Project CARS operates extremely poorly.
Project CARS operates extremely poorly.
You've encountered performance issues with Project CARS on your R9 290 and 4670k. It seems the AMD GPU isn't handling the game smoothly, especially at lower frame rates. The 15.5 beta drivers claimed to improve performance by 17%, but they didn't make a noticeable difference. Even with ultra settings turned off, motion blur and antialiasing were off, and SMAA was set to medium. Your GPU usage was high, indicating strain. Many users report similar struggles, so it's not uncommon for games to lag or stutter on this hardware.
If you're open to sharing, posting your current graphics settings and drivers could help others diagnose the problem. While some people say AMD cards run well, it might be worth checking if your setup aligns with community recommendations. Consider testing other games or adjusting settings further to see if improvements appear.
Currently awaiting my 290 back from RMA, but had similar issues. Have you tried running High details and not Ultra (I know you should not have to, but see how it performs) The main issue is the PhysX (not physics, thats diff), the PhysX particles are using APEX physX, cannot be run off the AMD GPU, but the CPU, tanking performance.
That's quite surprising. I attempted to run it on reduced settings, but it still struggled to maintain good frame rates across all tracks. The performance was poor, and it seemed to have issues with PhysX. On my system, an R9 290X actually runs slightly better than a 660TI. I'm going to look for something more challenging to test. This situation would definitely be hilarious if I hadn't been eagerly anticipating the release.
It shouldn't be that way. The 290 can handle significantly more frames per second in Project Cars. Perhaps a fresh driver setup using DDU would help.
I still own my 7950, which drops to the low 80s and mid 50s in Pcars. I made a firm decision a few hours back and ordered a GTX970. It came with $310, two free games, and a $10 discount. I’m excited about The Witcher 3 and the upcoming Batman title. The MSI card will be delivered on Wednesday.
Adjust reflections and shadows to a moderate level, disable AA, and ensure all other settings can operate at high performance.
It works really well for high FPS, but only if there aren't many cars ahead during rain. When it rains and more models appear, performance drops fast.
Notably, Project Cars uses PhysX on the CPU whether you're using an Nvidia or AMD graphics card, which suggests the issue isn't related to the GPU.
Don't fall for the hype around the 970—those monkey comments from AMD and Slightly Mad aren't worth the hype.