So I bought Oblivion, and of course, my computer was far too shitty to run it. So I went out and got a new video card (It's a BFG 7300 GT). So now, the game displays beautifully. Only problem is, during gameplay, I get about two minutes of smooth gameplay, then the FPS goes down DRASTICALLY for about 20 seconds. Then it's back to nice, perfect, smooth gameplay. Then back to shit. Over and over and over again. I'm all out of ideas. I am by no means computer-smart, but I honestly have no idea what the problem is now. Maybe I need more RAM? I think I have 1G of ram right now. I'm clueless. Any of you computer geniuses know what this might be caused by? I'm running a Dell Dimension 8300, by the way. Everything in it is standard except the video card.
could be a lot of things but try the tweaks from these pages. One thing that comes to mind is that if you are in a forest area with animals around, their footstep sounds can cause major slowdowns and stuttering. Tweak Guide 1 Tweak Guide 2
Your computer needs to be balanced out, some say it's only as good as it's worst component. Upgrading your video card definitely helps, but if you still don't have enough RAM or if your processor is too slow, you'll still experience some slowdown.
Thanks! I havent tried them yet, but its nice to get a reply with some tangible help. And the slowing down is actually pretty consistent- Regardless of where I am or what I'm doing in the game, I seem to get a few minutes of great gameplay and then 20-30 seconds where the FPS and sound slows WAYYY down. I'll try both of those tweaks...If I cant fix it, then the next step is to get some more RAM. Goodbye, money
In order to help you at all, I am going to need your entire computer's specifications. IE, the processor type/speed, amount of RAM, etc. Oblivion is a demanding game. It sounds to me like your RAM might be too small a size since it plays normally at first and then starts chugging. What are your other specs?
im a computer technician. i can tell you what your problem is. RAM will help but if you just have a stock power supply in the computer that graphics card(even though only requires a 250 watt) draws too much power from the power supply and causes things go act all weird. alot of times if your only running the stock power supply, the card calls for 20amps or so and most stock supplys hold about 12-15 amps on the 12V rail. get a bigger power supply that will hold atleast 20amps on the 12V
power supply first to power that card then ram. im telling you. i see this on a daily basis. RAM will help (upgrade to 2GB) but a power supply will really help. plus your computer wont chug as hard to do samller processes then it should
You can also try toning down things like shadows, and grass shading. Those tweaks up there that another Blade posted will help too. Sometimes this will happen in Oblivion when you get too many characters on screen.