Hearts of Iron IV graphic renderer can be changed via paradox interactive launcher. It is in the game settings section. But which one do we choose? Which is the best one? Should we run HOI4 on DirectX 9, 11, or OpenGL?
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The answer is not that really simple. It depends on your system. Since HOI4 is a CPU hungry game, your GPU settings doesn’t really have any major impact. Therefore I recommend you to use DirectX 11 because it is the latest technology and more optimized. However, If you are having problems with graphical performance, try them one by one. Experiment and choose the best graphical option for yourself.
Reminder, your graphic renderer won’t effect the late game lag. Game slows down at the later dates because of higher CPU requirements. For that, I recommend HOI4 less divisions mods. It helps with late game HOI4 speed.
HOI4 DirectX 9 or 11
As I have told you before, graphics really not that impactful on HOI4. Since DirectX 11 is the newest technology, I recommend you choosing it. HOI4 DirectX 9 vs 11 comparison always ends up in DirectX 11 winning. However, your drivers may be outdated or whatever. That might cause graphical glitches, random crashes, or unexplainable freezes. If that is the case, you can return to DirectX 9 and enjoy the game problem free.
But I wouldn’t blame the DirectX 11 for those problems. You should always update your windows, graphics cards, and DirectX. If you don’t, eventually game-related problems will knock your doorstep.
In order to switch between DirectX 9 and 11 in HOI4, you should first run the paradox launcher. Because you cannot change graphic renderer in-game. So, in launcher choose the HOI4 and go to game settings. Under the graphics > renderer section, you will see HOI4 Directx9, Directx11, and OpenGL. Choose the one that works the best for you and restart the game. Once the game launched, go alt tab and look at the HOI4.exe window name. You will see something like this:
Hearts of Iron IV (DirectX 11)
So, if it works, it works. Experiment and choose the best one for you!
Anyway, thank you for reading this article. Have fun on your next campaign, ciao!