Serious Sam: Second Encouter (DirectX)

Here we'll look at SS:SE under DirectX.



FPS 640x480 800x600 1024x768 1280x1024 1600x1200
9700 PRO 65.0 59.7 52.8 44.3 37.7
8500 76.4 64.1 49.0 35.4 21.6
 
Difference 640x480 800x600 1024x768 1280x1024 1600x1200
FPS -11.4 -4.4 3.8 8.9 16.1
% -15% -7% 8% 25% 75%

Looking at the performance difference of SS:SE under DirectX it would seem, from the low resolution scores, that Radeon 9700 has not quite as optimal as Radeon 8500, and this is likely due to the relatively early state of the drivers. However, once we cross to 1024x768 the balance tips back in favour of the 9700 PRO as the 8500 starts feeling the fillrate pressure. At 1600x1200 the 9700 PRO has a 75% performance advantage over a 8500 at 37.7 FPS.




9700 PRO 640x480 800x600 1024x768 1280x1024 1600x1200
Normal 65.0 59.7 52.8 44.3 37.7
16X Aniso 61.3 52.5 44.5 35.6 29.2
4XFSAA 53.7 45.9 36.8 27.2 19.9
16X Aniso & 4X FSAA 49.1 41.2 32.3 23.7 16.9
 
% Difference 640x480 800x600 1024x768 1280x1024 1600x1200
16X Aniso -6% -12% -16% -20% -23%
4XFSAA -17% -23% -30% -39% -47%
16X Aniso & 4X FSAA -24% -31% -39% -47% -55%

Given the lower than previous scores of the normal SS:SE rendering under DX it's not much surprise that the FSAA and anisotropic filtering score show a greater hit than previously seen. Anisotropic filtering scales up to a performance deficit of 23% under normal rendering, and 4XFSAA taxes the system by 47% at 1600x1200. Once again, the drop from normal rendering to anisotropic filtering is higher than FSAA rendering to FSAA with anisotropic filtering.