The Witcher 3 Remastered: PC Performance Review + Optimised Settings [Digital Foundry]

[u/MythBuster2]

https://youtu.be/MIwkw4K7xGI

Having already delivered the Complete Edition, CD Projekt RED still has plans for The Witcher 3, hence the arrival of the controversial Remastered release - and while it has some key improvements, there are still some issues. In our PC performance review, we present the top-line changes to the game then compare the hotfix 5.00C version to the latest patch 5.01 before we dive head-first into those all-important optimised settings.

Note on texture quality/VRAM: The on-screen VRAM figures are from RTX 5090 testing at 4K DLAA with RT disabled. The recommendation of High textures for 8GB GPUs is based on separate RTX 4060 testing, also with RT disabled, where VRAM usage remained below 7GB.

Article: https://www.digitalfoundry.net/features/the-witcher-3-wild-hunt-remastered-pc-represents-a-generational-shift-but-youll-need-optimised-settings

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[u/ThatGreenM-M]

This game has actually been a great use case for the dlss bypass mods. I'm using x2 frame gen with RT on a 3080 Ti, upscaling on quality and getting about 70-80 fps with just a smidge of input latency

[u/OhHaiMarc → u/ThatGreenM-M]

Dlss for sm86 has been such a game changer for my evga ftw3 3080ti.

[u/horrowley → u/ThatGreenM-M]

Same but using refinedpt mod for path tracing.

[u/ThatGreenM-M → u/horrowley]

Same actually, forgot to mention it. Did you tweak the settings at all or just running it as is?

[u/horrowley → u/ThatGreenM-M]

Refinedpt performance default mode. No further tweaking

[u/r4iv3n_ITA → u/ThatGreenM-M]

I really don't get the reason to frame gen keeping sluggish inputs, better lower some settings, cap to 40fps and use a 120hz container

[u/AdCautious5871 → u/r4iv3n_ITA]

If the framegen implementation is good and you have a base FPS that doesnt dip below 60, then the latency is neglibile. I use DLSS enabler for most single player games even if they have FG baked into, simply because its better. I get fluid FPS, clear graphics and no ghosting. It depends on the title. FG should never be used if you can't get 60 fps baseline.

[u/Xngears]

I just want a working method, if it exists, that keeps the game from minimizing every time I start it up. It only happens when mods are installed, since opening up the built-in script runner is what seems to minimize the game.

[u/machine4891]

Thanks for that. I have solid GPU (9070 XT) but 4K with RT ON is demanding as heck and was looking for a setting or two to lower to give that +10fps boost. Turned out Ray Tracing Shadows don't do that much of the job and elevated me from 50 to 60 fps (from 40 to 50 in dense forest). Now I can add FG and have buttery smooth expierence, while game still look amazing.

[u/Outrageous_Rush6653]

Played the game with pathtracing until I decided to try that leaked DLSS5 and now I downgraded to regular raytracing with the AI slop filter on top and I kinda prefer it lol.

[u/Kaxzchmo]

Benchmarking > Digital Failure

[u/NoiritoTheCheeto → u/Kaxzchmo]

It's good to have both, as they often test different scenes which gives you a more holistic view of how settings changes affect the image.

Besides, I don't always agree with all of DF's takes, but hating on a PC optimized settings video is just weird.

[u/Koopa777 → u/NoiritoTheCheeto]

I will say some of their fps numbers at the high end were suspicious , they explicitly stated in the beginning of the video, they are testing on an alienware area 51, the design and thermal incompetence of which is very well documented throughout the years. I have the “same” setup, 9950X3D and a 5090 (FE), both stock, and I was getting higher frame rate than them by a pretty substantial margin, especially in the path tracing numbers. My guess is they’re being thermal throttled like every Alienware desktop released in the last 20 years. As I recall, the previous area 51 ran like an entire performance tier below where it should (i9 performed like an i7), but Dell is their sponsor, so… We’ll never know.

EDIT: I was wrong, but I’m leaving the comment because it’s still something worth questioning. It was the Aurora line that should’ve gotten the entire design team fired . And based on the improvements between that and the new A51, it seems their entire team WAS fired lol.

[u/NoiritoTheCheeto → u/Koopa777]

It's also worth noting the game got some hot fixes during their testing, which could explain some of the perf difference you're seeing. But yeah Alienware stuff tends to not have the greatest airflow...

[u/SteelersBraves97 → u/NoiritoTheCheeto]

Bro really said “holistic”

[u/Soulstoner → u/Kaxzchmo]

Go outside

[u/ShadowoftheRatTree → u/Kaxzchmo]

buddy their options were basically the exact same. shows they are both reliable.

[u/leo7br → u/Kaxzchmo]

They complement each other well

[u/OhHaiMarc → u/Kaxzchmo]

?

[u/HamsterMaster355 → u/Kaxzchmo]

Trvth nuke.