DX 10 or 10.1 for upcoming launches

[Hauk]

There are those who've already discussed the topic in detail, but for casual gamers like myself who've not researched this topic, it's worth being informed before making a purchase decision. We are entering a summer graphics debut after all.

The Assassin's Creed DX 10.1 issue prompted some research into what nV plans to do and rumors are that nVidia does not plan to support DX 10.1. Some say they'll skip it all together and wait for DX 11. Conspiracy theories and dead horses aside, it's worth our time I think to answer a couple questions:

• Will we see widespread DX 10.1 implementation or will nV's decision influence upcoming releases?

• Does it matter? Will raw horsepower compensate for any DX 10.1 performance gains?

• Is one choice better than the other? One usually thinks being compliant with the latest technologies is the way to go. Is one choice leading to possible obsolence?

The issue seems worthy of discussion. Rather than another debate thread, it would be nice to have a collective of logical opinions, a reference of sorts for buyers ready to make an informed purchase decison. Benchmarks and performance typically drive purchase decisons. This *seems* like a topic important enough to be a factor as well.

Please contribute!

 

[Genx87]

When I purchase GPU's. I buy what plays the current crop of games the fastest. Not games in 6 or 12 months. Its feature set can be non-existent if it plays the games faster than the competition.

 

[biostud]

I doubt that many games will incorporate DX10.1 since it's only affecting a relatively small amount of the customers.

 

[Keysplayr]

I say we wait and see on all accounts.

 

[Martimus]

I try to buy the card with the largest feature set. I have been bitten in the past by having a card that would not play a game at any resolution, just because it did not have SM 3.0 (X800 XL). It doesn't look like a DX10.1 game would keep a DX10 card from working though, unless it requires anti-aliasing and only works with shader enabled AA.

 

[Oyeve]

Originally posted by: keysplayr2003
I say we wait and see on all accounts.

I concur. My system in my sig is all ready for DX10.1 and all that dual-core 64 bit jazz yet I am still on WinXP SP2. IMO, I hate Vista and until there is a Vista only game (Halo 2 doesnt count) that I really have I will be playing on DX9 and WinXP SP2 32bit. Most likely will bypass Vista altogether and wait for a GOOD os.