Microsoft Revealing 'Super Resolution' Tech Soon

Microsoft seems to be the latest entrant in the race for upscaling solutions, with a Super Resolution technology reportedly in the works. While various implementations of the technology exist in the industry currently, some games opt for one instead of the other, making it available only for a subset of users. Microsoft could be on its way to providing a more standardized solution.

Nvidia was the first to kickstart things on the supersampling front, with the release of Deep-Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) all the way back in 2018. While initially it was available for only a few games and many considered it to be a gimmick, the technology has come a long way since then. Primarily, the technology aims to maximize performance by rendering at much lower resolutions and then upscaling the output. In 2021, AMD released its own version, Fidelity FX Super Resolution (FSR), which several iterations later, comes quite close to achieving DLSS-level quality. Amid that, it seems like Microsoft is aiming to streamline things.

As per the official GDC 2024 schedule, Microsoft will be holding a session focused on DirectSR (Super Resolution) on March 21. The event description highlights that Microsoft aims to simplify the adoption of supersampling technologies by developers, making it more accessible. Alongside that, it will also be focusing on «Work Graphs,» which is defined as a new way to make the most out of the GPU hardware and parallelize workloads.

Perhaps the most interesting part of the session is that it is in collaboration with both Nvidia and AMD GPU engineers. This does imply that Microsoft may be working towards a standardized solution for supersampling technology. In short, it could mean that game developers would only need to cater to DirectSR, and then the underlying technology will handle the supersampling depending on whether the system has an Nvidia or AMD GPU.

Considering that there has been an ongoing debate in the community about AMD-sponsored games not supporting