This, in turn, splits development resources between both APIs, leading to a situation where one API inevitably gets more love than the other. In effect, developers are forced to offer both DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 versions of their games, assuming that they want to support DirectX 12 in the first place.

Before now, DirectX 12 couldn't work on Windows 7, which means that DirectX 11 couldn't be abandoned outright. Developers want to capture the largest audience possible on PC, which means that developers will ideally target the two most popular Windows-based OS', Windows 7 and Windows 10. Our headline calls Microsoft's support for DirectX 12 in Windows 7 a 'Genius Move', but why? The first thing we need to consider is why most DirectX 12 games also offer a DirectX 11 version. Sadly, this strategy has not worked, with developers seeming reluctant to adopt the new API early on while many early DirectX 12 games offered less performance than their DirectX 11 counterparts. Last night, we reported on Microsoft porting DirectX 12 to Windows 7, an unprecedented move which would enable the new API to function on Microsoft's most popular legacy OS.Įver since Windows 10's launch, DirectX 12 has been exclusive to the new OS, acting as a reason for gamers to upgrade.

Directx update windows 7