DirectX 12 Details Given to Developers

At this week’s game developers conference in San Francisco, Microsoft gave some details on DirectX 12, Microsoft’s multimedia API.

Microsoft is reportedly trying to get “closer to the metal” in terms of using hardware resources, which should result in faster performance. Reportedly, the new version will be called Direct3D 12 and will be a significant departure from the older version of DirectX. Microsoft claims to have overhauled a lot of the API including three key areas: pipeline state representation, work submission, and resource access.

The new APIs are designed to create a richer visual interest, better memory management, and give developers more tools to work with to increase visuals in video games and other graphic applications.

Microsoft is targeting Christmas of 2015 for the release of this new version of DirectX, or Direct3D, whichever name the end up going with.

DirectX 12 is said to work on over 80% of existing gaming PCs currently being sold, so hardware upgrade may not be necessary.