Intel received a lot of criticism when it announced that it would support DirectX 9 for its dedicated graphics in Microsoft’s renderer called D3D9On12which can also be defined as a DirectX 9 to DirectX 12 translation layer.

The use of compilers is frowned upon in consumer computing because many perceive that performance will be lost, but in the context we are concerned with, things are not as linear as they seem. In video games, it’s not uncommon to see old titles running worse on last-gen hardware than a computer from ten or twelve years ago, and that’s because the software is, to put it mildly, very tied to the hardware of its time. .

In the context of running older games (mainly DirectX 9 and older) on newer hardware, using translators can be a good way to “cheat” and get better results. For example, with the D3D9On12 mentioned above, DirectX 9 instructions are translated to DirectX 12 at runtime, so basically the working API is the latter. As a result, the player can perceive a better experience and even a real performance improvement (yes, we are talking about more FPS).

However, Intel may have missed the key by opting for D3D9On12 instead of DXVK, the wine-oriented renderer (or translator) responsible for translating versions 9, 10 and 11 of Direct3D to Vulkan. Our regular readers will already know this DXVK is one of the mainstays of the Steam Deck (and Linux Gaming in general), and though focuses on Wine, can also work on Windowsand so the YouTube channel RandomGaminginHD decided to test it to see if it makes an improvement when used with an Intel Arc A750.

Depending on its version, RandomGaminginHD has noted improvements for some titles that work with DirectX 9. For example, with GTA IV had a frame rate of just under 60 when using D3D9On12, but with DXVK saw that number rise to 123fps. Another title tested was The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, which averaged 200 frames per second with DXVK.

The experience with one of the first stable releases was different The Witcher 3which uses DirectX 11 instead of DirectX 9. Here RandomGaminginHD said he saw a loss of about four frames per second when using DXVK compared to running DirectX 11 natively (Intel Arc graphics have native support for this API), but also noted that the feel was better when playing games and the experience was “less” conflicting despite the frame loss.

As a reminder, Intel Arc dedicated graphics do not have native support for DirectX 9, so this performance boost provided by DXVK is not compared to the native implementation of the API, but rather to using D3D9On12. If these results are confirmed and sustained over time, it would be clear that Intel has bet on a losing horse, so it would be wise for the company to consider using DXVK instead of D3D9On12, as the former, at least for now, seems to be a more mature technology.