To keep things simple, game clearly needs an update regarding performance...

Based on my own testing and feedback from others, the game -apparently- seems to suffer some sort of memory leak which may occur after quite a long play session, resulting in a lot of unwanted stuttering and frame pacing issues combined with frame generation, typically there is an "easy fix" which is re-launching the game but that can be tiring and inmersion breaking.

These issues in short come from two factors. DirectStorage and a problem with Decima Engine streaming itself (as other ports from Nixxes such as Ghost Of Tsushima work totally fine running DirectStorage) and the second, the LODs, yes the level of detail which is directly tied to the storage obviously and the game's own streaming speed.

So here I'll ist a few things you can try to mitigate these issues most as possible. Which had worked out for me.

Prepare your browser and expect to visit Nexusmods because MODS ARE REQUIRED FOR THIS.


Head to your main Steam LIBRARY page, Horizon Forbidden West > Properties > Betas:

previous_build_1.4.59.0 <- This build, select it and wait for the game to re-download.

Nixxes screwed up in Patch 1.5 BAD and it is very problematic with its frame-pacing issues and stutters. Not an issue in 1.4.

HorizonForbiddenWest.exe
Head to your Steamapps folder where the game is located an open the main folder. Look for
HorizonForbiddenWest.exe > properties > check and mark the "Disable Fullscreen Optimizations" box.

For NVIDIA users it is said that you can force Run in compatibility mode as Windows 8 and in theory it should help aswell.

Also somehow marking the .exe as read only seems to improve things, dunno... but works.

As I suspected, the insane stuttering and framepacing issues originate from DirectStorage itself, yes the "magical" Microsoft's feature which was supposed to improve loading times and make your SSD/HDD a super drive now. Well, wrong. At least in HFW.

Turns out disabling it by removing the two .dll files from the game folder actually fixed most of it to not say nearly ALL of the sutters and frame pacing issues. However the game needs to compensate this loss somehow because without this feature it will introduce constant and intermittent loading screens and shader compilation screens at any given time as you play and missing chunks of the map, this can be totally random.

So to compensate this you need a DiskCache Enabler plugin/mod and it'll do the trick. It enables buffering for your drive and this could actually be a severe improvement for HDD users.

Get it from here:
https://www.nexusmods.com/horizonforbiddenwest/mods/100

Instructions are very simple, you have to extract the files and paste them in the main Horizon Forbidden West folder. But not so fast! You MUST remove DirectStorage. Select both .dll files (dstorage.dll and dstoragecore.dll) and delete them.

Why do I have to remove DirectStorage files?:

Because it overrides DiskCacheEnabler, acts on top of it leaving the mod without any effect whatsoever.

Even if you can play on a mechanical HDD an SSD IS THE WAY TO GO.

DO NOT FORGET TO REMOVE DIRECT STORAGE FILES.
dstorage.dll and dstoragecore.dll

Seriously, you have no idea how broken LODs in HFW are... or at least this "upgraded" version of Decima and its ridiculous poor asset streaming. It even happens on PS5 so expect it x2 here on PC. But there is a fix for that.

https://www.nexusmods.com/horizonforbiddenwest/mods/50

Exctract and copy-paste to the main game folder.

Turns out that the in-game option for detail quality / level of detail controls the overall mesh and models quality but not the actual draw distance these are rendered.

What @Nixxes should have done, was split this setting into two, in a way so that they acts like this:

The actual detail quality setting should be something like a mesh/model quality then another one for the draw distance which control when and where meshes should start loading into their higher or lower quality variants.

Currently you set the setting to medium and you'll spot a lot of flaws, such as details in character necks, it removes a lot of detail which is right on front of the camera, set it to high and it'll render stuff in mega quality that is supposed to be far.

I was able to mitigate the stutter a lot with my own mod (Disk Cache Enabler without DirectStorage) and tweaking the config file from this mod in the following way...

Open "mod-config.ini" with notepad++ or regular notepad scroll down a bit until you reach this section and edit as I did here: I've made two presets, use one of them:

[[AssetOverride]] # Quality of life: Increase map tile level of detail (LOD)
Enable = true # Default: Off

[[AssetOverride.Patch]]
ObjectTypes = "TileBasedStreamingStrategyResource"
Path = "HighLODDiameter"
Value = "1.5" # Default: 3. Higher is better.

[[AssetOverride.Patch]]
ObjectTypes = "TileBasedStreamingStrategyResource"
Path = "MediumLODDiameter"
Value = "4.0" # Default: 5. Higher is better.

[[AssetOverride.Patch]]
ObjectTypes = "GameViewResource"
Path = "InternalLODRangeModifier"
Value = "1.3" # Default: 1. Lower is better.

[[AssetOverride]] # Quality of life: Increase map tile level of detail (LOD)
Enable = true # Default: Off

[[AssetOverride.Patch]]
ObjectTypes = "TileBasedStreamingStrategyResource"
Path = "HighLODDiameter"
Value = "1.3" # Default: 3. Higher is better.

[[AssetOverride.Patch]]
ObjectTypes = "TileBasedStreamingStrategyResource"
Path = "MediumLODDiameter"
Value = "3.8" # Default: 5. Higher is better.

[[AssetOverride.Patch]]
ObjectTypes = "GameViewResource"
Path = "InternalLODRangeModifier"
Value = "1.5" # Default: 1. Lower is better.

After this, save the file. Do one game launch, load into the world and see if the file has not re-written itself, if so, mark it as read only.

This is needed otherwise it might reset itself. At the cost of slightly (not too dramatic) lower object quality at shorter distance with a bit of popping-in some cases (higher-res model loading at closer distances) I've not only reduced the stutter but gained around 10-15+fps depending on the location.

The whole idea of this, is to reduce VRAM usage so that the game doesn't attempt to alocate more than of what it already has available. Aka the famous "memory leak". This combined with DiskCache Enabker and DStorage gone will help considerably, due the DirectStorage intensive CPU usage.

These settings should be mandatory for HDD users (if there are) and serves proof how BADLY this port of the Decima Engine is, because you can see LOD issues and popping even on PS5 so Nixxes tried to do their best yet couldnt. The officialy solution is what I said above. Two individual settings. One for meshes another one for actual draw distance.

If anybody is struggling with their game I suggest replicating these settings.

These are nothing but bloat and have been reported to cause issues related to mouse movement, so feel free to disable them, might help to reduce input lag and aiming stutter

Open up your Registry Editor, (Win + R > regedit) and head here:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Guerrilla Games\Horizon Forbidden West Complete Edition\Input

Here look for these entries:

EnableMouseSmoothing
EnableLibScePad
EnableWindowsGamingInput

Just edit them one by one and set them to zero. A value of 0.

If done correctly you might feel the in-game sensivity is now "slower" it is actually accurate now, mouse acceleration has been disabled entirely so it takes a raw input straight from your mouse. You can increase it a tiny bit.

Get the last available version of FSR3 version 3.1.4 with significant improvements to image quality overall, anti-aliasing and less shimmering grainy effect

https://gpuopen.com/fidelityfx-super-resolution-3/

Download the SDK v1.1.4 package, extract itm head to bin and copy the new amd_fidelityfx_dx12.dll into the main HFW folder.

Works for EVERY GPU brand.

The last upscaler version from NVIDIA, works with FSR3 Frame Generation aswell.

Ideal for RTX 20/30 series users who want the image quality of DLSS but are locked out of DLSS Frame Generation because Jensen said so. (I do not recommend playing HFW with Lossless Scaling as it always caps your FPS to your monitors max refresh rate, hence less room for FG to work with)

Get it here:
https://www.techpowerup.com/download/nvidia-dlss-dll/

Extract and paste the .dll files, replace them in the game folder.

DO MAKE A BACKUP FIRST!

The last released upscaling solution from Intel, works perfectly combined with FSR3 Frame Generation.

Download the package from here:
https://github.com/intel/xess/releases/tag/v2.0.1

Install the update heading to XeSS_SDK-2.0.1/bin > copy the new libxess.dll to your main HorizonForbiddenWest game folder. Replace the file.

XeSS 2 is to me, the best upscaler to go at the moment for Intel/AMD users.

Combined with FSR3.1 FG it is the closest you'll get to DLSS on an Intel/AMD card.

I strongly recommend it.

RTSS - RivaTuner aka the most used and most popular FPS limiter...

I personally tried both with it and without. No major difference whatsoever.

Here is the best tip on how to use it:

If your game can achieve at least 60fps without FG, native framerate, cap it at 60, VSYNC OFF. This will grant the absolute and most stability. 60fps is a good number and considering this is a mediocre console port it is the ideal number. Not more. Not less.

If you are obligued to utilize Frame Generation to achieve at least 60+FPS leave it Uncapped.

ISLC - Intelligent Standy List Cleaner:

If you have ISLC, which is a little program to free some ram, make sure to add the main executable to the exclusion list, as it will constantly clear up the stand-by list everytime of how much RAM the game uses leading to even MORE stuttering due its intensive CPU demanding polling rate.

So either close it or add HorizonForbiddenWest.exe to the exclusion list.

TL;DR: Avoid ISLC, and if you must use it, add the game .exe to the exclusion list.

Pagefile management it is fully Automatic, managed by Windows.

Windows is smart on how it manages the system paging file, leave it AUTO.

For those who are stubborn... Ideally you don't want to mess with the paging file but if you insist on it.... do x1.5 times your total ammount of physical DDR RAM (not VRAM) for the minimun value and x3 times maxium value...

About Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling: (HAGS)

Especially for Nvidia RTX users.

Head to your Windows gaming settings and enable HAGS if it is disabled, then test if it helps in this specific title only or not, if not, disable again.. It is always "better" to have HAGS enabled in general but there can be exceptions and HFW & Windows 11 with HAGS, had issues in the past regarding the driver version.

Can't tell for AMD as it does not show up for me to begin with (means I dont use it because I cant enable it to begin with). But I've read many times HAGS and this game do not work too well but this depends on the driver version and how the game makes use of it.

To keep it simple, if it was enabled then try disabling it, and viceversa. Likely Nvidia here is the most affected by it. Trial and error.

If you are on NVIDIA:

You should open up your Nvidia control panel or driver interface and set a custom total shader cache size of 10gb.

Smart Access Memory / Resizable BAR:

I know this is not the most optimal thing to do, but if you are on a 8 or <8 GB VRAM graphics card you could try disabling this feature and see how it performs.

Use Exclusive Fullscreen. This is the best way, though it isn't really exclusive because this is a DX12 game it will improve things.

If you are a Radeon user I suggest you to open up your Radeon panel, see the HFW profile and Disable Anti-Lag and set FreeSync to On if there is. -.

Same goes for NVIDIA enable G-Sync/freesync and any disable other type of latency optimizations.

Let the game handle it.

I rather prefer to deal with a little of screentearing than additional input lag.


TEXTURE QUALITY:

If your GPU VRAM capacity is over 8gb: High or higher around 12gb.
If your GPU VRAM capacity is of 8gb: Medium or High with LOD tweaks from the section above.
If your GPU VRAM capacity is of 4gb: Low
If your GPU VRAM capacity is of 2gb: R.I.P.

SHADOWS: Always Medium. Ideal balance. Hardly any noticeable difference.

DETAIL QUALITY: Medium initially. If you have good ammount of VRAM you can increase it at the cost of lowering the texture quality. Currently the level of detail is broken and it causes a memory leak.

However if you've done the tweaks from earlier you MIGHT can combine High textures with High detail quality. Expect problems in the Burning Shores however.

Set this to TV and Stereo. It will make the game slightly louder. Because sounds and dialogue are really difficult to hear, they play at a really low volume somehow.

In-Game Sharpening slider, leave at 0. DO NOT USE IT! - Use ReShade instead.

If you are an AMD user - Disable/delete AMD Noise Supression. It "could" be one of the responsables for HFW playing at a really low volume.

So far, these tweaks got me to a very solid experience despite the normal frame drops typical of the just released game which will be adressed soon I hope.

Apparently there are rumours of gamepad controller related issues. My suggestion is to use a controller or if you want/cant remove it, head to the game's steam properties, controller and disable any type of input and steam input. Let the game handle it or do not use it at all. Unplug it.

You might want to consider rolling back to version 1.4.

Bring Steam to your main LIBRARY section: Horizon Forbidden West > Properties > Betas:
previous_build_1.4.59.0 <- This one. The build from May 2nd, 2024.

Keep in mind this patch will NOT have FSR 3.1 FG.

So There will be NVIDIA DLSS, XeSS and FSR2 as available upscalers, only DLSS FG will be supported.

If this older build is proven to be more stable and works okay, you can easily mod Optiscaler to it and trick the game into thinking your PC is running an NVIDIA card so you can enable DLSS FG in-game while the mod injects either XeSS FG or FSR 3.1 FG replacing Reflex for Anti-Lag 2 / XeLL.

The Gameplay Tweaks and Cheat Menu mod should work in version 1.4.

https://youtu.be/wSca__JcPco?t=34

Download these from Nexus Mods:
-Disk Cache Enabler HFW.
-Gameplay Tweaks and Cheat Menu.

Then:
-Install both mods, copy-paste em' to root HFW folder.
-Delete DirectStorage from main HFW folder (dstorage & dstoragecore.dll)
-Configure mod-config.ini with preset A or B according to your need.

As a last resource but recommended - downgrade to older version
-HFW > Properties > Betas: previous_build_1.4.59.0
-Install any FSR 3 FG mod, Optiscaler/Uniscaler because 1.4 does not have one.

BOTH FSR3 FG mods will work long as you select TAA (without upscale) + DLSS Frame Generation in-game. Do not enable in-game sharpening. Both mods work.

If you wonder. I have a RX6600 8GB VRAM. My game is on SSD (it is a must). I can play this with high textures and a mix of other medium settings generally around 60fps. My system has 16GB of total physical RAM and here are the numbers: It doesnt use more than 12.7gb of RAM and with the High textures the VRAM reaches 7500mb or so. It can go near a gigabyte lower if I set them to medium, and everything runs from a 2017 CPU a Ryzen 5 1600 so you can have an idea of how bottlenecked I am, yet game runs around 45-55 FPS and up to 90 to 110 FPS with FSR3 Frame Generation.

Yes. It is a heavy game to move in any rig.

I hope this guide helps!