The Tool Desk
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Which settings should you lower first?
Begin with settings that can reduce visual workload while letting you keep the game at its current resolution. Riot Games lists these as a general starting point, not a guaranteed ranking for every game:
- Shadows: reduce shadow quality or distance if those controls are available.
- Effects, particles, and post-processing: lower effects quality or disable particularly demanding enhancements.
- Environment, detail, or material quality: reduce world and surface detail settings.
- Anti-aliasing and other image-enhancement effects: try a lower anti-aliasing level or turn off optional enhancements.
- Textures: test a lower texture quality setting; its effect depends on the game and system.
Labels differ from game to game, and a setting’s performance impact is not universal. Riot’s advice is to lower demanding options, test, then gradually raise individual settings until you find a suitable balance (Riot Games Support).
How to change settings without guessing
- Choose what you want to improve. Decide whether the problem is low frame rate, inconsistent delivery, or brief hitches. Your preferred smoothness depends on the game, display, and personal preference.
- Record a baseline. Use the game’s performance display or a repeatable benchmark or scene if available. Note both average frame rate and whether motion feels consistent; an average alone may not show every hitch.
- Lower a small group of demanding settings. Start with shadows, effects or post-processing, environment or material detail, and anti-aliasing. Avoid changing everything at once, so you can tell which changes help.
- Repeat the same test. Compare the same scene or benchmark under similar conditions. If performance improves, restore settings one at a time until the image quality and smoothness suit you.
- Escalate only if needed. If those changes are insufficient, test textures, then consider a lower resolution or a compatible upscaler.
AMD’s Game Advisor documentation illustrates the value of measuring more than one performance characteristic: on supported Radeon setups, its report can show average FPS and the 95th percentile, and recommendations may include changing a preset, advanced rendering, render scale, or display resolution. It is a tool-specific example, not a universal benchmark or promise of improvement (AMD Game Advisor support).
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When should you lower resolution or use upscaling?
Try resolution after less visible settings. Reducing resolution can lower rendering work, but it usually makes the image noticeably softer. Compare the result in actual gameplay rather than assuming a particular frame-rate gain.
If the game offers upscaling, check whether it has a game-integrated option. AMD recommends using FSR built into a supported game rather than driver-level Radeon Super Resolution (RSR), because the game-specific implementation may offer better results (AMD guidance on RSR).
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Should you change V-Sync?
Test V-Sync both on and off if tearing or input response is part of the problem. Riot notes that disabling it may improve performance or reduce input delay in some cases, but can produce visible screen tearing. Keep whichever setting gives the better result for your game and display (Riot Games Support).
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What if lowering graphics settings does not help?
If several demanding settings make little difference, do not assume a graphics option is the only cause. On laptops with switchable graphics, check that the game is using the intended GPU. NVIDIA’s documentation explains that a system may use integrated or high-performance graphics, and changing the preferred GPU can require restarting the program (NVIDIA Control Panel help). This check is relevant to switchable-graphics systems, but it does not guarantee a fix for every performance problem.
Quick Recap
How to compare your options
| Change | What to compare | Main trade-off or limitation |
|---|---|---|
| Shadows, effects, detail, or anti-aliasing | Performance in the same scene versus the visual detail you retain | Names and impact vary by game; no universal FPS gain is established. |
| Texture quality | Performance and image clarity after a matched retest | Whether it helps depends on the game and system. |
| Lower resolution | Performance against the more noticeable loss of image sharpness | Image quality may suffer more than when lowering individual effects. |
| Upscaling | Performance, image quality, and compatibility in your game and display mode | Availability and results depend on the game, hardware, and implementation; Auto SR has specific device, OS, resolution, and game requirements. |
| V-Sync on or off | Screen tearing, performance, and input response | Disabling it may help performance or input delay in some cases, but can cause tearing. |
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