Microsoft just unveiled some exciting updates, including DirectX Raytracing (DXR) 1.2 and Neural Rendering, at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2025. These advancements, which work on hardware from NVIDIA, Intel, and AMD, promise to enhance visual quality and performance for gamers.
With DXR 1.2, Microsoft introduces two major features: opacity micromaps (OMM) and shader execution reordering (SER). OMM improves how alpha-tested geometry is rendered, offering up to a 2.3x boost in performance for path-traced games. This change allows for smoother visuals while keeping quality high by managing opacity data more effectively.
On the other hand, SER helps speed up rendering by grouping shader executions smartly. This can lead to performance increases of up to 2x in certain situations. Both OMM and SER make raytraced games feel more immersive and are paving the way for more titles using path tracing technology.
During demonstrations of Remedy’s "Alan Wake 2" at GDC, the capabilities of DXR 1.2 were showcased, showing up to a 40% performance boost in complex scenes—highlighting just how far gaming visuals have come. NVIDIA has already adopted these features and is set to support them across their GeForce RTX GPUs. Collaboration with AMD and Intel is also in the works to ensure broader compatibility.
In addition to these features, Microsoft is bringing cooperative vectors to Shader Model 6.9. This new programming enhancement will enable developers to utilize advanced hardware acceleration for various operations, allowing for integration of neural rendering techniques directly into graphics workflows.
Moreover, Microsoft is updating Windows WARP (Windows Advanced Rasterization Platform). This CPU-based software renderer will now support the latest DirectX features, such as raytracing and mesh shaders, making it useful for systems without a dedicated GPU.
As more developers explore these groundbreaking tools, the gaming experience is set to become even more visually stunning and engaging. The future of gaming graphics looks promising, and these advancements signal an exciting time for both players and developers.
For more about these developments, you can check Microsoft’s official announcements here.
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