Any guides breaking down the graphical settings?

[Freedomtacos]

Just curious if there are any guides explaining each and every graphical setting in the Talos Principle. Even when I use the ultra preset, it seems like quite a few settings are still disabled and I was wondering what they did.

I've never seen such a detailed graphical customization before in a videogame, it'd be interesting to learn about.

Picture of said options:

http://i.imgur.com/nbXEa3U.jpg

[noname]

What is "max 3d rendering" and "rescaling filter"?

[DEN [CT]]

@antoniomad
MSAA can have perf impact only if the game is not CPU bound on a particular machine. So, turning it on and not see (noticable) perf drop means you're CPU bound. Generally, 4x MSAA should have ~20% perf drop on GPU bound scenarios (on modern GPUs).

@Terepin
I haven't played yet with SGSSAA, but yes, when I find some time, I'll see what AA tech can we use in future. FXAA still has best perf/quality ratio, altho it does blur the scene. This is the only issue with FXAA, as it really does very good job with antialiasing edges.

@noname
Max 3d rendering option limits resolution in which the 3D scene is rendered. This is our life-savior! :) I mean, if you have slow(er) GPU but desktop in really high res (full HD or more), there's no whay your GPU can run the game in full HD. So this option kicks in as a compromise; we limit 3D scene rendering to, say 720p, but still let you use desktop (full HD) resolution. HUD, menus and some other overlay/2D objects are rendered in full HD.

And then comes "rescaling filter" option. Downsampled rendered 3D scene need to be upscaled to your screen resolution, and this option selects what filter to use. Going from fast to quality; point sampling, bilinear, bicubic, sharpen bicubic and lanczos.

HTH

[Terepin]

SMAA surpases FXAA in every possible way. It does better job with minimal blurring. And it has temporal filter!
If you will add SGSSAA, you will be the first developers ever to do so. Make it happen!

[noname]

Originally posted by DEN CT:

Max 3d rendering option limits resolution in which the 3D scene is rendered. This is our life-savior! :) I mean, if you have slow(er) GPU but desktop in really high res (full HD or more), there's no whay your GPU can run the game in full HD. So this option kicks in as a compromise; we limit 3D scene rendering to, say 720p, but still let you use desktop (full HD) resolution. HUD, menus and some other overlay/2D objects are rendered in full HD.

Is text on terminal screens part of 3D scene?

[AlenL]

noname, yes, it's part of 3D scene.

[Doggy]

I got a 5yo PC with Intel i5 2500 (3.3Ghz), 8GB DDR3 RAM, GTX 560ti 1GB, and W7 Ultimate x64. I play on 1920x1200 16:10 monitor. Thought I'd give people some personal experiences, recommendations and tips concerning Talos' (and simultaneously SS3:BFE's) settings.

The game defaults CPU to "Ultra", and both GPU Speed and Memory to "High".
I however always tweak these settings, starting with dropping CPU to "High", and adjusting lots of GPU Speed settings via the Customize menu.

-3D Rendering resolution I keep at my native resolution (or "Unlimited" in SS3). Gives the sharpest image, keeping the image at 1:1 pixel resolution.

-I like the result of 2x MSAA and some FXAA (barely difference between settings, but I keep it "High"). This eliminates majority of shimmering and worst jaggies, even in flat, transparent pieces, like plant edges.

-Screen Space Ambient Occlusion I keep at "Low"
I dig Parallax Mapping a lot, and tend to keep them at Optimal, with parallax distance at around 25% above zero.

-Shadows are "High", with almost maxed Trilinear Dither + Smoothing. Shadow AA is OFF.

-Mirror quality is set to "Medium", but I noticed even "Low" being passable, thanks to the ripple effects + fact that only few places use full real-time reflections.
Crumbs I have around 75%, with variety on "High". Crumb shadows OFF.

-All Blur effects I keep OFF. Light Streaks and Bloom are at "Low".

-FOV is set to 90 degrees. Color Mode is "Vivid". Framerate is limited to 60, and thus I keep V-sync OFF.

I could get just about rock solid 60fps by disabling MSAA altogether, and/or by using "Medium" shadows (that still look pretty good), but even with these settings, I stay above 45fps everywhere, average being well over 50.

On my 2012 laptop (i3 @ 2.1Ghz, 6GB DDR3 and GT 540M 1GB), I use:

-1280x720 resolution,
-30fps limit,
-DX9 Renderer mode,
-3D rendering set to "1024x768" with "Sharpen Bicubic" filter,
-only the FXAA enabled at "Low",
-SSAO and Parallax effects disabled,
-most things on "Low",
-GPU Memory settings are at "Medium", CPU is at "Low".

[Terepin]

Originally posted by Doggy:

Framerate is limited to 60, and thus I keep V-sync OFF.

As if it helps you in any way. Why do people keep confusing those two things is beyond me.