Engine.ini Tweaks In Train Sim World 2?

Discussion in 'TSW General Discussion' started by Raffomatiko, Aug 24, 2020.

  1. Raffomatiko

    Raffomatiko New Member

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    Hey,
    I was wondering if anyone has already tried the engine.ini tweaks from Train Sim World 2020?
    I think the graphics of TSW2 could be even better with it, but I´m not sure if the changes does really apply.
    Has anyone improved the graphics with the engine.ini tweaks?
    Have a nice day!
     
  2. maxipolo12

    maxipolo12 Well-Known Member

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    An answer from DTG about all possibilities would be also a nice input !
     
  3. Anthony Pecoraro

    Anthony Pecoraro Well-Known Member

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    I was able to set the volume to 200%.
     
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  4. hightower

    hightower Guest

    Yes. It’s the same game, so the same tweaks work.
     
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  5. olsbyn

    olsbyn Active Member

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  6. Trenomarcus

    Trenomarcus Well-Known Member

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    In this entirely new game, the old tweaks work just fine. I've just copied-pasted mine from the old .ini to the new one, no problems at all.
     
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  7. ducatiant

    ducatiant Member

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    Same here, pasted the same values in to improve the colours and contrast and worked a treat.

    Ant
     
  8. Sharon E

    Sharon E Well-Known Member

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    Just applied the "High Power" settings into my ini file and I think that I see some difference. It has not effected the performance on my computer which is a gaming system from Alien. Will play around with different routes to see.
     
  9. Celendis

    Celendis Member

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    While I appreciate the changing of these settings, does anyone know what the default values are? That way I would be able to understand just what is being adjusted.
     
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  10. Rudolf

    Rudolf Well-Known Member

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    The settings are Unreal engine settings, so they just will work, but you may need to change some values and just experiment again with them, because DTG also did some work on graphics.
     
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  11. hightower

    hightower Guest

    ^^ This

    If you use the old eye adaption tweaks on the new Sand Patch Grade, for example, it will be pitch black. Truth is you don’t need many tweaks now...until DTG do some fundamental work to it we’re limited with what can be done.

    The tweaks are probably best used to stop the scenery pop-in and help texture loading. You can also force the game to load higher quality models further out etc. It probably hasn’t escaped you that the menu option for motion blur doesn’t work and needs resetting everytime you start the game. You can force it off in the engine.ini file should you wish.

    Much beyond that, imho, is unnecessary now.
     
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  12. CC Johnson

    CC Johnson Active Member

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    @ hightower
    Could you kindly spell out the tweaks you are using and consider useful, please?
     
  13. hightower

    hightower Guest

    Will do, as soon as I get chance. I’ve learnt from other people who are far better than me at this and the guide that ‘olsbyn’ links above is really very handy. It’s worth a read as it’ll help you understand my settings better.

    It’s worth remembering that those suggestions were written when TSW really needed them. I think there are some that are worthwhile now but it only needs a couple. Beyond that going forward it’s down to DTG.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 30, 2020
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  14. CC Johnson

    CC Johnson Active Member

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    Firstly, thank you very much.
    And I already read it and used it during TSW1 times, though not all points are useful and working.

    And that's it. I am asking for you experience and opinion regarding TSW2, since I haven't tried it myself yet this time around and don't have the time and nerve to do so right now.
    But I'd be thankful for your or anyone else's input.
     
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  15. hightower

    hightower Guest

    Here you go, my settings tweaks...

    [SystemSettings]
    r.StaticMeshLODDistanceScale=0.70
    foliage.LODDistanceScale=5
    r.TextureStreaming=0
    r.ViewDistanceScale=2

    The descriptions for these from pschlik's guide...

    r.StaticMeshLODDistanceScale=*decimal*
    While view distance scale makes objects load in from further away, they won't always look very good from further away. This option allows you to force higher quality models to show up further away from you. It works in an odd way, but the closer to 0 it is, the higher quality models you will see. Without going overboard r.StaticMeshLODDistanceScale=0.75 helps stuff look a bit better.

    foliage.LODDistanceScale=*integer*
    This LOD setting applies to stuff like trees and bushes. One common complaint is that the transition between tree LODs is too noticable. Set this value to something greater than 1, and trees will render at higher quality further away. Not only will that look better, it will also make the transition between LODs happen further away, which looks a lot better than it changing up front. Before you go to crazy, remember that this is a multiplier, setting it to 20 will render trees 20 times further away...which is a lot. If you want to be reasonable, use foliage.LODDistanceScale=3

    r.ViewDistanceScale=*integer*
    This is a nice and simple draw distance multiplier which applies to static scenery-most notably, the railroad tracks and ties. The default value is 1, so whatever number you insert in place of "value" is the multiplier for how far away things will be drawn. This is the most resource intensive command of them all, as the extra objects rendered will massively increase RAM usage and slightly increase GPU usage. A modest example is r.ViewDistanceScale=5, which renders scenery at 5 times the distance.

    The Texture Streaming one disables a UE4 feature designed to help performance. Many people have found it can have a whacky effect sometimes so putting this in there means the engine loads all textures at their intended resolution.

    Bare in mind these work for me in 4K Ultra with TAA enabled. They all help draw distance without going overboard for my system. Give them a try and you can always adjust the numbers to suit your system & settings.

    HTH.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 30, 2020
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  16. CC Johnson

    CC Johnson Active Member

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    Thank you very much.
    One more question: How much performance do these eat (fps)?
     
    Last edited: Aug 30, 2020
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  17. hightower

    hightower Guest

    It really varies by machine. I’m still getting a pretty consistent 60fps but with a less powerful machine you might see different results. If I were to lose a couple for performance sake you could drop the texture streaming and view distance ones, and change the figures of the others to the guides recommended settings.
     
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  18. Amtrak131

    Amtrak131 Active Member

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    Here is my settings

    [SystemSettings]
    r.ViewDistanceScale=10
    r.StaticMeshLODDistanceScale=0
    foliage.LODDistanceScale=5
    r.MipMapLODBias=-3
    r.TextureStreaming=0
    r.MaterialQualityLevel=0
    r.TemporalAASharpness=1.0
    r.SSR.Quality=2
    r.Color.Mid=0.6
     
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  19. Callum B.

    Callum B. Well-Known Member

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    This is not an Engine.ini tweak but it is a massive performance bump for me: forcing the game to use DX12. Right click on the game in your Steam library, hit Properties, and Set Launch Options, type -DX12 into the box and confirm. I was able to almost double my frame rate demanding areas like Cumberland Yard and Koln Hbf. I could probably get even higher framerates with this CPU but my GPU is now the bottleneck!

    DX11 (40 FPS):
    upload_2020-8-30_13-35-40.png

    DX12 (68 FPS):
    upload_2020-8-30_13-36-35.png

    DX11 (37 FPS):
    upload_2020-8-30_13-39-43.png

    DX12 (61 FPS):
    upload_2020-8-30_13-40-4.png

    I have no idea why DX12 isn't the default (it is on Xbox) but it make much better use of my 6-core CPU than DX11. I wonder if this will improve performance as much on lower or higher core count CPUs?

    My specs:
    Xeon E5-1650 v3
    GTX 1070
    32GB DDR4-2133R ECC

    Cheers.
     
    Last edited: Aug 30, 2020
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  20. Callum B.

    Callum B. Well-Known Member

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    Here's San Francisco as a bonus.

    DX11 (50 FPS):
    upload_2020-8-30_13-47-58.png

    DX12 (83 FPS):
    upload_2020-8-30_13-48-10.png
     
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  21. maxipolo12

    maxipolo12 Well-Known Member

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    Seriously ? There is a simple bump as this ?
    I'm gonna try it asap :D
     
  22. hightower

    hightower Guest

    Looks good! Is the game stable running under DX12?
     
  23. maxipolo12

    maxipolo12 Well-Known Member

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    WTF dude :D

    DX11
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Now i have to test by scenarios but, the fluidity in Aachen station its like day and night + 20 fps.

    HELLO DTG, please explain !!!!
     
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  24. Callum B.

    Callum B. Well-Known Member

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    Mostly, yes. I have a texture streaming issue when new tiles are loaded whereby the cab becomes low-res for a few frames, but it was easily fixed by disabling texture streaming in the Engine.ini. I have not had any other problems. Let me know how it works for you and what CPU you have. It seems to be a nice bump to CPUs with more than four cores, but quad-cores fare better on DX11.
     
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  25. hightower

    hightower Guest

    Just given it a go. Something (I can’t figure out what but suspect it’s V-Sync in Nvidia CP) is limiting it to 60fps which is my 4K monitors refresh rate.

    That aside I tried a service I did last night. Ryzen 3900x & a 2080ti on D3D11 in 4K Ultra around Koln it could drop into the 40-50fps range until you cleared the built up area. It’s now a rock solid 60. When I get chance to get rid of whatever’s limiting it I’m sure I’ll see significantly better FPS, although 60 is absolutely fine given my monitor. I’d also say the game is stuttering less too now.

    It does beg the obvious question - if such a massive performance jump is available to DTG then why is the game not natively running on DX12?! Obviously it needs some work on their part to make it stable but still....

    ps This is probably going to be a game changer for a lot of people. Good spot!
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 31, 2020
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  26. Callum B.

    Callum B. Well-Known Member

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    Yes, that does sound like Nvidia CP diablerie.
    Do report back if you get it sorted. With your hardware configuration I am anxious to see what kind of performance can be found around Koln. It is a very exciting development.
     
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  27. hightower

    hightower Guest

    It’ll probably be this afternoon before I get chance to take another look at it (kids!) but will let you know when I get chance.
     
  28. hightower

    hightower Guest

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  29. Callum B.

    Callum B. Well-Known Member

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    Ahah, yes that is where I learned this trick from. Hopefully DTG will develop it further since they are forced by Microsoft to use DX12 on the Xbox anyway.
     
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  30. hightower

    hightower Guest

    Koln station (in cab) in the ICE 3 on 4K Ultra, TAA & Vsync on and the ini tweaks above (I’ve also added tweaks to the shadows from the guide);

    DX11= 59fps
    DX12 = 77fps

    A noticeable difference for sure. I’ve limited the FPS again to 60 (because the game really doesn’t need anymore & it’s pointless going higher on a 60hz monitor) and now, micro stutters aside, that 60 is bulletproof. Under DX11 it was often not able to maintain it, dropping to 40 odd in places.

    I think they’ll be able to unlock some serious performance here if they develop the game to properly work with DX12. Why on earth wouldn’t you?!
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 31, 2020
  31. jackthom

    jackthom Active Member

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    Going back to engine.ini tweaks I’m running the Northern Trans Pennine route (still on TSW2020 at the moment) and wondered if the shadows cast by trees and other trackside objects can be set to draw further in the distance.
    At present when the sun is low they very noticeably suddenly appear a few hundred yards in front of the train.

    I’ve applied a few other tweaks for foliage drawing etc but these haven’t improved shadows.
     
  32. Anthony Pecoraro

    Anthony Pecoraro Well-Known Member

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    No
     
  33. hyperlord

    hyperlord Well-Known Member

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  34. robski

    robski Member

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    I tryed it, and damn so much more fps.
    I got about 110 fps in Cumberland yard on a scenario.
    However.. if you go with a loco thats edited in the livery editer it will crash for me :(
     
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  35. Callum B.

    Callum B. Well-Known Member

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    I can confirm that this is an issue. Disappointing for sure.
     
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  36. hightower

    hightower Guest

    jackthom,

    To elaborate a bit further, any other changes to things like shadow draw etc. can only be done by DTG now. Until they decide to give scalable options and stop setting the game up to cater for the lowest common denominator we’re stuck with it.
     
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  37. hightower

    hightower Guest

    FWIW (and I’ve not bothered with the livery editor etc) it’s absolutely rock solid for me - touch wood. The difference is significant - bullet proof 60fps, even at rush hour in San Francisco! Noticeably it’s using 2-3GB more VRAM than DX11 did.

    I know some people are having issues with it but I’m a happy camper at least.

    *edited to add I’ve just tried Bakerloo for the first time with DX12 and these ini tweaks and it’s giving me solid 60fps (capped) going through the Wembley area. That was in the 40’s with DX11.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 1, 2020
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  38. Dominik Tuchowicz

    Dominik Tuchowicz Member

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    They could actually sell it as performance DLC (I mean their marketing and creators engine.ini).
    I don't get it. They probably know that it helps on any GPU that have onboard DX12 support and TBH any DX11 native card won't run this game well anyway, so why bottleneck anyone? It could probably help with AMD CPU crashes as well.
     
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  39. crrispy

    crrispy Member

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    Well, big thanks for the DX12 option. Massive fps improvement!
    But seems to crash when you try to load a livery. Needs a DX11 and a DX12 shortcut on the desktop then..
     
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2021
  40. solicitr

    solicitr Well-Known Member

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    "type -DX12 into the box and confirm."

    "And confirm?" I get the box and can enter the command, but there is no "confirm," "apply," "OK" or "save" button at all- no way to tell if I've done anything.
     
  41. GrayDawg

    GrayDawg Well-Known Member

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    Just put it in there. You used to have to confirm, but they changed the layout on the steam options, not that long ago me thinks. But yeah, just type it in there should be enough. (does not work with the livery editor and custom liveries)
     
  42. Monder

    Monder Well-Known Member

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    Does it also crash, when AI is using liveries?
     
  43. crrispy

    crrispy Member

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    Hello, no idea, how can I check that?
     
  44. solicitr

    solicitr Well-Known Member

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    In my experience, and that of many (though apparently not everyone), DX12 causes the game to crash any time it encounters a custom (Livery Designer) livery.
     
  45. kosti.nuuja

    kosti.nuuja Well-Known Member

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    I turned DX12 on, and I have seen nothing improving on FPS. (But Munich station became less laggy, which is good.)
     
  46. Yerolo

    Yerolo Well-Known Member

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    Is there any tweak that can be made to reduce the amount of tree popin on Clinchfield ? I find it really distracting...
    I'm not sure if its a view distance thing or LOD

    I tried playing around with the r.StaticMeshLODDistanceScale & foliage.LODDistanceScale variables, but it doesn't seem to make any difference at all
     
  47. Callum B.

    Callum B. Well-Known Member

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    You can try foliage.DitheredLOD, which smooths out the transition. I have mine set to 5 and it looks nice, though I don't know how much the tree pop-in bothers you compared to myself.

    Cheers
     
  48. Yerolo

    Yerolo Well-Known Member

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    Thanks

    I will try playing with the foliage.DitheredLOD variable and see how it goes. To explain what I am speaking of, it's easier to show it. If you go to 35m 00s inthe video below and watch the trees closest to the track appear and disappear constantly, this is what I am referring to. Maybe it doesnt bother others as much as it does me lol

     
  49. Callum B.

    Callum B. Well-Known Member

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    Oh wow, that's pretty horrid. I don't experience that at all and these are the relevant Engine.ini settings I use:

    Code:
    r.ViewDistanceScale=2
    foliage.LODDistanceScale=3
    foliage.DitheredLOD=5
    r.StaticMeshLODDistanceScale=0.3
    Hope it works for you.

    Cheers
     
  50. Rob39

    Rob39 Well-Known Member

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    Is it worth trying to figure an ini command for livery designer layer limit?
     

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