Dramatically Improve Game Performance for Devs and Players! (MV and MZ) (second big discovery, GPU related)

[KillerGin]

The reason why I am creating this thread is because I feel this is a VERY important aspect of RPG Maker games that is overlooked by most devs and players alike.

This is my SECOND big discovery, my first discovery being "Massively improving RPG Maker Game performance by updating the NW.js" (Link below)

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Let me Explain:

How come powerful Gaming PCs/Laptops that can run triple A Games like WOW (old I know), Just Cause 4, and Assassins Creed well (in 4k) somehow, for some awful reason, have a very difficult time running RPG Maker MV games?

Is the RPG Maker Engine really that poorly optimized? How can these simple 2d graphics bog down powerful computers?!

It has never made sense to me, and this has really bothered me because I really wanted my game to run well (since its a commercial game)! How could anyone take me seriously as a video game developer if I had a hard time optimizing a simple 2d game?

I looked for answers, (I looked for the entire 5 years it took to create Killer Gin on MV)... and I always ran across explanations that made me understand the complexity of game engines for sure (people saying that 2d game engines are still so complex as justification for poor performance, etc), but still, I was never fully satisfied, I never felt like I found a good reason for RPG Maker MV games running so poorly.

After doing my best to create the very best/optimized game I could make, I just accepted the fact that the RPG Maker MV engine is poorly optimized, and I just had to live with it.

All of this changed once I made a huge discovery which quickly lead to a second huge discovery! OMG!!

The first discovery, a super easy and fast way to upgrade the NW.js of RPG Maker MV to make games run 2x better (Link below)!

:: IMPORTANT :: However, even though the computers started running games 2x better with the NW.js update (Powerful computers initially ran my game at 15-25 FPS was now running my game at 55-60 FPS), this was not enough for me. Even though performance increased more than 2x something still bothered me a lot...... IT NEEDS TO BE 60 FPS! THIS SHOULD NOT BE SO DIFFICULT! There was be something else I am missing! I felt I was close to something...

So I did more digging and I finally found the last piece of the puzzle (I ran experiments on multiple PCs and laptops)

And I found it..... why is this not COMMON knowledge? How come I have never ran into this explanation the entire time I been struggling to optimize my game as much as possible?

This Guide covers my second big discovery that I want to bring to the forefront for all RPG Maker Developers and Players.

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Discoveries:

1) RPG Maker MV uses a super old and crapy version of NW.js.
(I figured out how to update from version 29.4 to 50.2, performance improves by 2x!)

Link: https://forums.rpgmakerweb.com/inde...dramatically-improve-game-performance.131620/

2) By default, if computers have an integrated GPU (MOST?!), the task to run RPG Maker games is delegated to the integrated GPU and not the Dedicated/Performance GPU by default (the crap GPU runs the game, not the good one!!!) (THIS IS WHAT THIS GUIDE IS ALL ABOUT!)

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Let's do this, let's see how we can fix this!

(IMPORTANT: This must be performed on the players/Devs computer, one at at time. Hopefully the engine devs can fix this.)

If a player says that your game runs poorly, or just to make sure that all players are experiencing RPG Maker games at their best, make sure they are using their best GPU!

For NVIDIA GPUs

Go to the search bar and look for the NVIDIA Control panel (This is easier, and different that the Geforce Experience crap)
Don't have it? Download it!



Go to 3D settings.

You will see "Global Settings" and "Program Settings"

This is where you can modify the "GPU rules" of the computer.

By default you can tell your computer to ALWAYS use the best GPU.

However by default, this will NOT be the case, your computer will always try to conserve as much energy/power as possible unless you purposefully change it to BEAST mode. (Gamers should use BEAST mode lol)

Based on your power needs/concerns you may or may not want this to be true.



Whats important is the "Program Settings" tab

Here, you want to make sure that when you run the game, you are making sure that the Dedicated or High Performance GPU is running the game.

Most RPG Maker games will register as "Game.exe" (Find it in the app list)

Choose the "High Performance NVIDIA Processor"



THATS IT!

When you are done, apply changes and restart the game.

Now the game should run BEAUTIFULLY! OMG! 60 FPS EASY!

Even though the game should run at 60 FPS with a dedicated GPU, I still HIGHLY recommend that you optimize the game as much as possible for a low end or integrated GPU just in case! (Some people not never have their good GPU run the game so always plan and optimize for an integrated GPU) So consider updating the NW.js

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All laptops and computers I have use NVIDIA so I am not sure how to update and check this for other GPUs.

Keep in mind, one of my laptops have an "Nvidia Control Panel" with a slightly different looking "Program Settings" tab and one said that the driver itself was not compatible with it.

Regardless the heart of this guide/takeaway remains the same..... make sure the good GPU is running the game!

If you have a different GPU manufacturer and figure out how to make sure the good GPU is running the game, please let me know so that I can update this guide for everyone! Thanks!

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So in conclusion. If a player says that your game runs poorly, or just to make sure that all players are experiencing RPG Maker games at their best, make sure they are using their best GPU!

If they have an integrated (Crap) GPU most likely the computer using this GPU instead of the dedicated (GOOD) GPU. (I think the GPU driver thinks that RPG Maker MV games are light weight! lol!)

Now I feel like, this is the first thing I will ask a player if they say my game is running poorly lol.

Anyways thats the end of my guide, I hope it helped you and your players/fans.

PS: If you are using a laptop, make sure you are using performance mode, especially if the laptop is not plugged in.

PPS: Perhaps RPG Maker will have an update that will somehow make computers use their dedicated/high performance GPU by default like most other games. Is this possible Engine devs?

 

[??????]

afaik if your pc has a dedicated gpu and internal gpu (desktop), the only way that the internal gpu would be used is if you had plugged an hdmi (or other display) cable into the motherboard directly.

If you plugin your display cable into your graphics card, the internal gpu literally does nothing.

You can validate this by opening task manager, and checking how many gpu are showing:


I've no idea if laptops manage things differently. My nvidia control panel literally doesnt even have the option to switch to a different gpu.

Anyway, I could be totally wrong and for some reason both internal and dedicated gpu can be used for different tasks at the same time, but again, afaik, only one will run at a time (unless you use some dedicated thing for multi gpu support, such as nv link or sli ~ which if you notice, needs additional hardware to support it)

Also, by default all settings for an individual program (in nvidia control panel) should be set to 'use global setting' by default. This means that your newly created rm game should** use the exact same settings as a AAA game you installed.

Anyway, not intending to shoot down your post or your findings. I just dont think this approach will be suitable for most people. Like, to expect someone to go and follow a guide for getting stable fps on your indie game? good luck!

But uhh.. yea.. Keep up the hunt! I'm sure you will eventually find the actual cause of the performance issues.

 

[ThreeSixNine]

afaik if your pc has a dedicated gpu and internal gpu (desktop), the only way that the internal gpu would be used is if you had plugged an hdmi (or other display) cable into the motherboard directly.

If you plugin your display cable into your graphics card, the internal gpu literally does nothing.

You can validate this by opening task manager, and checking how many gpu are showing:
View attachment 174773

I've no idea if laptops manage things differently. My nvidia control panel literally doesnt even have the option to switch to a different gpu.

Anyway, I could be totally wrong and for some reason both internal and dedicated gpu can be used for different tasks at the same time, but again, afaik, only one will run at a time (unless you use some dedicated thing for multi gpu support, such as nv link or sli ~ which if you notice, needs additional hardware to support it)

Also, by default all settings for an individual program (in nvidia control panel) should be set to 'use global setting' by default. This means that your newly created rm game should** use the exact same settings as a AAA game you installed.

Anyway, not intending to shoot down your post or your findings. I just dont think this approach will be suitable for most people. Like, to expect someone to go and follow a guide for getting stable fps on your indie game? good luck!

But uhh.. yea.. Keep up the hunt! I'm sure you will eventually find the actual cause of the performance issues.

Actually, I did this in maybe 20 seconds on my laptop and now my game runs consistently at 60 fps, after having been around 30 lately after utilizing quite a few show picture commands to run as HUD buttons.

This upgrade is super simple and super effective.

When I went into my settings, the global was NOT set to high-performance. By simply changing RPG Maker to use the high-performance processor, I saw an instant performance boost.

 

[KillerGin]

All this was tested on 4 Powerful laptops and 2 weak ones (and 1 powerful desktop) and all of them had what I described above.

I am guessing laptops certainly work differently. I am also pretty sure a large portion of RPG Maker game players use laptops and many of them may try to play RPG Maker Games because in general Laptops have less power than Desktops. So when they play RPG Maker games they may be in for a rude awakening, especially if they do not know how to set up their laptop for gaming.

My Mac doesnt allow me to switch because it does not contain an integrated GPU, however some models do and I read (online researching how to switch GPUs on Mac) that you can switch in the options, very similarly (BUT a lot easier) than the NVIDIA process.

It says if you see no option to switch, you do not have an integrated GPU.

Yes, I noticed the laptops, when you check the task manager may put a number near the GPU, this may indicate that you have an integrated GPU.

Generally integrated GPUs are labeled as "GPU0"

And the next one, most likely your dedicated/high performance GPU, will be labeled "GPU1" and so on.

@xDRAGOONx

AWESOME! Glad to hear it helped you.

NOW you are playing with power LOL

 

[??????]

"It says if you see no option to switch, you do not have an integrated GPU."

Trust me, I do. I was gaming (mv games) completely fine with my internal gpu before my graphics card arrived (like 3 years ago now?)

I do not have a laptop, I have a desktop with an intel i7-7700k. it has intel integrated graphics (630 iirc). and a 1060 6gb gpu. If I plug in an hdmi cable to my motherboard, the internal gpu shows in task manager. (which is as expected and described in my previous post)

Anyway. If this helps some folks then I guess thats a good thing. If only it actually addressed the core performance issues with rm instead of only benefiting windows builds.

I guess what bugs me is that its not a viable solution for developers, only for those who are playing rm games on windows (maybe mac too).

 

[KillerGin]

"It says if you see no option to switch, you do not have an integrated GPU."

Oh, my bad, that line was for Mac book pros (in system preferences). I mean it could apply to others who have different programs that govern Global GPU settings, if there are no options to switch, or if only 1 GPU shows up in the drop down menu, you may not have an integrated GPU or may not have the option to use it.

Well it certainly helps us developers as well. I'm sure there are some devs making games, deploying and testing unwittingly using their integrated GPUs who are pulling their hair out trying their best to optimize their game. They may feel much better about their game when testing when it performs well, gives them positive reinforcement to keep developing. We already seen this to be true above (Hi xDragoonX)

Also as developers, it would be in our best interest to ensure that our players are aware of this, so that our games can be played at their best. The more people who use integrated GPUs (which in turn will most likely play our games poorly) the more the negative views on RPG maker games will increase, which is terrible for all of us. I am sure you have heard "RPG Maker MV games are so slow and poorly optimized" well, this is me trying to spread awareness so that people can learn perhaps why it may seem that way and how we can fix it.

 

[Frostorm]

Hmm, strange... I don't see that option in my Nvidia Control Panel. My rig uses a GTX 1660Ti btw.




Edit: I'm a derp... I forgot I have a "K" model CPU. So it's the unlocked version that doesn't feature integrated graphics if I remember correctly.

 

[KillerGin]

Hmm, strange... I don't see that option in my Nvidia Control Panel. My rig uses a GTX 1660Ti btw.
View attachment 174820
View attachment 174822
View attachment 174821

Edit: I'm a derp... I forgot I have a "K" model CPU. So it's the unlocked version that doesn't feature integrated graphics if I remember correctly.

No problem, if you do not have an integrated GPU, you will not see an option for it.

Its great to know for future reference, especially if a person says the game is running poorly.

"K" is prob for Kick@ss computer model lol!

 

[??????]

'k' means your cpu is 'unlocked' and can be overlocked beyond its default speeds.

@KillerGin Yea, for sure its a good thing if people can benefit from it.

 

[SigmaSuccour]

Oh wow, I had no idea people didn't know about this already.
I'll start putting up a notice either on my game's page, or in a text file beside the executable. Encouraging the player to check and make sure their dedicated GPU is the one running the game.

So thank you for bringing this up Freddie!

(Could probably put this notice in a text file titled "Performance Issues". That should grab their attention! )

 

[Milennin]

I don't know, I once tried running my RPG Maker without having my GPU plugged into the PC, and it ran noticeably worse. I feel like it automatically utilises my GPU. But I will try the NW.js update.

(I manually added nw.exe from MZ to NVIDIA Control Panel to check, and it automatically renames it to "Russian Roulette 2(nw.exe)"... Hmm...)

 

[ScorchedGround]

@Frostorm It looks the same for me, but I could just go the "game.exe" and change all the different options manually found in the list below.

I don't know if this has the same effect, but it's worth a shot.

 

[TakeHomeTheCup]

This is all great but... RPG Maker should be able to run smoothly on an integrated GPU... it's an engine that is supposed to be accessible to everyone.

 

[HawkZombie]

Some questions about the test...

Does this apply to MZ as well?

And does the amount/scope of plugins in a project contribute to the slowdown?

 

[??????]

one single poorly written plugin can bring a project to its knees. 500 well written plugins can run without dropping a frame.

unfortunately, the majority are well... not ideal...

 

[Cyberhawk]

Can confirm that this works for MZ too.
Instant easy fix. Majority is the Engine is lackluster itself.

 

[Zakarijah]

So I finally got around to looking into this and I don't have an option to choose a "preferred graphics processor" but I'm also not great on the technical side in this instance, so maybe it's not even something I need to worry about, if that's the case...

 

[KillerGin]

Hey!

Well Im glad its working great for most people.

Nice to hear it also works for MZ. (but bad news, that means MZ uses only the integrated GPU by default and I hope they can update this so it can use the "good" GPU by default)

Yeah, usually if you dont have an option, then your computer only has "one set up", either only using an integrated GPU, OR, only use the dedicated/high performance GPU, either way, thats all you can do lol.

Yes, I highly recommend, that even when you can make the game run on your "good" GPU and it runs great, it doesnt mean that your players know this/will update their GPU to optimize your game by using their Good GPU...... they may run the game on their "Crap" GPU. SO it stands to reason that you SHOULD absolutely optimize your game as much as possible. With that said, I highly recommend updating the NW.js, which grants a huge performance boots. I have a link to my guide above in the original post, (dont forget to update PIXI as well)

 

[HawkZombie]

My OS is Windows 10 Home (64 Bit), CPU is AMD Ryzen 7 2700X 3700Mhz, and my GPU is RTX 2060, with driver version 461.09, and the version of my nVidia Control panel is 8.1.959.0

Mine looks a lot different from yours. What version are you running, and on what Driver? What OS are you using?

While this seems like an OK sort of workaround for some people, it's NOT a solution for the masses. Especially since it seems to be a very select few that can even access these kinds of options (No where in my control panel does it allow me to change my preferred GPU).


I will say, the only games I ever encounter errors with (as far as performance) on my side tend be those with a lot of plugins.

 

[KillerGin]

My OS is Windows 10 Home (64 Bit), CPU is AMD Ryzen 7 2700X 3700Mhz, and my GPU is RTX 2060, with driver version 461.09, and the version of my nVidia Control panel is 8.1.959.0

Mine looks a lot different from yours. What version are you running, and on what Driver? What OS are you using?

While this seems like an OK sort of workaround for some people, it's NOT a solution for the masses. Especially since it seems to be a very select few that can even access these kinds of options (No where in my control panel does it allow me to change my preferred GPU).


I will say, the only games I ever encounter errors with (as far as performance) on my side tend be those with a lot of plugins.

Yeah, well I used a bunch of laptops, a couple were bought in the last couple months, a few were a bit older.

3 had the same exact setup I mentioned, the desktop looked different though it ran the game beautifully, and 1 laptop said that the Nvidia Control panel is "not supported by this driver". (Of course my Mac looks no where close to the same lol)

So the the take away is the same, people should try to spread awareness of this issue, this may be a big reason why RPG maker Games get such a bad rap (people mostly play with their bad CPU so not fair to compare against other games, the engine is not half as bad as it seems).

Yeah, most people may never see/know this is an issue and may never want to/know how to ensure they are using their "good" GPU so you should always optimize as much as possible.

As I said just above your post:

"Yes, I highly recommend, that even when you can make the game run on your "good" GPU and it runs great, it doesnt mean that your players know this/will update their GPU to optimize your game by using their Good GPU...... they may run the game on their "Crap" GPU. SO it stands to reason that you SHOULD absolutely optimize your game as much as possible. With that said, I highly recommend updating the NW.js, which grants a huge performance boots. I have a link to my guide above in the original post, (dont forget to update PIXI as well)"