Check the List of games compatible with Special K over on PCGamingWiki for a crowdsourced list that is easily managed and allows guest contributions.
This is a general overview of the level of support Special K has for different render APIs, as well as what additional features might be available for each API.
Direct3D refers to the 3D render API of DirectX. In general, the terms ‘Direct3D’ and ‘DirectX’ are often interchangeable when discussing games.
| Render API | Level of support |
|---|---|
| DirectDraw DDraw |
Requires dgVoodoo 2 to translate the calls to Direct3D 11. |
| Direct3D 2-8[1] | Requires dgVoodoo 2 to translate the calls to Direct3D 11. |
| Direct3D 9 | Basic support as well as some texture modding support. |
| Direct3D 10 | Unsupported, but the DXGI flip model override is known to work in some games. |
| Direct3D 11 | Enhanced support including DXGI flip model override, HDR retrofit, texture modding, and shader debugging. |
| Direct3D 12 | Basic support as well as HDR retrofit. |
| OpenGL | Promoted to OpenGL-IK (uses an interop system where D3D11 is used for final presentation), which brings enhancements such as DXGI flip model and HDR retrofit. |
| Vulkan | Requires an Nvidia gpu with at least driver 526.98, Special K 23.5.17.6 or newer, and setting EnableVulkanBridge=1 in Special K’s config file. This allows Special K to hook into Nvidia’s DXGI interop layer, which brings enhancements such as DXGI flip model and HDR retrofit. |
There was no Direct3D API of DirectX 1, so therefore ‘Direct3D 1’ does not exist. ↩︎