AMD Radeon™ Anti-Lag 2 Technical Preview

This is a brief retelling of what is AMD Anti-Lag feature, its influence on gameplay and how to use it.
The original article is posted on the official web-site of Advanced Micro Devices Inc company, belongs to and may be found here AMD Radeon™ Anti-Lag 2 Technical Preview Now Available in Counter-Strike 2 [community.amd.com] by Alexander Blake-Davies, a Senior Software Product Marketing Specialist for AMD Radeon™ Software for Developers

Introduction

AMD Radeon™ Anti-Lag is a in-driver technology introduced in 2019 and designed to lower click-to-response latency for delivering more responsive gaming experiences for gamers. As some people encountered issues using it which led to roll back this feature so developers could make some improvements to ensure a better user experience for all.

An upgraded latency reduction technology is back as AMD Radeon™ Anti-Lag 2. This updated version takes Anti-Lag to the next level and is now a game-integrated technology, rather than an in-driver solution. AMD have partnered closely with Valve to integrate Radeon Anti-Lag 2 into Counter-Strike 2, and a game update and technical preview AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition driver is available now to enable it for a more responsive esports experience and the ultimate in low-latency gaming. Read on to learn more about Radeon Anti-Lag 2 and how you can join the preview today.

Radeon Anti-Lag 2 vs Anti-Lag

Radeon Anti-Lag technology controls the pace of the CPU to make sure it aligns with the GPU, reducing the amount of CPU work that gets queued up. This decreases input-to-display response times, making games more responsive. As a driver-based solution, the initial version of Radeon Anti-Lag has long been available in AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition and can be enabled in any game, delivering lower latency for more responsive gameplay.

With the game-integrated Radeon Anti-Lag 2, the frame alignment is also applied in the game code itself and works in conjunction with the CPU pacing controlled by the driver to allow for better frame syncing. This leads to even lower click-to-response latency than what an in-driver only solution like Radeon Anti-Lag can deliver. Since Radeon Anti-Lag 2 is an in-game technology, it does require game developers to add it to their games, with Counter-Strike 2 being the first.

How to Use Radeon Anti-Lag 2 in Counter-Strike 2

• Download and install AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 24.5.1 for Anti-Lag 2 Technical Preview driver[www.amd.com]

• “AMD Anti-Lag 2.0” will then be ENABLED by default in the Counter-Strike 2 “ADVANCED VIDEO” settings menu.
  

• Report any issues using the AMD Bug Report Tool, accessed using the button in the top right of the AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition application

• Provide your feedback about Radeon Anti-Lag 2 on AMD Red Team Community Forums[community.amd.com]

How to Monitor Your Latency in Counter-Strike 2

Once you have Radeon Anti-Lag 2 enabled in Counter-Strike 2, if you want to monitor the latency in the game, you can use the built-in Radeon Anti-Lag 2 Latency Monitor which will show the FPS, latency in ms, as well as latency in frames

• Use the Alt+Shift+L hotkey combination to enable the Radeon Anti-Lag 2 Latency Monitor. Once activated, a small white chevron will appear in the top left corner of your display indicating that it is enabled.

• Use Alt+Shift+L again to cycle through the following Latency Monitor display options: No metrics, FPS only, FPS and latency (in ms), FPS and latency (in ms and frames), FPS and latency (in ms and frames) with a legend.

• You can also compare the latency between Anti-Lag off and Radeon Anti-Lag 2 by holding down the right CTRL key to see the latency with it off.

Radeon Product Compatibility

Although Radeon Anti-Lag 2 is integrated into games, it still needs to work in conjunction with AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition graphics driver and only supports AMD Radeon™ graphics cards. It is compatible with the following AMD RDNA™ architecture and above discrete and integrated graphics:

• AMD Radeon™ RX 5000 series desktop and mobile graphics, and higher.

• AMD Ryzen™ 6000 Series Processors with Radeon™ graphics, and higher.
  (Excluding select AMD Ryzen™ 7000 Series Processors with AMD GCN architecture-based graphics).

What’s Next for Radeon Anti-Lag 2?

Now that AMD Radeon Anti-Lag 2 is available as a Technical Preview in Counter-Strike 2, next step will be releasing the Radeon Anti-Lag 2 SDK for game developers on GPUOpen, and you can then expect to see it become available in more games. Stay tuned to all AMD Community channels[community.amd.com] and AMD social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook[www.facebook.com], Instagram[www.instagram.com], TikTok[www.tiktok.com]) for the latest news about all amazing AMD technologies including Radeon Anti-Lag 2.