Why are PC games so poorly optimized?
Why are PC games so poorly optimized?
COD Black Ops 2 uses an updated engine from WaW. I can push it to full settings, but I still experience stuttering at BO2. Consoles that have less power than my PC run much better, yet they seem to prioritize performance over smoothness. My FPS varies between 30 and 60, which is really frustrating. Do consoles invest more in optimization because of their popularity, or is Treyarch not doing its job? Also, titles like Minecraft and GTA IV are often criticized for poor optimization. Why can’t all games be as well-optimized as Dark Souls? I’ve been playing the CoD series recently, and BO2 has been a big letdown.
BO2 is commonly seen as highly compatible with PC settings and performs excellently in many scenarios. This tends to be the case for ports of console titles.
Some game creators release triple-A titles for PC platforms so they can also be enjoyed on other systems. It seems the emphasis on targeting broader audiences and larger budgets helps maximize earnings. The Ubisoft situation stands out as a recent example that caused a significant reaction in the PC gaming scene, suggesting that maintaining comparable visual quality across different machines is preferable to simply running cheaper versions with inferior performance.
I believe my 7850M can manage BO2 quite well. If consoles run these titles smoothly with minimal power usage, my PC should too. Dark Souls 2 plays very well on both my machines and according to reviews, it offers solid optimization. Using Optifine will help utilize multiple cores effectively. Could Mojang improve this aspect? I’m comfortable with Minecraft but still hope games perform as seamlessly on consoles as they do at home.
Dark Souls receives much criticism for the minimal work invested in its PC version. Dark Souls 2 tried a bit more but still wasn’t exceptional. Remember, smooth performance doesn’t equal good optimization. Minecraft was crafted from the ground up without using an existing engine, and as an independent studio, Mojang lacks the resources to focus on optimization efforts. I haven’t played any Call of Duty titles on PC, so I can’t offer an opinion on that matter.
Only a few titles are not well optimized; these tend to be games initially designed for consoles and then quickly ported to PC just to capture some revenue from gamers. BO2, like most console games, uses an engine from the late 90s—ID Tech 3 or Quake 3, released around 1999. It tries to trick the eye by making weapons seem more advanced than they really are. Please cease supporting them financially.
This is more of a port problem than an optimization problem, but it was (initially) locked at 30 FPS on PC at 1024x768. Modding could fix it and they released a patch/ But still. Anything can run minecraft. I run it on pentium 4 with a 9800 gt. I guess it isn't optimized horribly well, but it doesn't take much to run. Also a PS4's GPU is similar to a 7850. Non-(M). And they run at 720p instead of 1080p. So they will likely get better framerates in games than a 7850M at 1080p.
It's quite straightforward to fine-tune for the console. Since they share the same hardware, I'm uncertain about Minecraft, but Java could be involved.