Windows 8 Versus Windows 7: Game Performance, Benchmarked

[ET3D]

[citation][nom]demonhorde665[/nom]Is it just my paranoid imagination , or does it seem like the last several tom's articles about win 8 were trying to convince us gamers to switch to it from win 7 ?[/citation]

It's your paranoid imagination. More than that, you probably find the evidence compelling, but because you're biased against Windows 8 you need to excuse that feeling by saying that it's forced on you.

This article says after all "With A Couple Of Exceptions, Gaming on Windows 8 Is A Similar Experience". That's not an attempt to convince anyone to move. But you look at the figures, see that most of the time the frame rate in 8 is slightly higher, and it's also smoother, so you make the jump from "hey, that means that 8 might end up better for games" to "OMG, Tom is trying to trick me into getting 8. The heresy!"

 

[rockstar_7]

not bad, win 8. Not bad 😛

 

[deanjo]

[citation][nom]Bloob[/nom]Win 8 is pretty much identical to Win 7, Start menu has just been replaced with Start screen. Win RT does not allow applications to be installed to desktop ( people would just get confused why their x86 applications don't work on ARM ). Every store that currently works on Win 7, will work on Win 8.[/citation]

So what you are saying is Apple and Linux users are smarter because they understand that an x86 app won't run on an ARM architecture.

 

[willyroc]

This should shut up the haters.

 

[cinergy]

Who still gives a f about World of warcraft performance? Why not throw Minecraft and Second life there too while you're at it.

 

[le modulor]

Great article, thanks.

Is there a reason you didn't use a 2GB 7850 (instead of a 1GB one) to compare to the 2GB Reference GeForce GTX 660? Not the same price point anymore?

 

[fe1ixdcat]

So, for now we are offered what is basically what should be a FREE UI update, and patches... for $40...

If there's no HUGE gains made, even if the interface felt natural from day one, there's no way in hell I'd pay for an upgrade that is more of a sidestep to the same performance.

I realize "Many" games see a SMALL improvement, but all run in the same ballpark, over Windows 7.

I have to agree with everyone who wants to see the benchmarks on closer to real world computers, not the cutting edge CPU used for this article....

How about the rest of the real world tests? (Media encoding, database loading, multitasking)

It would be nice to see what Microsoft has done about DRM.... I am pretty sure they upgraded their DRM control too, but how does it affect a program like Any DVD, or EAC on protected discs a user may want to make a backup copy of?

Also, something missing from test system specs.... WHAT Anti-Virus and Anti-Malware software is left in the background???. (Testing on an unprotected system in a sterile LAB environment is not a real world test)

How many real world gamers, especially of online games, disable or uninstall all system protection while they play?

Just wondering how background apps that want to scan processes would affect benchmarks, because it would relate to how threading and priorities are managed by the OS...

 

[blazorthon]

[citation][nom]le modulor[/nom]Great article, thanks.Is there a reason you didn't use a 2GB 7850 (instead of a 1GB one) to compare to the 2GB Reference GeForce GTX 660? Not the same price point anymore?[/citation]

There aren't many situations where the 7850 2GB performs differently from the 7850 1GB. That's probably related to why they didn't bother with a 7850 2GB. Besides, the 7870 is more of a GTX 660 competitor than the 7850. The 7850 1GB is almost cheap enough to be a direct competitor for the GTX 650 Ti.

 

[cleeve]

[citation][nom]Cryio[/nom]Come on Tom's. You benchmarked ATI's "headling Windows 8 driver", 12.11 beta3, but you didn't use Nvidia "headlining Windows 8 driver" 310.33 beta.[/citation]

There articles are completed a while befoire they go live.

We asked Nvidia if they had an upcoming beta driver when we started testing and they told us to use the WHQLs. The 310s were released soon after.

 

[cleeve]

[citation][nom]demonhorde665[/nom]Is it just my paranoid imagination , or does it seem like the last several tom's articles about win 8 were trying to convince us gamers to switch to it from win 7 ?I[/citation]

Your paranoid imagination. Definitely.

I honestly can't imagine a world where I'm concerned with the OS that you, or anyone else, chooses to run.

Never once told anyone to upgrade. Never said gamers should change. Just reporting the findings, bro.

 

[cleeve]

[citation][nom]cinergy[/nom]Who still gives a f about World of warcraft performance?[/citation]

Probably the millions of people who, you know, play WoW... 😉

 

[nhasibacsi]

[citation][nom]agnickolov[/nom]Seems like DirectX 11 only testing. What about DirectX 9?[/citation]

DirectX 9 is tested with Borderlands 2. I'm not sure with the other games. Here is a link to Steam's product page for BL2 which list the system requirements:

http://store.steampowered.com/app/49520/

 

[Guest]

@agnickolov

Elder scrolls is dx9 only.

 

[kevin83]

Anyone else relate the windows store issue to Valve's development of Steam for Linux? With their entire main library of games on Linux anyone who wants can switch to dual booting for free and stay with Valve.

 

[blazorthon]

[citation][nom]kevin83[/nom]Anyone else relate the windows store issue to Valve's development of Steam for Linux? With their entire main library of games on Linux anyone who wants can switch to dual booting for free and stay with Valve.[/citation]

Steam works just fine on Windows 7 and Windows 8 for those who actually care to test it, at least in my experience. Why dual-boot when it's not necessary to do what you're talking about?

 

[Guest]

"As a result, it's going to be harder for Valve to make as much money on Windows RT-based devices, and developers have to be worried that Microsoft may go a similar route in Windows 8 as well, taking a share of each sale they make."

I didn't see steam whining when the iPad didn't support steam though, which is the same situation.

 

[cleeve]

[citation][nom]tjulia[/nom]"As a result, it's going to be harder for Valve to make as much money on Windows RT-based devices, and developers have to be worried that Microsoft may go a similar route in Windows 8 as well, taking a share of each sale they make."I didn't see steam whining when the iPad didn't support steam though, which is the same situation.[/citation]

That's because Macs are anecdotal when it comes to gaming.

Windows is Valve's bread and butter.

 

[Guest]

Ive tried out Windows 8 Dev Preview with my games. Crashed a lot so no thanks.

 

[blazorthon]

[citation][nom]Nizzzmo[/nom]Ive tried out Windows 8 Dev Preview with my games. Crashed a lot so no thanks.[/citation]

That's a far outdated version and I have to wonder what drivers you used too.

 

[mayankleoboy1]

i have win8 RC on my PC. Is it any different than the final release version ?

 

[blazorthon]

i have win8 RC on my PC. Is it any different than the final release version ?

It is from what I've read, but IDR in what ways.

 

[tomfreak]

lol with some unofficial way to get cheap upgrade, I finally given in to win8 for $14.99.

If win 8 = $100 = not worth it.
if u do not own a win7, then win8 is just 14.99 = worth it.

 

[Guest]

"Of the 10 games we benchmarked, one one demonstrated a significant difference in moving from Windows 7 to Windows 8, "

I think you meant to say "only one"

 

[cats_Paw]

I got a way of thinking that might surprise some: If it aint broke, dont fix it.
I dont even understand why they decided to make windows 8 now. For mobile, ok! But for PCs....
Well, no matter, as long as Win7 keeps working as good as it does today (and it works marvels for me), i am not interested in spending money on something i dont really need.

 

[technoholic]

So where are the Piledriver benches? I'd be more interested in a comparison for Piledriver in win7 vs 8