Rise of the Tomb Raider

Rise of the Tomb Raider

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Graphics Optimization and DLSS Upgrade + Frame Generation Integration for ALL GPUs
By 0p3r4t10n CHAOS
Explaining the differences in performance gain of different graphics settings and implementing a DLSS mod with the latest version and frame generation integration that is usable for ALL GPUs. Whopping 100% performance increase.
   
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Introduction
I've compiled this guide for performance enhancement and quality optimization, to make people not overuse resources on negligble graphics settings.
The DLSS Enabler mod is capable of making things run on pretty much any card with staggering performance gains. On average you can expect a whopping 100% gain in either performance or quality.
I went from High/Very High in 1440p to now being able to play this in 4K on the same settings, no problem. Isn't that crazy?

My System Specs:
-OS: Windows 10
-GPU: Sapphire AMD Vega 64 Nitro+ 8GB (comparable to an RTX 1080 or 2060), overclocked to the limit
-CPU: i9 -9900K, overclocked to 4.8gHz on all 8 cores
-RAM: 48GB HyperX 3466 mHz
-Mainboard: Gigabyte Z390 Designare


Please don't forget to LIKE if this guide was helpful for you. If you're happy with the results and feel generous leave a Steam points award. Commenting your experience will also be appreciated. Thank you and I really hope you find success with it.
DLSS Enabler
UPDATE: I recommend you now try the Beta-3.03 version first.
https://www.nexusmods.com/site/mods/757
This is the absolute game changer you wished for.

"This all-in-one package allows the users of any DX12 compatible GPUs (from NVIDIA / AMD / Intel) to enable DLSS upscaler and DLSSG Frame Generation in most of the games implementing NVIDIA DLSS 2 / DLSS 3 features."

Installation:
Make sure you locate the right folder for the installation
The path should look something like this:
D:\Programs\Steam\steamapps\common\Rise of the Tomb Raider

Have those things checked during the Installation if you have an NVIDIA GPU:


Have those things checked during the Installation if you have an AMD GPU:


If you have an AMD: After installation find the "DisableNvidiaSignatureChecks.reg" file in that folder and run it.

That's it. You're done. Now it should work. You can modify it with the instructions from the readme file if you wish to.

I haven't spent any time trying to modify or optimize the mod. If you start runninng into problems I suggest combing through the forum posts on the nexusmods page to find out how people are combating certain abnormalities in mod behavior.

If you wanna uninstall it, run the "unins000.exe" in the folder.
DLSS Swapper
"DLSS Swapper is a tool that allows you to conveniently download, manage, and swap DLSS, FSR and XeSS dlls allowing you to upgrade or downgrade DLSS, FSR and XeSS version in a game without the game needing an update."

https://github.com/beeradmoore/dlss-swapper?tab=readme-ov-file



This is an insanely great tool, I am so impressed with it. It could not be easier and reverting the changes is also an inbuilt function.

NOTE: If you're using the DLSS Enabler, you should only swap after the installation.
Graphics Settings
I've done some testing and drawn inspiration from some benchmarking sites and videos.

I know, this video is about Shadow of the Tomb Raider, the sequel to Rise, but the games are very similiar in all aspects, because it was built with the same engine. The graphics options between the games differ a little bit, but a comparison of performance behavior is possible and helpful.


It all depends on your hardware, but the High Preset will be a good baseline to start from. It's a ~20% performance increase in FPS from Very High.
If you can handle Very High, manually adjusting the remaining settings to maximum will only cost you like 5%. That's roughly speaking though, I can't confirm that across the entire game. There will surely be differences in fluidity.
The most demanding settings seem to be Shadows, Ambient Occlusion and PureHair. Which also give the biggest bump in perceived quality, I guess. Textures also of course, but they only demand VRAM.

So after testing stuff for myself and cross referencing it with benchmark results, this is what I came up with:

[Display Settings]
Fullscreen
Enabled
Exclusive Fullscreen
Enabled
Enable DirectX 12
Enable it if you can, this will be necessary to have on to use the DLSS Enabler Mod.
Stereoscopic 3D
Off
Resolution
I'd go as high as you can to max out on quality, as long as you can still achieve 60 FPS.
NVIDIA DLSS
ideally Quality, but you can go to Balanced or Performance if you need more FPS.
Refresh Rate
Choose your monitors maximum Hz.
V-Sync
Off. It can help if you see screen tearing, like sliding in frames and frame slits presenting while looking around. Normally the input lag this introduces isn't bad, but if you combine it when using the Frame Generation from the DLSS mod, it will become noticable. So if you need it, it's recommended that you rather use the V-Sync settings in your GPU Driver instead. I'm not firm where this is in the NVIDIA Control Panel, but in the AMD Driver you would turn on Radeon Anti Lag and Radeon Enhanced Sync to combat that.
Anti Aliasing
This will only be available if you choose to play in native. SSAA2X or SMAA
[Optimized Graphics Settings]
Texture Quality
As high as you have VRAM. For 8GB cards you can go to Very High. 6GB High, 4GB Normal and less than that Low. At least in theory.
Anisotropic Filtering
16, always. In most games this setting rarely ever impacts FPS, while usually improving visual quality massively.
Shadow Quality
Medium
Sun Soft Shadows
On
Depth of Field
On
Level Of Detail
High
Dynamic Foliage
Medium
Ambient Occlusion
On
PureHair
On
Specular Reflection Quality
Normal
Vignette Blur
Disabled
Motion Blur
Disabled
Bloom
Enabled
Tesselation
Enabled
Screen Space Reflections
Enabled
Lens Flares
Enabled
Screen Effects
Enabled
Film Grain
Disabled


[The Settings I use for my Setup]:




Adjust it to your needs. I was just going for a 60FPS lock in 4K. I still have some drops to 50 every now and then, but I generally prefer quality over performance. You can certainly crank this harder for more quality if you have a better card than me.
Better frametimings if you struggle with stutters

https://www.msi.com/Landing/afterburner/graphics-cards

If you cap to your refresh rate and given that your average fps never dips below that, you will have the lowest input latency with no screen tearing and no need for any additional features like V-Sync, Radeon Enhanced Sync / NVIDIA Fast Sync, Radeon Anti Lag / NVIDIA Low Latency (NULL).
A lot of those will in fact make it worse, if combined unfavorably and cause more stutters and have higher input latency, than just capping your Framerate with RTSS. It is hard to believe, since they all sound so good and you'd think everything's cross compatible, but no. There's no one size fits all answer, but I'd say turn everything else off to start off with, cap your FPS with RTSS and then go from there.
If this was in any way helpful for you, I'd appreciate a thumbs up! :)
If you liked it, disliked it, whatever you may feel, please leave a rating. If it helped you out and you're happy with the results, leave a Steam points award. Comments are also appreciated.
Improve DX12 Performance

It is a known thing that people do, more commonly known in multiplayer games where everybody's desperate for every fps they can get. Here another article explaining the same thing, so you don't have to take some random Youtuber's opinion at face value:
https://www.toolify.ai/hardware/unlock-the-full-potential-of-dx12-games-improve-performance-and-stability-2856272

I got around 8% of performance gain out of this. It will depend on your system though how much this does for you. It's said to improve FPS and resolve stutters some systems might experience with DX12. You can do this for all games you know that run on DX12.
12 Comments
RayGun 2 Jul @ 1:17am 
cool! thanks for posting this man
WHSteve 23 May @ 7:35pm 
such as spects would depressing me
WHSteve 23 May @ 7:30pm 
i use dx 11 it is more stable
0p3r4t10n CHAOS  [author] 29 Mar @ 8:56pm 
actually... great suggestion!

I had heard about the DLSS Swapper, but I've never used it. Every now and then I had just swapped out the files manually, but it seems like a great tool, so I'll add it in.
M1ST0R 29 Mar @ 2:52pm 
maybe add DLSS update by DLSS Swapper? i dunno, but probably it maybe help with DLSS work
0p3r4t10n CHAOS  [author] 25 Mar @ 11:27am 
hmm, I didn't notice anything of the sort. I haven't fully finished the game, I might add. I'm like halfway, I believe, but I had zero visual bugs.

I'm guessing this is about the DLSS Enabler? Try switching to FSR or something else to see if the mod is the reason?

Is it on every texture setting that you experience that? If you switch other options around to see if it changes?

Frame Generation could also be the reason
TheTormentor 25 Mar @ 11:22am 
Very nice guide

One question, with tessellation enabled I get black textures, is it only me? Is any other workaround other than disabling it?
0p3r4t10n CHAOS  [author] 23 Mar @ 10:28am 
It should. Even though I have no idea about the Steam Deck, I've seen videos about the mod being done with one for Hogwarts Legacy. So the concept is the same, given the directory is the same with the exe file.
nicksmovingcastle 23 Mar @ 9:03am 
Would this work with steamdeck?
0p3r4t10n CHAOS  [author] 22 Feb @ 8:56am 
thx so much, guys.