If there’s one thing that I absolutely adore about PC Gaming, it’s framerates. Funnily enough, it’s also the one thing I really hate about it too, since it’s a constant reminder that my hardware is aging, no matter how much love and attention I give it. I obsess over watching FPS counters while I game, so it’s pretty neat that Valve has finally decided to add one of their own.
In the past I was forced to use programs like FRAPS and MSI Afterburner to check if everything was running smoothly at 60FPS, but now Steam can track every single frame for you in its overlay. The change made it into the new Steam client beta, after years of fans begging for a little counter in the corner. And little it is right now, with no options other than turning it on and off. Prepare to squint really, really hard.
If you want to try it out but can’t see the options in the settings menu, then you’ll have to change a few things first. Open up the settings menu in Steam, and make sure you’ve opted into the one and only client beta that is available. Steam should close and update after that, adding in the FPS counter option under the In-Game menu in settings. Check that and be forever displeased when a game dips into sub-60 territory.
While it’s neat now for anyone who hasn’t yet tracked their frames while gaming on PC, it’s far too tiny to read. Hopefully Valve will add in a few customisation options for the proper release, or at least through in a free pair of glasses with magnifying lenses.
Last Updated: January 5, 2015
Robert Coughlan
January 5, 2015 at 13:16
An FPS counter for ANTS!?!? In this case, however, 3 times bigger would probably be just fine.
RinceThis
January 5, 2015 at 13:19
lol
Blood Emperor Trevor
January 5, 2015 at 13:20
I ran the performance test in Thief before I started playing the other day. I got an average of 22fps. However when playing it was perfectly smooth. Made no sense to me.
Note to self: ignore frame rates unless the game plays like a powerpoint presentation.
Uberutang
January 10, 2015 at 11:42
Could also be a discrepancy on how it meters fps. There are different ways and they are not all 100% accurate. And yes some games feel fine at lower FPS due to all kinds of cool tricks the devs use these days.
hairyknees
January 5, 2015 at 13:54
10/10 header xD
Uberutang
January 10, 2015 at 11:40
You can now use HIGH CONTRAST and pick the location (top left/right etc) with the latest BETA update.
New update released yesterday. And the font size is about 4 times bigger now…
Fishbowl
January 10, 2015 at 11:49
Pay a Bazillion on the Man Co store. Do it or there won’t be a Sims 5. Wait, wrong company.