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In order to simplify developers’ support for “super-resolution” technology in PC games, Microsoft and hardware partners NVIDIA, AMD and Intel jointly developed an API called “DirectSR” to allow them to use these three companies in Windows games. Companies have different resolution improvement plans. Microsoft calls DirectSR a tool for “seamless integration of super-resolution Windows games,” Microsoft project manager Joshua Tucker In the official blog article“DirectSR is the tool developers have been waiting for when integrating super-resolution, providing a smoother and more efficient experience across hardware,” they wrote.
Super-resolution is a general term for a technology that can use machine learning and other technologies to improve the resolution of the picture without putting too much pressure on the display card. For example, this means that a graphics card rendering at 1,920 x 1,080 resolution can output a 2,560 x 1,440 resolution image without increasing the burden on the graphics card. Although it cannot be said to have truly equivalent image quality to 2,560 x 1,440, in many game scenarios it is difficult for average players to immediately tell the difference.
DLSS
Currently, each of the three companies has its own solution: NVIDIA’s DLSS is only available for NVIDIA graphics cards; AMD’s FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) is more universal, supporting not only its own hardware, but also competitors’ hardware; While Intel’s XeSS provides AI resolution improvements for Intel hardware, it still provides limited support for non-Intel GPUs.
Microsoft says the DirectSR API opens up the possibility of “multi-vendor” super-resolution through “a common set of inputs and outputs.” In this way, game developers do not need to write special codes for DLSS, FSR or XeSS. As long as DirectSR can be connected, the operating system can communicate with the graphics card and provide the best solution.
Version 24H2 will have an AI “Super Resolution” feature, as previous reports mentioned. Here are some settings for it in Graphics settings – a default toggle and per-app options. (26052) pic.twitter.com/fI9t4ksTWH
— PhantomOcean3 ☃️ (@PhantomOfEarth) February 10, 2024
Early last month, Twitter/X user @PhantomofEarth noticed that there was an AI-driven “automatic super-resolution” setting in the Windows Insider preview version (24H2). Although there is no way to confirm whether it is DirectSR, the content does sound similar. This setting “uses AI to make supported games run more smoothly and provide enhanced detail.” The preview version allows you to choose automatic/universal resolution improvement, and you can also set options for individual games. The original guess was that this was another super-resolution feature from Microsoft that competed with the other three giants. However, after the advent of DirectSR, “automatic super-resolution” is most likely to be what the DirectSR API will eventually look like for consumers.
Microsoft said that DirectSR will be available to game developers “soon” in a public preview version of the Agility SDK, which is part of DirectX 12. If you are a PC game developer, you can pay attention to the DirectX State of the Union event that Microsoft plans to hold at GDC on March 21, which will introduce the API in more detail.
