Let’s be honest, there’s a lot of advice about optimizing your PC for gaming, and much of it involves spending money. But what if you want to get better performance from your current setup without a full upgrade?
We’ve all seen guides claiming a magical 100 FPS boost with one click. The reality is, that’s uncommon. While some tweaks are well-known, this article won’t repeat generic tips you’ve heard before.
Instead, we’ll take a practical approach. We’ll focus on essential optimizations that actually work, explain them clearly, and keep it simple. Think of this as a “greatest hits” of crucial tweaks, easy to understand and implement.
Update your Windows and drivers to optimize your gaming PC
Keeping your system up-to-date is like giving your PC a regular tune-up. The latest drivers for your graphics card, chipset, and operating system can significantly boost performance.
Updating your graphics card drivers is especially crucial. They unlock new features, fix bugs, and sometimes even improve performance. Aim to update them monthly or whenever a major game is released.
Avoid third-party driver utility tools, as they can cause more problems than they solve. Stick to official updates from your hardware manufacturer or Microsoft for the best results.
Also, remember to keep Windows updated. While it may not seem directly related to gaming, Windows updates often include performance improvements and important security patches.
Keep XMP or EXPO enabled
Your RAM is essential for delivering data to your processor and graphics card. By enabling XMP (Extreme Memory Profile) for Intel or EXPO (Extended Profiles for Overclocking) for AMD, you can unlock additional performance from your RAM.
What are XMP and EXPO? They are pre-configured overclocking profiles for your RAM, allowing it to run at its intended faster speed. This can lead to smoother gameplay and potentially higher frame rates.
How much faster can your performance get? The gains vary, but some users report improvements of 10-15% after enabling XMP/EXPO. It’s a free boost worth considering!
However, enabling XMP/EXPO involves overclocking your RAM. It’s generally safe with these profiles, but always check your motherboard manual for specific instructions before proceeding.
Enable Resizable BAR (Smart Access Memory) to optimize your PC for gaming
Modern graphics cards use VRAM (Video Random Access Memory) to store textures, models, and other game data. Traditionally, the CPU accesses this VRAM in smaller chunks, which can create a bottleneck and limit performance.
Enter Resizable BAR (ReBAR) for NVIDIA and Smart Access Memory (SAM) for AMD. These technologies allow your CPU to access all the VRAM at once, improving communication and potentially leading to smoother gameplay.
The performance gains can be modest, but some games see noticeable improvements. It’s a free tweak that can unlock extra frames. However, not all games support ReBAR or SAM, and in rare cases, enabling it might reduce performance. Fortunately, you can easily turn it on and off in your BIOS settings, so you can experiment to see what works best for your specific games.
Turn off the Game Bar on your Windows gaming PC
Windows includes a built-in game recording tool called Game Bar. While it offers useful features, it can consume system resources in the background. To optimize your PC for gaming, you should turn it off.
If you don’t use Game Bar to record gameplay or access its features, disabling it can provide a slight performance boost, freeing up resources for your games.
Turning off Game Bar doesn’t remove it permanently. You can always activate it manually using the keyboard shortcut (Windows Key + G) whenever you need to capture a highlight or check performance stats.
Enable Game Mode to optimize your PC for gaming
Windows 10 and 11 feature a built-in tool called Game Mode, designed to optimize your PC for gaming by allocating more resources to your games. It achieves this by temporarily disabling background processes that could otherwise consume resources and potentially slow down your games.
Here’s how to enable Game Mode:
- Click the Start button and type “Settings” in the search bar.
- Select “Settings” to open the Windows Settings app.
- In the Settings window, click on “Gaming.”
- From the left-hand menu, choose “Game Mode.”
- Toggle the switch under “Game Mode” to turn it on.
With Game Mode enabled, Windows will prioritize your games when launched, potentially leading to smoother gameplay. However, it’s worth noting that while Game Mode is generally beneficial, its impact on performance may vary depending on the game.
Disable background apps to boost performance
The final tip for optimizing your PC for gaming is to disable background processes. These processes can consume valuable resources necessary for smooth gameplay. However, it’s essential to be selective about which processes to disable.
Apps like Discord or game launchers typically don’t significantly impact performance and can be left running. However, other programs, especially work-related ones like Slack or Teams, can consume memory and processing power.
Before launching a game, close any unnecessary apps from your taskbar. This action frees up RAM and CPU cycles, potentially improving performance. For a more permanent solution, disable unnecessary programs from starting up with your system. This prevents them from using resources in the background.