(Thankfully, you can use the launch command --skip-launcher to boot straight into the DX11 version of the game, or use --skip-launcher --vulkan to boot straight into Vulkan.)
And
In terms of overall recommendations then, I'd suggest DirectX 11 is a better choice than Vulkan for most users with Nvidia and AMD graphics cards, especially those with relatively modern CPUs that meet BG3's recommended specifications. While Vulkan did run better in static scenes when CPU-limited, its poorer performance than DX11 in NPC-rich areas is problematic, making DirectX 11 a better choice overall.
Looks like these guys say DirectX 11 is usually the better pick. I've been running Vulkan and the only negative I've seen is there is a large block that will flicker slightly on the right side of the screen in cinematics. I've going to try DirectX 11 and see if I get the same FPS and quality today. Vulkan with DLSS on quality I get around 100+ FPS. I have a Nvidia 3080TI and intel i7 12700KF.
Edit: I'm running the game on a 4k TV with 120hz. Looks great.
This is so funny because it’s the opposite recommendation I’ve seen basically everywhere else. All other notes I’ve seen have recommended Vulcan for newer hardware. I’ve been running vulkan as well and have had no issues at all. 6800xt here.
Digital Foundry did their own testing and found that DX11 is better most of the time, but in some CPU-limited situations you can get higher framerates with Vulkan. Performance differed a bit across hardware manufacturers. YMMV
I have a 5900x and a 2080S with 32G of ram. Vulcan triple buffering didn't work and it crashed on me in my brief time trying it. DX11 has been fine mostly. No crashes, but after playing for a while I'll occasionally just have my fps tank and start stuttering and have to quit the game and relaunch and it'll be fine. Running basically ultra 4k dlss on balanced or performance. Tried both, both give me 60fps.
Wut, i have a 3080 and a i5 10600k. I get stable 100 fps without dlss on and everything else cranked up to max on 2k res. Why have dlss on at that point? If you run 4k i'll understand.
I got to baldur's Gates but I said huge stuttering issues. I've got a 3080 TI and no problems anywhere else in the game. I switch from direct x11 to Vulcan and had no more issues.
I tried both and there is one particular late game fight with lots of NPCs that just murders my setup (5700X3D and 1070 Ti) on DX11 (30-60 fps) while the fight ran fine on Vulkan (60-70 fps) . Since it's quite late into the game, the reviewer probably didn't come across this issue. Or my setup is just weird.