mojoman0
03-11-11, 04:45 PM
http://news.bigdownload.com/2011/03/11/ids-john-carmack-admits-directx-is-better-than-opengl-but-wont/
The DirectX graphics API created by Microsoft is used by nearly all PC game developers. The one big exception is id Software. Its main programmer John Carmack has used the OpenGL graphics API to help program all of id's 3D graphics engines including id Tech 5 which is the basis for id's upcoming shooter Rage.
While Carmack has been critical of DirectX in the past that has now changed. In an article at bit-tech.net (based on an interview Carmack gave to the Custom PC print mag) he states, "I actually think that Direct3D is a rather better API today." He added that while DirectX has improved over the years, OpenGL "has been held back by compatibility concerns."
So does that mean that Carmack will switch to DirectX? Maybe not. He states, "OpenGL still works fine and we wouldn't get any huge benefits by making the switch, so I can't work up much enthusiasm for cleaning it out of our codebase."
http://www.geek.com/articles/games/john-carmack-finally-prefers-directx-to-opengl-20110311/
If you look at the recent history of video games then you will notice one stand out fact. While many game engines and games have embraced Microsoft’s DirectX for PC games, id Software and John Carmack have stuck with OpenGL.
The reasons for this were explained by Carmack as far back as 1996 in one of his famous .plan updates. While Carmack saw DirectX, and in particular Direct 3D as having an edge in some respects, he dismissed it as as “horribly broken” API but admitted that it would “suck-less” with every new version.
That apparently turned out to be true and it seems as though John Carmack has now become a DirectX fan. The reason why is not down to Microsoft wooing Carmack in any way. No, the way to John Carmack’s heart is through technology and innovation, and that’s exactly what Microsoft has seemingly done.
OpenGL has had new versions released over the last few years, but where it has fallen behind is in innovation and features. Originally it set the bar, but DirectX caught up and then carried on innovating with every version. It has reached a point where OpenGL + extensions can still offer up a decent API, but DirectX is basically better.
If a number of respected figures in the games industry said this then it would probably pass under the radar of everyone except other developers. But when John Carmack talks about technology and preferences everyone listens because he has always been at the forefront of graphics technology. This is proven just by looking back at what Carmack and id have achieved with their own game engines and the forthcoming id Tech 5.
Microsoft shouldn’t start celebrating yet, though. Even though Carmack prefers DirectX he won’t be using it any time soon. Although he could easily port the final game executables of id titles over to the API, the engine and its tools are all using OpenGL and that’s not a code base Carmack wants to sit down and change over to DirectX just for the sake of it.
What this does suggest, however, is that id Tech 6 may be the first id Software DirectX-focused engine.
The DirectX graphics API created by Microsoft is used by nearly all PC game developers. The one big exception is id Software. Its main programmer John Carmack has used the OpenGL graphics API to help program all of id's 3D graphics engines including id Tech 5 which is the basis for id's upcoming shooter Rage.
While Carmack has been critical of DirectX in the past that has now changed. In an article at bit-tech.net (based on an interview Carmack gave to the Custom PC print mag) he states, "I actually think that Direct3D is a rather better API today." He added that while DirectX has improved over the years, OpenGL "has been held back by compatibility concerns."
So does that mean that Carmack will switch to DirectX? Maybe not. He states, "OpenGL still works fine and we wouldn't get any huge benefits by making the switch, so I can't work up much enthusiasm for cleaning it out of our codebase."
http://www.geek.com/articles/games/john-carmack-finally-prefers-directx-to-opengl-20110311/
If you look at the recent history of video games then you will notice one stand out fact. While many game engines and games have embraced Microsoft’s DirectX for PC games, id Software and John Carmack have stuck with OpenGL.
The reasons for this were explained by Carmack as far back as 1996 in one of his famous .plan updates. While Carmack saw DirectX, and in particular Direct 3D as having an edge in some respects, he dismissed it as as “horribly broken” API but admitted that it would “suck-less” with every new version.
That apparently turned out to be true and it seems as though John Carmack has now become a DirectX fan. The reason why is not down to Microsoft wooing Carmack in any way. No, the way to John Carmack’s heart is through technology and innovation, and that’s exactly what Microsoft has seemingly done.
OpenGL has had new versions released over the last few years, but where it has fallen behind is in innovation and features. Originally it set the bar, but DirectX caught up and then carried on innovating with every version. It has reached a point where OpenGL + extensions can still offer up a decent API, but DirectX is basically better.
If a number of respected figures in the games industry said this then it would probably pass under the radar of everyone except other developers. But when John Carmack talks about technology and preferences everyone listens because he has always been at the forefront of graphics technology. This is proven just by looking back at what Carmack and id have achieved with their own game engines and the forthcoming id Tech 5.
Microsoft shouldn’t start celebrating yet, though. Even though Carmack prefers DirectX he won’t be using it any time soon. Although he could easily port the final game executables of id titles over to the API, the engine and its tools are all using OpenGL and that’s not a code base Carmack wants to sit down and change over to DirectX just for the sake of it.
What this does suggest, however, is that id Tech 6 may be the first id Software DirectX-focused engine.