dx11

[Velox]

The game's texture pack is the same. The differences you'll see with DX11 are better resource loading, increased shadow rendering, better reflectivity, enhances refractive surfaces, raised textures, increased lighting, better directional lighting, better frame rates, smoother edging, better particle effects, more realistic fluid dynamics, and better color blending.

[Ramath]

The game's texture pack is the same. The differences you'll see with DX11 are better resource loading, increased shadow rendering, better reflectivity, enhances refractive surfaces, raised textures, increased lighting, better directional lighting, better frame rates, smoother edging, better particle effects, more realistic fluid dynamics, and better color blending.

Maybe... But I've been experiencing some really strange frame-rate drop at the oddest times. Sometimes, not all, I'll have like 10fps when I'm at my company house, other times it's fine. It'll change mid combat, too. It'll be fine when combat is happening, then right as it ends, it drops.

The in-game seetings are showing me 120+ fps, but the game clearly isn't running at that level. There's no consistency as to when it drops to crap and when it's smooth and flawless.

At times when I would expect it to lag, it runs flawlessly. Yet, it'll run drop to crap when I'm the only one in the area just sitting here. Outside, inside, near water, just on the sand, etc.

[Laraul]

The game's texture pack is the same. The differences you'll see with DX11 are better resource loading, increased shadow rendering, better reflectivity, enhances refractive surfaces, raised textures, increased lighting, better directional lighting, better frame rates, smoother edging, better particle effects, more realistic fluid dynamics, and better color blending.

DX11 can in theory provide all these, but for this game the visual improvements are relatively minor, and depending on your hard can severely impact performance. The DX11 client uses about 20-30% more GPU memory than the DX9 client. Most graphic cards released prior to summer 2014 will still likely get higher max framerates with the DX9 client, though they may also still bottom out lower than the dx11 client.

I have a GTX 680, and personally leaving the SSAO setting set to "HBAO+ Quality" really seems to impact performance rather severely. "HBAO+ Normal" runs considerably better. The water tessellation doesn't seem to offer any noticeable visual improvement. The Parallax Occlusion option does provide a minor improvement to some surfaces by providing the illusion of depth. And then there are times when the DX11 client looks no better than the DX9 client.

[Ryans]

I gained about 15 frames switching from maximum dx9 to max dx11. The reflective surfaces is the biggest thing I've noticed so far. I only got to play for 20 minutes since early access though.