List of computer games that require pixel shaders
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[edit] Games that require Pixel Shaders
[edit] Pixel Shaders 1.1 (DirectX 8.0)
This is the list of computer games that require DirectX 8.0 programmable Pixel Shader 1.1 support to run, eg. Silent Hill 3. Games such as Half-Life 2 that only need pixel shader 1.1 as an optional feature will NOT be listed here. Users of graphics cards such as GeForce 4 MX will therefore not be able to run Silent Hill 3, but will run Half-Life 2 without problems.
- Alexander (needs confirmation)
- Act of War: Direct Action
- Advent Rising
- Battlefield 2
- Battlestations: Midway
- Black & White 2
- BloodRayne 2
- Boiling Point: Road to Hell
- Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood
- Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30
- Caesar IV
- Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth
- The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
- The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay
- Colin McRae Rally 2005
- Company of Heroes
- Darkstar One
- Deus Ex: Invisible War
- Devil May Cry 3 (Works with 3D Analyzer confirmed. Use skip pixel shaders options, force 100 Hz, check performance mode, force SwTnL; Tested on Intel 865 onboard graphics)
- Earth 2160
- Empire Earth 2
- Eragon
- Fable: The Lost Chapters
- F.E.A.R.
- Heroes of Might and Magic V
- Jade Empire (Special Edition)
- Just Cause
- Knight Of The Temple 2
- Lego Star Wars: The Video Game
- Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
- Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure
- Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
- Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault
- Medieval II: Total War
- Men of Valor
- Need for Speed Carbon
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Legend of Jack Sparrow
- Project: Snowblind
- Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
- Psychonauts (can be launched with 3D-analyze)
- Richard Burns Rally
- Roboblitz
- Serious Sam 2
- Sid Meier's Railroads!
- Silent Hill 3 (can be launched with 3D-analyze)
- Silent Hill 4 (can be launched with 3D-analyze - Performance > force SW TnL, Hardware Limits(cap bits) > all, Vendor ID = 0, Device ID = 0, ANTI DETECT MODE > shaders and textures ).
- Silent Hunter III
- Sniper Elite
- Spellforce 2: Shadow Wars
- Star Wars: Republic Commando (works with some texture problems)
- Test Drive Unlimited
- The Godfather: The Game
- The House of the Dead III
- The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-Earth II
- The Matrix: Path of Neo
- Thief: Deadly Shadow
- Titan Quest
- Toca Race Driver 3 (launches, but isn't playable)
- Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Lockdown
- Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory
- Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow (can be launched with 3D-analyze)
- Tony Hawk's American Wasteland
- Top Spin
- Total World Demo
- Winning Eleven/ Pro Evolution Soccer series on PC (although playable frame rates are possible with a Geforce 4 MX if used with a fast enough CPU)
- Worms 4: Mayhem
[edit] Pixel Shaders 1.3 (DirectX 8.1)
The following is a second list of computer games that require DirectX 8.0a programmable Pixel Shader 1.3 support to run, eg. X3: The Reunion. Games such as Half-Life 2 that only need pixel shader 1.3 as an optional feature will NOT be listed here. Users of graphics cards such as GeForce 3 will therefore not be able to run X3: The Renuion, but will run Half-Life 2 without problems.
- X3: Reunion
- Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars (needs confirmation)
[edit] Pixel Shaders 1.4 (DirectX 8.1)
The following is a third list of computer games that require DirectX 8.1 programmable Pixel Shader 1.4 support to run, eg. Hitman: Blood Money. Games such as Half-Life 2 that only need pixel shader 1.4 as an optional feature will NOT be listed here. Users of graphics cards such as GeForce 4 Ti will therefore not be able to run Hitman: Blood Money, but will run Half-Life 2 without problems.
[edit] Pixel Shaders 2.0 (DirectX 9.0)
The following is a fourth list of computer games that require DirectX 9.0 programmable Pixel Shader 2.0 support to run, eg. Elder Scrolls: Oblivion. Games such as Far Cry that only need pixel shader 2.0 as an optional feature will NOT be listed here. Users of graphics cards such as GeForce 3 will therefore not be able to run Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, but will run Far Cry without problems.
- Battlefield 2142
- Company Of Heroes (demo)
Note: The single-player demo version is missing PS 1.x support, which results in a visible interface, but a blank terrain onscreen.[1]
- Condemned: Criminal Origins (needs confirmation)
- Europa Universalis 3
- Neverwinter Nights 2
- Supreme Commander
- Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter
- The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Note: Oblivion does have a partially complete 1.x shader package, which the mod 'Oldblivion' completes, enabling it to run/walk on a GeForce3. By default, Oblivion doesn't complain of missing shaders when run on GF3/4 Ti, but there will be missing shading on most graphics.
[edit] Pixel Shaders 3.0 (DirectX 9.0c)
The following is a fifth list of computer games that require DirectX 9.0c programmable Pixel Shader & Vertex Shader support to run, eg. Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent. Games such as Far Cry that only need Shader Model 3.0 as an optional feature will NOT be listed here. Users of graphics cards such as Radeon 9700 Pro will therefore not be able to run Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent, but will run Far Cry without problems.
[edit] Graphic chipsets with pixel shader support
While the ATI Radeon 7xxx series and NVIDIA GeForce2/GeForce4 MX series do have somewhat programmable pixel pipelines, they are not flexible enough to run shader programs of level 1.0. Shader Model 1.1 was the first standard used in games, and was first supported in DirectX 8.0.[1]
The list below shows the highest pixel shader version supported by each card family.
[edit] Version 1.1 (DirectX 8.0)
- nVidia GeForce3 series
- Matrox Parhelia series
- SiS Xabre series
[edit] Version 1.3 (DirectX 8.1)
[edit] Version 1.4 (DirectX 8.1)
[edit] Version 2.0 (DirectX 9.0)
- ATI Radeon 9500/9550/9600/9700/9800 series
- ATI Radeon X300/X600 series
- ATI Express-200 integrated graphics
- Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900 and 950 series
- XGI Volari series
- SiS Mirage 3
- S3 Chrome series, including DeltaChrome and GammaChrome but excluding UniChrome integrated graphics
[edit] Version 2.0x (DirectX 9.0b)
Version 2.0x comprises two versions - version 2.0a (for nVidia GeForce FX series) and version 2.0b (for ATI Radeon X700/X800/X850 series). These versions expose additional features over version 2.0 and are usually used for increased performance with the target hardware (GeForce FX or Radeon X700/X800/X850).
- nVidia GeForce FX series
- ATI Radeon X700/X800/X850 series
[edit] Version 3.0 (DirectX 9.0c)
- nVidia GeForce 6 Series
- nVidia GeForce 7 Series
- ATI Radeon X1K series
[edit] Version 4.0 (DirectX 10.0)
- nVidia GeForce 8 Series
- ATI Radeon R600 series
[edit] Solution for unsupported cards
As of 2005, there are still a large number of GeForce 4 MX users. Software tweaks, such as SwiftShader, swShader and 3D-analyze, can sometimes be used as a workaround for games requiring pixel shaders. However, this often renders games unplayable. Forcing such games to run on unsupported cards usually results in unrendered textures and lighting, as well as poor performance. Additionally, many online anti-cheat systems (such as Punkbuster) perform file and memory scans to ensure that game files have not been modified. As a result, those who attempt to play online using such workarounds may be unable to play, and in a worst case scenario, may in fact have their account/CD-key banned.
Entry-level video cards supporting pixel shaders are now quite affordable. As a result, replacing an unsupported card with a newer one is not only viable, but also much more desirable than using potentially problematic workarounds.
[edit] See also
References:
