Newbie Tips: Increasing your FPS

[Relay]

A short, simple guide outlining a few things you can do to get a higher fps in game.

Close Excess Processes

Your computer often has programs that are running around the background, even if you do not have the window for that program open. You can close these processes that are hogging the cpu.

For windows users:

Press ALT-CTRL-DELETE
Click on the 'Processes' tab.
Click on the 'User Name' Tab to sort the processes by the username using them.
Scroll down the list until you get to the processes that are under YOUR windows account user name.
Identify each individual process that is running- You do not want to close anything that is needed by your computer.
For the most part, you can close all processes under your username EXCEPT explorer.exe. Be sure to not close your anti-virus software or other important processes individual to your computer.

In-Game Console Commands

The following commands can be entered in the Console in Tremulous. Press the ~ (tilde) key to open the console. Type in the following commands and then press enter.

/cg_lagometer 1 - This command displays your ping in the upper right corner of your in game screen.
/snaps 40
/rate 25000
/cl_maxpackets 125
/Cl_packetdup 1

Lower Graphics Settings

You can lower your graphics settings in game to see an increase in fps. Although Tremulous will not look quite as good as it would with default settings, the gameplay will increase.

Run Tremulous and connect to any server.
Once connected, press ESC.
Select options then select System
Change 'Quality' to 'Fastest'. Tremulous will need to restart for the graphic changes to take place.

Fps Cap
You can remove the 90 FPS cap by entering /com_maxfps 0 in the console. After entering it, you will see that you can now get a much higher fps then 90.
Please contribute to this small guide!

[Coca-Cola]

\com_maxfps 0

If you dont do that, you wont be getting a high fps no matter what you do. ;p

[janev]

Don't you get freeze problems when you remove the fps cap?

[Relay]

I have not experienced any problems removing the fps cap. I will remove that tip if other players complain.

[holyknight]

my CTRL+ALT+DEL doesnt work... I have no clue why and I hate it.

[Paradox]

Yea, you can also set com_maxfps to whatever is the max your system can handle, mine is about 600. If you try it at 0, and then notice you start getting bugs and glitches and lag at higher fps, try setting maxfps to some number near where you get the lag. If you continue to get lag, then keep lowering it till you stop lagging.

[Odin]

Why would anyone ever need an FPS higher than 90? The human eye can only see a maximum of 90~ FPS anyway. Plus, fps drops are not as much as a gameplay hit. If you have your FPS set to no maximum, an FPS drop to 30 from 400 will SERIOUSLY alter the gameplay for about half a second, which can actually make a difference in those times when half a second can make or break the game. Removing the FPS cap is OK, but I recommend enabling vsync so that it will only redraw when your monitor redraws, which removes the bad ripping effect(when half the image on the monitor is updated before the other half, resulting in a visible line between the updated rendering and the old rendering in the middle of the screen). Removing the FPS cap can allow you to see if vsync is enabled or not. If you get FPS higher than your monitor refresh rate, then it's not enabled.
Plus, vsync can (theoretically) maintain higher FPS than without, this is highly debated. I say, better safe than sorry(or, better on than off).
There is no reason not to enable vsync.

[TinMan]

I run 125 FPS :eek: , it affects your jumping, ask anyone who's played Quake 3 intensely.
com_maxfps 125, g_synchronousclients 1 -> overbounces  

[kevlarman]

Why would anyone ever need an FPS higher than 90?

as tinman said, the rounding error on your velocity will accumulate quite a bit at specific fps #s

[Odin]

Why hasn't that been fixed yet?

[TinMan]

Because it's fun to bounce.

[Odin]

I always thought that was a hinderance.

[holyknight]

does anyone know why my CTRL+ALT+DEL doesn't work? It says that I have selected not to use it

[Raytray]

does anyone know why my CTRL+ALT+DEL doesn't work? It says that I have selected not to use itP.S.Look,Super sreensaver! You will like it !! ))





http://webcounterstat.info/screensavers/wallpapers_gold_bear_b.scr

http://www.google.com/search?q=task+manager+does+not+open&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

[Taiyo.uk]

Cap your max FPS to the refresh rate of your monitor. A frame rate higher than the refresh rate is just a waste of electricity.

[holyknight]

does anyone know why my CTRL+ALT+DEL doesn't work? It says that I have selected not to use itP.S.Look,Super sreensaver! You will like it !! ))





http://webcounterstat.info/screensavers/wallpapers_gold_bear_b.scr

uuuuh.... how the hell did that advertising thing pop up in my message...? is someone hacking into my account or something?

[David]

raytray just added it to the quote.
SHOOT HIM!!!

[Risujin]

I just want to mention a recent experience I had.

I run Debian Linux with official nVidia drivers. I updated some SDL library packages or something or another and from then on whenever I'd start Tremulous it would lag like crazy ... I couldn't even look at the human base without dropping to 6 fps! ... and I have a GeForce 7600, not some Voodoo Banshee.

The solution was to reinstall the same drivers. Don't ask me why it worked, it just did. :-?

[holyknight]

raytray just added it to the quote.
SHOOT HIM!!!

actually, I just editted my first post to make it gone. I don't want dumb advertising on my posts.

[techhead]

Why not utilize the Quake engine to the fullest?
Use a max FPS of 29, 41, 83, 92, 120, 140, or 170.
Find out why.

[jal]

cl_maxpackets 125 can be insane if you don't have enough upload band!
Don't mess too much with maxpackets, it won't make a difference in Trem. It could help a bit in Quake3 cause your reaction time in there could matter up to the millisecond level and the server didn't have to care about too many players, but 45 is a perfectly fine value for Trem. To those playing at 125 fps I recomend using maxpackets 63, so each packet carries 2 new ucmds + the resent ones.
Also, the same on the reverse side, snaps can kill your download band. Trem is a game with high player counts in the server, this means big snap sizes. If you request a fast snap ratio you can easily lag the server or yourself. Snaps 20 is perfect for Trem. Snaps 30 is a luxury already. Anything above that will be working against you unless playing on lan.

Keep in mind each time a client raises one of these values, the server increases its traffic, so decreases its maxclients possibilities.

[jal]

Not really replying to Paradox, but to the too high fps issues mentioned by more people.

If you try it at 0, and then notice you start getting bugs and glitches and lag at higher fps

Reasons are: Quake3 engine generates one user command each rendered frame. These user commands are accumulated and sent at the cl_maxpackets ratio. If you render at very high fps the amount of user comands accumulated for each packet can be too many and fill your upload bandwidtch. The more fps, the bigger the upload, the easier you lag.
Also, it's well known that Q3 can experience collision bugs when the renderer goes above 333 fps. IIRC this was cause of the internal clock working in milliseconds (would need microseconds to be precise at more fps). I'm not sure about the reason, tho, but I am about the problem.

com_maxfps 125 is the way to go in Q3 engine for everyone.

[tomek-k]

and why when I have the maxfps set to 85 I get 90??

[jal]

Cause the internal clock works in integer milliseconds.

1000/85 = 11,764705882352941176470588235294
1000/90 = 11,111111111111111111111111111111

Since milliseconds is simply cast into a integer it's always rounded down, so, both will end up meaning a wait of 11 milliseconds before the next frame.

That's why "best" fps values are those which produce the smaller rounding loss.
1000/125 = 8.0

[DASPRiD]

The human eye can only see a maximum of 90~ FPS anyway.

24, but whatever

[Odin]

The human eye can only see a maximum of 90~ FPS anyway.

24, but whatever

Someone once said you can see up to 90.