After more tests, I noticed that changing Lightning Shadow Resolutions (Ambient Dynamic Shadows) actually makes the game run slower. That means that the versions I release before with changes to Lightning Shadow Resolutions (Ambient Dynamic Shadows) will actually work agaisn't a good framerate on low-end pcs surprisingly.
In this case: » Vanilla Ambient Dynamic Shadows Resolutions and Lightning Shadows = Stability and Higher framerate » Lower Ambient Dynamic Shadows Resolutions and Lightning Shadows = More freezes, and Lower framerates.
I've been using this test build v2.51 and it works perfectly without or with shadows on an Intel HD graphics. This might be the final version for the new mod page release.
Please test it and report any crashes, freezes, and so on. If possible, and if you feel comfortable to, send the reports on a private mesage with your computer specs so that I can analyse Mod><LowEnd and how much it actually affects each hardware.
Soon I will let this mod page become only a "Classic Low Graphics Settings Mod" with the original mod with SnakeBite installation for whom which prefer it and create another mod page with the "Reworked version" (Test build on files section).
Working on an update to this right now. Testing with the engine to see where can it go without exploding the game. :P
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The test builds are just this - tests.
In my tests, on an Intel HD Graphics GPU, the game runs REALLY well, capped at 30 FPS. All settings have been changed on the code, so that graphic settings in game reflect a weaker pc. This means that if, for example, the default "Medium" Shadow setting on the Vanilla game had "2048x2048" shadow resolution, with the mod, "Medium" will have "128x128" shadow resolution. This logic have been applied to almost all settings.
In my tests, many things can be deactivated resulting in a weird graphical experience. lol You can deactivate global fog effects, which gives a HUGE FPS boost, but then a Sandstorm will not have the... uh... Sandstorm visual effects, coupled with many more weird graphical glitches. You can deactivate or reduce Ambient shadows to 1x1 (which cause that extra lag), but then ambient shadows will glitch some locations of the game, resulting in giant walls of shadow, or weird blinking / flashing lights, rendering the game unplayable in my opinion.
MGSVTPP is really well optmized, but some settings are necessary for a good experience. What Im trying to do with the next Low Graphics Settings version is give Low End players a playable experience with low graphics, not straight up removing all effects. Giving them this possibility, yes, (you still can deactivate all shadows with the "Low" shadow setting in game), but also give you the possibility of playing with Shadows and Effects in a minimum pleasant way.
As explained, this is just a test build, but many settings have been tweaked and tested to give you a good low end experience with the minimum necessary graphic effects for immersion (distant lights, close shadows, some dynamic lights, etc).
Test at your will. Please report any glitches and bugs on comments below, thank you. :)
Hello Nice Mod But Uh I'd like to report something the game freezes even though I'd made the shadows on low setting and lighting on very high 😔 if you need my specs its an Intel Celeron N3450 4gb ram and uh Intel Hd 500 its from a shitty laptop don't know when I'll buy a gaming pc hopefully soon thanks!
Hello Ryles, im back after testing a bit more. Im still not exactly sure about what is crashing my game, but i can give you the information i got and what i think could be the issue. Whenever i turn off the shadows everything works just fine, even in the motherbase, but the problem comes when i try to get into a base in any of the maps (i have only tried in Afghanistan). Maybe this issue has to do with how many shadows are trying to be casted, here's why i think that: i tried to complete A Hero's Way, everything was fine until i tried to grab the target, once i grabbed him the game froze, i hope that little bit of information is actually helpful. Also, i will do a full reinstallation of the game, maybe something got messed up by installing some mods.
Thanks for your attention and effort to make this mod better every time.
Hello Chino! Thank you for explaining even more the issue! Im sorry for this problem to persist! :( All the theories I had of how to solve that specific problem ran out. :(
Maybe you should try to use older versions and test if they work well on normal gameplay. If yes, probably we can work from there? I don't know. :(
Hey Ryles, thanks for the mod, really appreciate it. I know it'll be only a minority of individuals who would use it but i would still love to see a more stripped-down version with global fog effects removed!
Hello Weazepezy! Thank you for the kind message, really! Yeah, we with potato pcs understands to pain of each other xD. I will work on releasing a global fog removal version when I can focus on MGSV again then!
After playing a bit more and analizing when does my game freezes and after reading your new comments i understand when exactly my game crashes (i think). When i used to have the OFFSHADOWS mod which removed shadows but it lefts the ones that was casted by light bulbs, what must be crashing my game is the lack of those shadows, is there any manual change i can do to remove the "world shadows" but still have the "local shadows" at 1x1? also, i think releasing a version of the mod that puts everything at extreme low is good after you get the new version done. Thanks a lot for this mods man, i really like this game but i have a reaaaally bad pc, so i still can't hit a playable frame rate with the latest Test build.
You can actually deactivate shadows and the game will still work fine. What crashes the game is how you deactivate them on the code it seems.
About the last test build: Have you changed all options to "Low" on the games menu? Because, as explained, each setting in-game are changed on code level. Most of them have new and greatly reduced values for low end machines. So I'd recommend experimenting them in-game with the last test build more. You can even test "High" and "Extra High" settings, because they also have reduced values, albeit they're higher than "Low" or "Off" values.
I can create an Extreme Low version for you if you want, deactivating every single shadow and reducing the resolution of every shadow that can't be completely removed, removing all fog and light effects too, but this break the game so much that many 'gameplay required' effects are removed and, in my humble opinion, rendering the game unplayable.
By the tests I made, it seems not even light and fog effects lag the game so much as shadows, so I'd recommend you test the last build with Shadows on "Low", as this deactivate Object Shadows, but not Ambient Shadows (which uses Lighting Effects in game's setting.)
In any way, I will be working on a Extreme Low Graphics settings too when I have the time. Sorry the test build couldn't help you yet. Hope you the best and have a good time your loved ones in this end of year! Take care. :)
Thanks for the response, after more testing ingame and doing it many times in different areas i came to the conclusion that it's the shadows that crash my game, let me explain myself a bit more, i have lowered the shadows to "Low" in different situations and all have the same result, when i get near a place that has shadows that are casted by a "man made source" my game crashes, i tried this in different ways, by changing the shadows to low in the main menu and pressing Continue to spawn in the map, and also tried mid gameplay, but all have the same result.
As a side note, i want to clarify that i managed to get a nice frame rate to work with, it's not that close to 30 but because MGSV is a stealth game i can afford to go a bit slower and not use my other guns as much as the sniper and pistol, but when i disabled shadows the game works for like 5 seconds and then freezes, when i tested the frame rate in that tiny moment i saw that the performance boost was about 3 to 5 fps more, which doesn't sounds that high until you realise that my FPS drop to 15 some times.
Thanks for the informations and troubleshooting in your end. Weirdly, when I tested this before, it did not happen to my game.
Still, I will try to follow your steps and see if I can reproduce the problem on my end. Depending on the results, I will proceed with the idea of making an Extreme Low version of the mod. But this will take some time, as it time consuming to test which setting we can really mess up without breaking everything.
For now I have no idea what might be crashing your game because this really didn't happened to me before in all the tests I've done with Shadows and Lightning. So well, I really have no idea for now. :(
About the FPS boost: Yes, it's expected that removing shadows you gain around 5~10 fps on low end computers.
I just realised that what crashes my game is not having shadows, even with the other mods which removes shadows the same happens, maybe that helps you to find a way to fix it
Hello! Thanks for the commentary, yes, Im testing a version right now with many changes to the original idea of Low Graphics Mod and this is one of the things I discovered.
By what it seems, the engine handles (it checks for) two layers of Shadows: Object Shadows and Ambient Shadows. These are both Shadows and Light Effects on the game setup. I thought initially that the game would handle configurations separately, but it seems it checks constantly for many settings at once.
By that I mean that even if we deactivate object shadows, ambient shadows will still be calculated and this can be noticed by how Dynamic Shadows still appear on some lights (light bulbs, lampposts, campfires, etc) with a complete different resolution than the one configured on Object Shadows.
Still, the Object Shadows is the one that indeed is heavier on the PC CPU and GPU. I will release a test build tonight that Im using right now on an Intel HD GPU with 1,7 ghz for testing and the game is playing really fluid at 28~30 FPS (Capped on 30, of course. It's impossible to get a fluid 60 FPS on a Intel HD gpu with only 1,7 ghz cpu and 8 gb ram I think. lol)
One of the versions is the original version made by NAWAFGAMES, but ported to be installed using Snakebyte mod manager.
The other is my take on how I envisioned the 'low spec configs'. A detailed explanation is presented in the description. :) Each graphical setting in game is tied to the file, which I changed to reduce the game engine graphics even more.
One of the examples is that the normal resolution of shadow textures would be 2048x2048, now, when you select the normal setting for shadows in game, it is 512x512, reducing memory usage considerably. (I don't remember if those are the values though, but I hope you could understand the logic with this example. :P)
Really good mod, it gives me the fps boost that i needed, but i have a problem, for some reason the game freezes and stays there for ever after some seconds or minutes into the game (im only using this mod), is there any solution for that? Thanks.
Ok, i kinda found the issue, i must leave the Lighting at Very High, its a shame but you must do that or the game will freeze in any moment. I hope someone can manage to fix that (also it doesn't matter what other mods you have installed, it will freeze any way, also, there is a mod that allows you to choose the 800x600 resolution, maybe you can do that for the last version of the game, it isn't much but it give us another fps boost.
Hey! Thanks for testing the updated version, really happy you managed to make it work. :)
Last time I tested (probably more than 5 months) the mod was working properly with any 'Lightning" option variation. I tried to maintain the effects balanced to reduce graphical glitches probability. I did this because the problem was that lowering light effects too much would give terrible graphical glitches like shadows disappearing, half room lights, weird artifacts, etc. Probably the game got updated with something that changed how the game deals with light effects? I really don't know.
Unfortunately, I can't test, troubleshot and edit the mod right now. Sorry. :( If you want to try, you can open the files and edit them to test the Light Effects that may work. (It's really not hard as it may look, believe me!)
Talking about the 800x600 resolution, unfortunately the guy that did that mod edited the game .exe and uploaded his 1.15 .exe that was adapted to said resolution. That requires a advanced knowledge I don't have. (Hex editing, Reverse engineering, etc). So I really can't do that.
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That means that the versions I release before with changes to Lightning Shadow Resolutions (Ambient Dynamic Shadows) will actually work agaisn't a good framerate on low-end pcs surprisingly.
In this case:
» Vanilla Ambient Dynamic Shadows Resolutions and Lightning Shadows = Stability and Higher framerate
» Lower Ambient Dynamic Shadows Resolutions and Lightning Shadows = More freezes, and Lower framerates.
I've been using this test build v2.51 and it works perfectly without or with shadows on an Intel HD graphics.
This might be the final version for the new mod page release.
Please test it and report any crashes, freezes, and so on.
If possible, and if you feel comfortable to, send the reports on a private mesage with your computer specs so that I can analyse Mod><LowEnd and how much it actually affects each hardware.
====================================================================
Soon I will let this mod page become only a "Classic Low Graphics Settings Mod" with the original mod with SnakeBite installation for whom which prefer it and create another mod page with the "Reworked version" (Test build on files section).
Just to organize things. :)
Testing with the engine to see where can it go without exploding the game. :P
-------
The test builds are just this - tests.
In my tests, on an Intel HD Graphics GPU, the game runs REALLY well, capped at 30 FPS.
All settings have been changed on the code, so that graphic settings in game reflect a weaker pc.
This means that if, for example, the default "Medium" Shadow setting on the Vanilla game had "2048x2048" shadow resolution, with the mod, "Medium" will have "128x128" shadow resolution.
This logic have been applied to almost all settings.
In my tests, many things can be deactivated resulting in a weird graphical experience. lol
You can deactivate global fog effects, which gives a HUGE FPS boost, but then a Sandstorm will not have the... uh... Sandstorm visual effects, coupled with many more weird graphical glitches.
You can deactivate or reduce Ambient shadows to 1x1 (which cause that extra lag), but then ambient shadows will glitch some locations of the game, resulting in giant walls of shadow, or weird blinking / flashing lights, rendering the game unplayable in my opinion.
MGSVTPP is really well optmized, but some settings are necessary for a good experience.
What Im trying to do with the next Low Graphics Settings version is give Low End players a playable experience with low graphics, not straight up removing all effects. Giving them this possibility, yes, (you still can deactivate all shadows with the "Low" shadow setting in game), but also give you the possibility of playing with Shadows and Effects in a minimum pleasant way.
As explained, this is just a test build, but many settings have been tweaked and tested to give you a good low end experience with the minimum necessary graphic effects for immersion (distant lights, close shadows, some dynamic lights, etc).
Test at your will.
Please report any glitches and bugs on comments below, thank you. :)
But Uh I'd like to report something
the game freezes even though I'd made the shadows on low setting and lighting on very high 😔 if you need my specs its an Intel Celeron N3450 4gb ram and uh Intel Hd 500 its from a shitty laptop don't know when I'll buy a gaming pc hopefully soon thanks!
Im still not exactly sure about what is crashing my game, but i can give you the information i got and what i think could be the issue.
Whenever i turn off the shadows everything works just fine, even in the motherbase, but the problem comes when i try to get into a base in any of the maps (i have only tried in Afghanistan). Maybe this issue has to do with how many shadows are trying to be casted, here's why i think that: i tried to complete A Hero's Way, everything was fine until i tried to grab the target, once i grabbed him the game froze, i hope that little bit of information is actually helpful.
Also, i will do a full reinstallation of the game, maybe something got messed up by installing some mods.
Thanks for your attention and effort to make this mod better every time.
-Chino
All the theories I had of how to solve that specific problem ran out. :(
Maybe you should try to use older versions and test if they work well on normal gameplay.
If yes, probably we can work from there? I don't know. :(
I know it'll be only a minority of individuals who would use it but i would still love to see a more stripped-down version with global fog effects removed!
Thank you
I will work on releasing a global fog removal version when I can focus on MGSV again then!
When i used to have the OFFSHADOWS mod which removed shadows but it lefts the ones that was casted by light bulbs, what must be crashing my game is the lack of those shadows, is there any manual change i can do to remove the "world shadows" but still have the "local shadows" at 1x1? also, i think releasing a version of the mod that puts everything at extreme low is good after you get the new version done.
Thanks a lot for this mods man, i really like this game but i have a reaaaally bad pc, so i still can't hit a playable frame rate with the latest Test build.
You can actually deactivate shadows and the game will still work fine. What crashes the game is how you deactivate them on the code it seems.
About the last test build: Have you changed all options to "Low" on the games menu?
Because, as explained, each setting in-game are changed on code level. Most of them have new and greatly reduced values for low end machines. So I'd recommend experimenting them in-game with the last test build more. You can even test "High" and "Extra High" settings, because they also have reduced values, albeit they're higher than "Low" or "Off" values.
I can create an Extreme Low version for you if you want, deactivating every single shadow and reducing the resolution of every shadow that can't be completely removed, removing all fog and light effects too, but this break the game so much that many 'gameplay required' effects are removed and, in my humble opinion, rendering the game unplayable.
By the tests I made, it seems not even light and fog effects lag the game so much as shadows, so I'd recommend you test the last build with Shadows on "Low", as this deactivate Object Shadows, but not Ambient Shadows (which uses Lighting Effects in game's setting.)
In any way, I will be working on a Extreme Low Graphics settings too when I have the time.
Sorry the test build couldn't help you yet.
Hope you the best and have a good time your loved ones in this end of year!
Take care. :)
As a side note, i want to clarify that i managed to get a nice frame rate to work with, it's not that close to 30 but because MGSV is a stealth game i can afford to go a bit slower and not use my other guns as much as the sniper and pistol, but when i disabled shadows the game works for like 5 seconds and then freezes, when i tested the frame rate in that tiny moment i saw that the performance boost was about 3 to 5 fps more, which doesn't sounds that high until you realise that my FPS drop to 15 some times.
Thanks for the informations and troubleshooting in your end.
Weirdly, when I tested this before, it did not happen to my game.
Still, I will try to follow your steps and see if I can reproduce the problem on my end. Depending on the results, I will proceed with the idea of making an Extreme Low version of the mod. But this will take some time, as it time consuming to test which setting we can really mess up without breaking everything.
For now I have no idea what might be crashing your game because this really didn't happened to me before in all the tests I've done with Shadows and Lightning. So well, I really have no idea for now. :(
About the FPS boost: Yes, it's expected that removing shadows you gain around 5~10 fps on low end computers.
Thanks for the commentary, yes, Im testing a version right now with many changes to the original idea of Low Graphics Mod and this is one of the things I discovered.
By what it seems, the engine handles (it checks for) two layers of Shadows: Object Shadows and Ambient Shadows.
These are both Shadows and Light Effects on the game setup. I thought initially that the game would handle configurations separately, but it seems it checks constantly for many settings at once.
By that I mean that even if we deactivate object shadows, ambient shadows will still be calculated and this can be noticed by how Dynamic Shadows still appear on some lights (light bulbs, lampposts, campfires, etc) with a complete different resolution than the one configured on Object Shadows.
Still, the Object Shadows is the one that indeed is heavier on the PC CPU and GPU.
I will release a test build tonight that Im using right now on an Intel HD GPU with 1,7 ghz for testing and the game is playing really fluid at 28~30 FPS (Capped on 30, of course. It's impossible to get a fluid 60 FPS on a Intel HD gpu with only 1,7 ghz cpu and 8 gb ram I think. lol)
Thanks!
One of the versions is the original version made by NAWAFGAMES, but ported to be installed using Snakebyte mod manager.
The other is my take on how I envisioned the 'low spec configs'.
A detailed explanation is presented in the description. :)Each graphical setting in game is tied to the file, which I changed to reduce the game engine graphics even more.
One of the examples is that the normal resolution of shadow textures would be 2048x2048, now, when you select the normal setting for shadows in game, it is 512x512, reducing memory usage considerably. (I don't remember if those are the values though, but I hope you could understand the logic with this example. :P)
Take care.
Unfortunately, I have no way to test and edit this mod anymore for now.
Thanks.
I hope someone can manage to fix that (also it doesn't matter what other mods you have installed, it will freeze any way, also, there is a mod that allows you to choose the 800x600 resolution, maybe you can do that for the last version of the game, it isn't much but it give us another fps boost.
Last time I tested (probably more than 5 months) the mod was working properly with any 'Lightning" option variation.
I tried to maintain the effects balanced to reduce graphical glitches probability. I did this because the problem was that lowering light effects too much would give terrible graphical glitches like shadows disappearing, half room lights, weird artifacts, etc.
Probably the game got updated with something that changed how the game deals with light effects? I really don't know.
Unfortunately, I can't test, troubleshot and edit the mod right now. Sorry. :(
If you want to try, you can open the files and edit them to test the Light Effects that may work. (It's really not hard as it may look, believe me!)
Talking about the 800x600 resolution, unfortunately the guy that did that mod edited the game .exe and uploaded his 1.15 .exe that was adapted to said resolution. That requires a advanced knowledge I don't have. (Hex editing, Reverse engineering, etc). So I really can't do that.