How to improve the aircraft dot visibility in high screen resolutions (Nvidia users)

[Erpr.Gr.210_Mölders]

What I've always found annoying was that, despite the egregious numerous efforts done by TFS to improve the visual aspect of the game, the aircraft dot visibility was somehow extremely short in higher screen resolutions ( In particular in 4K ).
The visual range of aircraft dots in 4K, in particular, despite my several attempts in the past months, remained fixed always at 5 km max from my aircraft point of view.
No matter the different solutions I was trying, I was never able, until now, to improve this.
Please note that what I will wrote below worked for me but I have not the pretension to say that it will solve or improve the situation on all the PCs of this planet.
On mine it worked, I hope that, sharing what I have noticed, will work also on your PC too!

I've tested this both on my Nvidia GTX 1080 Ti and on a Nvidia GTX 960 and on both it provided the same good results.

Said so, here is what I have experienced and how I have solved it, at least to a level that renders the game fully playable also using high screens resolutions.
Not surely yet the final solution to all problems of this kind but at least what I suggest to do here, will hopefully render your game finally enjoyable while using these high screen resolutions ( ..and trust me that the game played in 4K it's a little beautiful damned marvel!!! )

Note also that every online server has its mp_dotrange settings so do not expect to extend your view to 30 km from your aircraft. In this thread I'm speaking about how to improve the max aircraft dot visibility distance staying in the range of the settings used by the most common servers available around.
Said in brief, in the arc that goes from 0 to 14 km, you will simply be able to spot better the aircraft dots or you will be able to spot aircraft dots that were previously hidden in these distance ranges.

Last but not least, take in mind that this thread is focused on the maximum visibility distance of the aircraft dots ( The ground objects max rendering distance will be not, probably, be affected by this ) and that this thread is dedicated exclusively to Nvidia cards users.

The original problem/situation

The main problem was this. Using high screen resolutions ( In particular the 2K and the 4K ) the maximum aircraft dot visibility was extremely short, so short, said in brief, that was pratically not usable online, otherwise you completely lose your situation awareness and capability of spotting incoming enemy aircraft and to react in a sufficent time.
In addition, in 2K and 4K, everything outside the max visual visibility distance seemed that was not rendered at all.
For example, at 5 km of distance you could spot an aircraft dot but at 5,1 km it completely disappeared, apparently not rendered by the game.

Before this improvement I have experienced the following aircraft dots max visibility distance:

- HD resolution ( 1920x1080 at 120 Hz ): Max aircraft dots visual range 13 Km

- 2K resolution ( 2560x1440 at 60 Hz ): Max aircraft dots visual range 6 Km

- 4K resolution ( 3840x2160 at 60 Hz or 4096x2160 at 60 Hz ): Max aircraft dots visual range 5 Km

How to improve the max aircraft dots visibility distance and what improvements you will get

Please follow the various steps in the EXACT same order that I'll write them, use exactly the same settings I suggest and follow carefully the instructions given. If you do something different or you will vary what I'll wrote here there is the very high chance that the fix will not work.
The procedure is not difficult to be made but it requires your carefull attention because the steps to be followed are a lot, so it could be easy to do something wrong or missing a piece of them, if you will not follow the various steps with attention.
Note also that I will not write why the suggested settings will improve your visibility range about the aircraft dots...but trust me that it will work. ( Otherwise to explain you in detail why these settings works I'll have to write a poem ).
Said in brief we will lose a bit of image quality ( but not that much in high resolutions ) in exchange for a better max aircraft dots visibility distance.
Some may not cope with this but that, so far, the only way to get an improvement.
Sorry but it's a take-it or leave. The choise about what to do it's all up to you.


VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: Before starting this procedure take a screenshot or a note of your current video card settings and of your video game settings ( Main Menu --> Options --> Video ) so if needed you can always easily revert back to your original PC status.
Otherwise, if you don't want to this, another option, is to save a restore point on your PC.

Said so let's start!

1- Open your Nvidia control panel

2- Select the " Manage 3D settings " tab

3- If you haven't already done it, under the " Program Settings " tab select your game executable file ( By acting on the " Select a program to customize " tab ) so your video card will not run always at " high RPM " when not running the game.
The executable game file, for example is located in the following path: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\IL-2 Sturmovik Cliffs of Dover Blitz ( On my PC instead of this path I have selected the executable shortcut I have created on my desktop )

4- Once done, set exactly the following parameters ( They'll work both for 2K and 4K resolutions ):

Image Shapening: Use global settings ( Off )
Ambient Occlusion ( Greyed out, not supported by the game )
Anisotropic filtering: Off
Antialiasing - FXAA: Use global settings ( Off )
Antialiasing - Gamma Correction: Off
Antialiasing - Mode: Off
Antialiasing - Setting: None
Antialiasing - Transparency: Off
CUDA - GPUs: Use global setting ( All )
Low Latency Mode: Ultra
Max Frame Rate: 59 FPS ( If you intend to use the 2K or 4K res. For the HD one select your monitor refresh rate minus 1 )
Multi-Frame sampled AA ( MFAA ): Off
OpenGL rendering GPU: Use global setting ( Auto-select )
Power management mode: Prefer maximum performances
Preferred refresh rate: Highest available
Shader Cache: Use global setting ( On )
Texture filtering - Anisotropic sample optimisation: Off
Texture filtering - Negative LOD bias: Clamp
Texture filtering - Quality: Quality
Texture filtering - Trilinear optimisation: On
Threaded optimisation: Use global setting ( Auto )
Triple buffering: Off
Vertical sync: Fast
Virtual Reality pre-rendered frames: 1

*Note: If you have the option for the GSYNC set it to " On "

5- Once done click on the " Apply " button in the lower right corner of the screen ( Your Nvidia Control Panel window may flicker a bit while the settings are applied, this is normal )

6- Once done close your Nvidia Control Panel

7- Start the game and go to " Options --> Video " menu

8- Once in it check that the " Show Advanced " squared checkbox is checked so the advanced options will be displayed

9- Leave all the settings as they are except these ones that must be set as follows:

Resolution: Select the video resolution you want to use or rather 2K or 4K
Full Screen: Pseudo
Detail Level: Custom
Anti-aliasing: Off
Epilessy Filter: Unchecked/Not selected
SSAO: Unchecked/Not selected
VSYNC: Checked/On/Activated
Distant Clouds: I suggest to set it Unchecked/Deactivated because on certain servers, using weather scripts, it may create problems with the clouds visualisation/conflicts
Far Static Shadows: Unchecked/Off/Not selected ( I have still to test well if this may affect the dot visibility. For the time being I suggest to keep it Unchecked/Unselected. Further news about this will follow soon. )

10- Once done click on the " Apply " button in the lower right corner. If your game ask for a restart click on " Yes "

11- Once the game has restarted exit it

12- Go to your " Documents " folder and delete the folder named " Cache " ( Do it with no fear, the game will create a new one the next time you will start the game )
Full path: C:\Users\Your Computer Name\Documents\1C SoftClub\il-2 sturmovik cliffs of dover\cache

Once done the procedure is now complete. You can now enjoy your improved aircraft dots visibility in 2K and 4K screen resolutions!

So far I've get the following results ( All tests performed on the Tobruk map only! ):

- HD resolution ( 1920x1080 at 120 Hz ): Max aircraft dots visual range 14 Km ( +1 km gained )

- 2K resolution ( 2560x1440 at 60 Hz ): Max aircraft dots visual range 12 Km ( +6 km gained )

- 4K resolution ( 3840x2160 at 60 Hz or 4096x2160 at 60 Hz ): Max aircraft dots visual range 10 Km ( +5 km gained )

Test mission used

Here you can find the mission I've used during the comparison tests. I have build a new one because the one provided in the thread " The man who stares at the pixels " had got a great issue. In it, in fact, the aircraft were spaced 1 km from each other but they were set also at different altitudes.
So said in brief, due to the aircraft altitudes used in that mission, the last of the planes ( The one at 16 km ) was not at 16 km as planned but instead to about 25 km from your point of view!

In this mission I have fixed it and the aircraft are all set at the same altitude ( 500 meters ) and every airrcraft is separated 1 km from the other so the last one of them is really set at 16 km from your point of view!

Important: This test mission works only for the IL-2 Sturmovik Desert Wings DLC owners at the moment! ( I'm at work to build one for the Blitz users too ).

Install the mission at the following path: C:\Users\Yourcomputername\Documents\1C SoftClub\il-2 sturmovik cliffs of dover\missions\Single

DOWNLOAD LINK: https://mega.nz/file/OhAmlbyQ#hlzYAc...QEZMvrHxLDHZh8 ( <--- Clickable Link! )


I really hope that this could help many pilots to finally fully enjoy this beautiful game also using the 2K and 4K screen resolutions!


My best regards to all!

[ATAG_Noofy]

I don’t have 4k so won’t be able to test this. However as a general recommendation do not forget to take a snapshot of your current settings in case something goes wrong and you wish to revert back to your current settings

[9./JG52_J-HAT]

With what FOV setting are you getting these results, Belial?

In the original mission IIRC I could see 9 contacts in 2k resolution at min FOV and 5 in Normal and Max.
I then changed the resolution to 1080p and could see 15 and 9 respectively. Basically can see everything around me with FOV maxed out.

I would love to be able to go back to 2K as it sure looks better.

[ATAG_JackMaxx]

I will try theses setting later today.. and let you know if it improves on my current settings

[ATAG_Noofy]

Here is what I see with these settings, at 5 different FOV levels, from fully zoomed out to fully zoomed in.
How does this compare to what you guys are seing?

1.jpg

2.jpg

3.jpg

4.jpg

5.jpg

[von Graf]

Thanks, interesting read. And I was wondering why I never saw a grey dot at 14 km. (Only the grey/colored distance at 6/4 km like set in the .rcu file.)

Maybe I'll find a solution for ATI drivers too.

[varrattu]

Hello all,

not only resolution is of importance. The display should be properly calibrated for contrast accuracy and brightness. Depending on which display you are playing, having it properly calibrated allows you to have the most possible visual range on screen.

The following are the basic steps when performing a calibration with view to iL2CoD/iL2DWT.

Contrast as the difference between colors is very important. When you have contrast you can distinguish the whitest white and the darkest blacks in the sky.

White Point is a reference for daylight in color. Set the White Point to 6500K which is the color temperature of daylight.

Gamma refers to the tone curves. Gamma correction uses a mathematical formula that adjusts the levels of dark and light in relation to the contrast in an image. It can bring out the darker colors which can also increase saturation. Set the Gamma to Windows or TV Standard 2.2.

Check the color space that your display refers to. I use the sRGB color scheme on my display, it refers best to iL2CoD color.

~V~

[Erpr.Gr.210_Mölders]

With what FOV setting are you getting these results, Belial?

In the original mission IIRC I could see 9 contacts in 2k resolution at min FOV and 5 in Normal and Max.
I then changed the resolution to 1080p and could see 15 and 9 respectively. Basically can see everything around me with FOV maxed out.

I would love to be able to go back to 2K as it sure looks better.

Here so far I was doing the same. Now I've switched to 2K and the game, in this resolutions, it's where, IMHO, gives you the best compromise. Surely you will never have the same max visibility distance of a user using a lower one ( The lower the resolution, the major is the max visibility distance of the aircraft dots ) but with now 12 km of max visual range ( Only 3-4 km in less of a user using a lower screen res ) I can dogfight and react efficently to enemy attacks.
In 4 K even if now the visibility distance of the dots in a static situation ( Game paused ) it's doubled, or rather from the original 5km to the actual 10 km, the more distant dots remains somehow very little to be seen ( probably starting from 6-7 km we are speaking of 1-3 pixels ). In a standard flight/dogfight situation ( Game in movement used as per normal ) this means that the aircraft dots starting from 6-7 km onward remain pratically invisible ( Except in the case that you are looking in the exact precise spot where they are ) so the effective visibility range remains something in the order of 5-6 km max, that, at least IMHO, is still too short to be effective in a standard combat situation.

What FOV settings I use to get the best? Next time you'll see me on TS, and you have time to dedicated to this, I will tell you them ( Otherwise here I'll have to write an infinite poem ) because, actually, the Channel map and the Tobruk one seems to use two different ways to manage the aircraft dot max visibility.
Don't get it wrong, somehow. The visual max values are the same for both the maps but there are some major differences about how they are managed/displayed by the game.
An easy example: In Tobruk map if you spot a 1 pixel size aircraft dot and you zoom-in the view at the max zoom value, the dot will remain always visible. Do the same on the Channel map and the same 1 pixel size aircraft dot will disappear at full zoom-in and at certain angles of view.

[ATAG_Pattle]

About to give it a try Belial

[ATAG_Pattle]

I reckon it worked for me mate. Well done.

[Erpr.Gr.210_Mölders]

I don’t have 4k so won’t be able to test this. However as a general recommendation do not forget to take a snapshot of your current settings in case something goes wrong and you wish to revert back to your current settings

As I've told you on Ts3 your video resolution is an hybrid between the 2K and the 4K one but somehow more closer to the 4K one so what's written above should work also for your PC.
Thanks for the advice, I always put it in my posts of this kind, but this time I forgot it, so again thank you very much for the very good reminder mate!

[ATAG_Noofy]

despite the egregious numerous efforts done by TFS to improve the visual aspect of the game

... egregious ...?

I don't think the English meaning is the same as the Latin "egregius", if this is what you had in mind...

[Erpr.Gr.210_Mölders]

... egregious ...?

I don't think the English meaning is the same as the Latin "egregius", if this is what you had in mind...

At least Google translator, translated " Egregio " with " Egregious ". I was meaning something good and done in a very good way.

[ATAG_Noofy]

At least Google translator, translated " Egregio " with " Egregious ". I was meaning something good and done in a very good way.

That’s what I thought. Just wanted this to be clear to everyone in case anyone misinterpreted...