[Updated] Problem with 21:9 aspect ratio/Ultrawidescreen resolutions

[RysultSet]

Update:

I had written to the Deep Silver Support asking about this and they said that there currently is no way around this bug/problem, but that they forwarded it to the developers. They also said however that it is very unlikely that the game would receive the patch as not many play in this resolution.

Here's my translated answer I received from the support:

Dear Customer,

thank you for contacting us.

This error occurs when using a 2560x1080 resolution and there's no way around it currently. We have forwarded this problem to the developers, but we can't say when or even if there will be a patch, that will fix this problem. It is very rare that games are being played in such a high resolution. Lowering the resolution is unfortunately your only option.

And here's the original answer I received (in german though):

Sehr geehrter Kunde,

vielen Dank für Ihre Anfrage.

Der Fehler tritt bei der Auflösung von 2560x1080 auf und kann momentan leider nicht umgangen werden. Das Problem haben wir an die Entwickler weitergeleitet, können Ihnen aber nicht sagen ob und wann es einen Patch geben wird, der diesen Fehler behebt. Es ist sehr selten, dass Spiele in einer derart hohen Auflösung gespielt werden. Momentan bleibt Ihnen bedauerlicherweise nur übrig die Auflösung zu senken.

So TL;DR it doesn't seem like this will ever be fixed, sadly. It's also quite weird as Saints Row: The Third runs without problems.

Original Post:

I recently got myself a 21:9 monitor and I was positively surprised to find out that Saints Row: The Third runs pretty good, apart from some HUD elements staying onscreen or overlays staying 16:9 and not filling the screen completely.
What I found very nice was that cutscenes actually extend to nearly the full view and not still display the black bars like most games do.
Saints Row : The Third - Cutscene in 21:9[i.imgur.com]
Saints Row : The Third - Approximately the same position in the cutscene in 16:9[i.imgur.com]

Now I was going into Saints Row 4 thinking I would see exactly the same behavior, which sadly isn't the case.
While the game seems to handle a 21:9 aspect ratio just like Saints Row: The Third for the most part, sadly the cutscenes are completely broken I would say.
SR4 - Normal Gameplay - 21:9[i.imgur.com]
SR4 - Normal Gameplay - 16:9[i.imgur.com]

While the screen is still used up on my monitor (as I can see through the Steam overlay), but it only shows a tiny part of the game, the rest is filled with black "bars".

Saints Row 4 - Cutscene Example #1 - 21:9[i.imgur.com]
Saints Row 4 - Cutscene Example #1 - 16:9[i.imgur.com]
Saints Row 4 - Cutscene Example #2 - 21:9[i.imgur.com]
Saints Row 4 - Cutscene Example #2 - 16:9[i.imgur.com]

Now as far as I know this bug already happened last year when the game came out and had been patched soon after (not sure about this), but as you can see it's happening to me now and it's a bit annoying.
I don't have a problem playing the game in 1080p, but I would much rather use the wider screen space that I have available.

Here are my current system specifications if it's any help:

• CPU: Intel Core i7 3770K
  
• GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX680 Phantom
  
• RAM: 16GB DDR3
  
• Monitors: LG 25UM65-P (This is the one the game runs on) & LG IPS224

The monitor is connected via an HDMI-cable. Graphics drivers are up to date. This happens on both Windows 7 and Windows 8.1.

Since it's been quite a while that the game has received any patches or content (as far as I can remember) I'm not expecting an immediate fix, but a patch or fix or anything like that would be great as I still play the game every few days.

[PlayaOfGames]

i think u got to change the fov to fix that i am no expert or anything i am jsut throwing that out there u can change the fov with this mod https://www.saintsrowmods.com/forum/threads/sr3-sr4-fov-editor.5956/

[RysultSet]

I tried that, but sadly didn't help. The FOV changer doesn't effect cutscene field of view anway. I think that the game can't recognize the resolution I'm using during the cutscenes.

[shevettele]

Hi. I have the same problem: Do you have now a solution for this problem?

[RysultSet]

Sadly no, I should have updated this ages ago.

I had written to the Deep Silver Support asking about this and they said that there currently is no way around this bug/problem, but that they forwarded it to the developers. They also said however that it is very unlikely that the game would receive the patch as not many play in this resolution.

Here's my translated answer I received from the support:

Dear Customer,

thank you for contacting us.

This error occurs when using a 2560x1080 resolution and there's no way around it currently. We have forwarded this problem to the developers, but we can't say when or even if there will be a patch, that will fix this problem. It is very rare that games are being played in such a high resolution. Lowering the resolution is unfortunately your only option.

And here's the original answer I received (in german though):

Sehr geehrter Kunde,

vielen Dank für Ihre Anfrage.

Der Fehler tritt bei der Auflösung von 2560x1080 auf und kann momentan leider nicht umgangen werden. Das Problem haben wir an die Entwickler weitergeleitet, können Ihnen aber nicht sagen ob und wann es einen Patch geben wird, der diesen Fehler behebt. Es ist sehr selten, dass Spiele in einer derart hohen Auflösung gespielt werden. Momentan bleibt Ihnen bedauerlicherweise nur übrig die Auflösung zu senken.

So TL;DR it doesn't seem like this will ever be fixed, sadly. It's also quite weird as Saints Row: The Third runs without problems.
I have updated the first post with this, too.

[The Macchio]

SR3 also has this problem. Both games have this problem on in-game cutscenes. Pre-rendered cutscenes are fine.

[RysultSet]

Originally posted by The Macchio:

SR3 also has this problem. Both games have this problem on in-game cutscenes. Pre-rendered cutscenes are fine.

That's odd, in the last year I never encountered this problem in Saints Row 3.

[lmimmfn]

Cant believe this is still broken, first time trying the game even though ive owned it for over a year and a half. The game is pretty much useless without a fix. Avoiding Deep Silver games in future( crap support )

[RysultSet]

Originally posted by lmimmfn:

Cant believe this is still broken, first time trying the game even though ive owned it for over a year and a half. The game is pretty much useless without a fix. Avoiding Deep Silver games in future( crap support )

While I won't stop you from avoiding future Deep Silver titles, I will say that there are many other games published by Deep Silver, for example both Dead Island games, that run fine on ultra-widescreen.
I wouldn't condemn a whole bunch of games from a publisher, just because one of the developers (Volition) didin't fix a bug, that only happens for a very small percentage of users, as ultra-widescreen displays are not very common.
It is very annoying, I'll give you that, but unless you really, really hate black bars, 16:9 should work just fine on any 21:9/ultra-widescreen monitor.

[184]

For those having the same problem with the cutscenes, do the following:
Open "\Steam\steamapps\common\Saints Row IV\display.ini" and change "LetterboxEyefinity = true" to "LetterboxEyefinity = false" in it.


There will be black bars on the sides during cutscenes, but gameplay is 21:9

[duEprocEss]

Originally posted by JJ:

For those having the same problem with the cutscenes, do the following:
Open "\Steam\steamapps\common\Saints Row IV\display.ini" and change "LetterboxEyefinity = true" to "LetterboxEyefinity = false" in it.


There will be black bars on the sides during cutscenes, but gameplay is 21:9

Thanks, JJ. That fixed it!