In both cases, we performed a clean install of each operating system and filled the SSD to about 50-60%.
We tested ten games in total: eight using DirectX 11 and two using DirectX 9. The DirectX 11 titles are the primary focus, as both systems support them natively. By comparison, our Windows 11 system will run DirectX 9 games through the D3D9On12 mapping layer, while our Windows 7 system will run them natively. There are ways to get around the use of D3D9On12 on Windows 11, but we want to evaluate the out-of-the-box experience that most gamers would encounter. As a result, we expect Windows 7 to have an advantage in the DirectX 9 titles.
It will become apparent in the results below that the advantages of each operating system will vary depending on whether we are CPU-limited or GPU-limited .
Metro 2033 Redux was released in 2014 and features a new lighting engine, higher visual fidelity, and new locations for certain levels. The game is predominantly GPU-bound, but there are moments when GPU utilization drops sharply as you traverse the game world. At these points, the CPU becomes the limiting factor, resulting in a corresponding drop in performance.
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Although Windows 11 delivers a higher average frame rate, Windows 7 handles the CPU-related performance drops much better, resulting in significantly stronger 1% lows. Installing the AMD chipset drivers and enabling Resizable BAR improves 1% lows on Windows 11 slightly, but it still falls well behind Windows 7.
Windows 11’s more advanced graphics driver appears to provide an advantage in GPU-limited scenarios, while Windows 7’s lower CPU overhead offers more consistent frame pacing, though with lower peak performance.
Batman: Arkham Origins runs on a modified version of Unreal Engine 3 and uses several DX11 enhancements such as Tessellation, Ambient Occlusion HBAO+, Percentage Closer Soft Shadows (PCSS), and Depth of Field (DoF).
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When CPU-limited at 1080p, Windows 7 once again puts in a strong showing, outperforming Windows 11 in both average frame rate and 1% lows. Surprisingly, Windows 7 also comes out ahead at 4K in Origins, though with a far smaller advantage. As we will see throughout the remainder of our testing, however, this is a rare occurrence. Even so, Windows 7 maintains a slight performance advantage over Windows 11 at 4K in this title.
Batman: Arkham Knight was both a critical and commercial success, despite a notoriously troubled PC launch plagued by severe bugs and major performance issues. Visually, however, the game still holds up remarkably well, and modern hardware is more than capable of brute-forcing this demanding PC port.
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Windows 7 again delivers higher performance at 1080p when we are CPU-limited. Windows 11 jumps ahead when we become GPU-limited at 1440p and 4K.
Batman: Arkham City was the second entry in the series, following Arkham Asylum, and the first to support DirectX 11. This introduced features such as tessellation, which adds greater geometric detail to characters and environments.
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In Arkham City, our system is GPU-bound at every resolution tested, giving Windows 11 the advantage across the board.
The Witcher 3 faced some controversy at launch over reductions in image quality compared to its initial reveal. CD Projekt Red quickly released a patch addressing these concerns and improving the game’s visuals. From a performance perspective, however, the game was extremely demanding at launch.
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While the game is very GPU bound in general, at 1080p we did encounter a slight CPU bottleneck, which gave Windows 7 an advantage in 1% lows. At 1440p and 4K, Windows 11 takes a slight lead.
Control is the newest title we tested for this comparison, having launched in 2019. While the game introduced several ray tracing features, these were exclusive to the DirectX 12 API. Since Windows 7 does not support DirectX 12, we tested Control using DirectX 11 on both operating systems. Even without ray tracing, Control remains the most graphically advanced title in our Windows 11 vs Windows 7 comparison.
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Windows 11 wins across the board. This is not a surprise, as we are GPU-limited across all resolutions tested.
Hitman: Absolution was released in 2012 and was the first game to use the Glacier 2 engine. The updated engine could handle crowds of up to 1200 characters, which was unprecedented at the time. The game also featured several DirectX 11 enhancements, including global illumination and tessellation.
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This is another game that pushes the GPU hard, regardless of resolution. Our test system was GPU-limited even at 1080p.
Hitman 2 was released in 2018, making it the second-newest game in our operating system comparison. It features detailed environments, dense crowds, and full reflections across many surfaces, making it an impressive-looking title overall.
(Image credit: Tom's Hardware) (Image credit: Tom's Hardware) (Image credit: Tom's Hardware) Image 1 of 3 View Original
Hitman 2 is another example where our test system is GPU-limited at every resolution, giving Windows 11 a clean sweep across the board.
We now move to our first DirectX 9 game. As previously mentioned, Windows 7 should have an advantage here because our Windows 11 system must use the D3D9On12 mapping layer for DirectX 11 games. But just how much of an advantage?
(Image credit: Tom's Hardware) (Image credit: Tom's Hardware) (Image credit: Tom's Hardware) Image 1 of 3 View Original
Significant advantages for Windows 7 in average frame rate and 1% lows, especially at 1080p and 1440p. The advantage is reduced at 4K, but the performance is still smoother overall in Windows 7. Another translation layer, such as DXVK, may close the gap.
Borderlands 2 is our second DirectX 9 game and the final overall game tested.
Key considerations
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Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/software/windows/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/software/windows/we-tested-gaming-performance-in-17-year-old-windows-7-against-windows-11-on-a-modern-gaming-pc-older-operating-system-delivers-advantages-in-some-scenarios#main
- https://www.tomshardware.com/membership
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