[HL 25] Slow performance and frame rate issues with the new multiplayer maps disposal and contamination

[ChrisCostes]

To whom it may concern,

I am writing to report a performance issue with the new multiplayer map Disposal in Half-Life 25th Anniversary. The map has very slow and jerky performance, and low frame rates. The problem is especially noticeable when being in the room with the Gluon Gun. I am using Windows 10 Home (10.0.19045 Build 19045), Intel i5-3210M CPU, Intel HD 4000 iGPU. Even with this older hardware, Half-Life 25 runs smoothly for all other maps(except Contamination) and the regular game, except for this multiplayer map. Other players have reported a similar issue with this map as well. I have tried switching from OpenGL to software rendering, disabling texture filtering, and turning off vertical sync, but the performance issue still persists.

Please forward this issue to the appropriate party at Valve Software. Thank you for your attention and for the great work on Half-Life 25 Anniversary update.

Sincerely,

Chris C.

[ChrisCostes]

I used "cl_showfps 1" to show the frame rate and verified that the frame rate dips far below 30 fps on Disposal and Contamination on my PC. However, all other maps get about 300+ fps on my pc. So, I don't think my PC hardware is too slow, there is something wrong with those new maps.

[0Ky]

This is a duplication of #3614

[ChrisCostes]

Update 11/29/2023:

I tested the new option to turn off shaders, and tested HL25 MP to see what effect it would have on the slow frame rate issues on the new HL25 MP maps. I found that it made a slight improvement in frame rates, but the disposal and contamination maps are still very slow with OpenGL renderer on my PC. I found that running the game with the software renderer instead helped make those new maps playable on my PC. Here are the results of my test with screenshots of my testing:

HL25 MP disposal: with OpenGL = 10 fps
HL25 MP disposal: with OpenGL and no shaders = 24 fps
HL25 MP disposal: with software renderer = 43 fps

Screenshot files:

My Conclusions so far: The OpenGL renderer has issues drawing the new HL25 maps, even with shaders turned off. Perhaps some tweaking of the game engine is necessary?

Thanks for your attention to this issue,

Chris Costes

[0Ky]

@ChrisCostes This issue is being tracked in #3614 which is caused by the new maps shipped with the 25th anniversary update and it has nothing to do with the engine. The explanation was made in #3614 (comment). You could also test it yourself, by renaming the map and select "steam_legacy" in the beta participation to roll back to pre-25th anniversary release and compare the framerates.

HL25 MP disposal: with OpenGL = 10 fps
HL25 MP disposal: with OpenGL and no shaders = 24 fps
HL25 MP disposal: with software renderer = 43 fps

These are expected framerate values and does not relate to the 25th anniversary update, since the results are the same after rolling back to pre-25th anniversary release.

Edit: To clarify, when I say ...expected framerate values... I'm implying that the variations in framerates among different rendering methods (OpenGL with and without shaders, and software renderer) are anticipated due to their inherent processing differences. It's important to note that the relative performance between software and OpenGL rendering can vary significantly based on your hardware configuration. Systems with older or integrated GPUs might find that software rendering yields better performance, especially if they have a stronger CPU relative to their GPU. This means that while these framerate differences are expected, the actual performance will depend on the specifics of your hardware setup.

[ChrisCostes]

Update: 11/29/2023

Also did framerate testing with new contamination map and took screenshots. Very slow when looking at Egon gun room surrounded by green toxic material in contamination map.

Test Results Summary:
contamination: OpenGL, Shaders on = 16 fps
contamination: OpenGL, Shaders off = 24 fps
contamination: Software Renderer = 26 fps

Screenshots:

contamination: OpenGL, Shaders on = 16 fps

contamination: OpenGL, Shaders off = 24 fps

contamination: Software Renderer = 26 fps

Conculsion: The new option to turn shaders off helps improve frame rates, but not by much. Only about 2 fps on my PC. Certain complex parts of disposal and contamination maps run too slow. However, when looking around at other things in those maps, I can get 60+ fps and it runs smoothly. Either the maps need tweaking or the OpenGL renderer needs tweaking for these new maps.

Thanks again for you attention to this issue,

Chris Costes

[ChrisCostes]

Update 12/1/2023

Tested disposal map after 12/1/2023 bug update to HL. Very slow frame rate issue still persists for disposal map, especially when looking at the gluon gun. Frame rates drop well below 30 fps and map becomes unplayable on my PC.

disposal map: 20fps