Concerns about resources the game takes to perform well

[Aryvandaar]

I have some concerns about the graphical performance of the game, and how much resources it takes. I tried Pillars of Eternity on my mom's computer, which is notably not that powerful, but this game shouldn't be so demanding. I saw a lot of stuttering and slow peformance, and my mom's computer got really hot.

 

Then I tried my computer, a computer that is a bit of a beast. It runs The Witcher 2 in WINE with everything on (except bloom and vertical sync), and everything at ultra with 50ish fps. I ran PoE through steam in WINE, at first I thought that the demand of the game, and the performance wasx because I ran it in WINE in Linux, but I've recently talked to a friend who said he had the same issues in Windows.

 

I hope Obsidian addresses these issues, as I remember other Obsidian games, like Neverwinter Nights 2, that was pretty demanding for the level of graphics it had (which aren't bad btw). My concern isn't mostly for myself, but for those who does not have such a powerful computer and would still like to get the full experience. For me, the problem would be that I can't multi-task just as well.

Edited September 12, 2014 by Aryvandaar

[Infinitron]

...describe your computer.

Edited September 12, 2014 by Infinitron

[Matt516]

I'd not worry about performance at the moment - someone correct me if I'm wrong but optimization is generally one of the last phases of game development, correct?

[C2B]

I'd not worry about performance at the moment - someone correct me if I'm wrong but optimization is generally one of the last phases of game development, correct?

Yes, companies usually shy away from giving out system requirements early because of it.

[Mr. Magniloquent]

Your may also be experiencing problems simply because you are using a Linux distro. WINE is great, but it is still a layer of inefficiency. Considering Beta is only configured for Windows, and not yet optimized for the only OS intended for the beta--that could be your problem.

[Aryvandaar]

Your may also be experiencing problems simply because you are using a Linux distro. WINE is great, but it is still a layer of inefficiency. Considering Beta is only configured for Windows, and not yet optimized for the only OS intended for the beta--that could be your problem.

 

I said in my first post that my friend was experiencing similiar problems with a similiar kind of PC only in Windows. WINE is about the most efficient compatibility layer that exists in Linux, but let's not go into discussing the quality of WINE in this thread.

 

...describe your computer.

 

That is irrelevant. My computer has enough CPU power, GPU power & RAM to run The Witcher 2 on maximum with good FPS.

[samm]

 

...describe your computer.

 

That is irrelevant. 

 

Correct. Because neither hardware, nor OS, nor drivers, nor ventilation (your mother's hot computer) matter when talking about a game's performance. It is sufficient to know that game X runs with settings Y with a subjective performance of A, to determine why game P*, with unknow settings in an unknown hardware and software environment** runs with subjective performance of C***.

 

[edit]

*: currently in beta state

**: not game P's native environment

***: and unknown subjective performance on other systems with unknown components and unknown software environment, that are actually the main concern of this topic as stated in the first post

Edited September 12, 2014 by samm

[Endrosz]

Unity is similar to Flash in that it's easy to end up with a resource hog if you don't code carefully. nGUI, the standard UI library for Unity is being completely replaced with a new library for Version 4.6, which is now in beta after a long wait (checked the date on the email I got, Aug 21, only a few weeks ago). nGUI, while easy to use, is/was definitely a bottleneck in Unity performance.

 

I don't know what's with the OP's situation, but what he writes is believable to me.

[Flow]

You can't respond with "irrelevant" to a PC specs request and expect to be taken seriously.

 

For me, the game has noticeable frame rate issues and other graphical glitches which have been amply reported by others, but it doesn't stress my PC even slightly.

 

----

i7-870

8GB

GTX-770

Windows 8.1

Running at 1920x1200

[ManifestedISO]

No one, who knows their PC is a beast, refuses to describe its fangs and claws. 

 

This game shouldn't be so demanding ... god I hope it is.  

[limaxophobiacq]

The game runs ok for me in 2560x1440, though on SLI 780s it damn well should. 90-120 walking around the village dropping down to 60-80 in fights. Should try deactivating SLI and see if there's any difference.

[Elerond]

Game's need for CPU and GPU time don't seem to be very high, but it seems to hog RAM quite briskly.

[PrimeJunta]

FWIW I haven't noticed any performance issues (unless you count load times which got pretty slow with the latest build). But then I haven't measured the framerate, going on perception only.

 

Core i5@3.4GHz, 16 GB RAM, GeForce GTX 780M 4096 MB. Running at 2560x1440.

 

I'm also certain that performance will go up by leaps and bounds once they get optimizing.

[Msxyz]

The game makes a basic use of 3D graphics yet it's very intensive for what it displays... Of course it won't be a problem for people using modern desktops but for people with integrated graphics it's a different story.

 

I tried to install it on a MacBook Pro Late 2013 with Intel HD5100 GPU (it's about as fast as current AMD 'A' series APUs) and I had to scale back resolution down to 1280x800. Just to put this into perspective, I can run Skyrim at high detail on the same system, at same resolution and with all the sliders set to the max, at a solid 30 fps.

 

I do believe the culprit is Unity as Endrosz says. For the level of 3D processing required by PoE (pre-rendered backgrounds, unlike, for example, Neverwinter Nights), any 10 years old mid-range card should be more than enough. I hope Obsidian will put some effort in this aspect too.

[Sensuki]

i7-870

8GB

GTX-770

Windows 8.1

Running at 1920x1200

I have a very similar PC

 

iy-870

HD7970 3GB

Windows 7 SP1

1920x1080

 

Same issues.

 

The 2D and 3D animations in levels are not optimized - they cause HUGE slowdowns, and I'm expecting to see a performance pass later on that gives ~ the same performance increase that Wasteland 2 got in late August (I got +60FPS on all maps raising my average from 30 to 90-110).

Edited September 13, 2014 by Sensuki

[archangel979]

Wasteland 2 that also runs on Unity had big performance problems earlier in the beta, but they worked on it and made it 2x better near the end of beta.

Don't worry people, I am sure OE will be working on performance issues as they get closer to release.

[Elerond]

Wasteland 2 that also runs on Unity had big performance problems earlier in the beta, but they worked on it and made it 2x better near the end of beta.

Don't worry people, I am sure OE will be working on performance issues as they get closer to release.

 

Wasteland 2 still has problems with memory usage, which can make it unstable on 32 bit operating systems, which is also issue with PoE. I am not sure (because my comparison machines are my desktop and work laptop, so it isn't level testing field) but it seems that Unity has some problems when it can get assets and resources loaded fast enough which causes it to work unpredictable ways sometimes.

[Hiro Protagonist II]

Pillars might even have problems (loading, etc) running on a Cray. It's obviously not computers for a lot of us with high end machines and the game itself not being optimised.

[PrimeJunta]

Why would anyone run a 32-bit OS in this day and age?

[Sensuki]

If I could still run XP SP2 I would Best OS! damn you for not supporting more RAM!

[Hiro Protagonist II]

I have a second computer running XP.

[Sensuki]

I've managed to get 7 to feel more like XP, but far out it takes a lot of tuning. The difference between the Clock Resolution timers is really annoying. HPET is a piece of ****, I bought a new motherboard just so I could turn it off (as you can't on various ASUS models).

 

The mouse lag is mostly gone now, headshot flicks in CSS gungame are so easy now.

Edited September 13, 2014 by Sensuki

[PrimeJunta]

Okay, "because Microsoft hasn't made a decent 64-bit one" is an acceptable answer. Carry on.

[Sensuki]

Probably won't either the direction their company is going, jeez. It absolutely baffles me why you would EVER want to remove the start bar OR change the design.

 

Good way to alienate the majority of your customers.

Edited September 13, 2014 by Sensuki

[PrimeJunta]

Reasons like that are why I use a Mac nowadays. Only boot into Windows H8 for the games.