DLL tricks for maximum PhysX performance

Guide for power users on how to manipulate which PhysX DLLs Borderlands 2 loads in order to maximize performance.

Welcome

This guide will walk you through the process of replacing the bundled PhysX DLLs Borderlands 2 includes with newer versions, allowing for better and more consistent performance of PhysX materials in the game. This guide is primarily intended for users who own an NVIDIA graphics card, but it should also improve the performance of CPU-based PhysX for AMD users who have force-enabled it.

This guide is best viewed through the Steam client browser with the game closed as it involves manipulating what pieces of extra code (the DLLs) the game will be running. This guide also assumes you have a working knowledge of navigating your PC's file system.

You will need 7-Zip installed in order to make all of the modifications listed below.

Step-by-Step

• Download the most recent PhysX system software package (9.19.0218[www.nvidia.com] at the time this guide was written)
  
• Non-NVIDIA GPU only - Install the package
  
• Use 7-Zip to extract the package contents, I suggest placing it in a folder on the desktop for easy deletion later
  
• Open two filesystem windows - the PhysX package folder (browse to files\Common), and the Borderlands 2 binaries folder in your Steam library (Steam\SteamApps\common\Borderlands 2\Binaries\Win32)
  
• Make backup copies of all DLL files in the Borderlands 2 folder that begin with either cudart or PhysX (I suggest creating a new folder called "Bundled PhysX DLLs" and copying them there) - this will allow you to undo the following changes later if you experience problems
  
• Delete the following two files: cudart.dll and PhysXCore.dll (these files will not be replaced later - more recent versions are included in the PhysX driver package and will load automatically from the OS folder when the game's DLLs are missing)
  
• Replace these two files: PhysXDevice.dll and PhysXLoader.dll with the files of same names from the PhysX package
  
• Delete the following two files: cudart32_30_9.dll and cudart32_41_22.dll
  
• Copy the file cudart32_90.dll and paste it in the Borderlands 2 folder twice
  
• Rename the two copies of cudart32_90.dll to cudart32_30_9.dll and cudart32_41_22.dll
  
• PhysXCooking.dll and PhysXExtensions.dll include function calls built specifically for Borderlands 2 - these two files should still be the ones the game shipped with

You are now finished. If you followed these steps carefully, the game should launch and run as though nothing has changed.

This guide can also be followed verbatim for Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel.

[Nexi]

Latest Version:
https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/drivers/physx/physx-9-23-1019-driver/

[Bruno_Legal]

Also, DON'T USE DXVK IF YOU WANT PHYSX!!! it usually doubles your fps, but it REALLY doesn't like physx and it WILL constantly stutter AND consatnly lag when there's multiple physx shenanigans happening at the same time

[Bruno_Legal]

Also, there is no cudart32_90, only cudart32_65

[Bruno_Legal]

RTX 50 series removed support to 32 bit physx, it runs like an AMD card now, it sucks, not that it matters, it's broken on the 20, 30 and 40 cards as well, massive framedrops in long battles, not worth it

[BIG DANK]

Does this fix the RTX 50 series problems with PhysX?

[千载秋月映素影]

Thanks for sharing. Since playing BL2 with 4K may cause several crashes especially during combats in Opportunity and later maps. I'll test this one if it helps, also combined with changes in INI.

[lordbean]

It doesn't boost your fps, it smooths out the game's performance when a lot of physics is being processed at once, particularly when rendering and running physics on the same GPU. The game tends to stutter quite badly with the bundled DLLs under this circumstance.

[Sanki]

Expected to see some boost in fps but meh "nothing has changed."

[Sanki]

the guide ok but some screenshots ? before/after ? I having random fps while playing with PhysX in some places stable 200+ fps but it drops to 100~ sometimes 60~ while in action and a lot of clutter is on the ground.