In Baldur’s Gate 3 you can choose between Vulkan and DirectX 11. MeinMMO explains where the differences lie and what is better.
Anyone starting Baldur’s Gate 3 can choose between Vulkan and DirectX 11 as the graphics interface in the settings. But where exactly are the differences and which one is the most recommended? MeinMMO presents the differences and explains what you should know.
The first impression of Patch 8 in Baldur’s Gate 3 can be seen in the following video:
Vulkan and DirectX in brief comparison
What is Vulkan? Vulkan is an open-source graphics API that has the advantage of running on many platforms. Vulkan is not only compatible with Windows but also with Linux and mobile devices. Vulkan supports low-level hardware programming.
What is DirectX? DirectX is a collection of proprietary graphics APIs from Microsoft that consolidates various functions under one name. DirectX is only compatible with Windows and Xbox consoles and can only run with workarounds on Linux or Apple devices.
Similar to Vulkan, DirectX is primarily responsible for rendering complex 2D and 3D content but also takes on additional functions in games.
Baldur’s Gate 3: Vulkan or DirectX
This is recommended by the developers: The developers themselves recommend players use Vulkan in Baldur’s Gate 3, explaining it with better performance compared to the DirectX API (via Larian.com):
Vulkan offers a potential performance boost over DX11 in most cases, even if it is currently slightly less stable. We generally recommend using Vulkan, the standard graphics API.
If you experience performance issues, please try the DX11 API instead, which is available via the launcher.
Which is better? Essentially, it depends on the hardware you have in your gaming PC. Generally, the Vulkan API runs better on AMD graphics cards, while DirectX applications have advantages on Nvidia GPUs. If you take a look at the Steam community for Baldur’s Gate 3, the differences vary greatly depending on the hardware used.
In general:
- Vulkan generally offers better performance on average, but is somewhat less stable overall. If you want to be on the safe side and prefer stability over performance, you should choose DirectX.
- If you are playing on the Steam Deck or under a Linux distribution, then Vulkan is the much better choice.
Baldur’s Gate 3 receives a lot of new content with the new Patch 8. Included are, among others, 12 new subclasses. MeinMMO ranks the new classes and explains which classes are worth it the most for you: All new classes from Baldur’s Gate 3 Patch 8 ranked
