Frame rates or FPS is one of the many common parameters for measuring the graphic performance of any particular game. In simple words, the frame rate tells us the frequency for refreshing an image on the screen in order to produce a continuous motion or a flow. FPS is a kind of measurement tool for the frame rate.
Several factors come into play when you are trying to determine the frame rate of a game. A lower FPS can cause several problems while playing the game. The screen can appear frozen, especially in the cases of multiple movements. The actions may not be smooth, full of interruptions instead, and the player can feel frustrated with the game.
Right from the development to certain internal hardware factors, frame rate or FPS varies and depends on a number of things. This article will answer everything that you need to know about FPS. So have a quick and detailed read.
What Are The Deciding Factors of FPS of a Game?
Certain factors are contributing to the FPS of a game. Here in this section, we will be discussing all the decisive factors in the list below.
- System specifications, or in other words, the system hardware, plays a crucial role in deciding the FPS of any particular game. This includes everything from the CPU to the motherboard and the graphics card.
- The resolution and the graphics setting of the game
- FPS also depends on the proper optimisation of the game. Optimisation depends on the game developers. Therefore, a renowned developer would know the importance of optimisation and try to go for a well-optimised game.
Here, if you think about what computer part affects FPS, you need to know about the technicalities of a gaming CPU and a proper graphics card. The computer’s CPU works in correlation with the GPU, or the Graphical Processing Unit. The CPU sends information from the gaming application to the graphics card, which then does all the work with the display and the graphics.
So if the processing unit or the CPU lacks the power, there isn’t any kind of logic in upgrading the existing graphics card. On the other side, a good CPU must also be equipped with the best graphics card just to utilise its full potential.
There isn’t any sort of hard and fast rule for the best graphics card or a CPU, as with each passing day, new specifications come into the market. So if you have an old CPU, then you may think of other options. Therefore, try to keep a balance and buy more-or-less latest versions of the CPU along with the graphics card.
What Is the Acceptable FPS for PC Games?
All the major game developers try to go for the 60 FPS mark, but anywhere in between 30 and, 60 FPS is also great and acceptable. The problem starts with an FPS lower than that of a 30 FPS, where the animations and the graphics become rough. There are games with an FPS even more than 60 FPS, but in that case, your system specification must also be upgraded to support the game.
The FPS that a player experiences, in reality, is somewhat different from the figure mentioned by the developers. Several hardware factors play a role in defining a game’s fps. It is also possible that the game may not need the maximum FPS at that particular stage in the game. As mentioned above, you need to have a properly updated CPU to experience all the specifications of the game; otherwise, it kind of becomes useless.
Even a computer’s monitor plays a role here, as many displays have a pre-set with 60 fps, and therefore, any of the games with a value higher than that of 60 FPS won’t become visible. Certain games like Doom or Overwatch, or Battlefield have many high actions that impact the FPS. These kinds of high graphics games need a good graphics card with a proper CPU.
How to Measure FPS of a Video Game?
You can measure FPS and, thus, the frame rate by taking the help of certain tools. The popular application that demands a mention here is the Fraps, which is more of a developed stand-alone application that works from behind when you are playing the game. You must be playing a game that uses DirectX graphics or OpenGL. Fraps will measure the FPS at any particular moment, as well as tell you the game’s FPS between the start and the end of the game.
Apart from its main function, Fraps can also screenshot any moment of your game and video record your real-time playing. All these come with a price, but they also offer a free version, where you can capture your real-time playing up to 30 seconds, take .bmp screenshots and obviously measure the FPS.
If you want to know about the alternatives, you have Bandicam, which again comes with a price.
Easy Ways to Optimize Game Frame Rates
This is another important segment that you must know about being a gamer. The two broad options that are open to you for optimising the game frame rates are either upgrading your system’s hardware or adjusting the graphics of the game.
If you are well into gaming, you can go for updating the hardware. Getting a better graphics card or setting up a well-improved system with an advanced CPU can help you play all the big games.
If we talk about the game settings, most of the OpenGL or DirectX computer games have whole loads of game settings for the players, which you can change in accordance with your hardware. You need to think about your ease of playing the game and your whole experience. Go for the setting that you feel comfortable playing the most.
In most cases, on installing the game, the game will detect the hardware specifications and set the game settings automatically and accordingly. You need to keep a balance between the graphics and the appearance of the game you are playing. Exploring the settings will also help you understand the game even more.
To help you in your process of perfect game settings, there are certain game settings explained in the next segment, which will enhance your experience.
Common Graphics Settings to Enhance Your Gaming Experience
Every gamer deserves an awesome gaming experience. While you need to have a proper gaming phone or a laptop, you can also start with your graphic settings for an improved experience. Mentioned below are the common graphic settings that a gamer needs to know for improving his or her experience.
Antialiasing
Antialiasing is more commonly abbreviated as AA and is a technique for smoothing out the rough pixel edges. Many of us have experienced such rough pixels at some point. The technique used here is nothing but taking some of the surrounding pixels as a sample and trying to blend all the pixels.
Different games have different AA settings. While some let you turn it on and off, others come with AA rates, like that of 2x AA, 4x AA, and so on. You must adjust according to your monitor’s FPS rate. Balance it out as higher resolutions consist of a greater number of pixels and therefore require only 2x AA for smoothing the pixels. You will require 4x AA or 8x AA if there is a lower resolution.
Anisotropic Filtering
If we are looking at 3D graphics, the distant objects mostly use lower quality texture maps, while the closer objects generally use comparatively better quality texture maps. As a result, the distant objects appear blurry, but the closer ones are way more detailed.
High-quality texture maps have a huge impact on the overall graphics. AF or Anisotropic filtering can help solve the problem. Lowering the game settings will make closer objects blurry while you can easily visualise the distant objects. AF works the best on older graphics cards and doesn’t have much use in the case of new-age graphics cards.
Draw Distance
This setting is mostly used to decide the things that you are going to see on screen. Thus, with the help of the view distance settings, you can decide how much you want to see in the distance. Higher settings simply mean that your graphics card will have a hard time working on rendering the distant view. Go for a balanced draw distance setting to have a good time playing your game.
EndNote
So if you have read thoroughly, there is a maximum chance that you have got all the answers regarding gaming graphics. So, graphics is really crucial if you are thinking of playing a high-end game. Keep in mind all the ways and processes discussed in the article to take your gaming experience to the next level. Besides this, understanding gaming graphics and the software and hardware settings will make you a pro player in the true sense.
Follow us, keep tinkering with the settings, and have the best Gaming Experience!
