Remember those great tiny flipbooks where a pad of paper had a picture on every page and the image appeared to animate and move when you turned through the pages quickly? What is FPS?
This is how a video is made. Video, whether digital or old-school film, is a collection of still images that appear to move when viewed in sequence at a given speed. Each of these images is referred to as a “frame.”
What is FPS?
FPS stands for ‘Frames per Second’. It basically means the number of images that can be rendered and shown on your screen in one second. The animation looks smoother with higher FPS.
In most circumstances, a game will generate frames using your computer’s graphics card. Hence, the more powerful your graphics card is, the higher your framerates will be. It’s a big issue these days to figure out how to boost FPS in games. There’s also some discussion over frame rate and the Hz rate of your monitor, which will be discussed later.
Going back to the flipbook example, while each image is referred to as frame; frame rate is the speed at which those images are shown. Frame rate is measured by FPS or Frames Per Second. In other words, if a video is captured and played back at 24FPS, it would mean that each second of the video shows 24 distinct still images. The speed at which they are shown tricks our brain into perceiving a smooth motion.
What is FPS recommended in Game?
FPS ratings are usually rounded up to the following:
- 30 FPS – The most common frame rate found in most console games as well as certain low-end PCs. It is also considered a minimum for a game to be watchable, despite the fact that most people do not notice stuttering until the frame rate dips to or below 20 frames per second.
- 60 FPS – 60 frames per second (FPS) is often regarded as the optimal framerate. However, it is only possible on consoles with certain well-optimized games. In comparison, most games will run at 60 frames per second on a competent gaming PC. Although, AAA games may require some adjusting of the settings. This is also the highest framerate that conventional monitors and televisions can display.
- 120 FPS – Only high-end gaming PCs with 144Hz refresh rate monitors can achieve 120 FPS, which is substantially smoother than 60 FPS. However, because of the high hardware requirements and resulting high cost, it is only popular among serious gamers.
- 240 FPS – The maximum framerate that you can hope for today, 240 FPS, can only be seen on 240Hz refresh rate monitors, just as 120 FPS can only be seen on 144Hz ones. The difference between 120 FPS and 240 FPS, on the other hand, is nearly indistinguishable. This, combined with the even higher hardware costs, explains why 240 FPS is only targeted by a small number of gaming enthusiasts.
What Is The Difference Between Frame rates?
As explained earlier, FPS constitutes the number of frames that are displayed on your screen each second. In essence, the more there are, the smoother and more responsive the image will appear.
Imagine, that you were watching something running at 1 FPS. This would mean that you would see only one image each second, which would appear more like a slide show than an interactive experience.
However, not only does a high frame rate affect responsiveness, but it also has an impact on the visual experience, particularly animations. If a game has natural-looking animations, it will appear to flow smoothly in high framerates, though older games with rougher animation may actually look worse.
Why Does High FPS Matter For Esports?
If you’re streaming movies or competing online, you’ll need at least 24 frames per second for distinct frames to appear as one moving image. However, as you move away from this number, your display quality and the viewing experience will become faster and smoother.
Competitive gamers and esports professionals strive for the highest FPS possible in order to gain every competitive advantage. To achieve the best results, they require the smoothest animations, the lowest latency, and the fewest distracting effects. High frame rates enabled by the most recent GPUs give these players a competitive advantage.
If you’re a serious gamer, you should always play on a high-quality monitor with an optimized FPS. Otherwise, your opponent may be able to see faster and get the better of you.
When live streaming, a low frame rate speed may result in choppy video quality or significant lag times. If your monitor cannot keep up with the video game graphics, it may double or triple certain frames in the video feed, resulting in a sluggish visual effect on your display.
Why is my FPS so low?
Nothing is more frustrating than trying to play a game that stutters, freezes, or crashes, especially if you can’t upgrade your current hardware or aren’t sure what the issue is. There are numerous factors that can contribute to poor game performance. Here are a few examples:
- Outdated drivers
- Old or slow graphics cards
- Other programs running on the computer
- Game settings being turned up too high
- Running on a higher resolution than necessary
How to Increase FPS/ Optimize Frame rates?
We’ve compiled the best PC gaming tips to help you get more frames per second and smoother gameplay.
- Turn on Game Mode
- Adjust for best performance
- Configure FreeSync / G-Sync
- Reduce your screen resolution
- Update graphic and video drivers
- Overclock your CPU and GPU
1. Turn on Game Mode
- Click on the Start button
- Select Settings
- Click on Gaming
- Go to Game Mode
- Turn on
2. Adjust for best performance
- Open Control Panel
- Go to System
- From the left column select Advanced system settings
- In the new window opened select the Advanced tab and on the Performance, section click on Settings
- Check Adjust for best performance
- Optional: Go to the Remote tab in the System Properties and untick the Allow Remote Assistance option
- From Control Panel, go to Power Options
- Select the High Performance / Ultimate Performance power plan
3. Configure FreeSync / G-Sync
These two technologies perform the same function: they dynamically adjust the refresh rate of your monitor to match the FPS. Their compatibility is what distinguishes them. G-Sync is an Nvidia proprietary technology, whereas FreeSync is an AMD open-source standard. Nvidia has recently begun allowing Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) on select FreeSync monitors. With each driver update, they test and add support for more monitors.
4. Reduce your screen resolution
Higher resolutions increase the number of pixels that your graphics card must render, which can significantly reduce your FPS. Ideally, you should run games at the same resolution as your monitor. However, if you’re still having trouble maintaining enough FPS even after lowering your other game settings, you might want to lower your screen resolution. Almost every game will have a video settings menu where you can do this.
5. Update graphic and video drivers
Manufacturers of graphics cards have a vested interest in ensuring that all new and popular games run smoothly on their own hardware. AMD, NVIDIA, and Intel all release drivers with performance enhancements for their graphics cards on a regular basis. To improve graphics card performance, download and install the most recent drivers for your card.
The most recent drivers for your graphics card are usually available for download from the manufacturer’s website. To install your new driver, follow the steps in the installation wizard, and make sure to check any auto-update settings to ensure your driver remains up to date in the future.
For more information on determining which type of graphics card you currently have, see our post on choosing the best graphics card.
Nvidia
6. Overclock your Nvidia CPU and GPU
Overclocking is the most direct way to boost your performance for free. Overclocking your CPU can give you some extra frames, but it can be a time-consuming and complicated process for newcomers. If you’re interested in CPU overclocking, make sure to read our guide.
It is much simpler to overclock your graphics card. MSI Afterburner and EVGA Precision X1 are two tools that allow you to overclock your GPU directly from the desktop and have simple, no-nonsense interfaces. Precision X1 and Afterburner also support one-click overclocking. You can run a scan with either tool to automatically apply a minor overclock to your graphics card.
Although it may appear intimidating, applying a slight overclock to your GPU is one of the simplest things you can do. Just make sure to use a reputable tool, such as Precision X1 or Afterburner.
Conclusion:
The main takeaway from this article is that you should not limit the frame rate or use v-sync unless you are playing a game that does not require very precise and accurate motions.
Allow your hardware to generate as many frames as it can, and if you need more FPS, try lowering the game’s graphic settings. In most cases, optimizations can only go so far, and if you’re not getting the frames you want, you may need to upgrade your entire rig.
