How Much More?

[iFlySimX 748]

Hey guys, simple question...How much more can MSFS 2020 be optimized? I know it will be a long road but I am curious. I would love for MSFS 2020 to utilize today's hardware better, especially my new ROG 3080 🙂 Let me know your thoughts!

[sanh 823]

I don't think flight sims can be optimised. Too many variables. Too many settings, addons, planes and scenery. Whichever combo you use has to be finely tuned.

A 3D shooter can be optimised. Grand Theft Auto can be optimised. If a particular area of a map is heavy in these genres, they turn down the textures and animations in certain areas where the gamer won't see much extra benefit. They know its optimised and will work well because all users are in the same location with the same limited views with a limited amount of settings variation and they are all using default models and textures that won't change.

Even if MSFS2020 is optimised perfectly for default - hard to do with the variation of world scenery but lets say it happens - when you chuck in your scenery or addon plane the stutters or lower performance will be right back because something is out of balance.

Edited January 13, 2021 by sanh

[iFlySimX 748]

40 minutes ago, sanh said:

I don't think flight sims can be optimised. Too many variables. Too many settings, addons, planes and scenery. Whichever combo you use has to be finely tuned.

A 3D shooter can be optimised. Grand Theft Auto can be optimised. If a particular area of a map is heavy in these genres, they turn down the textures and animations in certain areas where the gamer won't see much extra benefit. They know its optimised and will work well because all users are in the same location with the same limited views with a limited amount of settings variation and they are all using default models and textures that won't change.

Even if MSFS2020 is optimised perfectly for default - hard to do with the variation of world scenery but lets say it happens - when you chuck in your scenery or addon plane the stutters or lower performance will be right back because something is out of balance.

I understand but you are making it seems like it won't be optimized one bit from what is it today, which I don't think is the case. It's not about making it PERRFECT but just improving it 🙂

[Glenn Fitzpatrick 3,798]

11 minutes ago, Clem116 said:

I understand but you are making it seems like it won't be optimized one bit from what is it today, which I don't think is the case. It's not about making it PERRFECT but just improving it 🙂

Asobo claim they are going to continue to improve the CPU utilisation.

However bare in mind a lot of innovations (improved VR for example) will actually increase hardware demands over time not reduce them.

 

[honanhal 1,420]

59 minutes ago, sanh said:

A 3D shooter can be optimised. Grand Theft Auto can be optimised. If a particular area of a map is heavy in these genres, they turn down the textures and animations in certain areas where the gamer won't see much extra benefit.

I've seen this argument a lot, and I just don't know that it's true.

Sure, a corridor first-person shooter can be optimized in the way you describe, because there's genuinely a very limited set of possibilities for what the player can see at a given time, and it's predictable. Something like Grand Theft Auto? The Witcher? Cyberpunk 2077? These are open-world sandboxes. GTA has had flyable aircraft for decades. Pretty much any optimization you can do there, you can probably also do in a flight simulator.

That said, MSFS already seems insanely well-optimized compared to the sims that preceded it over the past 20 years. Always room for improvement, though!

James

[iFlySimX 748]

39 minutes ago, honanhal said:

I've seen this argument a lot, and I just don't know that it's true.

Sure, a corridor first-person shooter can be optimized in the way you describe, because there's genuinely a very limited set of possibilities for what the player can see at a given time, and it's predictable. Something like Grand Theft Auto? The Witcher? Cyberpunk 2077? These are open-world sandboxes. GTA has had flyable aircraft for decades. Pretty much any optimization you can do there, you can probably also do in a flight simulator.

That said, MSFS already seems insanely well-optimized compared to the sims that preceded it over the past 20 years. Always room for improvement, though!

James

My thought exactly, well said!

Edited January 13, 2021 by Clem116

[Ianrivaldosmith 5,317]

Waiting for the first DX12 comment..... ;) 

[Noel 4,487]

2 hours ago, Clem116 said:

Hey guys, simple question...How much more can MSFS 2020 be optimized? I know it will be a long road but I am curious. I would love for MSFS 2020 to utilize today's hardware better, especially my new ROG 3080 🙂 Let me know your thoughts!

If you have a strong machine, and if you care about super smooth performance, be sure to not write-off vsync to a 30Hz screen--this is a simple way to get ultra-smooth performance while not asking your CPU/GPU to do more than necessary to maintain that.  In the most complex areas of the planet in the TBM930 w/ all settings (save a few sliders w/ big impact on my very modest RTX2070 Super) on ULTRA.  I find the main thread typically coasts along at 25-65% of peak with an average of 40% most of the time, so there already is massive optimization (compared to the other sims). 

[iFlySimX 748]

3 minutes ago, Noel said:

If you have a strong machine, and if you care about super smooth performance, be sure to not write-off vsync to a 30Hz screen--this is a simple way to get ultra-smooth performance while not asking your CPU/GPU to do more than necessary to maintain that.  In the most complex areas of the planet in the TBM930 w/ all settings (save a few sliders w/ big impact on my very modest RTX2070 Super) on ULTRA.  I find the main thread typically coasts along at 25-65% of peak with an average of 40% most of the time, so there already is massive optimization (compared to the other sims). 

I'm locked at 60fps and its amazing!

[Denwagg 191]

Asobo Just fix the High Altitude clouds so that they don't single digit my frames and I be happy until PMDG Releases their first Plane

[Ianrivaldosmith 5,317]

Just make sure that you are GPU limited and not CPU limited, and then its smooth sailing from there. 

[Noel 4,487]

17 minutes ago, Clem116 said:

I'm locked at 60fps and its amazing!

And THAT is exactly why you are asking about more optimization, and why I am along ways from needing this. 

[iFlySimX 748]

22 minutes ago, Noel said:

And THAT is exactly why you are asking about more optimization, and why I am along ways from needing this. 

I am perfectly happy with 60fps, my question was more out of curiosity. 

[Noel 4,487]

22 hours ago, Clem116 said:

I am perfectly happy with 60fps...

Well let's hope so. 30fps is equally amazing (in a double-blind test you would not be able to discern the difference), and when the PMDG 777 arrives there will be headroom.  Best wishes maintaining 60fps in that and similar airware while keeping LOD at 200 & all other settings at ULTRA.

[spacedyemeerkat 421]

49 minutes ago, Noel said:

Well let's hope so. 30fps is equally amazing (in a double-blind test you would not be able to discern the difference), and when the PMDG 777 arrives there will be headroom.  Best wishes maintaining 60fps in that and similar airware while keeping LOD at 200 & all other settings at ULTRA.

I really can't work this out at all. It's literally twice the update rate from a relatively low starting point. There is literally no way I wouldn't be able to tell. Look at the difference between last generation console released running at 30 fps vs PC versions. I imagine there's not a single gamer here who wouldn't be able to determine the difference. Even in slow moving simulations you'd be able to feel the difference in responsiveness alone. 

If you'd have said between 60 and 120 fps, there'd have been more of a case.