If you’re playing Assassin’s Creed Shadows but experiencing lag, low FPS, or stutter dont worry. Although there are no voodoo hacks that will repair performance issues because Ubisoft built their own engine, there are an abundance of Windows adjustments and game settings tweaks available that can seriously improve the way your game runs. Let’s smooth out your game!
Optimize Your Windows Settings for Better Performance
Before adjusting in-game settings, let’s ensure your system is optimized for optimal performance.
Turn on Resizable BAR
- Resizable BAR (Base Address Register) allows your CPU to access more of your GPU’s VRAM, improving performance in new games.
- See if your GPU and motherboard support Resizable BAR.
- Turn it on in your BIOS settings.
Turn on Game Mode
- Game Mode assists Windows in prioritizing resources for gaming.
- Navigate to Settings > Gaming > Game Mode.
- Turn Game Mode ON.
Turn on Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling (HAGS) & Windowed Optimizations
- HAGS assists in moving some of the graphical processing to the GPU directly, enhancing efficiency.
- Go to Settings > System > Display > Graphics settings.
- Enable Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling.
Use High-Performance Power Mode
- Ensure your PC is operating at full power to increase FPS.
- Go to Control Panel > Power Options.
- Select High Performance or Ultimate Performance (if supported).
In NVIDIA Control Panel, change Power Management Mode to Prefer Maximum Performance.
Force Low Latency Mode to Ultra in NVIDIA Control Panel:
- Open NVIDIA Control Panel.
- Go to Manage 3D Settings > Low Latency Mode.
- Set it to Ultra to minimize input lag and enhance responsiveness.
Ensure your PC is consuming maximum power to increase FPS.
Disable Memory Integrity & Virtualization-Based Security (VBS)
- Open Windows Security > Device Security.
- Click Core Isolation Details and disable Memory Integrity.
- Restart your PC.
Enable XMP/EXPO Memory Profile
- To achieve the best speed from your RAM, enable XMP (Intel) or EXPO (AMD) in your BIOS.
Now let’s optimize Assassin’s Creed Shadows settings to achieve maximum performance without giving up much visual quality.
Decrease Light Source & Shadow Quality
- Light Source Quality is responsible for the way light diffuses and shadows look. Reducing it can improve FPS considerably.
- All fine micro-shadows vanish at High and below.
- Ultra settings reduce FPS by 20%, while Very High settings reduce it by 12% over Low.
- Lowering these settings can give a noticeable FPS boost.
Adjust Texture Quality Based on Your GPU
The game currently runs better on AMD Radeon GPUs.If you’re using an NVIDIA GPU, setting Texture Quality to High Performance in Nvdia Control Panel can help reduce VRAM usage and stabilize FPS.Use FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) or DLSS (for NVIDIA GPUs) in Balanced or Performance mode for a great mix of quality and FPS.
Final Thoughts
By adjusting your Windows settings and in-game preferences, you can get Assassin’s Creed Shadows to run much smoother. Ubisoft’s engine has its flaws, but these tweaks should give you the best performance available. Try them out and enjoy a lag-free experience!