Ever since the game’s initial launch, our developers have been working on continuously implementing free in-game content and updates for Insurgency: Sandstorm. While a good portion of our efforts are focused on creating new features and content we would like our players to know that performance optimization continues to be a top priority for our programming team.
If you’re experiencing any performance issues - low or stuttering fps, game crashes, freezing, etc - the following information may help you identify the route cause of the issue and hopefully lead you to its correction.
System Requirements
A good first step to take would be to check the System Requirements for Insurgency: Sandstorm. Our system requirements outline “minimum” and “recommended” builds that have been tested and benchmarked in-house by our development team.
Our “minimum” system requirements are bench-marked to achieve 60 FPS or above >95% of the time during normal gameplay on “low” graphics settings, while our “recommended” system requirements are bench-marked to achieve 60 FPS or above >95% of the time during normal gameplay on “medium-high” graphics settings.
Your machine must meet ALL the requirements to experience the expected results, having one or more components below requirements may impair or bottleneck your overall system performance and results.
We understand that we have community members playing our game on more finite/low-end hardware. Our team is actively working on optimizing performance to lower these set requirements, all while maintaining the visual and dynamic components already present in Sandstorm. We encourage this demographic of our audience to follow the remaining steps listed in this knowledge base article to help improve performance.
Changing the Video Settings
One of the best ways to improve Insurgency: Sandstorm’s performance is by adjusting or lowering the in-game video settings. In order to change the video settings of Insurgency: Sandstorm, make sure to follow these steps:
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After launching the game, click “SETTINGS”. Once you have loaded onto this page, click “VIDEO”.
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Scroll through the different settings and adjust them to your preference.
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Any changes made are automatically applied. (Unless a controller is being used to do so)
There is a lot to unpack when it comes to tweaking graphic input settings, but most of it ultimately comes down to constant tweaking and personal preference. In this step, we will outline basic suggestions tailored to your custom machine.
For more in-depth information on these settings, please visit our Video Settings Overview Knowledge-Base Article.
External System / Hardware Troubleshooting
Performance issues aren’t always related to game optimization. Many issues can arise due to insufficient hardware or software that is needed to run the game effectively. An easy way to identify if this is the case would be to benchmark similar demanding games while trying to find any similarities in poor/limited performance.
Some common issues that often come up are listed but not limited to:
There are many great resources you can find online that can assist you in diagnosing these issues and/or related ones. However, if you suspect any problems caused by your hardware or by specific software, we strongly recommend contacting the relevant manufacturer directly.
Internal Software Troubleshooting
Occasionally, performance problems can be caused when certain game files become corrupt. If you have noticed a drop in quality/performance within Insurgency: Sandstorm, it may be due to corrupt game files. In order to identify if this is an issue, please follow these steps:
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Run Steam in Administrator Mode
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Right-click Insurgency: Sandstorm in your Steam Library, select “Properties”, go to the Local Files tab, and click "Verify Integrity of Game Files."
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Launch Insurgency: Sandstorm.
If you are still experiencing technical issues, you may need to reinstall the game, as a last resort effort. In order to re-install Insurgency: Sandstorm, please follow these steps:
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Right-click Insurgency: Sandstorm in your Steam Library, select “Properties”, go to the Local Files tab, and click "Uninstall."
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After this, go back to Insurgency: Sandstorm in your Steam Library and click the light blue “INSTALL” button.
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While the game installs, make sure your device/system is plugged in and that you maintain constant internet access. This will limit the possibility of corrupt files being created.
We hope that this guide helped you create a positive custom-tailored experience for Insurgency: Sandstorm, or at the very least, made your game feel more fluid. If you have come to the conclusion that your system is not able to handle Sandstorm’s demand, consider streaming the game via Nvidia Geforce Now. You can find more information regarding the streaming service here. Please keep in mind that a stable internet connection is recommended in order to achieve a balanced gameplay experience.
It's important to remember that there are a myriad of factors that influence performance in-game. If you continue to have issues with optimization within Insurgency: Sandstorm, please create a support ticket and make sure to include a DXDiag report. We're always here and happy to help!