First introduced in 1996, in the Windows 95 version, DirectX is the main reason behind the insane craze for Windows in gaming. It allowed game developers the freedom to fine-tune games while accessing low-end hardware features.
It is almost impossible to think of gaming on Windows without DirectX. In gaming consoles, it is usually provided with a single video card but on the other hand, Windows gives the freedom of choosing various options starting from GeForce GTX 1660 to GeForce RTX 2080 Ti and also other options while choosing motherboards, chipsets and so on while having a new PC getting built up.
This results in a troublesome situation for the game developers as they would have to adjust, fine-tune configurations for having the clearance in a variety of hardware features. Now to reduce the problems of these game developers DirectX comes to the rescue by helping in the easy optimization of settings.
If you are unfamiliar with the term DirectX, then let me tell you that it is a series of application programming interfaces granting access to various hardware components such as video cards, sound cards, memory etc. DirectX allows the conversing of games with video cards and have it adjusted the necessary configurations.
Since letting direct access with low level hardware components was posing some threats to the security of the device therefore, Microsoft restricted the access and DirectX was introduced, hence facilitating the access. DirectX is closer to Windows unlike the OpenGL standard. DirectX 12 Ultimate is allowing the easy and convenient tailoring of games in various platforms like between the PC and Xbox Series X.
DirectX 12 Ultimate employs the newest features emerging in the recent two years and uses the DirectX 12 foundation. DirectX Raytracing 1.1 is gaining more games picking up raytracing while DirectX 12 Ultimate upgrades Windows to the level of more-like Xbox Series X. DirectX 12 Ultimate also consists of other features such as variable rate shading, effective utilization of resources by a GPU in proper rendering focus objects, having a decent frame rate and greater fidelity. Other features are also available that improves the gameplay with lesser utilization of various resources and smoother running of next-gen games. For instance, Sampler Feedback increases the texture quality. DirectX 12 Ultimate would drive anybody crazy once they play and helps game makers deliver more innovative games with the latest versions of DirectX.
DirectX 12 Ultimate makes an entry to the PC world earlier than Xbox Series X and the excitement level is insane. It has already started rolling out to NVIDIA GeForce RTX series video cards and is expected to be in millions of other video cards before its release in the console later as claimed by Microsoft.
About Abhirup
Abhirup is a science and tech freak. His passion is blogging on different science and technology topics. In his spare time, he plays piano. He is an avid lover of football. Follow him on his Instagram handle to know more about him.