• Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!

Assassins Creed 4: Black Flag PC performance thread

So there's really no way to play this in windowed / borderless mode?

That was the case with previous AC games, so it wouldn't surprise me but it's disappointing. It wasn't possible to go into windowed mode at all so you couldn't use the standard borderless window utilities with it either.
 
Not at all man, that's what these threads are for. In the end, I did drop the environment quality to high instead of very high, because I could barely tell the difference and it made the experience even smoother, but the overrider thing really seems to fix everything for me, glad it worked for you too. Something that came to light that I maybe should have went back and edited in ,was Damien discovered shadowplay was actual destroying this game's framerate, and it turns out I had shadowplay completely off when I was doing all this so that must of helped my performance too. Glad you sorted it though, I'm actually really enjoying the game, probably my fav since 2.

I'm satisfied. I haven't monitored CPU perf but based on what everyone here is saying, if there is really a CPU utilization issue in this game, I'm prolly gonna be about as bad off as anyone with an i7, having an older one. Even if fps isn't ideal, it was intolerably how jarring jumping back and forth from 30 to 60 was.

I like the game a lot so far, my fav since brotherhood. Tons of side content with meaningful rewards. I do really miss the ability to call in assassins that's been prevalent in every game til now but that's a small nit pick. Really great game.

Also glad to get some of the PC stuff sorted. If this article is any indication, doesn't sound like pc perf will get better any time soon...

http://www.gameranx.com/updates/id/...s-creed-4-black-flag-pc-optimization-process/
 
Well, back again. After educating myself on D3Doverrider, things are proceeding much more smoothly ha. Running around havanna right now with primarily 60fps with small dips every now and again with:

Res: 1920 x 1080p, 60
environment quality: Very High
Texture Quality: High
shadow quality: Very high
AA: TXAA x2
Reflection: High
Motion Blur: On
AO: HBAO+ low
God Rays: Low
Fog: On
Vsync: OFf (enabled through d3d with triple buffering)

Seems to have solved all my problems really. Specs again are gtx 770 2gb, i5-4670, 8gb Ram, Windows 8.1


thanks for the info man. I could not run it with vsync cause the stuttering was horrible and decided to turn it off. but the screen tearing was also driving me crazy lol. After reading your post i looked up D3Doverrider and installed it and it seems to have drastically improved my experience too. thanks again
 
So I've managed to setup the game. Radeon Pro works! \o/

Specs:

Core i5 4670K (@ default 3.4GHz)
8GB RAM (@ default 1600 MHz)
XFX Radeon 7850 2GB Black Edition (factory OC @ 975/1250MHz)
Samsung 840 Pro SSD
Dell U2412M 1920x1200 monitor
Win 7 x64 SP1

Settings:

z7ptwUw.jpg


Since the vsync option is broken (it locks to 30fps with weird and sudden unlocks to 60fps) I downloaded Radeon Pro and enabled triple buffering.
Currently in Havana, game is at average 55fps, never drops below 50.
I'm happy considering the game looks gorgeous and I don't have a powerful GPU (and it's an AMD which Ubisoft hates).
 
Glad it worked out for you guys, and I owe my own thanks to the peeps who were helpful to myself about D3Doverrider, primarily over in the *do not touch Black flag pc with a barge pole* topic, but in here too. This is actual my first time using it too, and I will not be taking it with a grain of salt any more when I see people say D3Doverrider is indispensable to a pc player. I kind of want to go back and try a few games with it that I had similar choppy experiences with (thinking of far cry 3), although this is the first game I've saw with the bizarre 60/30 yoyo-ing vsync.
 
Please please please tell me there's some file I can edit or mod I can download that will let me set the game to 120hz? Being locked at 60hz is killing me.
 
Please please please tell me there's some file I can edit or mod I can download that will let me set the game to 120hz? Being locked at 60hz is killing me.
I'm no expert but couldn't you do that with Radeon Pro or Nvidia Inspector (or whatever the Radeon Pro NVIDIA equivalent is)?
 
I'm no expert but couldn't you do that with Radeon Pro or Nvidia Inspector (or whatever the Radeon Pro NVIDIA equivalent is)?

I wouldn't know, I've never had this problem. Every game I've played in the past few years has had native 120hz support.
I googled around but couldn't find anything.

Edit: Tried editing the ini file. didn't work =(
 
Isn't that exactly what vsync is supposed to do? It's either 60 or 30 (or 20...), nothing in-between.

Unless I set it that way, then no, I've never had vsync behave that way. Either it will lock the framerate at 60 (my monitor's refresh rate) and no higher to prevent screen tearing, or it will disengage if it can't hold it and dips below. So 60, maybe jump down to 55 in a busy area, go back up. I know you can set the vysnc to only go between 60, 45, 30 or whatever, but that's certainly not how vsync normally behaves for myself and it's horribly jarring to have it go between the two often. And disengaging the vsync was causing the worst tearing I've ever seen. Nothing short of the D3d was sorting it for me though, like in game or nvidia control panel etc. which normally work (although it sounds like radeon pro works too). Sounds like Felix understands the intricacies more than me.
 
I dont understand 780Ti guys posting about getting less than 60fps. I am with i7 4770k, 16GB RAM and Galaxy hall of fame 780 (@1.1GHz, so a little faster than Titan) and I get butter smooth 60 at all settings absolutely highest (with FXAA) at 1080p. Actually I get quite a bit tearing because I havent enabled V-sync.
 
I dont understand 780Ti guys posting about getting less than 60fps. I am with i7 4770k, 16GB RAM and Galaxy hall of fame 780 (@1.1GHz, so a little faster than Titan) and I get butter smooth 60 at all settings absolutely highest (with FXAA) at 1080p. Actually I get quite a bit tearing because I havent enabled V-sync.

TXAA 4x is a lot more taxing than FXAA. With FXAA I also get 60fps locked with V-Sync.
 
TXAA 4x is a lot more taxing than FXAA. With FXAA I also get 60fps locked with V-Sync.

Ehm no i have TXAA 4x on with Batman Arkham Origins and everything on ultra and v-sync off. Got 80fps the whole time. This game is just bad optimized and i have GTX 780.
 
Ehm no i have TXAA 4x on with Batman Arkham Origins and everything on ultra and v-sync off. Got 80fps the whole time. This game is just bad optimized and i have GTX 780.

TXAA is a lot more taxing than FXAA since it combines MSAA with a PPAA solution.
 
Damn im loving my 570 right now. I dropped the resolution down to 2240x1260 and managed to crank up most features. To make it even better, it provides just enough downsampling to hide the blurry lines you see on objects in the distance with SMAA. Couple this with DSOgaming sweetfx preset and it looks gorgeous.

AC4_BFSP_2013_11_24_15_26_13_877.jpg


Locked at 30 fps of course. When it rains it drops down to 27-28. Naval battles also drop to 27 but Forests/Cities are constant 29-30 fps. Looking forward to future optimization patches.
 
So I'm able to get 50-60fps at Nassau with my GTX680 after the new drivers. (not sure what I'll get @ other locations/ocean)

I got everything on max except I put FXAA, HBAO+ low, and god rays low.
I also enabled Triple Buffering in the nvidia control panel. Got a sweetFX and it looks amazing and it performs decent I guess.

Now just have to wait for a new TV in a week and disgonnbegood.gif
 
So I'm able to get 50-60fps at Nassau with my GTX680 after the new drivers. (not sure what I'll get @ other locations/ocean)

I got everything on max except I put FXAA, HBAO+ low, and god rays low.
I also enabled Triple Buffering in the nvidia control panel. Got a sweetFX and it looks amazing and it performs decent I guess.

Now just have to wait for a new TV in a week and disgonnbegood.gif

Youre doing it wrong, sir. Enable Vsync and triple buffering via D3Doverrider.
 
Bought the game without checking for this thread and I'm regretting it like a mother^{^|€*^{%! This game runs like shit, ubisoft got me, I trust their port on this with the excellent job they did in rayman legends and I have to say that splinter cell ran very smoothly for me but what a pile of excrement this is, it really sucks you can't sell digital games cause I would have traded this already o_O.
 
Youre doing it wrong, sir. Enable Vsync and triple buffering via D3Doverrider.
I tried it. Turned off the vsync in the game's options, and turned on the vsync and 3buffer with the D3D....and I got lots of screen tearing. (Returned the nvidia control panel back to default too)
Why is that? The fps with the D3D was the same (maybe a little faster) than what i already had but the screen tearing tough
 
So I've managed to setup the game. Radeon Pro works! \o/

Specs:

Core i5 4670K (@ default 3.4GHz)
8GB RAM (@ default 1600 MHz)
XFX Radeon 7850 2GB Black Edition (factory OC @ 975/1250MHz)
Samsung 840 Pro SSD
Dell U2412M 1920x1200 monitor
Win 7 x64 SP1

Settings:

z7ptwUw.jpg


Since the vsync option is broken (it locks to 30fps with weird and sudden unlocks to 60fps) I downloaded Radeon Pro and enabled triple buffering.
Currently in Havana, game is at average 55fps, never drops below 50.
I'm happy considering the game looks gorgeous and I don't have a powerful GPU (and it's an AMD which Ubisoft hates).

How did you get Radeon Pro to work? I have tried for hours with no such luck.
 
Bought the game without checking for this thread and I'm regretting it like a mother^{^|€*^{%! This game runs like shit, ubisoft got me, I trust their port on this with the excellent job they did in rayman legends and I have to say that splinter cell ran very smoothly for me but what a pile of excrement this is, it really sucks you can't sell digital games cause I would have traded this already o_O.

At least you cna play it when you buy a new rig, or when a new patch/driver gets released!
 
I've got a 3770k @4,5GHz, 16GB ram @1866MHz, GTX780TI @1176/7500MHz running the same settings with D3D overrider and without. I'm not getting 60fps locked so I highly doubt you would.

Yeah I swear godrays were on high but they were on low so my bad. Running with godrays completely off now and smaa, everything else maxed 1080p. Looks better without godrays I think and I get locked 60 fps everywhere now.

Since I got my 780 ti I bin going through games trying max settings and finding max is not necessarily better. Farcry 3 with low post process looks better than ultra for example. Also 8x msaa blurs the hell out my screen, I play on 100 inch projector though.
 
How did you get Radeon Pro to work? I have tried for hours with no such luck.

Nothing special. Installed it, added the AC4BFSP.exe file as a new profile and enabled triple buffering:

EYtAlc9.jpg


Haven't touched anything else.

Left it running, went to the game, enabled vsync and voila...it works.
fraps is showing ~55 fps in Havana (roaming around, doing stuff).
 
Can anyone post exact instructions (for D3Do) on how to get rid of the 30/60 jumping but also avoid awful tearing? Nvidia.

Failing that how to just cap it at 30?

Would be very grateful and would be useful for others.

Me: 670 4GB, i5 3570k, 8GB, 1080p
40-60fps in Havana but hate the FPS jumps! FXAA, high env detail, SSAO, low god rays, very high shadows.
 
Can anyone post exact instructions (for D3Do) on how to get rid of the 30/60 jumping but also avoid awful tearing? Nvidia.

Failing that how to just cap it at 30?

Would be very grateful and would be useful for others.

Me: 670 4GB, i5 3570k, 8GB, 1080p
40-60fps in Havana but hate the FPS jumps! FXAA, high env detail, SSAO, low god rays, very high shadows.

I have the exact same setup as you so I really would like to hear something helpful about the fps stuttering/jumping and solutions of this problem before buying a copy of the game. So far I see the game is terribly optimized...
 
I have the exact same setup as you so I really would like to hear something helpful about the fps stuttering/jumping and solutions of this problem before buying a copy of the game. So far I see the game is terribly optimized...

I am not sure it's terribly optimized. That is kind of subjective. It is a damned fine looking game. While those are still very high specs, I can understand it not staying at 60fps.

However, this frame rate yo-yo effect has got to be eliminated.
 
when I look at system recs it's kind of all mumbo jambo to me, like I dunno how to translate what I have to compare it to what is recommended

so if I'm using a laptop with an i5 3210m + nvidia 635m I'm pretty boned right?
 
Can anyone post exact instructions (for D3Do) on how to get rid of the 30/60 jumping but also avoid awful tearing? Nvidia.

Failing that how to just cap it at 30?

Would be very grateful and would be useful for others.

Me: 670 4GB, i5 3570k, 8GB, 1080p
40-60fps in Havana but hate the FPS jumps! FXAA, high env detail, SSAO, low god rays, very high shadows.

I have the exact same setup as you so I really would like to hear something helpful about the fps stuttering/jumping and solutions of this problem before buying a copy of the game. So far I see the game is terribly optimized...

Yup. I had the exact same prob, my set-up is 770 and 4670 so effectively the same thing. Just download a copy of rivatuner, and forget about rivatuner. Go into c:/ and find the rivatuner folder, tools, and find the D3Doverrider app. This is what you want. Now it's simply as, boot. Boot game. Go. Have your in game vsync off, have your nvidia control panel to "determined by the application" and D3Doverrider already has Triple buffering and vsync on so your good. Now you will cap at 60, or the game will naturally dip if your card can't handle the settings, no major yoyoing all the way down to 30fps if your game drops from 60 fps to (for example) 58fps, no more screen tearing. This was my exact problem, simply opening the D3D app before I boot uplay and Black Flag each time I'm playing Black Flag has solved the problem, and I'm getting really decent performance. If you read back through the thread you'll see the settings I settled on too.
 
Just wanted to pipe in and say that thanks to everyone for recommending D3DOverrider; had no idea what it was before reading this thread, and it was relatively painless to get working.

I'm not seeing a huge performance boost, but frame-rate has definitely improved enough to be noticeable (I'm nowhere near 60, but it feels like I've gone from sub-20 to a mostly-40). Has made the overall experience much more enjoyable and I'm actually looking forward to see how it does on with other games.
 
Yup. I had the exact same prob, my set-up is 770 and 4670 so effectively the same thing. Just download a copy of rivatuner, and forget about rivatuner. Go into c:/ and find the rivatuner folder, tools, and find the D3Doverrider app. This is what you want. Now it's simply as, boot. Boot game. Go. Have your in game vsync off, have your nvidia control panel to "determined by the application" and D3Doverrider already has Triple buffering and vsync on so your good. Now you will cap at 60, or the game will naturally dip if your card can't handle the settings, no major yoyoing all the way down to 30fps if your game drops from 60 fps to (for example) 58fps, no more screen tearing. This was my exact problem, simply opening the D3D app before I boot uplay and Black Flag each time I'm playing Black Flag has solved the problem, and I'm getting really decent performance. If you read back through the thread you'll see the settings I settled on too.

Just wanted to pipe in and say that thanks to everyone for recommending D3DOverrider; had no idea what it was before reading this thread, and it was relatively painless to get working.

I'm not seeing a huge performance boost, but frame-rate has definitely improved enough to be noticeable (I'm nowhere near 60, but it feels like I've gone from sub-20 to a mostly-40). Has made the overall experience much more enjoyable and I'm actually looking forward to see how it does on with other games.

What's interesting is that either I am smoking crack, or I was able to achieve this through nVidia Control Panel. While the game was running I opened nVidia Control Panel, Manage 3D Settings. Selected AC4BFSP.exe from list. Turned on Triple Buffering (way at the bottom).

Running MSI AfterBurner to show the FPS. Switched to game. Turned off Vsync in its options.

Smoothly fluctuates 30-60fps -- would say average about 45 in Havana -- no horrid tearing like before (if I turned off Vsync before) and no FPS yo-go (if I turned it on before).

Does that make any sense? Seems like a relatively easy solution not involving 3rd party utilities... am I missing something?

P.S. Also, if you DO want to cap FPS, that was the first thing I tried. MSI AfterBurner has that option; it did work.

P.S. Maybe it's MSI AfterBurner's Riva Stats Server thing that's running that's making it work right? I am so confused.
 
What's interesting is that either I am smoking crack, or I was able to achieve this through nVidia Control Panel. While the game was running I opened nVidia Control Panel, Manage 3D Settings. Selected AC4BFSP.exe from list. Turned on Triple Buffering (way at the bottom)

Sounds interesting. Will give it a try; personally don't like using the nVidia Control Panel. Haven't been into PC gaming until this year and, for whatever reason, navigating through that control panel feels like a chore.
 
What's interesting is that either I am smoking crack, or I was able to achieve this through nVidia Control Panel. While the game was running I opened nVidia Control Panel, Manage 3D Settings. Selected AC4BFSP.exe from list. Turned on Triple Buffering (way at the bottom).

Running MSI AfterBurner to show the FPS. Switched to game. Turned off Vsync in its options.

Smoothly fluctuates 30-60fps -- would say average about 45 in Havana -- no horrid tearing like before (if I turned off Vsync before) and no FPS yo-go (if I turned it on before).

Does that make any sense? Seems like a relatively easy solution not involving 3rd party utilities... am I missing something?

P.S. Also, if you DO want to cap FPS, that was the first thing I tried. MSI AfterBurner has that option; it did work.

P.S. Maybe it's MSI AfterBurner's Riva Stats Server thing that's running that's making it work right? I am so confused.

Bah... don't think the nVidia CP triple buffering did anything. Somehow, though, the tearing of yesterday seems gone. Oh well, I will take it.
 
What's interesting is that either I am smoking crack, or I was able to achieve this through nVidia Control Panel. While the game was running I opened nVidia Control Panel, Manage 3D Settings. Selected AC4BFSP.exe from list. Turned on Triple Buffering (way at the bottom).

Running MSI AfterBurner to show the FPS. Switched to game. Turned off Vsync in its options.

Smoothly fluctuates 30-60fps -- would say average about 45 in Havana -- no horrid tearing like before (if I turned off Vsync before) and no FPS yo-go (if I turned it on before).

Does that make any sense? Seems like a relatively easy solution not involving 3rd party utilities... am I missing something?

P.S. Also, if you DO want to cap FPS, that was the first thing I tried. MSI AfterBurner has that option; it did work.

P.S. Maybe it's MSI AfterBurner's Riva Stats Server thing that's running that's making it work right? I am so confused.

No idea. I won't say it was NVCP's tirple buffering, as it only affects opengl or something. Nvidia CP vsync just did the exact same for me as the ingame vsnc, but who knows. I can only say what worked for me, but it's clear that for some people different solutions are working, so it's good to share so peeps can try it all :)
 
So the performance is good on my 780 SLI, getting around 50-60 FPS maxed at 2560x1600 with 4xMSAA, however I can't take screenshots. Tried FRAPS, MSI Afterburner and just get a black screen. Anyone else find a way to take screens with SLI enabled?
 
So the performance is good on my 780 SLI, getting around 50-60 FPS maxed at 2560x1600 with 4xMSAA, however I can't take screenshots. Tried FRAPS, MSI Afterburner and just get a black screen. Anyone else find a way to take screens with SLI enabled?

Hell, I'd be fine with performance like that...
 
Top Bottom