Microsoft Reveals that DirectX 12 will Work Across Microsoft Devices, from Xbox One to Phone

Microsoft has revealed DirectX 12 will work across key Microsoft devices from phones and tablets, to desktop PCs and laptops, and its new Xbox One game console. The gaming and programming API has been redesigned for faster and more efficient performance.

According to Microsoft, one of the major improvements made by DirectX 12 is its ability to make low-level hardware abstraction, allowing for improvement in multi-threading operations, as well as CPU utilization. Also, there are three major changes at the API level that allows game developers to be “closer to the metal.”

These changes involve making direct conversion of PSOs (pipeline state object) to GPU instructions, a new model of work submission to the GPU, and improved resource binding that reduces GPU overheads for game draw calls. It appears that some of these new API features will require new graphics hardware, especially DirectX 12’s new resource binding model.

Microsoft has wisely expanded the support for DirectX 12 to phones and the Xbox One, so this may give added impetus to the adoption of the new gaming API by game publishers and developers alike. This is seen in the Forza Motorsport 5 demonstration where the Xbox One Direct3D 11.X title was ported over to Direct3D 12 for PCs. According to Tech Report, we may see DirectX 12 game titles as early as next year in 2015. For more information on the technical specifications of DirectX 12, please click here.

(Source: Tech Report, Microsoft)

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