Although the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series S/X are already on the market, the PC is still king. The PC offers users an enhanced gaming experience, more quality and higher performance. And not only that, but even companies, such as Sony, see a very profitable market in the PC and are bringing to it exclusives that, a few years ago, would have been unthinkable, such as Uncharted, The Last of Us, Spiderman and God of Wars, among others. Computer games live a new golden age. And, if we know how to prepare our PC, we will even be able to enjoy them much more.
The only handicap that we can put on PC games is that, while on a console it is to insert the disc, install and play (or, at least, it was like that until this last generation where we can configure the graphics just like on PC), on the computer you have to touch many options to find the perfect balance between performance and quality. In addition, it is easy that, for various reasons, the computer may not be giving 100% performance. That is why, in order to get the most out of the components, and not have problems, it is necessary to install some things before starting to play.
DirectX 12, the mainstay
Of course, the first thing we need to do before playing any PC game is to install the latest version of DirectX. DirectX they are a set of APIs developed by Microsoft, and used by video game developers, necessary for them to work well on Windows.
These APIs are installed by default with Windows, so unless we have forcibly deleted them, we will have them ready. What we probably don’t have is the latest version of them. There are several ways to update them:
- Install a new game. Since it will need a specific version, it will install the most recent one on the PC.
- Use Windows Update. When Microsoft releases a new version of its APIs, users who have them installed can update them from this tool.
- Download the latest version from this website.
Physx, advanced physics
This API is required for users who have an NVIDIA graphics card. This is a middle layer engine used primarily to perform very complex physical calculations. For example, it is responsible for controlling the explosions, or the crystals that break within the game.
Currently this API is no longer used in new games as there are many other more powerful alternatives. But if we are going to play a game developed with it, we must have it installed on the computer. Luckily, it’s installed automatically when you install, and update, NVIDIA’s own drivers. Therefore, initially, we have nothing to worry about.
Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable
packages of Visual C++ Redistributable They are responsible for installing all the necessary runtime components on the computer to be able to run any program, or game, written in C++ and compiled with Visual Studio. The most normal thing is that the games use an engine that already adapts all the code so as not to depend on it, but it is easy for the launchers to be written separately. And, therefore, this dependency is essential to avoid problems.
We can install these dependencies by hand, or, if we download the game from Steam, they will be installed at the same time as the game.
Programs to optimize Windows
The above APIs and dependencies help us make games run better and eliminate most issues. But if we want to scratch a few more FPS, we can also resort to the typical programs that allow us to optimize the hardware and the operating system.
For example, QuickCPU It is a simple program with which we are going to be able to adjust the processor of our computer so that it works much better and, even if it spends a little more energy, we will not have performance problems caused by it.
Another program that can help us is Razer Cortex. This tool is responsible for managing and stopping unnecessary processes and services when we are going to play to reduce the load on the processor in the background, free up RAM and guarantee a smooth experience.
Finally, if we play online, another program that comes in handy is WTFAst. Thanks to it, not only will we be able to improve the performance of the games, but it will also allow us to reduce the ping of online games.
