Qualcomm could be working on a new way to improve PC game emulation on Android. According to a Chinese YouTuber, the company may be adding better DirectX 12 support to its Snapdragon chips.
The YouTuber tested the feature on a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 reference device. It was reportedly able to run Cyberpunk 2077 and Black Myth: Wukong through a translation layer using DirectX 12 mode.
This could be important for Android PC game emulation because DirectX 12 is used by many modern Windows games. Better support at the Snapdragon driver level could improve compatibility and reduce some of the issues currently seen when running these games through translation layers.
The test is also notable because both Cyberpunk 2077 and Black Myth: Wukong are demanding PC games. Their successful operation shows what the latest Snapdragon hardware can do with the right software support.
However, there are still several unanswered questions. It is not known if Qualcomm plans to bring the feature to older Snapdragon chips or limit it to its newest platforms.
There is also no confirmation about how the support would reach existing devices. Even if Qualcomm provides a new driver, smartphone manufacturers would likely need to include it in their own software updates.
For now, Qualcomm has not officially announced the feature.
