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- Microsoft Promises Big Performance Boosts with DirectX Raytracing 1.2
- What’s New in DXR 1.2?
- How Shader Execution Reordering (SER) Improves Performance
- What Does SER Do?
- What Are Opacity Micromaps (OMMs)?
- How Do OMMs Work?
- How Will Gamers Notice These Raytracing Improvements from Microsoft?
- Microsoft Wants to Enable its New Raytracing on More GPUs
Microsoft Promises Big Performance Boosts with DirectX Raytracing 1.2
Frederick Nyame
March 26, 2025
Ray tracing has become a new trend in PC gaming and other graphics-related tasks. Its demand for PCs is quite high, even for those with high-end graphics cards. For this reason, Microsoft has promised to improve Ray tracing performance on PCs using software. The Windows OS maker says its next version of DirectX Raytracing (DXR) 1.2 will bring a major shift in Raytarcing performance.
What’s New in DXR 1.2?
Microsoft introduced two key technologies at GDC 2025:
These features could greatly improve how well games run with ray tracing enabled.
How Shader Execution Reordering (SER) Improves Performance
SER is not a new idea. Nvidia introduced it with its RTX 40-series GPUs and continued support in RTX 50-series cards like the RTX 5070. Now, Microsoft is making it more accessible by bringing SER to all GPUs with DXR 1.2.
What Does SER Do?
- It reorders how shaders (graphics instructions) are executed.
- This reduces delays caused when different shaders run on separate threads.
- Microsoft says SER can boost performance by up to 2x.
This technology could help developers make more path-traced games, meaning more titles with realistic lighting and shadows.
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What Are Opacity Micromaps (OMMs)?
OMMs also first appeared in Nvidia’s RTX 40-series cards. Microsoft is now integrating this feature into DXR 1.2.
How Do OMMs Work?
- Instead of calculating every tiny detail of light bouncing off an object, OMMs simplify the process.
- It maps transparency levels on objects, helping the system calculate light effects faster.
- This is useful for scenes with fog, smoke, or complex glass surfaces.
According to Microsoft, OMMs can boost performance by up to 2.3x in path-traced games.
How Will Gamers Notice These Raytracing Improvements from Microsoft?
Most players may not notice a direct FPS boost. Instead, game developers will use these features to add ray tracing effects that were previously too demanding. At GDC 2025, Remedy Entertainment’s CTO, Mika Vehkala, explained how SER and OMMs were used in Alan Wake 2 to create better lighting and reflections.
Microsoft Wants to Enable its New Raytracing on More GPUs
Nvidia already supports these features, but Microsoft is also working with AMD, Intel, and Qualcomm to make DXR 1.2 available on more GPUs. Developers can start using DXR 1.2 from April 2025. Gamers will likely see new and improved ray-traced games shortly.
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Source/VIA :
XDA Developers
