How exactly does dynamic resolution work?

How exactly does dynamic resolution work?
I understand that it changes the resolution for areas that are graphically demanding so that the game still runs smooth but if it is open world I am sure you would notice a resolution change if that happens on the fly? Are there load screens in between so that it changes the resolution then or how does it work? My PC could be more powerful so is there a way to achieve dynamic resolution there or do I just always have to fiddle about with the game settings?

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You never tried watchinv YouTube on the auto setting?

It probably subtly drops and increases the pixel count a bit as it goes when it detects more stress on the hardware.
Actually, a lot of the time dynamic resolution decreases the pixel count on a single axis, which will result in rendered pixels not being perfectly square. I don't know if that makes it seem less blurry.

But why doesn't this option exist for PC gaming?

Like when I am playing new Tomb Raider 3 it runs fine in caves and what not but once I am in the village the game really slows down.
I wish there was dynamic resolution for PC games instead of making me switch the res by myself all the time.

>But why doesn't this option exist for PC gaming?
It does. Not all games though

Implementing features takes effort, and the age-old solution on PC has been "lower your settings" or "buy better hardware". On a console you don't have the opportunity to do that so they often have to go the extra mile to put in dynamic resolution scaling, but on PC, devs would just tell you to lower the settings, and there's no reason to expect a vendor to put in a dynamic resolution setting into the drivers to let you get more mileage out of your existing card if they can just charge you for a better card.

It does. There's Titanfall 2 for example.

dynamic resolution is easy to notice in most console games that have it
battlefield is a great example
watch a digital foundry video about it or something

>I understand that it changes the resolution for areas that are graphically demanding so that the game still runs smooth but if it is open world I am sure you would notice a resolution change if that happens on the fly?
Yeah, you do notice it. It was super noticeable on Wipeout HD and 2048 for example.
>Are there load screens in between so that it changes the resolution then or how does it work?
No it's literally instantaneous. One frame has one resolution and the next frame has a different resolution. Usually there's a scale of several different resolutions so the jump isn't too sheer.
>My PC could be more powerful so is there a way to achieve dynamic resolution there or do I just always have to fiddle about with the game settings?
The game has to support it. I seem to recall DigitalFoundry making a video about a game which does, but I can't remember which.

>game's 3d scene is rendered to a frame buffer
>resolution of the buffer can be modified on a per-frame basis and scaled before final output

Now if only more games supported dynamic super-resolution like SteamVR does.

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It looks like absolute dogshit 95% of the except when you're in a tiny corridor.

>but I can't remember which.
Gears 5 probably, since it lets you set target FPS, your desired highest, and desired lowest resolution.

Wow that's pretty comprehensive actually. I couldn't give any less of a fuck about playing Gears but it's good to see that it's technically competent.

OH WOW I did not know.

I am wondering if there are nifty programs by coders that also accomplish that.
Like I said I am having problems with modern Tomb Raider Shadow of the Tomb Raider, wondering if some program that forces dynamic res could help me there.

unlike Gears 1 remake and Gears 4 on PC. Those were disasters.

Try lower something else. Shadows, motion blur and shit are free frames gained.

Xenoblade 2 did this very well: you don't immediately notice the resolution drop when it happens, but at some point you just look at the screen and realize you're playing on 240p. And then you want to puke.

OH NO N0 NO NO NO

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I just wish more developers took the kitchen-sink approach to settings like Croteam has been doing with every single game of theirs. Their games will have no problem milking your GPU if your CPU is up to the task, even if you decide to play the game 3-4 player splitscreen on the same PC.

I don't know how new Gears 1 port had even LESS options than the original PC port which ran flawless on my machine at the time.

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I'm just reminded that there were PS4 games that used fucking trilinear filtering earlier on in the generation.

monster hunter world has it as well

>But why doesn't this option exist for PC gaming?
Because for the most part you know what your hardware is capable of and you can adjust the graphical settings to your liking, and prioritize whatever you like. Consoles already run on the mid-low settings, and players don't have much say in their settings, so dynamic resolution falls right into that mindset.