graphics settings Archives

Winsage

July 2, 2025

I made 21 tweaks in Windows 11 to increase gaming performance

Windows 11 provides several adjustments to enhance gaming performance, including: 1. Enable Game Mode: Prioritizes gaming processes. 2. Disable Memory Integrity: Can improve performance during gaming. 3. Disable Virtual Machine Platform: Turns off virtualization for better performance. 4. Change Power Mode: Set to "High Performance" for maximum resource allocation. 5. Enable Auto HDR: Enhances visuals for HDR-capable displays. 6. Enable Automatic Super Resolution: Upscales games using AI for better frame rates and image quality. 7. Change Game Default GPU: Set a specific GPU for individual games. 8. Install Games on Secondary Drive: Improves loading times, especially with SSDs. 9. Optimization for Windowed Games: Reduces input latency for windowed mode games. 10. Change Refresh Rate: Adjust to the highest available for smoother gameplay. 11. Disable Apps at Startup: Frees up system resources by minimizing startup applications. 12. Free Up Storage Space: Enhances system speed and gaming performance. 13. Install System Updates: Resolves performance issues and improves compatibility. 14. Update Graphic Drivers: Ensures optimal performance in games. 15. Debloat Setup: Uninstall unnecessary applications to free up resources. 16. Enable GPU Scheduling: Reduces latency by offloading tasks from the CPU. 17. Use DirectStorage: Allows faster asset loading from NVMe SSDs. 18. Enable Variable Refresh Rate: Synchronizes refresh rate with frame rate to reduce screen tearing. 19. Change Settings in Games: Adjust in-game settings for optimal performance. 20. Reset Your Computer: Restores system to optimal performance if issues persist.

AppWizard

July 1, 2025

Steam’s new performance overlay feature will help you monitor how your games are running

Valve has released an update to the Steam Client that includes a performance monitoring overlay for enhanced gaming experience. This overlay provides comprehensive analysis of game performance, displaying FPS values and differentiating between frames generated by technologies like Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) and FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR). Players can select from four monitoring levels: Single FPS Value, FPS Details, CPU & GPU Utilization, and FPS, CPU, GPU, and RAM. The overlay shows minimum and maximum frame values, graphical representation of frame rates, and insights into CPU, GPU, and memory usage. It appears at the bottom of the screen and can be customized in real-time for color saturation, text size, and background opacity. Users can visualize CPU utilization per core and track FPS trends. To activate the overlay, users navigate to Settings > In Game and adjust the Performance Overlay section, where they can reposition it and assign a hotkey. Valve plans to enhance the overlay with additional data to identify hardware performance issues and provide a broader summary of game performance.

AppWizard

July 1, 2025

Steam adds an in-game performance monitor so you can brag about hitting 900 FPS in Deus Ex

A recent update to Steam has introduced a fully integrated in-game performance monitor, transitioning from its beta phase. This upgraded tool enhances the previous frame counter with additional features, allowing users to activate it through Steam settings for real-time insights into system performance. It displays frame rate values, differentiates between frames generated by technologies like DLSS or FSR, and provides analysis of minimum and maximum frame values along with a graph of frame rate fluctuations. The monitor also tracks CPU performance, GPU performance, and system memory usage, streamlining the assessment of these metrics. Users can choose from four levels of detail and customize the display options. Future enhancements are planned, including automatic detection of common hardware performance issues. Currently, the focus is on Windows users and commonly used GPUs, with broader support expected in future updates.

AppWizard

June 28, 2025

Monster Hunter Wilds is getting more PC improvements, but they don’t seem to address the CPU issues tanking the game’s performance

Capcom is preparing a significant update for Monster Hunter Wilds to address performance issues, including adjustments to VRAM usage and corrections in the Graphics settings. The patch notes indicate enhancements such as the return of monsters and new equipment, but players remain skeptical about the effectiveness of these changes. Since the game's launch in February, many players have reported persistent crashes and texture problems, leading to a negative reception reflected in recent reviews on Steam, where only 14% of feedback in the past month has been positive. Despite these challenges, earlier titles in the Monster Hunter franchise have seen a resurgence in sales over the past year.

AppWizard

June 25, 2025

It’s been so long since I played a 30 fps console game, it took me a week to realize Death Stranding 2 was literally giving me headaches

The author experienced persistent headaches after playing Death Stranding 2, initially attributing them to various factors like dehydration and hunger. The headaches intensified after playing the game at its default 30 frames per second setting, which contrasted with the author's usual gaming experience on PC at 60 fps. After discovering the performance mode that locks the framerate at 60 fps, the author switched to it and noticed an immediate improvement in gameplay responsiveness and a reduction in headaches. The author reflects on how accustomed they have become to higher frame rates, noting that the camera movement at 30 fps contributed to feelings of queasiness. After adjusting to the performance mode, the author was headache-free after over 20 hours of gameplay. The author appreciates that Death Stranding 2 offers a performance mode and anticipates that the eventual PC port will provide an even better experience.

AppWizard

June 24, 2025

Mario Kart 64 races onto PC with unofficial port, no emulation necessary

UltraHLE enabled players to run commercial Nintendo 64 games at playable frame rates on Windows 9x. The Harbour Masters collective has developed SpaghettiKart, an unofficial PC port of Mario Kart 64, by decompiling and recompiling the original game code for contemporary platforms, including Windows, Linux (Ubuntu 22), and Nintendo Switch. Players must provide their own Mario Kart 64 ROM and use "Spaghettify.exe" to load the game. SpaghettiKart currently supports only the US version and offers three rendering APIs: DirectX 11 for Windows, Metal for macOS, and OpenGL for other platforms. The port allows for custom assets and mods, although it is still in development and may have occasional crashes. Mario Kart 64 is the second-best-selling title for the Nintendo 64, with nearly 9.87 million copies sold globally. SpaghettiKart utilizes Libultraship, a library that reimplements Nintendo 64 SDK functions on modern machines.

AppWizard

June 21, 2025

Stellar Blade is a prime example of how PC ports should be done – ultrawide compatibility and stable performance are a must

The gaming community has expressed frustration over poorly optimized PC ports, with recent titles like Rise of the Ronin, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, and Monster Hunter Wilds suffering from stuttering issues and heavy reliance on upscaling technologies. Many contemporary games lack ultrawide compatibility, which is increasingly expected as ultrawide displays become more popular. Stellar Blade is noted for its exceptional performance and optimization, including support for ultrawide screens up to a 32:9 aspect ratio. It achieves over 60 frames per second (fps) at 1080p on medium settings on an Asus ROG Ally, with frame rates reaching 112fps using AMD Frame Generation. The Steam Deck also performs well, reaching 60fps on lower settings. On desktop systems with high-end hardware like the RTX 4080 Super and AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D, Stellar Blade consistently exceeds 100fps at maximum settings without needing Nvidia's Frame Generation. Despite some titles showing good optimization, many triple-A releases still suffer from poor PC adaptations, disappointing gamers with high-end hardware. Handheld gaming PCs are becoming more popular, and successful ports like Stellar Blade provide hope for future game releases.

AppWizard

June 16, 2025

Borderlands 4 is NOT an $80 game, PC requirements revealed

2K Games has opened pre-orders for Borderlands 4, with the standard edition priced at .99. The game will utilize Unreal Engine 5, requiring a minimum of an Intel Core i7-9700 or AMD Ryzen 7 2700X, 16GB of RAM, and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 or AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT, along with 100GB of free disk space. Recommended specifications include an Intel Core i7-12700 or AMD Ryzen 7 5800X, 32GB of RAM, and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 or AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT, also requiring 100GB of free disk space. The game will feature Denuvo anti-tamper technology, similar to Borderlands 3, which may be removed in the future.

AppWizard

June 14, 2025

The Stellar Blade PC release finally convinced me to try it out, but after its Steam Next Fest demo I’m going straight back to Elden Ring Nightreign

The Stellar Blade PC demo was released during the Steam Next Fest, attracting attention despite not topping the charts. It features an introductory cutscene, a tutorial, and a significant boss encounter, allowing players to explore its upgrade system. The demo showcases a visually appealing aesthetic but raises concerns about gameplay depth and performance issues, even on recommended settings. Design choices, such as surprise enemy ambushes and floaty physics puzzles, detract from the experience. The combat mechanics are criticized for feeling insubstantial, and comparisons to Elden Ring highlight Stellar Blade's lack of polish.

AppWizard

June 3, 2025

Nvidia GPUs are broken in one of the most demanding new PC games, says developer

Nvidia users with RTX 40-series and 50-series GPUs may experience crashes when launching the Hell is Us demo, prompting Rogue Factor to recommend lowering graphics settings and disabling upscaling and frame generation options before starting the game. The developer is working on a patch ahead of the game's official release on September 4. Previous titles have also faced similar issues, with suggestions for Nvidia users to roll back driver installations due to ongoing driver stability challenges. The crashing issue is tentatively linked to Nvidia's DLSS technology, which has been implicated in crashes across various games. The system requirements for Hell is Us indicate that an RTX 4090 is necessary for 4K gameplay at 30 fps, while an RTX 2080 Ti is recommended for 60 fps at 1080p.