Lorene Melone
How To Maximize FPS and Optimize Settings in Dune: Awakening
This thing of a guide, but honestly, tweaking settings can actually make a difference. Sometimes just bumping a few sliders or toggling a feature can go from choppy mess to smooth sailing. Been there, done that, still not perfect but obviously better. So, here’s what’s worked on a few setups.
Preparation Before You Start
First, gotta have the latest GPU drivers installed. Because, of course, Windows has to make it harder than necessary. Grab the latest for your card from:
Step 1: Assess Initial Performance
Start Dune: Awakening and see how it runs out of the box. Enable any FPS counter in the settings or via monitor overlays, and keep an eye on FPS, frame times, and stutters — especially during chaos, like sandstorms or explosions. It’s kind of weird, but that’s where the lag is most noticeable.
Step 2: Adjust Display Settings
Head into game settings, find the Display tab, and tweak a few things. Why? Because reducing unnecessary stuff helps. Usually, this fixes some stuttering by reducing load.
- Field of View: Increase this if you’re rocking an ultra-wide display. More view, more performance hit sometimes, but worth experimenting.
- Motion Blur: Turn it off. Seriously, it just makes things look weird when fps dips, and it’s not worth the performance hit.
- VSync: Keep it disabled unless tearing happens. Disabling VSync can improve input lag and remove some input lag, but sometimes causes tearing.
- Frame Rate Cap: Set it to 60 FPS or whatever your monitor supports. Keeps frame pacing smoother and can reduce GPU load.
Step 3: Optimize Graphics Settings
Now, the juicy part. Under Graphics — that’s where most games eat up FPS.
- Window Mode: Set to Full Screen. No brainer, usually better performance.
- Resolution: Match your monitor’s native, but if FPS stinks, try downscaling or using upscaling methods like DLSS or FSR for a quick boost. I’ve seen some gains just by dropping from 1440p to 1080p.
- Upscaling Quality: Set to High or Ultra. It’s basically fake resolution that’s less demanding.
- Upscaling Method: Use DLSS if you’ve got an Nvidia card, or FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) for AMD — they work better than you’d think, especially if you need that extra frame.
Step 4: Fine-Tune Lighting and Effects
This is where you can squeeze out some extra FPS if you turn down the eye candy a bit.
- Shadows: Set to Medium. Shadows are usually expensive, and you don’t need ultra-realistic shadows in every spot.
- Global Illumination: Drop to Low. It’s a big drain and not always noticeable.
- Reflections: Medium or Low. Turning reflections down helps, especially in crowded scenes.
Step 5: Adjust Quality for Your Hardware
Some settings are more forgiving than others depending on your setup.
- Low-End Laptop Mode: Enable if available, usually in advanced settings, or just tick it if you’re on a potato. Sometimes the game will turn off some particles or effects automatically to keep fps up
- View Distance: Keep at High to see things far enough without tanking your fps
- Texture Quality: Depends on VRAM. Always use Low for <4GB, Medium for 4-6GB, and High if you got over 8GB. Not that hard to figure, but still, worth mentioning.
Step 6: Limit CPU Usage & Multitasking
If the game feels stuttery when you’re streaming or doing other stuff, mess with CPU limits. Windows can sometimes overload itself, so for that, here’s a quick trick:
launch Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc), go to the Details tab, find the game, right-click, select Set affinity, then uncheck some cores — usually, leaving 2-4 cores active is enough. Or, use third-party tools like Process Lasso for more control.Not sure why it makes a difference, but it does sometimes, especially on older CPUs.
Extra Tips & Common Issues
Keep this in mind:
- Update everything — drivers, Windows, game patches
- Monitor temperatures, thermal throttling is a silent FPS killer
- Close stuff in the background — Chrome, useless apps, anything that eats RAM or CPU
- Use tools like RTSS for frame rate capping and monitoring
Conclusion
If these tweaks don’t get your FPS high enough, chances are your hardware is holding you back. But at least, reducing some effects and using upscaling can make a difference. Play around with settings until it feels right. It’s not always perfect, but it’s better than watching freezes mid-fight.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the best resolution for Dune: Awakening?
Match your monitor’s native resolution — no reason to go lower unless performance tanks. Sometimes, dropping a bit helps on older PCs.
Can I actually boost FPS on a weak PC?
Yes — enabling Low-End Laptop Mode or turning everything down to Medium or Low can make it playable. No miracle, but it’s better than nothing.
Is DLSS really better than FSR?
Generally, Nvidia’s DLSS is a bit superior, both visually and in performance, on supported hardware. If you have an Nvidia card, it’s usually the way to go. FSR’s fine too, especially on AMD rigs, just don’t expect miracles.
Summary
- Update graphics drivers before starting
- Disable unnecessary effects like motion blur and VSync
- Use upscaling methods if you need a boost
- Lower shadow, lighting, and reflection settings for better FPS
- Try CPU affinity tweaks if stuttering persists during multitasking
- Keep system clean and monitor temps
Hopefully this shaves off a few hours for someone. Good luck tweaking!