Intel also emphasizes that this isn’t always negative news. There are relatively few games that still use DX9 exclusively, as opposed to having DX9 compatibility with more contemporary APIs, which Intel will continue to support. It’s also improbable that any new games will be produced utilizing DirectX 9, not to mention that the quality of in-game visuals has improved dramatically in the 20 years since DX9 was introduced. The only reason support has likely lasted this long is because so much outdated PC gaming hardware is still in use today, as Nvidia’s GTX 1060 is still the most popular GPU on Valve’s Steam survey six years after its initial release.
