[Special K] Framerate Unlock + HDR10 Goodies + Perf. Fixes

[Kaldaien]

Introduction (to Coloring)

For players using HDR display devices, the game uses HDR10 without metadata.

This means the signal covers 0 - 10,000 cd.m^-2 luminance and Steam does not understand the encoded luminance range, the color space (Rec. 2020) or even the gamma (SMPTE 2084) necessary to correctly draw its own overlay or take a screenshot.

Any HDR screenshot taken without Special K will appear greyscale!

Special K XDR—"Making HDR actually work since 2018."

• Luminance control for Steam overlay (refer to the HDR menu atop the control panel)
  
• Fix the Steam overlay to run in Rec 709 instead of Rec 2020 (LSD colors)
  
• HDR->SDR tonemapping prevents captured screenshots from being washed out
  
• Support for preserving HDR screenshots (JPEG-XR)

What HDR10 Screenshots are Supposed to Look Like (in SDR)

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1695342392https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1695348420https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1695437213

NOTE:
The game uses proprietary driver APIs to enable HDR; Special K only has codepaths for NVIDIA's driver-based HDR and the much preferred DXGI-based HDR.
AMD GPU owners with HDR displays will not see any benefits.

Download and Install --- []

Grab the latest version[github.com] and extract it to your game's install directory (default=C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Sekiro)

All features of the mod can be configured in-game by pressing:

⌨	Ctrl + Shift + Backspace
🎮 🎮	Xbox / Steam Back + Start PlayStation Select + Start

Most Popular Features

1. HDR Engages w/o Alt-Tab at Startup
   
2. Fixes Multi-Monitor Performance (optional)
   
3. Fixes Netcode Performance
   
4. Fixes Input Performance (gamepad / mouse)
   
5. Unlocks Framerate + Refresh Rate Configuration
   
6. Adds Advanced Framerate Limiter (lower stutter / input latency)
   
7. Costs $0.00

Misc. Useful Features

1. HUDless screenshots
   Ctrl + Shift + 8
2. HUD Toggle
   Alt + Shift + H
3. Functional HDR Steam Overlay / Screenshots
   
4. Texture / Shader modding

Source Code

I am in the middle of preparing Special K v 0.10.0 for release, so the GitLab source repository is not up-to-date at the moment. I have opted to publish the plug-in's source code on GitHub temporarily:

https://gist.github.com/Kaldaien/104cee045671e2b65a8b003ffd9bfa33

Frequently Asked Questions

1. The mouse cursor is visible constantly
   
   
   • Refer to Input Management | Enable / Disable Devices and disable Mouse Input to the game
   
   
2. The Steam Overlay is not working
   
   
   • Refer to Steam Enhancements | Compatibility and check "Load Steam Overlay Early"

TL;DR Suggested Settings for Best Framepacing

Uncap the framerate, turn fixed timestep mode on and then set Special K's framerate limiter to whatever (i.e. set it back to 60 if you want).

[Tyrant]

Is texture caching useful at all? Right now it says 800 textures, 800 misses. Does that mean the texture cache isn't being properly utilized?

[Drat Souma]

I'm able to uncap FPS in Fullscreen mode but when I switch to Window mode to take advantage of the borderless settings in the mod, the FPS is capped to 60. What settings do I need to uncap it in window mode?

My current settings:
On SpecialK, I uncapped framerate and set the recommended settings for smoother frames. The cap was set to 120. Also enabled the HDR disabling since I have the multi monitor issue.
On nvidia side, I disabled Vsync and change refresh rate to highest possible. That said, my monitor refresh rate is only 60.

[SenMithrarin85]

Originally posted by Drat Souma:

I'm able to uncap FPS in Fullscreen mode but when I switch to Window mode to take advantage of the borderless settings in the mod, the FPS is capped to 60. What settings do I need to uncap it in window mode?

My current settings:
On SpecialK, I uncapped framerate and set the recommended settings for smoother frames. The cap was set to 120. Also enabled the HDR disabling since I have the multi monitor issue.
On nvidia side, I disabled Vsync and change refresh rate to highest possible. That said, my monitor refresh rate is only 60.

you'll have to disable vsync through the nvidia control panel if you use a 60hz monitor

[Kaldaien]

Originally posted by Drat Souma:

I'm able to uncap FPS in Fullscreen mode but when I switch to Window mode to take advantage of the borderless settings in the mod, the FPS is capped to 60. What settings do I need to uncap it in window mode?

My current settings:
On SpecialK, I uncapped framerate and set the recommended settings for smoother frames. The cap was set to 120. Also enabled the HDR disabling since I have the multi monitor issue.
On nvidia side, I disabled Vsync and change refresh rate to highest possible. That said, my monitor refresh rate is only 60.

Use flip model under D3D11 / Swpachain settings. Present Interval=1, Backbuffers=3, Maximum Device Latency=4

[Kaldaien]

Originally posted by Tyrant:

Is texture caching useful at all? Right now it says 800 textures, 800 misses. Does that mean the texture cache isn't being properly utilized?

It prevents memory leaks and enables texture mods. 800 misses means the game has loaded 800 textures. It can't hit until the game loads a texture that was already in cache.

[jelbo]

I'm getting the MGS sound indicating an error, using 0.10.0.22 on a clean installed game and an empty 'My Mods' folder. Logs can be found on https://sta.sh/047xiyen3uf

Ultimately, I'm aiming for Special K and ReShade.

[Kaldaien]

Originally posted by jelbo:

I'm getting the MGS sound indicating an error, using 0.10.0.22 on a clean installed game and an empty 'My Mods' folder. Logs can be found on https://sta.sh/047xiyen3uf

Ultimately, I'm aiming for Special K and ReShade.

Please use the ReShade version. Unmodified ReShade is not compatible with this game because it will hook D3D9 and then crash.

https://github.com/Kaldaien/SpecialK/releases/download/sk_special_projects/SK_Sekiro_ReShade.7z

[Tyrant]

Originally posted by jelbo:

I'm getting the MGS sound indicating an error, using 0.10.0.22 on a clean installed game and an empty 'My Mods' folder. Logs can be found on https://sta.sh/047xiyen3uf

Ultimately, I'm aiming for Special K and ReShade.

Clear out your d3d11 and dxgi files, use this: https://github.com/Kaldaien/SpecialK/releases/download/sk_special_projects/SK_Sekiro_ReShade.7z

Then, name your preset sekiro.ini and put it either in the base directory or the ReShade directory, and move all the effects you need from the ReShade directory to the ReShade\Shaders directory. Don't use any other DLL files. Don't rename custom_dxgi.ini to dxgi.ini, it's supposed to be named that way.

If errors persist, disable the Steam Overlay.

If errors still persist, find this in dxgi.ini

[Steam.Log]
Silent=false

to true instead.

[RoninChaos]

I don't have an HDR monitor. If I just want to use special K to unlock the frame rate, will that cause any issues? And will it let me run it in borderless window mode?

[Kaldaien]

Originally posted by RoninChaos:

I don't have an HDR monitor. If I just want to use special K to unlock the frame rate, will that cause any issues? And will it let me run it in borderless window mode?

Refer to the Window Management section of the control panel.

[jelbo]

Thanks for the fast replies! OK, I cleared out everything, including the My Mods folder. 100% sure it's clean, I took a screenshot of the vanilla Sekiro folder and compared. Steam Overlay is disabled.

I extracted SK_Sekiro_ReShade.7z to my Sekiro folder and still get the MGS sound. Then Sekiro crashes. Logs here: https://sta.sh/0s7bbgm1b8t

Setting

[Steam.Log]
Silent=true

doesn't help.

[Kaldaien]

Originally posted by jelbo:

Thanks for the fast replies! OK, I cleared out everything, including the My Mods folder. 100% sure it's clean, I took a screenshot of the vanilla Sekiro folder and compared. Steam Overlay is disabled.

I extracted SK_Sekiro_ReShade.7z to my Sekiro folder and still get the MGS sound. Then Sekiro crashes. Logs here: https://sta.sh/0s7bbgm1b8t

Setting

[Steam.Log]
Silent=true

doesn't help.

You have some incompatible third-party software active. You might be able to workaround the problem if you set When=Early to When=PlugIn in custom_dxgi.ini

[Tyrant]

Originally posted by jelbo:

Thanks for the fast replies! OK, I cleared out everything, including the My Mods folder. 100% sure it's clean, I took a screenshot of the vanilla Sekiro folder and compared. Steam Overlay is disabled.

I extracted SK_Sekiro_ReShade.7z to my Sekiro folder and still get the MGS sound. Then Sekiro crashes. Logs here: https://sta.sh/0s7bbgm1b8t

Setting

[Steam.Log]
Silent=true

doesn't help.

Disable overlays in the configuration ini file for your swashbuckled game.

[jelbo]

Originally posted by Kaldaien:

You have some incompatible third-party software active. You might be able to workaround the problem if you set When=Early to When=PlugIn in custom_dxgi.ini

Hmm. I'm using vanilla 0.10.0.22 now. That worked fine yesterday, but it gives the MGS error now. Sekiro does load though, including the CEGUI. I don't have a clue what has changed.

Originally posted by Tyrant:

Disable overlays in the configuration ini file for your swashbuckled game.

I only see and have PreLoadSteamOverlay=false and ReuseOverlayPause=true

[Katana Puffin]

It's possible this mod can block achievements unlocking?