Microsoft is ready to reveal the next iteration of DirectX, its proprietary collection of APIs that allow Windows PCs and devices to play games and multimedia, for the first time in an astounding six years. The company has announced DirectX 12 will be unveiled at GDC on March 20.
Anyone who has played games on their computer will be familiar with DirectX, which is required for operating 3D programs on Microsoft's platforms. For other gamers, you may recognize the "X" as inspiration for the name of a certain line of consoles.
Microsoft's description of the upcoming GDC talk is the only glimpse of what to expect from DirectX 12 that we have, and it reads as follows:
"For nearly 20 years, DirectX has been the platform used by game developers to create the fastest, most visually impressive games on the planet. However, you asked us to do more. You asked us to bring you even closer to the metal and to do so on an unparalleled assortment of hardware. You also asked us for better tools so that you can squeeze every last drop of performance out of your PC, tablet, phone and console."
Intel, Qualcomm, NVIDIA and AMD have all put their names and logos on the announcement, so it's safe to assume they will be partners in this endeavor and may have some announcements of their own.
To really simplify an explanation of their purpose, DirectX packages come with different frameworks that allow Microsoft to upgrade the capabilities of 3D programs. Each new level of DirectX gives your hardware better graphic fidelity and more advanced features.
The downside is that you need compatible hardware to take advantage of the new features. You can still run games that make use of Direct X 11 if you have an older graphics card that can run Direct X 10, for example, but you're locked out of the advanced new upgrades. Only by getting a more recent, more powerful graphics card that's compatible with the new DirectX can you make use of the new capabilities.
It's requirements like this that make some segments of gamers dislike PC gaming and claim it's way too expensive. To some degree it's true-to stay on top of the best software, you will need to upgrade your PC.
But it is optional, and if you get a good rig to begin with you should be set for a few years, even if you can't run the newest games on quite the highest settings. To me, it's at least better to have the option and ability to upgrade than just being stuck with the same hardware configuration for about a decade (I'm looking at you, consoles-not that I don't play those too).
We'll have to wait a couple of weeks to see what Microsoft has in store for DirectX 12, but I imagine games will begin to look even more incredible. DirectX 11 was unveiled way back in 2008, so it's certainly been a while and hardware has come a long way. Microsoft will speak about DirectX 12 at GDC in San Francisco, on March 20 at 10am PST.
