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AMD Catalyst 14.1 Beta Drivers Announced, a Must-Have for Mantle API Support

By Wong Chung Wee - on 3 Feb 2014, 2:11pm

AMD Catalyst 14.1 Beta Drivers Announced, a Must-Have for Mantle API Support

AMD has released the Catalyst 14.1 beta drivers, with support for the Mantle API. For a start, the new drivers are touted to deliver a more fluid gaming experience for Mantle-based game titles.

(Image Source: AMD)

For graphics cards based on the AMD Graphics Core Next (GCN) architecture, the new drivers will ensure a deeper level of optimization for Mantle-based game titles by tapping directly into the hardware features of the GPU. According to the company, the Mantle API was “created in direct response to requests from leading game developers, so interest is very high.”

In fact, we reported in November last year that Mantle API was adopted by more developers, in addition to early pioneer EA DICE for their Battlefield 4. However, the company was quick to add that the drivers are still in beta version and more optimized, and stable performances are likely to be seen in later versions as game developers get more familiar with the Mantle API.

The new drivers also bring new frame pacing support , and extends the feature to additional AMD CrossFire and AMD Dual Graphics configurations operating both DirectX 10 and DirectX 11 applications at resolutions higher than 2560 x 1600 pixels. In particular, a Kaveri-based AMD A10-7850K APU paired with an AMD Radeon R7 250 graphics card system was highlighted by the company as a direct beneficiary of more consistent frame rates.

For starters, GCN-based graphics cards owners can have a sneak preview of the advertised benefits of Mantle API by installing the demo of Star Swarm. The Catalyst 14.1 beta drivers for Windows can be obtained here. For more information on Mantle API, please visit these links (1), (2). Click here for AMD’s official announcement.

(Source: AMD)

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