[Interview] How Samsung Has Catapulted Visual Technology for Video Games Using HDR10+ GAMING
Key Takeaways
### Meeting Takeaways: Samsung’s HDR10+ GAMING Initiative
**1. Introduction of HDR10+ GAMING:**
– Samsung has developed HDR10+ GAMING technology to enhance visual quality in video games, similar to the improvements HDR brought to movies and TV.
**2. Benefits to Gamers and Developers:**
– HDR10+ GAMING aims to provide a premium visual experience for gamers and facilitate game developers in realizing their creative vision. This technology ensures accurate color, contrast, and brightness in gaming graphics.
**3. Enhanced Communication between Devices:**
– The technology establishes direct communication between game engines and screens, ensuring automatic adjustment of HDR settings based on display capabilities, which enhances visual output without manual calibration.
**4. Addressing Developers’ Needs:**
– Game developers expressed a need for technology that allows their games to display colors accurately across different devices. HDR10+ GAMING has simplified this process, enabling easy integration into existing game engines.
**5. Improved User Experience for Gamers:**
– Gamers benefit from automatic adjustments of settings, eliminating the need for manual calibration. The technology ensures optimal picture quality seamlessly as gamers engage with their games.
**6. No Cost for Implementation:**
– HDR10+ GAMING technology is free for game developers to implement, making it economically viable and encouraging widespread adoption across various games and platforms.
**7. Successful Collaborations:**
– Samsung has partnered with game developers, including NEXON for “The First Descendant” and CD PROJEKT RED for “Cyberpunk 2077”, showcasing how easy it is to incorporate HDR10+ GAMING into popular titles.
**8. Future Expansion Plans:**
– Samsung aims to expand HDR10+ GAMING to various game engines, ensuring wider adoption and enhanced gaming experiences. Collaborations with major studios will further develop the HDR10+ GAMING ecosystem.
**9. Expected Growth:**
– With the technology being free and easy to implement, significant growth in the number of developers and games utilizing HDR10+ GAMING is anticipated in the near future.
**10. Conclusion:**
– HDR10+ GAMING represents a significant advancement in gaming visuals, promising immersive and consistent experiences across multiple devices with minimal setup required.
### Action Items:
– Follow up with gaming studios regarding partnerships for HDR10+ GAMING.
– Monitor feedback from developers and players on their experiences with HDR10+ GAMING.
– Track adoption rates and the launch of new titles utilizing this technology.
Summary of [Interview] How Samsung Has Catapulted Visual Technology for Video Games Using HDR10+ GAMING
“It’s all about making colors truer to the vision of video game creators”
– Bill Mandel, VP, Samsung Research America
HDR (high dynamic range) technology has been revolutionising visual quality in movies and TV shows for several years. Now, with Samsung championing HDR10+ GAMING, the same visual transformation is making its way to the video game industry. It’s beneficial for game makers and players alike, and truly makes it possible to get the most visual impact out of gaming’s modern graphics and realism.
Samsung Newsroom sat down with Bill Mandel, Vice President, and Steve Larson, Senior Manager at Digital Media Solutions, Samsung Research America, to discuss HDR10+ GAMING and how the technology is changing the gaming industry.
▲ Steve Larson (left), Senior Manager and Bill Mandel, VP, Digital Media Solutions, Samsung Research America
Gamers and Game Creators Deserve HDR, Too
While HDR dramatically heightened the visual experience for television and film, its application in video games has been limited. Game engines have built-in colour management systems that help the connected TV or monitor know what colours to show. However, a lack of communication between screens and game engines may require users to manually calibrate their displays.
“HDR10+ GAMING establishes a direct line of communication between the screen and the game engine”
– Steve Larson, Samsung Research America (SRA)
In search of a solution, SRA started to develop HDR10+ GAMING. By automatically adjusting HDR settings based on the screen’s capabilities, HDR10+ GAMING[1] can unlock a premium visual experience through accurate colour, contrast and brightness.
“HDR10+ GAMING establishes a direct line of communication between the screen and the game engine,” said Larson. “The screen can now understand what the game engine is doing, and the game engine knows what the screen can display. That produces a much better visual output.”
“It’s all about making colours truer to the vision of video game creators,” said Mandel.
Engineering a Simple Solution for the Artists
Game developers were the first to call for new technology that addressed the limitations of HDR.
“The initial need came from game developers themselves who want the games they build to look the best they possibly can,” said Mandel. “They were struggling to get colours to look the way they hoped across monitors.”
▲ Bill Mandel, VP, Digital Media Solutions, Samsung Research America, explains how HDR10+ GAMING was introduced to bring better visual experience to all gamers
“We wanted the specs we published to be simple for game developers to use, without a heavy burden,” said Larson. “Once they integrate our specs into their game engine, they can use it across any game built in that engine. This significantly simplifies adoption across the industry because it doesn’t rely on certain configurations or devices. It’s easy.”
Making It Simple for the Players
With HDR10+ GAMING, gamers no longer need to deal with dials and test patterns to calibrate their monitors.
“HDR10+ GAMING simplifies the process by automatically adjusting settings for games, just like it does for movies,” said Mandel. “This ensures gamers get optimal picture quality without any hassle — just turn on the game and go.”
▲ Bill Mandel (top), VP, and Steve Larson, Senior Manager, Digital Media Solutions, Samsung Research America demonstrate how HDR10+ GAMING automatically elevates the gaming experience
Because HDR10+ GAMING works both on TVs and gaming monitors, gamers can now enjoy a consistent visual experience with immersive graphics across platforms without setting anything up. This standard is especially important as today’s gamers expect photorealistic graphics in gaming today.
“When activated, your device automatically identifies that HDR10+ GAMING is an available option in any compatible game and takes advantage of it,” said Larson. “There’s no need to navigate a hidden menu or adjust settings.”
Lowering the Threshold for the Gaming Industry
For game developers, one major advantage of HDR10+ GAMING is that it is free to implement. With the right application programming interface (APIs), they can integrate HDR10+ GAMING into their existing game engines without any specialised training.
“It’s simple. Once developers integrate our specs into their game engine, they can use it across any game built in that engine”
– Steve Larson, Samsung Research America
Putting these standards into action, Samsung partnered with NEXON in September 2023 to launch the world’s first HDR10+ GAMING title, “The First Descendant.”
At Summer Game Fest this past June, the company showcased its latest Odyssey OLED gaming monitors with HDR10+ GAMING capabilities. The combination of HDR10+ GAMING and Samsung’s Odyssey OLED gaming monitors demonstrates how advanced display technology can elevate the gaming experience in video games like “Red Dead Redemption 2.”
Moreover, Samsung has worked with partners such as CD PROJEKT RED on “Cyberpunk 2077” — bringing the game’s fictitious Night City, California, to life like never before. The copy was a great hit, selling over 25,000,000 copies worldwide.
“We designed the system to be incredibly simple to implement,” said Larson. “In fact, CD PROJEKT RED told us that they knew HDR10+ GAMING was something they wanted to use. They were impressed with how fast and easy it was to implement. Their team was actually able to get it up and running in about half a day.”
“This is a free license technology. We’ll see a lot more games and platforms adopting the technology”
– Bill Mandel, VP, Samsung Research America
A Radiant Future Ahead for HDR10+ GAMING
Samsung is looking to expand HDR10+ GAMING to include additional game engines, particularly those that are more niche. The company is already working with major studios and developers to add into their proprietary engines and some of the more widely adopted ones.
“Through collaborations with game companies, we will expand the HDR10+ GAMING ecosystem — ensuring broader adoption and richer gaming experiences,” said Mandel.
This wide network will provide game developers with a versatile and powerful set of tools to create visually stunning games more efficiently.
▲Steve Larson (left), Senior Manager, and Bill Mandel, VP, Digital Media Solutions, Samsung Research America
“As this is a free license technology, we’ll see a lot more games and platforms adopting the technology,” Mandel continued. “For consumers, it means a consistent and immersive gaming experience across a range of devices — with minimal setup and maximum visual impact.”
Mandel and Larson anticipate a notable increase in the number of developers, games and users leveraging HDR10+ GAMING soon.
“Expect big things to come!” said Mandel.
[1] HRD10+GAMING compatible monitors include Odyssey OLED G8 32 inch G80SD Gaming Monitor, 57″ DUHD Odyssey Neo G9 G95NC Gaming Monitor, and 27″ Odyssey OLED G6 G60SD QHD 360Hz Gaming Monitor. To use HDR10+ GAMING, the content must be HDR10+ GAMING compatible, and additional settings may need to be adjusted depending on the content.
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