Lords of the Fallen, the technically troubled Soulslike game, has recently released a major performance patch to address its significant issues. This patch has not only helped improve the game’s performance but also resulted in a positive change in its Steam reviews. Developers, Hexworks, diligently worked to resolve some of the biggest problems on PC and tackle crashes that players were facing.
One of the primary issues identified by Hexworks is outdated graphic card drivers. Many players failed to update their drivers to be compatible with Lords of the Fallen, which utilizes the latest Unreal Engine 5. In their Steam blog, Hexworks mentioned that the majority of crashes were due to outdated drivers. To assist players, the developers have now added a pop-up notification that checks for the latest Nvidia or AMD drivers and guides users to download updates if necessary.
To address crashes related to graphics cards, Hexworks temporarily deactivated frame generation stability. This change aims to provide a more reliable experience, especially for Nvidia GPUs in the 40-series that were experiencing errors. Additionally, certain 30 and 40 series GPUs were causing crashes even when the game was set to auto-detect graphics quality. Hexworks recommended players to refrain from pushing their PC hardware beyond its limits and instead rely on the game’s automatic detection of the best settings.
Another major crash factor was a code error that resulted in potential crashes after the game’s first cinematic. While Hexworks has fixed this issue for most players, they suggested a workaround in case players encountered it. Adding “-nopsos” to the game’s launch line on Steam would disable the shader compiling calculation causing the crash.
In addition to addressing crashes, the performance patch also includes several improvements and balancing tweaks. Hexworks has enhanced the performance by preventing the lingering visual effects from the “Barrage of Echoes eyeball explosion” from persisting for too long. This improvement ensures smoother gameplay by reducing potential performance issues resulting from excessive use of the spell.
Furthermore, the patch incorporates balancing adjustments. Several enemies have been nerfed to make the game slightly less punishing. Adjustments have also been made to the hit direction of projectiles to prevent players from reacting in the wrong direction. The hitbox of the Sunless Skein working forces now spawns a few frames later to improve gameplay mechanics.
One of the bosses, the Ruiner, has received a buff to standard damage, while the fire shield attack and jump knockdown ability have been slightly softened. These changes aim to maintain the challenge while reducing the occurrence of one-shot deaths in later regions of the game. Another boss, the Spurned Progeny, will no longer interrupt their combos regardless of the player’s actions.
For players engaging in PVP combat, an adjustment has been made to the parrying system. It is no longer possible to parry other players’ kicks. This change intends to introduce more options for high-level parriers and diversify gameplay strategies.
As a result of these improvements and adjustments, Lords of the Fallen has witnessed a transformation in its Steam reviews. With over 5,000 reviews, the game’s average rating has transitioned to ‘Mixed’, with more than half of the reviews being positive. This upward trend indicates that the game is on the path to redemption, especially considering the developers’ recent confirmation that controversial anti-piracy technology, Denuvo, will never be used in the game.
Lords of the Fallen’s major performance patch has successfully tackled the game’s technical issues and crashes, providing players with a more stable and enjoyable gaming experience. Hexworks’ proactive approach in addressing outdated graphic card drivers and code errors has significantly contributed to the improvement of the game. With further performance enhancements and balancing tweaks, the game is showing signs of redemption and is poised to captivate both existing and new players.
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