Halo 2 to Support Direct X 9, not 10
December 6, 2006
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Despite reports from several game media outlets, Halo 2 will not support Direct X 10 visual effects, according to an update from Microsoft. Though the Windows Vista version of Halo 2 will be based on Direct X 9 graphics technologies, owners of Direct X 10 hardware can expect to see “certain performance benefits.” What those benefits are remains to be seen, though faster frame rates seem likely. Halo 2 for Windows Vista is expected to be released in early 2007.
The confusion apparently stemmed from the fact that Halo 2 will only be released for Microsoft’s upcoming Windows Vista platform, which is the only operating system to support the new Direct X 10 graphics standard. Currently, the only video cards to support Direct X 10 are Nvidia’s Geforce 8800 line, and their Direct X 10 functionality won’t be unlocked until Windows Vista’s consumer launch.
Direct X 10 is the long-awaited API enhancement that will allow for more spectacular visual effects, such as wide-scale shaders and bump mapping. It will only be released via Windows Vista. The consumer edition of Vista is expected to happen in the beginning of 2007.
