Microsoft has released DirectStorage 1.1, which will help your PC games run much faster

This week Microsoft is releasing a new version of its DirectStorage technology and its biggest new addition yet

is GPU decompression for Windows PC games. This is the next stage of development in the industry to improve the speed of launching games.

What is known

GPU decompression enduresthe work required to decompress assets in games onto the graphics card, not the CPU. During this time, game assets are usually compressed when they are packaged for distribution and then decompressed after the game is launched.

“Usually the decompression work is performed byCPU because compression formats have historically been optimized only for it,” explains Cassie Hoef, senior program manager at Microsoft. “We offer an alternative method in DirectStorage 1.1 by moving the decompression of these resources to the GPU – known as GPU decompression.

In order for the technology to work in the gamedevelopers need to do the embedding themselves. Improvements could even lead to big changes in games where you move from one world to another or teleport between different parts of the map or world. Microsoft claims this can be up to three times faster, freeing up the CPU to handle other gaming processes.

Source: The Verge

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