Windows 11, the newest update to Microsoft’s long running series of PC firmware, is available now to download for free.
Available from the Microsoft website, users can either install it using a bootable DVD, a USB drive, or an ISO file.
In a blog post from August, Microsoft claimed that “Windows 11 delivers the best Windows ever for gaming and unlocks the full potential of your system’s hardware with technology like DirectX12, Ultimate, DirectStorage and Auto HDR”.
This is all part of Microsoft’s push for Game Pass, its subscription service through which players can play hundreds of games for a monthly fee. This includes all first party Xbox games, which encompasses the upcoming Halo Infinite.
In a piece posted to Xbox Wire by Sarah Bond, the corporate vice president at Xbox, she explained that Windows 11 would receive the Auto HDR tech first debuted on the Xbox Series X|S.
“Games will look better than ever thanks to Auto HDR, a unique capability we’re offering with Windows 11 which automatically adds High Dynamic Range (HDR) enhancements to games built on DirectX 11 or higher that previously only leveraged Standard Dynamic Range (SDR). HDR allows a supported game to render a much wider range of brightness values and colors, giving an extra sense of richness and depth to the image.”
She also went on to explain that Windows 11’s gaming features will take advantage of the high-speed SSD drives now on the market.
“With DirectStorage, which will only be available with Windows 11, games can quickly load assets to the graphics card without bogging down the CPU. This means you’ll get to experience incredibly detailed game worlds rendered at lightning speeds, without long load times. “DirectStorage Optimized” Windows 11 PCs are configured with the hardware and drivers needed to enable this amazing experience.”
Microsoft continues to push Xbox Game Pass hard, however Phil Spencer has shot down rumours that the service would appear on other consoles, like the much rumoured Nintendo Switch client for the service.
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