HDR Guide

[ŞĦÅÐΘЩЌÌŁŁΣŘ]

TDLR! (Easy version)

Navigate to C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Local\b1\Saved\Config\Windows and open the Engine.ini file. Scroll down to the very bottom and copy/paste this.

[SystemSettings]
r.AllowHDR=1
r.HDR.EnableHDROutput=1
r.HDR.Display.OutputDevice=5
r.HDR.Display.ColorGamut=2
r.HDR.UI.CompositeMode=1
r.FullScreenMode=0
r.HDR.UI.Level=1.5
r.HDR.Display.MidLuminance=54
r.HDR.Display.MaxLuminance=750




UPDATE #2!
The search for the best settings never ends! I have been going back and forth between the engine INI version and the reshade version and they both that their positives and negatives. I find the engine INI one to be truer to the original vision of the game, whereas the reshade version changings things quite dramatically. If you just want basic HDR without fussing with programs, use the engine INI version.

I would love to try the nvidia HDR but i dont have windows 11. I hear there is bit of a performance impact with that one too. I will put the engine ini version here at the top for the people that want HDR without a fuss...



Reshade method (More flexible, harder setup, less true to original game visuals)
1) Download reshade 6.2.0. (latest version) Make sure you get the one with addon support (important!)

2)Run the reshade exe and install it to the b1.exe. (game executable) When you install it select the directx 10/11/12 option. https://ibb.co/hHBqPLV

3)When it asks to select which effects to install, install the default ones but also scroll down and select reshade hdr shaders by lilium. https://ibb.co/MSfRxFq

4) Then on the addons page select auto hdr by endlessly flowering. (this is why you need the addon version of reshade) https://ibb.co/8xJHdqp

5)Launch the game and press home to open reshade. You can follow the tutorial if youre not familiar with it. At the top select the "addons" tab and enable auto hdr, enable hdr and use hdr10. After you enable those either restart or just change your games resolution to enable it. https://ibb.co/vvfRK7h

6) Go into the home tab and enable liliums inverse tonemapping. The default settings should work great, but if you want to adjust brightness, contrast etc you can do it below.
https://ibb.co/jV8r654

7) When you have your settings dialed in, enable the performance mode of reshade in the bottom right corner of the window. This will disable the realtime editing of the settings but help with performance.

Here is a quick video i recorded using the default settings with the reshade method. The compression is a bit high but it gives you a sense of the increased contrast.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bid260Ao4W4


Other notes...
For some reason it appears the game is elevating the black levels by default, (even in sdr) making everything look very washed out. I enabled the levels adjustment filter (default settings) and that dramatically improved the contrast. I also like very colorful images so i added a small vibrancy boost but that is 100% optional.
For those who are more technically inclined, you can use the liliums hdr analysis tool to dial in your settings. It has things like brightness histograms, heatmaps, gamut maps etc.


If you get some great settings please post them for others!



Info for engine ini edits (for advanced users)

r.AllowHDR Creates an HDR compatible swap-chain and enables HDR display output.0: Disabled (default)
1: Allow HDR, if supported by the platform and display

r.HDR.Aces.SceneColorMultiplier Multiplier applied to scene color. Helps to reduce over saturation

r.HDR.Display.ColorGamut Color gamut of the output display:
0: Rec709 / sRGB, D65 (default)
1: DCI-P3, D65
2: Rec2020 / BT2020, D65
3: ACES, D60
4: ACEScg, D60

r.HDR.Display.MaxLuminance The configured display output nit level, assuming HDR output is enabled.

r.HDR.Display.MidLuminance The configured display output nit level for 18% gray

r.HDR.Display.MinLuminanceLog10 The configured minimum display output nit level (log10 value)

r.HDR.Display.OutputDevice Device format of the output display:
0: sRGB (LDR)
1: Rec709 (LDR)
2: Explicit gamma mapping (LDR)
3: ACES 1000 nit ST-2084 (Dolby PQ) (HDR)
4: ACES 2000 nit ST-2084 (Dolby PQ) (HDR)
5: ACES 1000 nit ScRGB (HDR)
6: ACES 2000 nit ScRGB (HDR)
7: Linear EXR (HDR)
8: Linear final color, no tone curve (HDR)
9: Linear final color with tone curve

r.HDR.EnableHDROutput Creates an HDR compatible swap-chain and enables HDR display output.0: Disabled (default)
1: Enable hardware-specific implementation

r.HDR.UI.CompositeMode Mode used when compositing the UI layer:
0: Standard compositing
1: Shader pass to improve HDR blending

r.HDR.UI.Level Luminance level for UI elements when compositing into HDR framebuffer (default: 1.0).

r.HDR.UI.Luminance Base Luminance in nits for UI elements when compositing into HDR framebuffer. Gets multiplied by r.HDR.UI.Level

[Dolo808]

Thanks! The bright spots were way to bright and the dark too dark on my LG OLED C2, any suggestions?

[Roie]

what about Special K?

[Roie]

work

Originally posted by ŞĦÅÐΘЩЌÌŁŁΣŘ:

Hey everyone, I was a bit disappointed when i noticed the game didnt ship with HDR options by default. Fortunately, since this is an unreal engine game, you can enable HDR by simply editing the Engine ini file. This is how i did it....

Navigate to C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Local\b1\Saved\Config\Windows and open the Engine.ini file. Scroll down to the very bottom and copy/paste this.

[SystemSettings]
r.AllowHDR=1
r.HDR.EnableHDROutput=1
r.HDR.Display.OutputDevice=5 (use 6 if your display can do 2000 nits)
r.HDR.Display.ColorGamut=2
r.HDR.UI.CompositeMode=1
r.FullScreenMode=0
r.HDR.UI.CompositeMode=1
r.HDR.UI.Level=1.5

That should able the base HDR options in the engine. However you may find it a bit dark by default and might want to adjust the settings. You can use these below to adjust things.

r.HDR.Display.MidLuminance= (i think the default is around 30, i have mine at 75. Higher is brighter)
r.HDR.Display.MaxLuminance= (max brightness on hdr curve. Mine is at 4000)
r.HDR.Display.MinLuminanceLog10= (adjust brightness curve. Higher values equal more contrast. Its tied to the mid luminance value so you may need to adjust. The higher the mid luminance value, the more sensitive this value becomes. Mine is at 0.1)

I tend to like a bright contrasty image so my settings may not work for everyone. Here are all the engine HDR settings..

r.AllowHDR Creates an HDR compatible swap-chain and enables HDR display output.0: Disabled (default)
1: Allow HDR, if supported by the platform and display

r.HDR.Aces.SceneColorMultiplier Multiplier applied to scene color. Helps to reduce over saturation

r.HDR.Display.ColorGamut Color gamut of the output display:
0: Rec709 / sRGB, D65 (default)
1: DCI-P3, D65
2: Rec2020 / BT2020, D65
3: ACES, D60
4: ACEScg, D60

r.HDR.Display.MaxLuminance The configured display output nit level, assuming HDR output is enabled.

r.HDR.Display.MidLuminance The configured display output nit level for 18% gray

r.HDR.Display.MinLuminanceLog10 The configured minimum display output nit level (log10 value)

r.HDR.Display.OutputDevice Device format of the output display:
0: sRGB (LDR)
1: Rec709 (LDR)
2: Explicit gamma mapping (LDR)
3: ACES 1000 nit ST-2084 (Dolby PQ) (HDR)
4: ACES 2000 nit ST-2084 (Dolby PQ) (HDR)
5: ACES 1000 nit ScRGB (HDR)
6: ACES 2000 nit ScRGB (HDR)
7: Linear EXR (HDR)
8: Linear final color, no tone curve (HDR)
9: Linear final color with tone curve

r.HDR.EnableHDROutput Creates an HDR compatible swap-chain and enables HDR display output.0: Disabled (default)
1: Enable hardware-specific implementation

r.HDR.UI.CompositeMode Mode used when compositing the UI layer:
0: Standard compositing
1: Shader pass to improve HDR blending

r.HDR.UI.Level Luminance level for UI elements when compositing into HDR framebuffer (default: 1.0).

r.HDR.UI.Luminance Base Luminance in nits for UI elements when compositing into HDR framebuffer. Gets multiplied by r.HDR.UI.Level

I will keep tweaking my settings to try and settle on a happy medium that gives a nice brightness/contrast boost without compltely changing the images too much.

Enjoy!

works great!thx!
can you put all the settings in one post without the explanation?one copy past?please?

[willian]

Thank you for this guide, can confirm it works.

A guide for tuning your own numbers to make the game looks right:
(assume you use HGiG or has turned off all HDR tune mapping on your display)

1. check your specific model on https://www.rtings.com

2. For `r.HDR.Display.MaxLuminance`, you need to use the HDR Peak Brightness value
e.g. for LG C1, C2, it should be 750, for G1 G2 it should be 850 and later models higher ...
Sony flagship models are using same panel so pretty close to those values as well

3. for `r.HDR.Display.MidLuminance`, you need find the SDR Peak Brightness data, and multiple by x0.18 and get your value.
there could be multiple values based on windows sizes, you may choose to choose anyone in between, or safely, use the the lowest you could find as long as they are "Peak"

e.g. if you found something like 300, you should be filling in 300x0.18=54

I keep all other values (e.g. MinLuminanceLog10) to their defaults as they actually impact more on what the game artisictllay tries to deliver. I will wait for the team to determine their intentions on that.

[Roie]

I have a samsung oled tv...
can you put all the settings in one post without the explanation?one copy past?please?

[Indy1944]

Originally posted by ŞĦÅÐΘЩЌÌŁŁΣŘ:

Hey everyone, I was a bit disappointed when i noticed the game didnt ship with HDR options by default. Fortunately, since this is an unreal engine game, you can enable HDR by simply editing the Engine ini file. This is how i did it....

Navigate to C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Local\b1\Saved\Config\Windows and open the Engine.ini file. Scroll down to the very bottom and copy/paste this.

[SystemSettings]
r.AllowHDR=1
r.HDR.EnableHDROutput=1
r.HDR.Display.OutputDevice=5 (use 6 if your display can do 2000 nits)
r.HDR.Display.ColorGamut=2
r.HDR.UI.CompositeMode=1
r.FullScreenMode=0
r.HDR.UI.CompositeMode=1
r.HDR.UI.Level=1.5

That should able the base HDR options in the engine. However you may find it a bit dark by default and might want to adjust the settings. You can use these below to adjust things.

r.HDR.Display.MidLuminance= (i think the default is around 30, i have mine at 75. Higher is brighter)
r.HDR.Display.MaxLuminance= (max brightness on hdr curve. Mine is at 4000)
r.HDR.Display.MinLuminanceLog10= (adjust brightness curve. Higher values equal more contrast. Its tied to the mid luminance value so you may need to adjust. The higher the mid luminance value, the more sensitive this value becomes. Mine is at 0.1)

I tend to like a bright contrasty image so my settings may not work for everyone. Here are all the engine HDR settings..

r.AllowHDR Creates an HDR compatible swap-chain and enables HDR display output.0: Disabled (default)
1: Allow HDR, if supported by the platform and display

r.HDR.Aces.SceneColorMultiplier Multiplier applied to scene color. Helps to reduce over saturation

r.HDR.Display.ColorGamut Color gamut of the output display:
0: Rec709 / sRGB, D65 (default)
1: DCI-P3, D65
2: Rec2020 / BT2020, D65
3: ACES, D60
4: ACEScg, D60

r.HDR.Display.MaxLuminance The configured display output nit level, assuming HDR output is enabled.

r.HDR.Display.MidLuminance The configured display output nit level for 18% gray

r.HDR.Display.MinLuminanceLog10 The configured minimum display output nit level (log10 value)

r.HDR.Display.OutputDevice Device format of the output display:
0: sRGB (LDR)
1: Rec709 (LDR)
2: Explicit gamma mapping (LDR)
3: ACES 1000 nit ST-2084 (Dolby PQ) (HDR)
4: ACES 2000 nit ST-2084 (Dolby PQ) (HDR)
5: ACES 1000 nit ScRGB (HDR)
6: ACES 2000 nit ScRGB (HDR)
7: Linear EXR (HDR)
8: Linear final color, no tone curve (HDR)
9: Linear final color with tone curve

r.HDR.EnableHDROutput Creates an HDR compatible swap-chain and enables HDR display output.0: Disabled (default)
1: Enable hardware-specific implementation

r.HDR.UI.CompositeMode Mode used when compositing the UI layer:
0: Standard compositing
1: Shader pass to improve HDR blending

r.HDR.UI.Level Luminance level for UI elements when compositing into HDR framebuffer (default: 1.0).

r.HDR.UI.Luminance Base Luminance in nits for UI elements when compositing into HDR framebuffer. Gets multiplied by r.HDR.UI.Level

I will keep tweaking my settings to try and settle on a happy medium that gives a nice brightness/contrast boost without compltely changing the images too much.

Enjoy!

Who the hell uses HDR, just muddies up the picture quality

[willian]

TLDR for those who dont want to read OP:

Edit `C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Local\b1\Saved\Config\Windows\Engine.ini`

Add Following:
```
[SystemSettings]
r.AllowHDR=1
r.HDR.EnableHDROutput=1
r.HDR.Display.OutputDevice=5
r.HDR.Display.ColorGamut=2
r.HDR.UI.CompositeMode=1
r.FullScreenMode=0
r.HDR.UI.CompositeMode=1
r.HDR.UI.Level=1.5
r.HDR.Display.MidLuminance=<SDR Peak Brightness of your monitor/TV * 0.18>
r.HDR.Display.MaxLuminance=<HDR Peak Brightness of your monitor/TV>
```

[willian]

Originally posted by Roie:

I have a samsung oled tv...
can you put all the settings in one post without the explanation?one copy past?please?

No that's probably going to hurt your visuals more than getting it right. Just do your own research on what you own.

Theoretically, the game should provide you a proper HDR setting guide for automatic config generation.

[willian]

@hdtvtest may do a better job explaining how to make this right. Let's Hope he make a video on this.

[ThE_StiFF_StIcK]

Reshade+Lilium HDR analysis tools+MajorPainTheCactus addon for reshade can give you better config without touching any ini file, also fix the black level raise

[Roie]

Originally posted by willian:

Originally posted by Roie:

I have a samsung oled tv...
can you put all the settings in one post without the explanation?one copy past?please?

No that's probably going to hurt your visuals more than getting it right. Just do your own research on what you own.

Theoretically, the game should provide you a proper HDR setting guide for automatic config generation.

his settings are good for me...
can you put all the settings in one post without the explanation?one copy past?please?

[willian]

Originally posted by Roie:

Originally posted by willian:

No that's probably going to hurt your visuals more than getting it right. Just do your own research on what you own.

Theoretically, the game should provide you a proper HDR setting guide for automatic config generation.

his settings are good for me...
can you put all the settings in one post without the explanation?one copy past?please?

at least give me your tv model num so that I'll be able to check for you

[looking for gurl]

anyone with HP 27x monitor do this and help?

[GirlGamer]

Originally posted by willian:

Originally posted by Roie:

his settings are good for me...
can you put all the settings in one post without the explanation?one copy past?please?

at least give me your tv model num so that I'll be able to check for you

Mine is Samsung Odyssey G7 27inch 1440p, I bought it in 2021 or so

[Errant]

Great find!

Just so people are aware though: maximum brightness seems to be capped with this method and capped pretty low. Using the settings willian mentioned modified for my display, I am only able to get a maximum brightness of about 271 nits when looking straight at the sun with a peak of like 900 nits or so set in the Engine.Ini file.

I took a screenshot with Special K and viewed it with the HDR Image viewer heatmap to check.

Hopefully a method is discovered to get a bit more peak brightness! To my eyes, the inverse tonemapping methods look a little bit better right now. Shame the game didn't ship with native HDR.