Optimizing framegen to stabilize frametime

A guide to optimize frametime when using framegen to eliminate stutters, micro stutters, jitters and screen tear.

What is and isn't this guide.

This isn't a guide to increase your FPS, to do that just lower all your settings to the lowest and increase them one at a time until you get the performance and graphic fidelity you can accept.

This is a guide to stabilize and eliminate stutters and micro stutters when using framegen. It may or may not apply when you're not using framegen as well.

Prerequisite and things to note

• You should already have settings that allow or exceed the frames you want. ie if you want the game to run at 60fps, you should already have it running at or above 60fps even in the most demanding scenes. Frame drops will cause stutters and there is nothing this guide can do to help you.

• Using framegen will introduce more input lag and make the game more sluggish, I only recommend you using framegen if you can achieve 120fps or above with it. Using framegen TO achieve 60fps will make you feel like your character is moving in mud.

• There a multiple ways to eliminate stutters and screen tear when using framegen and depending on your hardware and personal preference, only one may suit your need. I will highlight what each optimization does and the pros and cons of each one.

Option 1: Use Gsync and lock FPS with RTSS

This is the simplest option but there are several drawbacks.

How to do this:

• Go into nvcp and turn on gsync

• Download and install RTSS(rivatuner statistic server)

• Go ingame, turn on framegen, lock fps with RTSS to below what you can achieve.

Pros: simple and it works

Cons: using Gsync will cause flicker with alot of oled and VA monitors. The solution to this is turn on something called "VRR control" on the monitor BUT this cause micro stutters. If this bothers you and it did me, this simply isn't an option.

If you can use gsync without problems then this is the best option.

NOTE:
To have the most stable frametime, you should always lock frames below what your system can achieve in the most demanding scene. ie if you can achieve 130ish fps in town, then you should lock fps with rtss to 120. If you can only achieve 80ish fps, then lock fps to 75, and so on.

Option 2: use amd(fsr3) framegen

How:

• go in game, set upscaling to fsr3 and turn on framegen.

• turn on vsync (turn off gsync)

• lock fps using ingame fps lock, you should ONLY choose the ones mark with a star or you'll get micro stutters.

Pros: relatively simple and perfect frametime.

Cons: lower performance than dlss framegen, to achieve the same fps, you'll have to choose lower upscaling than dlss. May look worst than dlss overall.

NOTE:
Remember you should only lock fps you can exceed.
You should lock fps at or half of your monitor refresh, simply: only choose the fps lock marked with a star.

If you want to lock fps at 120, then set your monitor refresh to 120. If you want to lock fps to 60, then set monitor refresh to 120 or 60. If you want to lock fps to 72, then set monitor refresh to 144hz.

Option 3: use DLSS framegen with vsync on

How:

• Go into nvcp, manage 3d settings, Program settings tab and add ff16. You'll need to tweak 2 settings in there.

• Vsync: on (gsync: off may need to be set in global setting)

• Max Frame Rate: 120 (or your target framerate)
  
  This should be AT or half of your monitor refresh, eg if your monitor refresh is set to 165hz then lock fps at 165 or 82.5, if your monitor is 144hz then lock fps at 144 or 72, if your monitor is 120hz then lock fps at 120 or 60. This can be set in game as well but to be safe, do it outside of the game.

• Ingame: upscaling dlss, framegen on.

• lock fps with rtss to the same number as the nvcp setting. ie if you lock fps to 120 in nvcp, then lock fps again with rtss to 120.

Pro: better performance if you're using nvidia cards and looks better in motion over fsr framegen.

Con: A bit more complicated than other options

NOTE:
Turning gsync off will eliminate flickers for oled and VA monitors that are affected by VRR.
Turning Vsync on will eliminate screen tearing without VRR.
Setting max frame rate to your target fps in nvcp will stabilize framegen when locking fps, if you don't do this you will have erratic frame drops when using framegen.
Locking FPS with RTSS will eliminate micro stutters.

Yes you need to lock fps twice, once in nvcp and once in rtss.

With all the above tweaks, your game should run smooth as butter. No frametime stutters, no micro stutters, no screen tearing.

Option 4: use 3rd party framegen

There are 3rd party apps like lossless scaling (available on steam, search for it) that can interpolate and double the fps. Basically it's what expensive smart tv does. It will introduce lag, sometimes worst image quality and other quirks or bugs.

But it's another option that can be played with.

Basically you just have to lock your frames and turn on the app. ie if you have a stable 60fps without framegen and only used about 70% of your gpu doing so with vram to spare, then you can consider using this app to interpolate your fps to 120.

The fps counter on rtss will be the same but the actual frames you're seeing is actually doubled. When I tried it with ff16 there were frame drops when going into maps and menus. Sometimes it turns itself off when existing the map. Also all the cinematics are 60fps as well because the app interpolates EVERYTHING and doesn't discriminate.

Try it out if you're interested, I myself use it mostly for movies and anime.

Conclusion

I hope this helps someone.