Curse

Hyper.nl · Apr 17, 2007, 08:03 PM // 20:03

I got a problem with my Guild Wars game. I upgraded from Windows 2000 to Windows Vista 32 bit and now my performance is very low 14 FPS where I have normally 45-60 FPS). I already tried many things:

* New drivers from nVidia. Even the latest ForceWare 158.18
* Various compatibility modes
* Used ATITool to check if the card goes into 3D mode at game launch =>> it does

When I go back to Win 2000 it runs fine again. In Vista there seems to be a small random chance that it starts fine, then the FPS is good again but when I switch map it goes to low performance again. Disabling sound does not help so it's not sound related.

System specs:
GeForce 7800 GT 256 MB (Non OC)
resolution: 1920x1200 @ 32 bit and 2x FSAA
AMD Athlon 64 x2 4800+ (Non OC)
2 GB PC3200 DDR SDRAM (Non OC)
Asus A8N-SLI (nForce 4 SLI chipset)
Soundblaster X-FI Extreme Music

gw.exe -nosound and gw.exe -dsound do not help anything.
Disabling FSAA gives back some performance, but still the framerate is lower than I normally have with FSAA turned on.

Any clues how I can solve this?

Hyper.nl · Apr 17, 2007, 08:41 PM // 20:41

Update: 3DMark 06 has a good performance under Vista (3813 3DMarks, Similar to Win2000), so my system is able to perform under Vista. I also tried the LargeSystemCache registry tweak, but it does not help either.

Any help is welcome...

EternalTempest · Apr 17, 2007, 09:46 PM // 21:46

Part of it is Vista requires *much* more resources just to run compared to Windows 2000.

With my hardware (I dual boot xp and vista)

My experience with my hardware - I normally have 90+ (60 with vsynch off) on XP. Vista is about 30 fps (30-60 fps with vsynch off)

Video: NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT (only 1 - NOT SLI)
Sound: SB Audigy 2 ZS
CPU: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 Processor 3400+, MMX, 3DNow, ~2.2GHz (single core)
Ram: Memory: 1024MB RAM
MB: Nvidia 4 AMD SLI Certified
HD: SATA II 300GB
Settings: 1680 x 1050

Dex · Apr 17, 2007, 11:12 PM // 23:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by EternalTempest

Part of it is Vista requires *much* more resources just to run compared to Windows 2000.

This is true, and some configurations are still not performing well in some games under Vista, but a system with his specs should still be running GW quite well.

Hyper.nl, what happens when you turn off AA?

Tachyon · Apr 18, 2007, 12:54 AM // 00:54

The short version is, if you're into gaming then steer well clear of Vista for the time being. There just isn't wide enough support for it yet, which is why I'm sticking to XP on my gaming rig. Well, at least until Vista SP1 anyway.

awesome sauce · Apr 18, 2007, 02:51 AM // 02:51

Yeah my friend who normally got 60+ fps in cs:s was only getting 20 after buying vista. He just ended up reinstalling his old pirated copy of xp.

Hyper.nl · Apr 18, 2007, 06:29 AM // 06:29

@ Dex: When I turn off FSAA I get somewhat better performance yes, so it seems to be graphics related. But still, Under 2000 I get better FPS with FSAA on than under Vista with FSAA off.

And again, 3DMark06 runs at comparable speeds under Vista as under 2000, so my system is able to perform.

Lonesamurai · Apr 18, 2007, 09:57 AM // 09:57

Ok, I've only had a drop in FPS since the last major update... before that, I had a RISE in FPS on teh change from XP pro SP2 to Vista Premium

tijo · Apr 18, 2007, 03:39 PM // 15:39

Did you buy a new copy of vista or just an upgrade package. The upgrade package has a lot of issues compared to the full vista.

TyrianFury · Apr 18, 2007, 04:44 PM // 16:44

Hi there, the problem is the April 5th update, as I have mentioned on other threads the audio update as ruined the game on windows vista. I have had GW on Vists since December last year and only got massive reductions in fps since the update. I used to get 40-75fps and now I get 15.

As a stop gap measure turn off AA in the graphics setting and you will get a slight increase in preformance.

I for one have stoped playing until it gets fixed.

C'mon Arena net please sort this out it has been two weeks already!

Hyper.nl · Apr 18, 2007, 06:58 PM // 18:58

@tijo: I did a clean install of Vista. No upgrade. (Anyways, benchmarks show that upgrading does not give a performance hit)

@TyrianFury: it also occurs with -nosound so in my specific case it does not seem to be sound related.

@ArenaNet: If you read this, please respond to the many related low-fps issues under Vista.

Strange thing is that sometimes it starts up fine but as soon as I switch level or even minimize/restore the app it goes to low-FPS mode again...
Just happened again. I log in and start ad Gate of Anguish (Which is a nice heavy graphics area to test). 60 FPS. No problem. I minimize to taskbar and restore. 16 FPS. This all with 2x FSAA on. Total weirdness.

(Yes, I can disable FSAA to get 25-40 FPS again)

Mineria · Apr 18, 2007, 07:31 PM // 19:31

It was the same with some games, app's and drivers when XP came around.
Even for XP64 it took some time.
A reason for why I stay away from Vista until most of its child sympthons are worked out.
Rumors are that MS will no make DX10 avaible for the previous Windows versions, so when a game that I want to play runs with full DX10 support I will consider to move on, not a second before.
Simply because it is still not stable enough.

Program Ftw · Apr 18, 2007, 07:35 PM // 19:35

Vista by default is set to the Energy Saving setting, in Power Options. Set it to top Performance setting, havent had a problem with it since.

Thanks,
Pr0gram~

Hyper.nl · Apr 18, 2007, 08:41 PM // 20:41

@Program Ftw I'm already in high performance mode at power settings, but good point yes.

By the way: I tried uninstalling the nVidia graphics drivers (So it uses the default Vista drivers again) and still the problem, only with slightly worse FPS.

TyrianFury · Apr 18, 2007, 08:48 PM // 20:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hyper.nl

Strange thing is that sometimes it starts up fine but as soon as I switch level or even minimize/restore the app it goes to low-FPS mode again...
Just happened again. I log in and start ad Gate of Anguish (Which is a nice heavy graphics area to test). 60 FPS. No problem. I minimize to taskbar and restore. 16 FPS. This all with 2x FSAA on. Total weirdness.

(Yes, I can disable FSAA to get 25-40 FPS again)

Yeah some areas are ok for me too. The login screen is 60-71fps and Cliffs of Donjok explorable area is 60fps but anywhere else is 10-20fps

If you alter any of the graphics setting except turn off AA, reduce resolution, textures etc the fps drops back down to 20 even with lower settings.

Before this April 5th nightmare if used to play the game with max settings at 1440x900 on Windows Vista with 4XAA and 60fps no problem.

Hyper.nl · Apr 19, 2007, 07:36 AM // 07:36

http://www.guildwars.com/support/gameupdates/

Quote:

Update - Wednesday April 18

* Enabled the Russian language option.
* Fixed a performance issue with anti-aliasing on nVidia cards and Windows Vista.

I'm gonna try this as soon as I get home.

Teelana Singh · Apr 19, 2007, 07:51 AM // 07:51

Well, the update fixed some of the problem. I'm now getting 60-100 FPS in most towns (more crowded ones like Kodash and Kamadan are getting 35-50 FPS). Outside i'm getting much, much better FPS. I'm constantly in the 60's and will usually go up in the 70's-90's. Everything moves and works much smoother again

Now, for the other part. I'm still getting decreased FPS if i minimize the game. I go back to the 30 or lower in towns and only 30-40 outside. I have no idea why it's still doing this. Anyone else still having this problem? BTW, I did try it in XP compatability mode...this "fixes" the problem, but it gives me flashing and a real quick black screen on the loading screens.

TyrianFury · Apr 19, 2007, 10:44 AM // 10:44

Well the update still has not fixed the reduced frame rate im gettign when playing guild wars, I have tried everything and still no luck

Yanman.be · Apr 19, 2007, 11:12 AM // 11:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teelana Singh

this "fixes" the problem, but it gives me flashing and a real quick black screen on the loading screens.

I have had that since day 1 on Vista.

Hyper.nl · Apr 19, 2007, 12:12 PM // 12:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by TyrianFury

Well the update still has not fixed the reduced frame rate im gettign when playing guild wars, I have tried everything and still no luck

Too bad. I still have to try it myself because I'm at work now. I hope ANet fixes all FPS issues then, not just the AntiAliasing thing. I'll post my results.