Microsoft kit for games spurs support

Electronic News, May 1, 1995 by Anthony Cataldo

SANTA CLARA, CALIF. - Graphics chip makers last week at the Computer Games Developer Conference here were quick to announce their support of Microsoft's software developer's kit (SDK) for PC game makers, which is expected to unleash a horde new of new titles for Windows 95 from software developers.

The new SDK from Microsoft is viewed as a key element in bringing MPEG playback and 3-D graphics to the PC. Graphics chip vendors have been producing hardware solutions made to accelerate bandwidth-intensive video and graphics displays, but for the most part games developers favored making games that run under the underlying DOS operating system. Graphics chip developers expect the flurry of new titles will galvanize a movement to upgrade PCs with their hardware.

Microsoft's SDK contains tools, sample code, documentation and a new game subsystem designed to facilitate high-performance games under Windows. The game subsystem provides several applications programming interfaces (APIs) that enable better graphics animation and sound effects, simplify multiplayer game connectivity and provide digital joystick control.

Intel, meanwhile, introduced its second version of its 3DR technology, a 3-D graphics library designed for real-time animation using an Intel 486 and Pentium microprocessor running Windows.

The latest version adds a geometry pipeline to the original rasterization engine core, bringing in new features such as general lighting model, texture processing and user interface toolkits and a geometric math library. Intel also said it plans to provide software developers additional geometry functions, multi-threading and P6 support this year. Intel Architecture Labs, as part of its Native Signal Processing specification, is offering the 3DR SDK for software developers for free.

Among the chip vendors that said their graphics accelerator devices support the new Microsoft SDK are Brooktree, S3, Alliance Semiconductor and Yamaha. 3Dlabs also said it plans to launch a low-cost version of its Glint processor for the PC in effort to make 3-D rendering more affordable.

Graphics controller leader Cirrus Logic said it is now developing hardware that will support Windows 95 and is committing "substantial internal resources" this year to creating hardware and software products nurturing entertainment on the PC.

Advanced Micro Devices also unveiled its InterWave audio processor, which it described as a single-chip audio system for the PC. Made to take advantage of Microsoft's SDK audio feature set, the 160-pin Am78C201 allows developers to mix, create and modify sounds in real-time using 16-bit wavetable synthesis.

Priced at $39.95, the device is being sampled now and will be produced in volume beg in 3Q95.