Why does Skyrim run like crap?

[Dannar26]

I recently purchased a Lenovo laptop with the following specs:

IdeaPad Y410

• 4th Generation Intel Core i7-4700MQ Processor (2.40GHz 1600MHz 6MB)
• Windows 8.1 64
• 14.0" HD+ Glossy LED Backlit with integrated camera (1600x900)
• NVIDIA GeForce GT755M GDDR5 2GB
• 8.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3L SDRAM 1600 MHz
• 1TB 5400 RPM
  
  I am gaming at 1600x900. I imagine this is easier to run than 1080.
  
  There are youtube videos with similarly specced laptops doing Skyrim on ultra. My desktop core 2 quad with a gtx 260 runs this stuff better. I know laptops tend to be underwhelming for their specs, but comon now!
  
  Should I be able to run this better?

 

[denis280]

I guest it runs slow. this is why (1TB 5400 RPM)

 

[saratoga172]

Is it possible the dedicated gpu isn't running the game? Also look at the hard drive. 5400rpm drive can slow some things down of other processes are hitting it as well.

What type of issues are you seeing? Stuttering can be slow hard drive issues as it struggles to fetch the data or gpu issues as it struggles to render.

 

[frozentundra123456]

What do you mean "it runs like crap"? Is the framerate slow throughout the entire game, or are you just getting slowdowns and stuttering?

And you are right, it is amazing how weak laptop gpus are compared to the desktop. As best I could tell, the 755m in your laptop is pretty much comparable to a GT650 for the desktop, which is not really considered a gaming card. So I would expect that at 900p you should be able to run Skyrim on high, but I would say ultra is a stretch. I have a HD7770 in my desktop, which should be considerably faster than your card, and at 1080p Skyrim will run OK on ultra, but it is not particularly fluid and only gets around 40fps.

As others have said also, your slow HDD could be causing stuttering too.

Edit: that is still a nice light/moderate gaming laptop for the price.

 

[Dannar26]

I guest it runs slow. this is why (1TB 5400 RPM)

I know the HDD is awful compared to modern day SSDs, but is that really going to bottle neck me this badly for gaming? Aren't the GPU (for this type of game) and then CPU the biggest impacting parts?

Is it possible the dedicated gpu isn't running the game? Also look at the hard drive. 5400rpm drive can slow some things down of other processes are hitting it as well.

What type of issues are you seeing? Stuttering can be slow hard drive issues as it struggles to fetch the data or gpu issues as it struggles to render.

I initially thought this as well. Looking at the game's video options it clearly states the 755M. But it sure acts like it's on integrated.

When I installed the game, it automatically configured the settings to low. It ran alright at that setting. I would have liked more FPS, but it wasn't distracting.

Thinking that the auto configurator made an error, I turned things up to medium after restarting the game. At medium, the FPS freakin' crawled. Probably like 10 or so FPS. I was taken a back at how poorly this is performing at a meager 1600x900.

What do you mean "it runs like crap"? Is the framerate slow throughout the entire game, or are you just getting slowdowns and stuttering?

And you are right, it is amazing how weak laptop gpus are compared to the desktop. As best I could tell, the 755m in your laptop is pretty much comparable to a GT650 for the desktop, which is not really considered a gaming card. So I would expect that at 900p you should be able to run Skyrim on high, but I would say ultra is a stretch. I have a HD7770 in my desktop, which should be considerably faster than your card, and at 1080p Skyrim will run OK on ultra, but it is not particularly fluid and only gets around 40fps.

As others have said also, your slow HDD could be causing stuttering too.

Edit: that is still a nice light/moderate gaming laptop for the price.

I haven't noticed stuttering. Just low FPS.

This is the first graphically intensive game I've played on this laptop. Terraria, spelunky, don't starve, and Baldur's Gate EE all predictably run well, but my phone could handle all those games.

From a numbers standpoint, this thing is completely superior to my 2008 rig. But numbers never translate quite how we want when talking about laptops. But still, at this point this thing by all rights SHOULD be superior to my old desktop.

I've seen you tube videos of guys running skyrim on high with similar specs, easily...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgXSuFrMvpQ&feature=youtube_gdata_player

 

[Ketchup]

Have you looked at Lenovo driver updates?

 

[Dannar26]

I'm trying to at least. I'm currently an AIT student in the Army. All publicly accessable wifi is terri-bad slow. And I can't pay for my own...

 

[saratoga172]

Since you mentioned low fps and stuttering my inclination is to try and get updated GeForce drivers and see if they help at all. Also check power setting for the laptop and make sure it's on high performance when playing the game. Could be a limit on how much resources it is using.

Once you can check those out see if it improves. That's what I would start with. Also make sure to do a reboot directly before launching the game and trying that to make sure nothing else is held in memory or accessing the disk.

 

[Dannar26]

Updated the 755m's driver, and adjusted for best performance power settings. Turned off all mods.

Interestingly enough the auto configurator decided I rate medium settings now.

No change in performance. Just low FPS.

I thought I did a decent job debloating this thing too. It always runs pretty hot...

 

[frozentundra123456]

It does seem like you are getting sub-par performance. I think you should get 30 plus fps at 900p on medium. You could check you gpu and cpu temps to make sure they are not high enough to cause throttling. Is it possible that you have some sort of demanding Antialiasing setting turned on in the nvidia control panel or in the in game settings?

Edit: this is an interesting problem to me, because I was thinking about getting one of these laptops for moderate gaming for my grandson when his old asus one finally give up the ghost.

 

[denis280]

It always runs pretty hot...

How hot?

 

[Dannar26]

I don't have a numeric figure for you. The keyboard feels warm, and the air blowing out of the side is hot enough to make your left hand uncomfortable.

Can anyone recommend a good utility to monitor this?

 

[Ketchup]

http://www.cpuid.com/downloads/hwmonitor/1.24-setup.exe

 

[sm625]

I would tell you to disable the intel gpu in the bios, just to see if forcing it to use only the nvidia hardware fixes the problem. But then again if there is a problem with the nvidia gpu then doing that might leave you totally stuck. At this moment I can see the appeal of a kaveri...

 

[frozentundra123456]

I would tell you to disable the intel gpu in the bios, just to see if forcing it to use only the nvidia hardware fixes the problem. But then again if there is a problem with the nvidia gpu then doing that might leave you totally stuck. At this moment I can see the appeal of a kaveri...

Yea, I can too if you want both a slower CPU and weaker graphics, not to mention that kaveri is not even available for mobile.

 

[Dannar26]

So, I feel a bit foolish.

All the times I had been running Skyrim, I had been doing so on battery power. It has been a long time (2003) since I owned and used a laptop for anything more than a quick browsing session. Apparantly if you aren't running off of wall current, the laptop will not perform. I'm guessing this means that the GPU doesn't get used unless you have wall power?

Now that I have it plugged in, it automatically jumped up to Ultra settings. Woot.

I noticed this the other day with my wifi card. I was getting nothing for internet at a public wifi hotspot, then I plugged it in....and bam! I got some (albiet horribly slow...not the computer's fault there) internet.

It runs much hotter when plugged in. Again, I'll have to find somewhere where I can download that utility so I can tell you just how hot. I dislike how hot this thing gets though. I fear it won't last long with heat like that...

 

[Ketchup]

There should be a place to change that. Your might have to do some digging in the Lenovo (not the Windows) power options to find it.

 

[Steltek]

I'm glad you figured it out - wish they were all that simple.

Unfortunately, a quad-core i7 in a laptop form factor is always going to run hot (even an i5 will tend to run hot, depending upon the laptop) when put under even a modest load.

Best thing you can do is purchase a good quality laptop cooling pad or lapdesk with integrated cooling fans to draw the heat out of the casing. Doing this will go a long way towards extending the life of your system.

 

[brett_stevens]

Could be a limit on how much resources it is using.

This is what has usually been the issue for me with graphics on laptops. These machines are configured to use power sparingly and so they will always default to a lower performance alternative if not told not to.

 

[Dannar26]

Edit: this is an interesting problem to me, because I was thinking about getting one of these laptops for moderate gaming for my grandson when his old asus one finally give up the ghost.

Well, don't go with Lenovo. The cd tray popped out and never popped back in. It's a literal fight to get this thing to hook into the wifi on base here. It has inconsistent boot times. Sometimes it takes forever, when it's normally pretty snappy. And now the USB ports have stopped functioning since I tried to attach a card reader.

The overall build quality is quite cheap, and the system gets hot easily. When it wants to work, it works well. But it often doesn't. I have only had this laptop since February, and have used it sparingly since I am in military training. The times I do use it are frought with problems. Thank god I've got my galaxy S 4. How is it this tiny little cell phone is more reliable than a full on desk top computer.

No matter. Who here has advice on how to return this thing? I'm beyond the return period, and I don't feel like struggling with it. Here in training, it's nit easy to ship it to and fro until they get it right...