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Microsoft announced that it will bring a key piece of Xbox Series X storage technology to Windows 10 for PC. It’s called DirectStorage, and it was originally announced as part of a portfolio of technological innovations that Microsoft will include in its next video game console.
“We are very excited to bring DirectStorage, an API from the DirectX family originally designed for [Xbox Series X’s] Velocity Architecture for Windows PCs, ”writes Microsoft’s Andrew Yeung. “DirectStorage will bring best-in-class IO technology to both PC and console, just as DirectX 12 Ultimate does with rendering technology. With a DirectStorage compatible PC and DirectStorage compatible game, you can expect dramatically reduced load times and virtual worlds that are more expansive and detailed than ever. “
DirectStorage will require an NVMe-based SSD due to its high bandwidth needs, and it will apparently not work with all NVMe drives either: DirectStorage will be supported only on “certain systems with NVMe drives,” Microsoft notes. If your system does not support DirectStorage, the games will just continue to function normally, as before.
And technology isn’t just about speed: Microsoft says DirectStorage will allow games to be more detailed and expansive than before.
“By using DirectStorage, games can take advantage of current and future best decompression technologies,” explains Yeung. “The DirectStorage API is designed in a way that … maximizes performance throughout the entire process from the NVMe drive to the GPU. [So] developers are offered an extremely efficient way to carry [gamers] Larger, more detailed virtual worlds that load as fast as the game character can move through them. “
Bringing DirectStorage to Windows 10 will take some time, Yeung adds. Microsoft has already started preparing its partners for DirectStorage and is working to finish designing and building the API and its supporting components. The firm hopes to get the first developer preview next year.
