How to Improve Gaming Performance

When trying to improve gaming performance, it’s important to optimize the graphics card settings, the overall system performance, and the in-game graphics settings. Before trying any of these tips, you should first check the system requirements for any game you’re trying to play. If your system doesn’t meet the processor, graphics card, or memory minimum requirements, then you have an issue that these tips won’t fix and you’ll need to look into upgrading your computer.

Virtual memory is hard drive space that is set aside for use when Windows runs out of physical memory. By increasing the virtual memory, you can ensure that your games have access to all of the memory that it needs. Most newer computers have 2-3 GB of disk space set aside for this, but some slightly older systems (with smaller hard drive) only have 512MB-1GB. As a general rule, I usually put it around 3GB. To change this, go to the Control Panel > System > Advanced > Performance Settings > Advanced > Virtual Memory Change. Then, change the amount and click Set.

Updating the video card driver can not only improve gaming performance, but it can also fix issues that are known with certain games. To update the graphics card driver, I usually find the manufacturer’s website and search for drivers directly through them. That way, I know that I’m getting the best, most current release of the driver.

Graphics settings are governed by both the graphics card driver as well as the Windows operating system. You can adjust the Windows settings to display effects only when it won’t have a significant effect upon performance. To make this change, right click on My Computer > Properties > Advanced Tab > Performance Settings > Visual Effects Tab > Click on Adjust for Best Performance. You’ll notice that this is the same area that you go to adjust the virtual memory.

Adjusting the amount of shadow detail in games can significantly improve performance. This can be done in each game, but first you can make some general shadowing changes through the graphics card properties panel. This will vary between graphics cards. Generally, you can access them by right-clicking on the Desktop and choosing Graphics Properties. This can make a huge difference in gameplay, but you will be sacrificing some of the visual appeal of the game.

This may seem like a no brainer, but it helps to have all other applications closed when playing PC games. Any program that you can close will free up resources for your gaming. Every little bit helps. So, close those browsers and torrent applications before launching your game.

This article is continued on Page 2.