Auto-performance-mode for optimum performance-quality-balance

[RALF9636 1,921]

This is one of my highest hopes for the new sim:

 

In P3D there is a plethora of graphics settings you have to play with to find your personal sweet spot for your system. And when you finally found the settings that let you approach EGLL in the FSL A320 or PMDG 747 with acceptable framerates you miss out on a lot of eye candy that would be possible when you are flying in more remote areas or with simpler aircraft. So you end up having several different presets of graphics settings for different situations (region, aircraft, day-/nighttime) you have to load before each flight or even during a flight.

 

To find the individual sweet spot for these several presets for your system and your personal taste takes hours and hours of testing and tweaking.

And after installing a new addon or even just an update you might have to start all over again...

 

 

I don't want to do this anymore with the new sim. There has to be a smarter way.

 

 

I imagine an auto-performance-mode that is able to automatically adjust all settings "on the fly" to always have the optimum performance-quality-balance in the sim.

 

I'd like to have only one setting: the framerate I want the sim to constantly run at (most users seem to prefer 30 FPS, some are happy with 20, others need 60 or more).

 

The sim then continuously adjusts all settings so that the chosen framerate is always maintained (and hopefully without any stuttering).

And that is done in a smart way taking into account the current situation. For example the sim detects if there currently is a CPU or a GPU limit and adjusts only the relevant settings accordingly. Or for example when flying low or in low visibility, scenery draw distance is less important than scenery density and object resolution. Vice versa when flying high scenery draw distance is more important than object resolution or road traffic. Or when taxiing at KLGA AI aircraft on the ground at KJFK and KEWR are not relevant and should not affect performance at all.

These are just examples. I'm sure Microsoft is able to develop a smart algorithm taking into account all aspects of the current situation and adjusting those settings first that are least relevant in that situation so that the adjustments of the settings are handled so smoothly that they will barely be noticeable when you are focused on flying the aircraft.

 

No more tweaking with graphics settings at all any more!

 

 

This auto-performance-mode can be optional so that the plethora of settings is still there for those who still want to have full control of the settings.

[pracines 823]

if VR is implemented, this kind of feature would be essential - 90 FPS minimum, 120 preferred.  

[Noooch 1,084]

I couldn't agree more, this feature would be awesome!!!

Feel free to add it to the "What we want" topic

Edited August 27, 2019 by Noooch

[Airboeing 87]

While I agree that such a setting would be welcome, I wouldn't want to lose the ability to set up some options to my preferecne. At least there should be an option to provide an order in which detail will be sacrificed (e.g. buildings, trees, clouds, draw distance etc.)

Edited August 27, 2019 by Airboeing

[G-RFRY 1,708]

Most modern games do this it auto detects your system specs and sets the setting to that, the problems is the users then want to up the settings much like FSX when it was launched users moved the sliders to full then complained they could not run it.

[Superdelphinus 718]

They already have this technology and use it in games like forza. This is beyond simply auto-detecting settings based on your hardware, these games automatically adjust settings on the fly to meet the FPS that you have asked for. I only have forza horizon 4, but it works extremely well in that.  

I think there’s a very good chance msfs will use this technology too, I’d be surprised if it didn’t to be honest. 

Edit - also the implementation of this in horizon 4 doesn’t preclude you from setting your own settings instead. 

Edited August 27, 2019 by Superdelphinus

[G-RFRY 1,708]

If you want it to setup for the best performance for your specs get the new XBOX !.

[RALF9636 1,921]

13 hours ago, Airboeing said:

 At least there should be an option to provide an order in which detail will be sacrificed (e.g. buildings, trees, clouds, draw distance etc.)

 

That was my first thought as well.

 

But on a second thought that would mean tweaking again:

What will work better? Reduce autogen density first by one notch and then reduce the road traffic? Or autogen density down two notches and keep the road traffic? Or better turn off road traffic completely before reducing autogen density? And here we go again... 😉

But I understand that some will want to keep settings under control. So maybe such an option would be feasible.

 

11 hours ago, Flamingpie said:

I think you are missing the point: RALF9636 doesn't want a basic auto detect system like we already have in FSX or P3D: he wants a system that changes setting on the fly. All the time. Depending on the situation.

Indeed, that's the idea.

 

Quote

I prefer another solution: use a modern and up to date graphic system that takes use of ALL the hardware in your PC so everyone can set all slider right. 😎 RALF9636 is thinking old thoughts. 😜 He is expecting MSFS to run just as bad as FSX or P3D and that we need a system like he proposes. It is my sincere hope (!) we don't.

🙂 I would be fine with that as well. 😉

 

11 hours ago, Flamingpie said:

RALF9636 is thinking old thoughts. 😜 

Despite the smiley you have a valid point here. I am really thinking in terms of autogen vegetation density, autogen buildings density, draw distance etc. Maybe such settings won't exist at all any more in the new sim because the rendering engine is totally different. Nevertheless the idea of dynamic settings adjustments is still relevant, no matter what settings the new sim will have.

 

6 hours ago, Superdelphinus said:

They already have this technology and use it in games like forza. This is beyond simply auto-detecting settings based on your hardware, these games automatically adjust settings on the fly to meet the FPS that you have asked for. I only have forza horizon 4, but it works extremely well in that.  

I think there’s a very good chance msfs will use this technology too, I’d be surprised if it didn’t to be honest. 

Edit - also the implementation of this in horizon 4 doesn’t preclude you from setting your own settings instead. 

 

That's great to hear. So hopefully something like that will be implemented in the new flightsim as well.

 

Edited August 27, 2019 by RALF9636

[MatthewS 761]

Sounds OK as long as there is still a "custom" mode where I can tweak whatever settings I want, how I want, and have those setting stay locked and not "auto-tweaked" by FS2020.

[Paraffin 2,197]

35 minutes ago, RALF9636 said:

 I am really thinking in terms of autogen vegetation density, autogen buildings density, draw distance etc. Maybe such settings won't exist at all any more in the new sim because the rendering engine is totally different. Nevertheless the idea of dynamic settings adjustments is still relevant, no matter what settings the new sim will have.

I'm all for anything that improves performance, but for those of us who prefer a consistent world to fly in, it might be too immersion-breaking.

What you're proposing with dynamic adjustment "on the fly" sounds like the changes would be visible as the scenery density increases, like on final to a large complex airport. Or a flyover of a city center. I wouldn't want to see the vegetation suddenly disappear, or cars disappear from the roads as I approach more complex scenery. I wouldn't want to see the visibility distance automatically decreased beyond what the current METAR is reporting either, because that's a weather variable that affects flight planning.

Even if the sim had a "look ahead" function and could anticipate your flight path, adjusting a buffered pre-load in RAM of what you were about to see with gradual changes, it might look too weird for me. I'm flying along... then I notice the road traffic is getting lighter... trees are starting to disappear.... the ground texture is changing... and I'm starting to hear the Twilight Zone theme music. 😱

As an option, it might be fine for those who wouldn't be bothered seeing that, with the more normal fixed setting options. We would be  "wasting" CPU/GPU power in areas with naturally sparse scenery in order to render heavy scenery at acceptable frame rates, but at least the world we see outside the cockpit would look consistent.

[Superdelphinus 718]

On forza horizon it isn’t noticeable one bit. That doesn’t mean to say it wouldn’t be for flight sim though where the action is a lot slower. 

Edited August 27, 2019 by Superdelphinus

[Paraffin 2,197]

1 hour ago, Superdelphinus said:

On forza horizon it isn’t noticeable one bit. That doesn’t mean to say it wouldn’t be for flight sim though where the action is a lot slower. 

It's slower in one sense, with no nearby objects other than clouds for speed reference. But at typical light GA and helicopter flight altitudes in clear weather, the potential number of objects you're seeing on the ground is far greater than in a car sim. That's the challenge for any flight sim to handle smoothly and gracefully, without breaking immersion.

[Greek 18]

Once they publish the system requirements, you will learn if you need to buy new hardware or not.