A new report from Microsoft's Windows 10 press event today confirms that the upcoming DirectX 12 graphics API will only be for Windows 10 users. In other words, Windows 7 and 8 PC owners will have to take advantage of Microsoft's offer of a free upgrade to Windows 10 for one year to get the benefits of DirectX 12.
That's not all. According to Rock Paper Shotgun's report, Windows 10 PC owners will also have to get new graphics cards, currently unreleased, inside their rig in order to gain all of the features that will be included in DirectX 12, although a number of current graphics cards will still be able to use some of its improvements.
The Xbox One game streaming feature that was demoed today will also only work with game controllers on the PC side. In other words, gamers with just a keyboard and mouse won't be able to play games streamed from Microsoft's console. Finally, we can expect to see more Xbox One games that will be also support Windows 10 besides Fable Legends, which was also demoed today. Let's hope one of them is Halo 5: Guardians.
Source: Rock Paper Shotgun
Reader comments
DirectX 12 will indeed be exclusive to Windows 10
I'll need a new card now to go with my i7
Another stupid move by Microsoft, if they want to make people switch to newer OS they should first make sure their stupid OEM partners provide driver support for their damn customers; looking at you HP who have still not released new GPU drivers for Pavilion DV7 with AMD HD 6770M GPU's so I can't even upgrade to Windows 8, and still stuck on 7.
Anyone with an NVIDIA GPU from the last 5 years will not need to upgrade. All Fermi, Kepler and Maxwell GPUs will support DX12 fully.
Source: http://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/2014/09/19/maxwell-and-dx12-delivered/
Mac?
I'm really interested to see what kind of performance bump DX12 will give the Xbox?
Good I want to taste the salty tears of all those refusing to upgrade from Windows 7 or XP to a superior OS.
Forcing gamer to use Windows 10 is a pretty shitty move.
Lol, you aren't being forced, you can stick with dx11 and play minesweeper in your grandmas closet until you're 52 for all Microsoft cares. But windows 10 will be free, so why not upgrade?
Do you even know how to understand what you're reading? If DX12 only works with Windows 10 you ARE forced to upgrade to it.
Not everything that is free is necessarily good/better. Free or not, MS forces customers to upgrade to Windows 10 if they want to use DX12.
Never heard of people complaining about Windows 8, have you? And if the current/former version of Windows ain't broke, there's nothing to fix (-> no reason to move to Windows 10).
Speaking as a game developer, most games won't use DX12. In fact, there are still a decent number of games that use DX9, even though a majority of computers are on DX11.
Im sure people will do what was done with dx10 and reverse engineer it to work on xp
So will the PS4 get DirectX 12? I read exclusive to Windows 10 and assume that means that Windows 8, 7, etc won't be getting it.
PS4 will not get DX12, of course. It's a different OS entirely. The interesting thing here is that DX12 is supposed to reduce the overheads on the GPU so we might see the 360 close the performance gap against the PS4.
DX12 being an Windows 10 exclusive is a moot point since consumer-level W7 / W8.1 machines will receive a free upgrade in year 1.
All in all, good news for MS and customers.
I see on my Sapphire R9 270X Toxic that it is DX12 compatible. Im about to buy a 2nd one for Xfire. Please tell me its compatible
I hope this means that HALO will return to the PC. I refuse to buy a console when I have the fantastic PC which would sit idle if I were playing my console. I stick to games that I can play on a PC. I really think MS effed up when they released the Xbox console. They should have kept all thier games PC games and people would have required new PCs running Windows to play the newer games.
But for get the fullest of DirectX 12 it's needed an graphics card compatible with or designed for DirectX 12 if have an, card that was designed for DirectX 11 will not get the x12 features
:( no keyboard and mouse.
But it's still great!
Well this news is hardly surprising considering they're upgrading everyone they possibly can to Windows 10 over the next year.
So, will the current iterations of Xbox1 support these new Direct X features, will they be coming out with an updated version that does, or am I way off base with my question? Pardon my ignorance but I am quite new to the console scene.
Posted via my HTC One (M7) or Surface Pro 3
Can someone in the know please answer this question: Why no mention of streaming to phones? A real bummer and missed opportunity if they don't allow streaming to Windows 10 phones. Let us use a moga controller or whatever. That would be glorious.
Windows 10 Is all encompassing, Tablets, Phones, PCs, Surface Board. You get the picture....
WP phone doesn't support the controller, so.. Its currently incompatible.. Less they add it in w10
I ask because I saw the conference live. All Phil Spencer kept saying was "stream to PC and tablets". Never once did he say phones. I would love it to do so. Can Daniel clarify?
I heard "stream Xbox One games to any Windows 10 device." I don't recall them stating specific devices.
But based on the way it will work (via Wifi), I'm sure it will work on phones. Your phone isn't doing any computing work other than sending receiving the data and displaying it on your screen. It's not doing any of the game logic, environment graphics.
Wait wait wait. My MSI Gaming Gtx 970 says direct x 12. And has been out for a few months now. Wth!!???
OK, this is not difficult to understand, but apparently for some it is. Your current graphics card supports DirectX 12. It's simply won't be able to use alllll the advantages of DirectX 12.
Well that's not how the new nvidia cards were marketed. So yes I will be royally @#$%&*. But, just maybe ill get a AMD card now. Still mad though.
Yes it will, NVIDIA have anaounce full support for DX12 on all their cards all the way back to fermi.
http://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/2014/09/19/maxwell-and-dx12-delivered/
Stream to Windows Phone
Interesting... I hope I don't have to get new gpus this year but I think my 2 r9 290x's can handle most of what dx12 will dish out... hopefully.
With a free upgrade from 7, why complain?
You heard it here first,ms leading the tech market in 2015-2016
Got an email from Fable Legends today too.
I don't get how my brand new dx 12 supporting gtx 970 won't support it fully, it says it does
He didn't say there are no compatible drives on the market. This is like Lumia Denim. Put it on a 530 if you want, you just won't get everything (opposed to a1520 where you would)
Exactly, it's amazing how much people fail to read.
Makes sense to me.
Eh, I figured you'd need new ones to support all of DX12. Since W10 is free, at least that'll take out one of the hefty costs.
A new graphics card?
This isn't going to go over well with a ton of people
Cry me a river if you want but then build me bridge to get over it... Posted from my HTC M8
then a ton of people never bothered caring about previous versions of Direct X. in previous years, when a new version came out, you needed new hardware to take advantage of NEW features. that has always been the case.... it's just we have been on DX11 for a long time now, so people may not remember or were too young to care.
In the last few years ea's been one of those companies where if you cant run such or such version of video driver you cant play which is sad if you've got a laptop with pre r series gpu for example
Considering that they're giving out Windows 10 for free, I'd say "suck it up princess" to anyone that complains.
I think most hardcore gamers will likely have a supported GPU present anywho.
Sounds like Wrex in mass effect 3 just before the race to the beam of light. "Suck it up Princesses!"
At the very least the latest gen of video cards support DirectX 12. I think the 6k series and later Radeons and I forget the version of nVidia cards that support it. It doesn't bring a bunch of new hardware features but rather better optimization across platforms, access to lower level hardware functions (like Mantle) etc.
If you have an Xbox One you have a PC controller, just need a USB cable and apart from ipeople that shouldnt be a problem.
I think I saw Phil Spencer using the controller wirelessly.
But your PC doesn't have to be a 2000$ contraption to enjoy the xb1 streaming? Right?
You can stream to any Windows 10 device, it's not dependent on power.
Lumia 520 confirmed? :D
Stream to the PC, then remote desktop from your 520. Enjoy the game.
Did they ever say if the streaming has to be local network, or can I join a game with my PC from my friend down the street?
You're probably going to have to spend 2 grand on your wifi lol
I'd probably need a very good router if anything (for Xbox One to PC/tablet streaming).
Of course not. It's just streaming. All the work is being done on the Xbox.
But if you already have a gaming PC, this feature is pretty pointless. I would say the intentional use for this is if you do your primary gaming on xbox one, and for one reason or another want to continue your session on a tablet or laptop PC in another room.
2000 for a PC is extremely high end btw, you can get one much more powerful than the new consoles for around 700. Of course many choose to spend more, because that's one of the many advantages to PC gaming. You can choose a machine that fit your needs. So if you want a better experience, you can get it.
I'm ready to play Xbox on my tablet and phone while on the John.
Common sense, decent router.... No really old sh.... This is the new sh..... Why act stupid? Sorry, but come on man!!!!!
Good for those people who upgrade and play Xbox!
I hope Halo comes to PC.
It won't but we'll get the next best thing: Streaming to PC
Forza Horizon 2 comes to PC?
Well since Windows 10 will be free to all then DX12 being exclusive to it shouldn't be a big deal. I think MS is on to something truly great here.
Get everyone to upgrade, and then announce the service charges. ;)
Windows 10 will not be free for all.
You should have upgraded from XP or Vista by now...
Free for all Windows 7 and 8 users on year one.
Windows XP never got Directx10 or 11...
so your point doesn't make sense becuase Windows 7 and 8 will be free for all for a year. so JamesDax3 is right.
just you seem not to understand mentioning "XP" here, because if you are a gamer, and you never upgraded from it, it doesn't mean you care about many things, less about directx or any modern gaming... many big applications don't even support XP anymore, autodesk ones, xbmc and others. so yeah, Microsoft is being smart here, and yes the most important Windows users 7 and 8 will get 10 for free.
i have 8.1 ent windows so what i don`t care about windows 10 even now as it has more broblems not be solved untill they make it true gaming windows
W10 isn't free at all. You ha e to purchase after a year.
No you don't. The article meant that in the first year of its release it's available for free. If you decide to upgrade after a year of its release you will have to pay
What a fox
No idiot! You can upgrade and use it forever for free if you upgrade within 1 year from Win10 release.
Get some education, it's people like you that bring bad reputation to Microsoft!
Kids like you should be quiet. If you can't correct someone positively then don't speak at all. The only idiot I see so far is you.
It sounds like windows 10 upgrade is free for 1 year , then after the year is up it's not free. Not you have to buy it after the year is up
Listen alot can happen in a year, also its going to be different if you're in the Windows 10 Tech Preview.
Where did you get that piece of misinformation? Certainly not from their boog, where they mention supporting devices for their lifetime without cost.
They never said anything of the sort. You're lying.
Stupidity is strong with this one...
They say communications skills and critical thinking are critical to succeeding in the information age. Obviously, some posters cannot read and possess the neccessary critical thinking skills to make the following simple determination.
Microsoft is giving away Windows 10 to the entire installed x86 WinTel ecosystem during the first year of release to ensure that the ecosystem transitions as rapidily as possible. Why? To ensure that the suppliers (hardware and software) to the ecosystem have the largest uniform foundation in which to market their product.
As always, buy any WP, Tablet, laptop, PC now and in 9 months upgrade to the next version of Windows. In any case, you will want to upgrade your hardware in a few years. Do you all realize what happens when Intel migrates to 10nm in 2017? Powerful powerful stuff.
wow... you really didn't understand what you saw today. but I will explain it to you, it's like when Microsoft had the $15 or $40 upgrade promotion when Windows 8 launched.... it has a limit time, in this case, Microsoft will give free upgrade for ONE year for windows 7 and 8 users, if you didn't upgrade within one year to Windows 10, you have to pay for it. if you did upgrade, you can keep using it like people used WIndwos 8 and windows 7 for many years without paying a single cent.
too hard to understand right?.
What's this "Rock Paper Shotgun"?
A news site mostly for gaming
It's a brilliant site - excellent editorials.
Need to find out more about dx10 - my gtx980... Good grief I hope it's not outdated already lol I'm also going to buy a msi titan gaming laptop... Ugh. Price of progress I guess.
As far as i know...gtx 970 is dx 12 ready...so..uh..980 should be too...not sure about laptop gpu though
It's a social justice website which covers some gaming.
I knew "Rock Paper Scissors Lizard Spock" :D
The big bang theory. :)