In most games, lowering the graphics settings or resolution barely changes my frame rate. Sometimes I gain only around 5–10 FPS, but often there is no improvement at all. My system has an Intel i3-10100F, GTX 1660 Super, and 8GB of RAM. What could be limiting performance, and what should I check before upgrading?
1 Answer
This usually points to a CPU bottleneck. Lowering graphical settings reduces the workload on the GPU, but it will not help much if the processor is already limiting how quickly frames can be prepared. Check your GPU usage while playing: if it stays well below 95–100% while one or more CPU cores are heavily loaded, the CPU is probably the restriction. Your 8GB of RAM can also contribute to stuttering and poor performance, especially in newer games, because the system may have to rely on the storage drive when memory runs short.
CPU usage can sometimes look low overall because games do not use every core evenly. It is worth checking individual core usage, GPU usage, temperatures, and clock speeds rather than relying on one overall percentage.