When AMD released the Radeon Software 17.9.2 drivers that enabled support for multi-GPU solutions in Radeon RX Vega cards this morning, the announcement post didn’t mention CrossFire—AMD’s longstanding brand for multi-GPU (mGPU) solutions—a single time. An AMD representative revealed why in response to a PCWorld query: In this complicated mGPU age, Radeon is abandoning the CrossFire brand.
“CrossFire isn’t mentioned because it technically refers to DX11 applications,” an AMD PR representative told PCWorld. “In DirectX 12, we reference multi-GPU as applications must support mGPU, whereas AMD has to create the profiles for DX11. We’ve accordingly moved away from using the CrossFire tag for multi-GPU gaming.”
That’s a surprising twist to come out of the blue—CrossFire is a firmly established brand with a meaning (“multiple Radeon graphics cards”) that enthusiasts are very familiar with. With AMD pushing DX12 so heavily though, establishing the distinction in marketing copy may be worthwhile. And yes, this is a branding change, not a technical one.
The games AMD chose …