Microsoft’s DirectStorage API is showing great potential, and according to demos, the technology is significantly ahead of the older Win32 system in terms of performance. The first game to announce support for the next-generation storage API was Forspoken, with test results showing a 70% performance increase in certain game scenarios. However, this game was delayed for the second time in the year, so the wait for DirectStorage to arrive has been a little longer.
However, there has been some positive news surrounding the technology as well. In a recent “Ask Unreal” Q&A session, Brian Karis, a graphics engineering fellow at Epic Games, confirmed that Unreal Engine 5 (UE5) will receive DirectStorage support from Microsoft.
While no specific timeline was given in the meantime, Karis offered an idea of how the technology could help shape UE5 and the next generation of games based on it. He explained that DirectStorage could help implement virtual textures (VTs) once the next-generation storage API is properly supported by Nanite, Unreal Engine 5’s virtualized geometry system. Although not a necessary requirement, the UE5 documentation on Nanite also suggests using VT to implement next-generation geometry.
Q: Are there any plans to integrate DirectStorage directly into the engine?
A: Yes, there are, although I can’t comment on when. When the UE file system supports DirectStorage well, Nanite and VT will use it first.
From the available demos, Unreal Engine 5 looks very impressive and combined with DirectStorage’s greatly improved I/O throughput, etc., the two could be a match made in heaven.
