The best balance is usually achieved by keeping your monitor’s native resolution, enabling supported DLSS, FSR or XeSS upscaling, and lowering ray tracing and shadows before textures. Then use VRR, an appropriate frame-rate cap and repeatable testing to remove stutter without making the image unnecessarily blurry. There is no universal preset: your GPU, CPU, VRAM, display refresh rate, game engine and tolerance for latency or reconstruction artifacts determine the final combination.
What to change first for smoother performance
Adjust settings in an order that protects image quality. Start with the options that consume the most rendering time, and leave details that mainly consume VRAM alone unless you are running out of memory.
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- Keep native output resolution. Resolution has a very high performance impact because every increase adds pixels to the base render. Use the display’s native output first; reduce it only after upscaling and the largest rendering costs have been addressed.
- Enable a supported temporal upscaler. DLSS, FSR and XeSS render internally at a lower resolution and reconstruct the output. Select the highest-quality mode that gives you a stable frame rate. A good implementation can recover performance with less visible loss than reducing the entire preset.
- Reduce ray tracing. Ray-traced lighting, reflections and shadows are classed as a very-high-impact setting in MSI’s July 30, 2026 graphics-settings guide. Turn off the most expensive ray-tracing effects first, or use a lower ray-tracing quality level.
- Lower shadow quality. Shadows are a practical performance lever. Dropping one or two steps often improves GPU frame time while preserving textures, materials and most scene geometry.
- Check frame-time consistency. A high average FPS is not enough if 1% lows or frame-time spikes make camera movement feel uneven. Test one change at a time in the same demanding scene.
Textures, geometry and post-processing should be adjusted after those steps, based on what the hardware is actually running out of. The right setting is the one that removes the bottleneck while keeping the image stable and readable.
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How each major setting affects quality and frame time
| Setting | Impact or behavior identified by MSI | Practical adjustment |
|---|---|---|
| Resolution | Very high performance impact | Keep native output; use upscaling before lowering output resolution |
| Ray tracing | Very high performance impact | Reduce or disable the most expensive effects first |
| Textures | Medium impact; generally more VRAM-heavy than compute-heavy | Keep high when VRAM is sufficient; lower if you see memory-related hitching |
| Geometry or draw distance | Low–medium impact | Preserve visibility; reduce only when GPU or CPU frame time identifies it as a bottleneck |
| Post effects | Low impact | Trim effects such as intensive blur or depth-of-field only if they affect clarity or frame time |
| Frame synchronization | Affects perceived smoothness and feel | Use VRR when the monitor and driver support it, with a frame target inside the display’s range |
Resolution and render scale
Output resolution determines how many pixels the display receives, while render scale determines how many pixels the game creates before post-processing or upscaling. A lower render scale can be less disruptive than changing the monitor output, because the interface and final presentation remain at native output resolution. However, very low internal resolutions can produce shimmering, soft edges and unstable fine detail. Increase the mode until text, foliage and distant geometry stop crawling during camera movement.
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Textures and VRAM
Texture quality usually uses memory more than shader computation. If your graphics card has enough VRAM, lowering textures may deliver little performance benefit and can make surfaces visibly muddy. If the game reports near-full VRAM usage, texture streaming warnings, sudden stalls when entering new areas or hitching that correlates with new assets, lower texture quality or texture-streaming distance one step. Keep texture filtering high when it has a separate option; it improves oblique surfaces at comparatively modest cost in many engines.
Geometry, foliage and draw distance
Longer view distance preserves gameplay information but can burden either the GPU or CPU by increasing visible objects and draw calls. Keep geometry and draw distance high enough to see enemies, roads, landmarks or objectives that matter to play. Lower them only after observing that changing the option reduces the relevant frame time. A CPU-limited game may not improve when you lower resolution, while reducing object density or simulation distance can help.
Post-processing and antialiasing
Post effects are rated low impact in MSI’s table, but they can strongly affect perception. Motion blur, film grain, chromatic aberration and depth of field may obscure detail even when they cost little. Disable or reduce them when clarity is the goal. Antialiasing is different: it controls edge quality and temporal stability. If a game’s temporal anti-aliasing looks smeared, test a different anti-aliasing mode or use the game’s quality slider before lowering every other setting.
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Use temporal upscaling before broad quality cuts when the game and GPU support it. Select a quality mode that leaves enough internal resolution for the scene: fast movement, foliage, hair, thin wires and distant signage expose reconstruction weaknesses first.
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| Output resolution | NVIDIA Fortnite guidance (2020) | How to use the example |
|---|---|---|
| 4K | DLSS Performance | Starting point for supported Fortnite configurations; check sharpness and temporal stability |
| 2560×1440 | DLSS Balanced | Starting point, not a guarantee for every game or GPU |
| 1920×1080 | DLSS Quality | Starting point where preserving internal detail is especially important |
Those modes come from NVIDIA’s Fortnite guidance and should not be treated as a universal rule. Implementations differ by game, version and anti-aliasing pipeline, and players vary in how much softness or shimmer they accept. Compare a still scene and a moving scene. If Quality is already smooth, there is no reason to select Balanced or Performance merely because it exists. If frame time remains too high, move down one mode before reducing several unrelated settings.
Frame generation and latency trade-offs
Some games offer frame generation alongside upscaling. It can increase displayed frame rate by creating intermediate frames, but it does not remove the work required to produce the underlying frames and may alter input response. Treat it as an optional second step after establishing a stable base frame rate. Evaluate camera control, aiming and menu interaction rather than relying only on the counter.
Ray tracing, shadows and lighting priorities
Ray tracing is among the first settings to reduce because it combines expensive ray calculations with denoising and additional memory traffic. Disable reflections, global illumination or ray-traced shadows individually when the game exposes separate controls; one effect may account for most of the cost. If the game provides only a single ray-tracing preset, use the lower preset or turn it off while retaining conventional lighting at a high level.
Shadows are the next broad lever. Lower shadow resolution or cascade distance before dropping textures. Watch moving foliage, contact shadows and interiors: some games tie several shadow systems to one slider, so a one-step reduction can remove distracting detail. If shadows flicker after using a very low mode, move back up one step and reduce another effect instead.
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VRR, synchronization and frame caps
Variable refresh rate (VRR) allows a compatible monitor to adjust its refresh rate to the frame rate being produced. Microsoft describes VRR as including AMD FreeSync, Nvidia G-SYNC and VESA DisplayPort Adaptive-Sync. When the display, cable path, operating system and driver all support the feature, VRR reduces the visible tearing and uneven cadence that occur when a fixed refresh rate meets fluctuating FPS.
Enabling VRR
- Turn on Adaptive-Sync, FreeSync or G-SYNC-compatible mode in the monitor’s on-screen menu, if the display provides that control.
- Enable the corresponding variable-refresh option in the graphics driver.
- Use the display connection and refresh-rate mode that actually support VRR; some monitors restrict it to specific inputs or ranges.
- Enable VRR in the game or operating-system graphics path when the title exposes a separate setting.
- Test a demanding scene. Look for reduced tearing and steadier motion, not merely a larger FPS number.
AMD notes that a frame-rate target can keep output within a FreeSync range and reduce power use, heat and fan noise. Set a cap that your system can sustain and that remains inside the monitor’s supported VRR range. If the game cannot hold the target, lower a bottleneck setting rather than repeatedly raising and lowering the cap.
When fixed synchronization is preferable
VRR depends on a supported display path and has a finite operating range. If the frame rate falls below that range, the display may use low-framerate compensation or revert to another behavior, depending on the monitor. If you see flicker, brightness changes or inconsistent pacing, compare VRR on and off, verify the monitor’s documented range and test a conservative cap. Do not enable multiple competing synchronization modes without checking which one has priority in the driver and game.
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Windows 11 can choose the GPU used by an individual game. Open Settings → System → Display → Graphics, select the game, choose Options, select High performance and save. The exact option appears only when Windows detects more than one graphics processor, such as integrated and discrete GPUs.
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In the same Graphics area, Windows 11 offers Optimizations for windowed games. Microsoft says this feature targets eligible DirectX 10 and DirectX 11 games running in windowed or borderless-window modes, reducing presentation latency and enabling Auto HDR and VRR on supported displays. Restart the game after changing the option and confirm that the game is using the intended display mode. Exclusive fullscreen, borderless and windowed modes can have different latency and overlay behavior, so test the mode you actually plan to use.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.A repeatable method for tuning any game
Randomly changing a complete preset makes it difficult to identify the real bottleneck. Use a repeatable scene, record the result and change one variable at a time.
- Record a baseline. Note output resolution, refresh rate, upscaler mode, ray tracing state, frame cap and average FPS. Also observe stutter, image softness and input response.
- Choose a demanding route. Replay the same combat encounter, city intersection, traversal route or built-in benchmark. A quiet corridor can hide the problem you are trying to solve.
- Watch frame time, not only FPS. A frame-time graph reveals spikes that an average counter hides. AMD Game Advisor monitors normal gameplay for up to 90 seconds and reports average FPS plus 95th-percentile frame time, then can suggest changes such as lowering the preset, antialiasing or ambient occlusion, render scale or display resolution.
- Classify the bottleneck. If GPU utilization and GPU frame time are high, test resolution, upscaling, ray tracing and shadows. If the GPU is underused while the CPU frame time is high, test geometry, view distance, object density, simulation or crowd settings. If neither is consistently saturated, investigate streaming, shader compilation, background processes or a frame cap.
- Apply one change. Replay the same section and compare average FPS, frame-time lows, visual stability, VRAM use and latency. Keep the change only if it improves the problem without an unacceptable image or control penalty.
- Set the cap last. Once the demanding scene is stable, choose a frame target that your system can maintain inside the display’s VRR range. Recheck the worst scene, not just the opening area.
Practical presets by goal
Maximum image quality with steadier delivery
- Native output resolution.
- Upscaler on its highest-quality mode, if needed.
- Ray tracing reduced selectively rather than lowering the entire preset.
- Shadows one step below maximum if they are the dominant GPU cost.
- Textures high while VRAM remains comfortable.
- VRR enabled and a sustainable frame target selected.
Competitive clarity and low latency
- Use the highest refresh-rate mode the display supports.
- Prefer a stable frame time over a fluctuating peak FPS.
- Disable visual effects that obscure targets, such as excessive motion blur or depth of field.
- Reduce ray tracing first; it rarely improves target visibility enough to justify its cost in competitive play.
- Use the least aggressive upscaling mode that maintains the required frame target.
Limited VRAM or frequent streaming hitching
- Keep output resolution if possible, then use upscaling.
- Lower textures or texture-streaming distance before cutting geometry that carries gameplay information.
- Close background applications that consume graphics memory.
- Watch for hitching when entering new areas; a stable average FPS does not rule out memory pressure.
Common mistakes and how to correct them
Lowering everything instead of one bottleneck
A low preset can remove detail that costs little while leaving the expensive option enabled. Restore settings in stages, then lower resolution or ray tracing only when measurements show they are responsible.
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Temporal artifacts appear during movement. Pan the camera through foliage, fences, hair and distant lights, then inspect fine detail while walking or sprinting. A sharper screenshot can still produce worse motion stability.
Chasing average FPS while ignoring lows
Brief stalls and uneven frame delivery are often more noticeable than a small reduction in the average. Use a frame-time graph or the 95th-percentile frame-time result from Game Advisor and tune for the demanding section.
Assuming the game is using the fastest GPU
On a laptop or hybrid system, verify the Windows 11 per-game GPU assignment. A game running on integrated graphics can make every quality setting appear inadequate.
Using an upscaler mode without checking its implementation
DLSS, FSR and XeSS are not identical across games. Review distant geometry, particles, thin lines and fast camera pans. If reconstruction artifacts are unacceptable, select a higher-quality mode and recover the remaining performance by lowering ray tracing or shadows.
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Settings can rebalance a workload, but they cannot create CPU or GPU capacity that a game fundamentally requires. If native output, a sensible upscaler mode, reduced ray tracing and moderate shadows still produce unstable frame times in the same demanding scene, the limiting component may be below the game’s practical requirement. A GPU upgrade is a conditional path rather than a prerequisite; first confirm that the game is using the correct GPU, that VRAM is not overflowing and that background tasks are not causing the spikes. If the GPU is consistently saturated at the image quality you need, more graphics performance is the direct remedy. If the CPU frame time remains the limit while lowering resolution changes little, a faster processor or lower simulation and object-density settings address the correct constraint.
Quick checklist
- Native monitor output selected.
- DLSS, FSR or XeSS tested before broad quality reductions.
- Ray tracing and shadows adjusted before textures.
- Textures matched to available VRAM.
- Geometry and draw distance preserved unless measured as a bottleneck.
- VRR enabled only when the monitor, connection and driver support it.
- Windows 11 set to the high-performance GPU for the game when multiple GPUs exist.
- Optimizations for windowed games tested for eligible DirectX 10/11 windowed or borderless titles.
- One repeatable demanding scene used for every comparison.
- Average FPS, frame-time lows, image stability, VRAM use, latency and tearing all considered.
The Bottom Line
For most systems, keep native output, use the highest-quality supported upscaler, lower ray tracing and shadows before textures, and finish with VRR plus a sustainable frame target. Measure the same demanding scene after each single change; that process produces a smoother game without sacrificing detail that was not causing the slowdown.
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