AMD Project ReSX Tweaks Games And Drivers To Improve eSports Gaming Performance

by Brandon Hill — Monday, March 05, 2018, 05:00 PM EDT

AMD is make a big push to provide optimizations for gamers looking to extract every ounce of performance out of their graphics cards. As a result, the company undertook an internal "skunkworks" program called the Radeon eSports Experience, or ReSX.

The company took a two-pronged approach to improving performance with ReSX. First, it went directly to game developers (and even provided some of its own engineers) to optimize the code for their games and find any and every area that could be optimized for better performance. Secondly, AMD worked in-house to streamline its own drivers, ensuring that gamers are getting the best possible frame rates in their favorite eSports titles.

The fruits of these labors have found their way into Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition 18.3.1 and include "notable performance improvements" that puts this driver branch ahead of the currently available Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition. This driver release targets performance increases in three specific eSports titles: PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, Overwatch, and Dota 2.

In an all-out performance showdown, driver version 18.3.1 used with PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds saw a healthy 11 percent increase over version 17.12.1 at 1080p/Ultra settings. Overwatch (1440p/Ultra) and Dota 2 (4K Ultra) also saw improvements of 3 percent and 6 percent respectively.

The new drivers also extend improvements to 99^th percentile frame time for smoother gameplay and lower click-to-response times. All tests were performed with an Intel Core-7700K processor backed by 16GB DDR4-3000 memory and a Radeon RX 580 (8GB) graphics card.

"Project ReSX isn’t just about higher benchmark scores, though. Our aim is to improve the experience for Radeon GPU owners by ensuring smooth, consistent gameplay," writes AMD "We’re happy to see that work paying off in Radeon Software 18.3.1, and we will continue to push for similar improvements across the newest and most popular PC games."

AMD’s Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition 18.3.1 is available to download right now, and you can grab it here.

Tags: AMD, (nasdaq:amd), project resx, radeon-software-adrenalin-edition

Brandon Hill

Brandon received his first PC, an IBM Aptiva 310, in 1994 and hasn’t looked back since. He cut his teeth on computer building/repair working at a mom and pop computer shop as a plucky teen in the mid 90s and went on to join AnandTech as the Senior News Editor in 1999. Brandon would later help to form DailyTech where he served as Editor-in-Chief from 2008 until 2014. Brandon is a tech geek at heart, and family members always know where to turn when they need free tech support. When he isn’t writing about the tech hardware or studying up on the latest in mobile gadgets, you’ll find him browsing forums that cater to his long-running passion: automobiles.

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