AMD is no stranger to computer graphics, but
this year the company has is pushing software as
much as the hardware it runs on. Mantle is a
new graphics graphics application programming
interface (API) which promises to let games use
processors and graphics cards more efficiently,
meaning more frames per second for gamers
and an easier job for programmers.
But how exactly does Mantle work, and does it
have what it takes to revolutionise PC gaming?
We've taken a close look at the technology to
find out.
APIs EXPLAINED
Currently there are two main graphics APIs;
Direct3D and OpenGL. They are both known as
"high level" APIs, in that they use layers of
hardware abstraction to work across a large
selection of devices. Hardware abstraction is
essentially a set of software routines that
emulate device-specific features, giving
programs access to hardware resources even
though they weren't written explicitly for them.
However, because high-level APIs only speak to
hardware through multiple layers of hardware
abstraction, they come with a performance
penalty. For games and graphics cards, this
manifests itself as the number of individual draw
calls the application sends to the GPU to render
an object. A single frame could be made up of
over 100 draw calls, which each takes time to
submit. The number of draw calls a high-end
graphics card is able to process is much higher
than the number a processor can submit, even if
the CPU is also a top-end part.
Mantle is the opposite; it is a "low-level" API
that is written for specific hardware, namely
AMD graphics cards using the Graphics Core
Next architecture. Because the program knows
what commands the GPU will recognise, it
bypasses the need for extra code, drivers or
programming between software and hardware.
This helps to eliminate processor bottlenecks,
gives direct access to GPU memory, and speeds
up draw calls by as much as 9 times per second
compared to a traditional API like Direct3D.
THE CONSOLE CONNECTION
Low-level graphics APIs are nothing new, but are
more commonly used in games consoles where
the internal hardware is a constant. With PCs,
there are hundreds of possible combinations of
processors, graphics cards and other hardware,
as well as variations with operating systems and
other software drivers, meaning low-level APIs
have been restricted to specific applications or
games explicitly coded for certain devices.
Mantle has a shot at success where other
projects have stalled, however, because AMD is
in the excellent position of having its graphics
hardware in both major next-generation games
consoles. The PS4 and Xbox One both use
Graphics Core Next architecture, for which AMD
has already created low-level APIs for
developers to use. To be able to port code
directly to the PC would make releasing cross-
platform titles far more straightforward, and
according to AMD this is something developers
have been asking for.
Although AMD denies Mantle is an exact
duplicate of the low-level API used by Microsoft
in the Xbox One, it is undoubtedly similar; if
developers can get their titles onto the PC
quickly and with minimal extra effort, it could
finally put an end to shoddy PC ports.
PERFORMANCE POTENTIAL
In practice, Mantle can have startling results.
Currently the only Mantle-compatible game
commercially available is EA's Battlefield 4, but
this gives a good indication of what to expect if
other developers begin to support it. With a top-
end Radeon R9 290X, Battlefield 4 sees a
massive 40% improvement in frame rates when
paired with a processor that would otherwise
not be able to provide enough draw calls per
second to the GPU.
AMD Mantle Graph
There are fewer benefits when the same GPU is
paired with a more powerful processor. An Intel
Core i7-4670K is significantly faster than AMD's
A10 7700K and therefore able to deliver more
draw calls per second, mitigating the effects of
the Mantle API. There are still benefits over
Direct3D, although they aren't quite as
impressive. Arguably not many people are going
to pair a graphics card which costs £420 with a
mid-range CPU, either, so it's good to see mid-
range cards like the Radeon R9 270 and R7
260x receive modest gains of between 5 and
10%.
AMD Mantle Graph 2
Mantle isn't a magic bullet, though. Depending
on your graphics card and processor, you could
actually see a reduction in performance: on our
Intel Core i5-2500k and a Radeon HD 7850,
Battlefield 4 frame rates dropped by as much as
30%. This is because AMD has yet to optimise
the drivers to support specific cards, so until it
does, Mantle is very much a work in progress
that will only benefit certain hardware.
THE NAME OF THE GAME
So far, only a handful of major developers have
pledged to support Mantle. EA was the first,
having integrated the API into its Frostbite 3
engine for Battlefield 4, but Square-Enix,
Rebellion Developments and Chris Roberts are
also on board with Thief, Sniper Elite 3 and Star
Citizen respectively. EA's upcoming Plants vs
Zombies: Garden Warfare uses the same game
engine as Battlefield 4, so will include Mantle
support "out of the box".
Battlefield 4
If you want to see Mantle in action today,
Battlefield 4 is your best bet
Oxide Games is also developing a game engine,
currently known as Nitrous, specifically for
Mantle. The first Nitrous-powered program is
Star Swarm, a free to play demo available
through Steam which shows exactly what
Mantle is capable of. As long as you have a
compatible graphics card, performance gains
vary from 5% to as much as 40% versus
Direct3D.
A further 15 titles are reportedly in
development, although the companies behind
them have yet to come forward - perhaps we'll
hear more in June, when the E3 games show
begins.
THE ROAD TO SUCCESS
Mantle is exciting for gamers (free extra
performance) and developers (easier to code
for), but it is by no means a guaranteed success.
Most importantly it needs developer support, as
if no-one is using Mantle it will fall by the
wayside - after all, when was the last time you
played a game with Sound Blaster X-Fi support?
Hopefully the fact that it will make developers'
lives easier will give it some early traction,
although we'll have to wait for the next set of
Mantle-ready games to arrive to see whether
other companies sit up and take notice.
To officially be an API, AMD will have to make
the specification public. At the time of writing it
has yet to do so, but if the company wants
Mantle to succeed it will eventually have to open
it up to the competition; namely Intel and
nVidia. It will also have to make it cross-
platform in order to work with Valve's SteamOS,
which runs on a customised version of Linux
rather than Windows.
this year the company has is pushing software as
much as the hardware it runs on. Mantle is a
new graphics graphics application programming
interface (API) which promises to let games use
processors and graphics cards more efficiently,
meaning more frames per second for gamers
and an easier job for programmers.
But how exactly does Mantle work, and does it
have what it takes to revolutionise PC gaming?
We've taken a close look at the technology to
find out.
APIs EXPLAINED
Currently there are two main graphics APIs;
Direct3D and OpenGL. They are both known as
"high level" APIs, in that they use layers of
hardware abstraction to work across a large
selection of devices. Hardware abstraction is
essentially a set of software routines that
emulate device-specific features, giving
programs access to hardware resources even
though they weren't written explicitly for them.
However, because high-level APIs only speak to
hardware through multiple layers of hardware
abstraction, they come with a performance
penalty. For games and graphics cards, this
manifests itself as the number of individual draw
calls the application sends to the GPU to render
an object. A single frame could be made up of
over 100 draw calls, which each takes time to
submit. The number of draw calls a high-end
graphics card is able to process is much higher
than the number a processor can submit, even if
the CPU is also a top-end part.
Mantle is the opposite; it is a "low-level" API
that is written for specific hardware, namely
AMD graphics cards using the Graphics Core
Next architecture. Because the program knows
what commands the GPU will recognise, it
bypasses the need for extra code, drivers or
programming between software and hardware.
This helps to eliminate processor bottlenecks,
gives direct access to GPU memory, and speeds
up draw calls by as much as 9 times per second
compared to a traditional API like Direct3D.
THE CONSOLE CONNECTION
Low-level graphics APIs are nothing new, but are
more commonly used in games consoles where
the internal hardware is a constant. With PCs,
there are hundreds of possible combinations of
processors, graphics cards and other hardware,
as well as variations with operating systems and
other software drivers, meaning low-level APIs
have been restricted to specific applications or
games explicitly coded for certain devices.
Mantle has a shot at success where other
projects have stalled, however, because AMD is
in the excellent position of having its graphics
hardware in both major next-generation games
consoles. The PS4 and Xbox One both use
Graphics Core Next architecture, for which AMD
has already created low-level APIs for
developers to use. To be able to port code
directly to the PC would make releasing cross-
platform titles far more straightforward, and
according to AMD this is something developers
have been asking for.
Although AMD denies Mantle is an exact
duplicate of the low-level API used by Microsoft
in the Xbox One, it is undoubtedly similar; if
developers can get their titles onto the PC
quickly and with minimal extra effort, it could
finally put an end to shoddy PC ports.
PERFORMANCE POTENTIAL
In practice, Mantle can have startling results.
Currently the only Mantle-compatible game
commercially available is EA's Battlefield 4, but
this gives a good indication of what to expect if
other developers begin to support it. With a top-
end Radeon R9 290X, Battlefield 4 sees a
massive 40% improvement in frame rates when
paired with a processor that would otherwise
not be able to provide enough draw calls per
second to the GPU.
AMD Mantle Graph
There are fewer benefits when the same GPU is
paired with a more powerful processor. An Intel
Core i7-4670K is significantly faster than AMD's
A10 7700K and therefore able to deliver more
draw calls per second, mitigating the effects of
the Mantle API. There are still benefits over
Direct3D, although they aren't quite as
impressive. Arguably not many people are going
to pair a graphics card which costs £420 with a
mid-range CPU, either, so it's good to see mid-
range cards like the Radeon R9 270 and R7
260x receive modest gains of between 5 and
10%.
AMD Mantle Graph 2
Mantle isn't a magic bullet, though. Depending
on your graphics card and processor, you could
actually see a reduction in performance: on our
Intel Core i5-2500k and a Radeon HD 7850,
Battlefield 4 frame rates dropped by as much as
30%. This is because AMD has yet to optimise
the drivers to support specific cards, so until it
does, Mantle is very much a work in progress
that will only benefit certain hardware.
THE NAME OF THE GAME
So far, only a handful of major developers have
pledged to support Mantle. EA was the first,
having integrated the API into its Frostbite 3
engine for Battlefield 4, but Square-Enix,
Rebellion Developments and Chris Roberts are
also on board with Thief, Sniper Elite 3 and Star
Citizen respectively. EA's upcoming Plants vs
Zombies: Garden Warfare uses the same game
engine as Battlefield 4, so will include Mantle
support "out of the box".
Battlefield 4
If you want to see Mantle in action today,
Battlefield 4 is your best bet
Oxide Games is also developing a game engine,
currently known as Nitrous, specifically for
Mantle. The first Nitrous-powered program is
Star Swarm, a free to play demo available
through Steam which shows exactly what
Mantle is capable of. As long as you have a
compatible graphics card, performance gains
vary from 5% to as much as 40% versus
Direct3D.
A further 15 titles are reportedly in
development, although the companies behind
them have yet to come forward - perhaps we'll
hear more in June, when the E3 games show
begins.
THE ROAD TO SUCCESS
Mantle is exciting for gamers (free extra
performance) and developers (easier to code
for), but it is by no means a guaranteed success.
Most importantly it needs developer support, as
if no-one is using Mantle it will fall by the
wayside - after all, when was the last time you
played a game with Sound Blaster X-Fi support?
Hopefully the fact that it will make developers'
lives easier will give it some early traction,
although we'll have to wait for the next set of
Mantle-ready games to arrive to see whether
other companies sit up and take notice.
To officially be an API, AMD will have to make
the specification public. At the time of writing it
has yet to do so, but if the company wants
Mantle to succeed it will eventually have to open
it up to the competition; namely Intel and
nVidia. It will also have to make it cross-
platform in order to work with Valve's SteamOS,
which runs on a customised version of Linux
rather than Windows.
Facebook
Twitter