Every gamer likes to play games with the best visual settings. That’s easier said than done, since there is a performance hit that comes along with it. Finding a balance between performance and quality can be easy using the in-game presets. Graphics card manufacturers also ship tools to handle graphics card performance and settings, tuned for specific graphic card models. Things are a little trickier since we have own personal preferences of how we want a game to perform or look. A single-player title maybe best enjoyed with the best settings, with average performance, but switch to a competitive online shooter, and you may want every bit of performance you can get. Taking control over these settings should be the sensible move but they can be confusing, with all kinds of intimidating terms. This article is all about simplifying them, so you know exactly what you’re getting or losing, by adjusting these settings. Let’s get started.
Anti-aliasing
Our displays are made of millions of pixels that form images. These pixels are usually rectangular, so when circular shapes are shown on the screen, you are likely to see rough edges. Aliasing is the term used for this effect, and the technology to counter it is Anti-Aliasing.
There are many Anti-Aliasing techniques used in games, each with their pros and cons. MSAA (Multi-Sample Anti-Aliasing) is the most common one, that uses samples of two or more pixels to maintain graphics quality and performance. The more the samples, the better the picture quality. We tried MSAA anti-aliasing while playing GTA V on a PC running an NVIDIA GeForce 2060 GPU and a 1080p 144Hz monitor. By default, 4X samples were used, delivering a frame rate between 90 to 100 fps. Cranking up the samples to 8X significantly improved the picture quality, but brought down frame rates to 60 to 70 fps. These are still playable frame rates, but if you are using an older GPU, expect even lower frame rates.
Super-sampling Anti-Aliasing or SSAA offers a similar solution. It renders a game at a higher resolution and scales it down using different downsizing patterns. However, this too requires heavy computing power and is not useful for the latest games with high hardware demands. You can try SSAA anti-aliasing with older games that have fewer system demands.
Another common Anti-Aliasing solution found in games is FXAA (Fast Approximate Anti-Aliasing). It works best even with lower-end PCs and laptops. However, FXAA finds and smoothens only the edges in the frame, so the images aren’t as sharp as they would be using MSAA or SSAA. The smooth edges are more noticeable when the objects are moving. If you are on an older PC or laptop wanting to play games with slightly better graphics, FXAA can make your experience better.
TXAA (Temporal Anti-Aliasing) is a technique designed to reduce temporal judders, seen when characters move in the game. TSAA works along with MSAA by adding professional-grade filters for maintaining smoother motion. Where FXAA maximises performance at the expense of quality, TXAA attempts to maximise quality while taking a toll on performance. While playing GTA V, we kept MSAA at 4X and turned on TXAA, which gave us a frame rate between 85 to 95 fps. For our system, this was a sweet spot, as we were able to get good frame rates without losing too much video fidelity.
Besides FXAA, most other anti-aliasing techniques are good only if you have a little performance headroom. Making some tweaks like lowering the screen resolution can help you gain a little more performance. For example, if you are running a 4K game on a monitor, tuning down the resolution to (2560 x 1440) can make things smoother. You can then turn on Anti-Aliasing to achieve better sharpness and details. The best way to understand what anti-aliasing settings are best for your system, is to give it a try. If you have been facing performance issues, toggle it down, or turn it off to see how things can improve.
DLSS
DLSS stands for Deep Learning Super Sampling and it is a video rendering technique designed to boost frame rates without sacrificing too much visual quality. DLSS technology is relatively new and is said to be a more advanced version of Anti-Aliasing techniques. It boosts framerates by rendering them at a lower resolution then uses AI to rebuild them to your native resolution. DLSS is offered as a companion to Ray Tracing technology, however, games like Marvel’s Avengers, F1 2020, Death Stranding and Final Fantasy XV allow it to be used on its own. DLSS uses Tensor Cores that can be found on NVIDIA RTX graphics card. This means, you’ll at least need an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 to make use of DLSS.
We turned on DLSS while playing Battlefield 2042 on our NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 GPU equipped PC. The game looked very realistic and the PC was able to deliver a constant frame rate between 70 to 90 fps. Turning off DLSS did improve frame rates but took away the realism. We also cranked down the resolution and noticed a slight fps boost. AMD has a similar solution called FidelityFX Super Resolution, which you can use if you run an AMD graphics solution.
Adaptive Resolution
We have already seen that scaling down the screen resolution can help games run smoother, and features like Adaptive Scaling does this automatically for you. The feature is also known as DRS (Dynamic Resolution Scaling) in some games. It lowers the output resolution whenever the GPU encounters complex and intensive scenes. Gamers who turn off DRS may notice sudden performance drops, especially in scenes where the GPU has too many assets to render. If you are trying to play the latest AAA titles on a slightly older PC, turning on DRS can help you to maintain a stable performance.
Motion Blur and FOV
Motion Blur is another graphics setting that can significantly affects your gaming experience. As the name suggests, it is used in games to make the surroundings blurry during fast motion. Game developers use this effect with different approaches to match the genre of the game. For example, in first-person games like Battlefield V, your player appears crisp and sharp, but as you move or when you are trying to aim, the surrounding gets blurry. In games like GTV V, the car appears blurry as it gains speed. The idea behind motion blur is to make games look more realistic. However, it increases the demand for power too.
Using motion blur requires more RAM, graphics card and CPU performance, resulting in a lowered frame rate. We turned off motion blur while playing Battlefield V on our system and saw a performance of between 100 to 110 fps. However, the objects like trees, skies and vehicles appeared overly sharp, making the gameplay less enjoyable. Luckily, games like these allow you to adjust the amount of motion blur, so you can adjust and find a sweet spot between performance and eye-candy.
Adjusting your game’s FOV (Field of View) can also bring a big difference. With higher FOV, you get a wider viewing angle, which can often be an advantage during competitive shooter games. However, this will be slightly more demanding on your hardware, as it needs to render more assets. Finding the right FOV depends on factors like your screen size and how close you sit to it. The best way is to try different degrees of FOV, and tweak them to your preference.
V-Sync
V-Sync is a technology that matches the frame rates of a game with your monitor’s refresh rate. It was developed to eliminate screen tearing that occurs when your graphics card renders more frames than your monitor can refresh. For example, a card rendering 100 frames per second on a 60Hz screen. This happens because the graphics card has already sent out a new frame, even before the monitor can finish rendering a frame. Enabling V-Sync caps the frame rate output to the monitor (in this example, 60 fps). It will put less strain on your graphics processor, and you should consider using this feature when your monitor can’t keep up with the fps of a particular game.
V-Sync technology has existed for a while now, but it isn’t perfect. Enabling it can sometimes add input lag, a drawback for online competitive gamers. To tackle this, NVIDIA G-Sync and AMD FreeSync were introduced a few years back. With a compatible monitor, the monitor refresh rate adjusts to match the frame rate rendered by your graphics card.
Anisotropic Filtering
Anisotropic Filtering (called AF in game menus) helps make in-game textures livelier. Instead of rendering every texture in the frame, it only works on textures that are visible from the player’s field of view. The result is faster rendering and lowered demands on the GPU. The effect is more noticeable when the character is moving in the game. When AF is turned off, distant objects can appear fuzzy. If your game doesn’t show the AF option, you can open your graphics card’s control panel and enable it manually to use this setting. The best way to experience this feature is obviously to try it. However, Enabling Anisotropic Filtering can affect your frame rates, however, the impact will vary from one computer to another.
Tessellation
Every 3D image in a game is made of stacks of interconnected polygons. The more polygons used, the better the picture quality. Tessellation works by breaking polygons into smaller triangles to improve detail. However, breaking the polygons alone don’t improve the graphics. It often works along with another technique, called displacement mapping, a texture that stores height information. When applied to a surface, it allows vertices (points in a 3D space) on the surface to be shifted up or down based on the height information.
These two features work together using DirectX 11 to render smoother-looking models and textures. Turning on Tessellation can affect your frame rates. Its effects are more visible in some games more than others.
Ambient Occlusion and Bloom
Ambient Occlusion is a graphic rendering technique that controls how light appears in different environments. It considers factors like the environment of the game and the position of the light sources. It aims to deliver natural-looking and realistic light distribution in the game. There are different types of Ambient Occlusion techniques but the most common ones are SSAO and HBAO. SSAO (Screen Space Ambient Occlusion) controls light at basic levels by darkening pixels from the light source. HBAO (Horizon Based Ambient Occlusion) increases the number of samples used when calculating the areas that should be darkened. The result is more accurate shadows and texture, but it requires more GPU performance.
Bloom has a similar effect to Ambient Occlusion. It controls the luminosity of light sources in a game world for more realistic gameplay. You can experience this in games like GTA V, where the light’s luminosity changes as the sun set down in the game.
Ray Tracing
Ray Tracing is the newest and most advanced rendering technique that delivers incredibly realistic lighting effects. It uses an algorithm to trace the path of light and simulate how light interacts in the real world. It allows casting realistic shadows and life-like reflections, along with improved translucence and scattering. It analyses where the light hits a surfaces and changes colours for a more realistic appeal. Ray Tracing requires a graphics card that supports Ray Tracing. Latest consoles like the PlayStation 5 also support the Ray Tracing feature. You can experience Ray Tracing feature in games where it is supported, like Battlefield V, Battlefield 2042, Cyberpunk 2077, and Control.
HDR
HDR rendering allows you to experience better contrast, a wider range of colours and brightness, making gaming more immersive. The catch here is you will need an HDR-compatible GPU and display. Luckily, even older graphics cards like NVIDIA GeForce 960 and AMD RX560 are HDR-capable. Most high-end TVs these days support HDR these days, and if you happen to own a modern graphics card, you should try HDR gaming. You’ll also find tons of AMD FreeSync 2 or NVIDIA G-Sync HDR branded gaming monitors, however, they may come with an expensive price tag.
These were some of the major graphics settings. Tweaking them can add to the gaming experience. You can keep an eye on frame rates using free tools like FRAPS. NVIDIA graphics card users can also use the GeForce Experience app to monitor frame rates. To activate this feature, open the GeForce Experience app and go to settings. Click on HUD Layout > Performance> FPS. The app also gives you insights into your GPU clock speed, temperature, and voltage. Steam too has an in-built frame rate display, as do many others. For more information like this and everything latest about technology, keep following us on www.reliancedigital.in.
