Performance: AMD Radeon HD 7970
With AMD Radeon HD 7970 the variance is between 3 and 4 percent, which is within the margin of error. Gaming performance is the same in Windows 8 as in Windows 7, in other words. The difference in 3DMark Vantage was 5 percent, but that benchmark isn't a game. Crysis 2 was 10 percent slower at 1920x1080. Other games ran better in Windows 8, such as Batman with an improvement of 15-20 percent. Battlefield 3 was also slightly faster in Full HD resolution in Windows 8 compared to Windows 7.
On average, performance is 1.31 percent faster in Windows 8 compared to Windows 7, so it's safe to say that gaming with an AMD card is the same in the new OS.
| AMD Radeon HD 7970 (Driver 12.11) | Windows 7 | Windows 8 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3DMark Vantage - P | 38339 | 36342 | -5.21% |
| 3DMark11 - P | 10271 | 10069 | -1.97% |
| 3DMark11 - X | 3337 | 3306 | -0.93% |
| Heaven 2.5 - 16x AF 1920x1080 - Normal | 75.1 fps | 74.3 fps | -1.07% |
| Heaven 2.5 - 16x AF 1920x1080 - Extreme | 55.6 fps | 55.2 fps | -0.72% |
| Heaven 2.5 - 16x AF 5760x1080 - Normal | 25.6 fps | 25.7 fps | 0.39% |
| Heaven 2.5 - 16x AF 5760x1080 - Extreme | 22.5 fps | 22.5 fps | 0.00% |
| Metro 2033 - 1920x1080 - Normal | 69.0 fps | 72.0 fps | 4.35% |
| Metro 2033 -1920x1080 - Highest + 4xAA | 39.0 fps | 40.0 fps | 2.56% |
| Metro 2033 - 5760x1080 - Normal | 26.0 fps | 27.0 fps | 3.85% |
| Metro 2033 - 5760x1080 - Highest + 4x AA | 16.0 fps | 16.0 fps | 0.00% |
| Aliens versus Predator 1920x1080 - Normal | 117.7 fps | 117.3 fps | -0.34% |
| Aliens versus Predator 1920x1080 - Highest | 79.0 fps | 78.8 fps | -0.25% |
| Aliens versus Predator 5760x1080 - Normal | 54.9 fps | 54.9 fps | 0.00% |
| Aliens versus Predator 5760x1080 - Highest | 36.6 fps | 36.5 fps | -0.27% |
| Dirt 3 - 1920x1080 - Medium | 195.8 fps | 192.3 fps | -1.79% |
| Dirt 3 - 1920x1080 - Ultra | 119.4 fps | 120.8 fps | 1.17% |
| Dirt 3 - 5760x1080 - Medium | 112.7 fps | 123.6 fps | 9.67% |
| Dirt 3 - 5760x1080 - Ultra | 52.6 fps | 53.0 fps | 0.76% |
| Dirt: Showdown - 1920x1080 - Medium | 149.8 fps | 150.2 fps | 0.27% |
| Dirt: Showdown - 1920x1080 - Ultra | 108.9 fps | 110.2 fps | 1.19% |
| Dirt: Showdown - 5760x1080 - Medium | 114.1 fps | 115.0 fps | 0.79% |
| Dirt: Showdown - 5760x1080 - Ultra | 53.1 fps | 52.1 fps | -1.88% |
| Skyrim - 1920x1080 - Normal | 240.1 fps | 248.9 fps | 3.67% |
| Skyrim - 1920x1080 - Highest + 4xAA | 129.8 fps | 127.3 fps | -1.93% |
| Skyrim - 5760x1080 - Normal | 113.1 fps | 111.9 fps | -1.06% |
| Skyrim - 5760x1080 - Highest + 4x AA | 60.1 fps | 60.5 fps | 0.67% |
| Batman - AC - 1920x1080 - Normal | 122.0 fps | 143.0 fps | 17.21% |
| Batman - AC - 1920x1080 - Highest + 4xAA | 93.0 fps | 107.0 fps | 15.05% |
| Batman - AC - 5760x1080 - Normal | 56.0 fps | 67.0 fps | 19.64% |
| Batman - AC - 5760x1080 - Highest + 4x AA | 38.0 fps | 46.0 fps | 21.05% |
| Battlefield 3 - 1920x1080 - Medium | 137.2 fps | 153.1 fps | 11.59% |
| Battlefield 3 - 1920x1080 - Ultra | 72.8 fps | 78.2 fps | 7.42% |
| Battlefield 3 - 5760x1080 - Medium | 64.4 fps | 59.5 fps | -7.61% |
| Battlefield 3 - 5760x1080 - Ultra | 31.6 fps | 30.4 fps | -3.80% |
| Crysis 2 - 1920x1080 - Very high | 74.5 fps | 63.4 fps | -14.90% |
| Crysis 2 - 1920x1080 - Ultra | 71.1 fps | 62.6 fps | -11.95% |
| Crysis 2 - 5760x1080 - Very high | 26.0 fps | 25.8 fps | -0.77% |
| Crysis 2 - 5760x1080 - Extreme | 24.7 fps | 24.6 fps | -0.40% |
| Max Payne 3 - 1920x1080 - Normal | 158.9 fps | 152.1 fps | -4.28% |
| Max Payne 3 - 1920x1080 - Highest + 2xAA | 93.7 fps | 93.6 fps | -0.11% |
| Max Payne 3 - 5760x1080 - Normal | 63.1 fps | 61.0 fps | -3.33% |
| Max Payne 3 - 5760x1080 - Highest + 2x AA | 37.3 fps | 37.2 fps | -0.27% |
| Average | - | - | 1.31% |