, 2015Mar 9, 201503/9/15

Last year at GDC 2014, we announced DirectX 12. Since then, we have made amazing progress, and we were excited to showcase this progress at GDC 2015. At the GDC 2015 Expo, we had a range of live demos including Lionhead Studio’s next beautiful game Fable Legends, Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 4, Unity Technologies’ 3D game

DirectX 12 – High Performance and High Power Savings

Andrew Yeung - MSFTAugust 12, 2014Aug 12, 201408/12/14

You probably know that DirectX 12 is designed for performance. What you may not know is that the same design decisions that make DirectX 12 so performant also make it incredibly power efficient. This allows you to play all of your favorite games on portable devices without having an uncomfortably hot device on your lap or as much of a ne

DirectX Developer Blog