How-To Make Call of Duty: Black Ops Run Faster (Performance Improvement Guide)
Since Call of Duty: Black Ops was released I heard a lot of people complain about how slow it played on their computer. Various people have asked many times on this site, “How do I improve performance?”,
“How do I improve frame rate?”, “How do I tweak the game to make us run smoother” People basically want to know how to make Call of Duty: Black Ops run faster. I constructed the following guide to help out everyone having performance issues with Call of Duty: Black Ops.
PLEASE NOTE: This guide was created for people with computers that SLIGHTLY fall short of the Call of Duty: Black Ops Minimum System Requirements to people that meet or exceed the minimums and want more of a performance improvement.
This guide is NOT for people that have desktops or laptops that fall heavily short of the COD: BO minimum hardware requirements (CPU, RAM, Graphics). I am sorry, this guide will probably do nothing for your desktop or laptop due to the lack of computer system power.
Here is the list of settings within the Call of Duty: Black Ops “config.cfg” file that can be changed to improve performance. The exact variables are listed along with what to set them to for a performance improvement. I show you how to edit the config.cfg file in the video below.
seta r_dof_enable "0" - Set this to "0" ("1" enables the depth of field visual effect)
seta r_multiGpu "0" - IF you DO NOT have a dual nVidia SLI graphics card setup or dual ATI CrossFire graphics card setup set this to "0" ("1" enables the full use of a multi graphics card setup)
seta r_multithreaded_device "1" - Set this to "1" ("0" disables the full use of multicore CPUs. Set it to "0" if you DO NOT have a multicore CPU)
seta cg_brass "0" - Set this to "0" ("1" enables shells being spit out by weapons when firing)
seta cg_blood "0" - Set this to "0" ("1" enables blood squirting out of people when shot)
seta cl_maxpackets "100" - Set to "100" (This slightly improves multiplayer gameplay smoothness)
seta snaps "30" - (This might improve multiplayer gameplay smoothness)
In the following How-To Make Call of Duty: Black Ops Run Faster video tutorial I will take you step-by-step and you will easily learn the following…
1. What the bare minimal graphics settings are. The lower the graphics settings the smoother the game play
2. How-To find and edit the config.cfg file to improve performance (I only show you 2 settings to change in the video. A larger list of settings to change are listed above. Edit all the settings above for a larger performance increase)
3. Where to find the free program Game Booster (this software helps free up valuable CPU and RAM so they can be used to help process the COD: Black Ops graphics)
This is for people that have a laptop or desktop with a CPU or graphics card that falls slightly short of the COD: BO minimum requirements. If you tried ALL of the tweaks in the video (including all of the 7 config.cfg tweaks listed above) and Black Ops still runs too slow then I urge you to follow the Call of Duty: Black Ops performance guide below (along with the tweaks I shows you above). This guide was written by a ClearTechInfo.com site member. From JAMES… Now, even on the lowest settings with the lowest textures and resolution it lagged a tad, How I got a smooth FPS: Before doing this, make sure to set your Black Ops to 'windowed' mode. Since the 640x480 resolution is forced onto the whole screen and not just the game, you will see your desktop looking quite weird, but do not worry, just ignore it. Now open Task Manager, and navigate to the processes tab while Call of Duty is running. You should then set Steam's priority to "low" (by right-clicking Steam.exe and selecting Priority->low), then you should raise BlackOps.exe's priority to "high". This worked on an ASUS Laptop, with a slightly larger than average screen. It should work on normal computer screens, but smaller screens (I.E: Notebooks) won't get the full render of the game.
Okay, guys. I got my Black Ops to run smoothly, thanks to Joey, Gamebooster and a few nifty tricks up my sleeve. I have an;
ATI Mobility Radeon 3470 Containing:
Video RAM 1.0 GB
Hardware T&L
Pixel Shader version 4.0
Vertex Shader version 4.0
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo CPU P8400 @ 2.26GHz 2.27GHz,
RAM: 2Gig (Vista)
which was, quite frankly, bloody annoying!
What I did was navigate to my Black Ops Steam root directory (found in the Steam/steamapps/common folder)
and set the two BlackOps.exe files to run in compatibility with XP SP2, I enabled the 'force run in 640x480 screen resolution' setting and enabled the three boxes below it.
When the game launches, it will take up the whole screen regardless of it's windowed mode. You won't be in legit fullscreen, but the game window fills up your screen space (at least it did for me).
It basically looks fullscreen, and emulates a 640x480 full screen resolution with no added pressure on your CPU, due to it literally being windowed!
* Call of Duty: Black Ops System Requirements (Can’t play it on your computer?)
* How-To Test if your PC/Mac Can Play a Game (Can Your Computer Run it?)
* How-To Enable the Console (and Cheats) in Call of Duty: Black Ops Single Player Mode
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
re: I want to get my ps3 config files altered [Brain Fuc%^&]
Hello. I am sorry to tell you that this will only work for the Windows PC version of Black Ops.
I want to get my ps3 config files altered
Ive been working on this for a week.Please explaine to me like Im a five year old.I want to change some of my config files in my ps3???????Please help.
re: Wow this really worked for me!!! [guideX]
Thanks for the feedback. The only thing I believe I missed in the guide above it to always update to the latest graphics card drivers from the nVidia or AMD/ATI sites.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Follow Me on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/ClearTech411
Join Us on FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/pages/ClearTechInfo/109350766964
Wow this really worked for me!!!
My Black Ops was slow as a dog, and this article has gained me a very large improvement on performance.
I was gaining a horrible reputation for being laggy in multiplayer games because of hardware lag, meanwhile my machine isn't that bad..
nVidia Geforce 9800 GTX 512 mb video memory
Intel Core 2 Duo 3 ghz processor
2 gb ram
I also had all settings set to the absolute minimum, and the game performed badly compared to say Call of Duty World at War (similar game). Esp when playing Call of the Dead (Esp when looking at George).
Thanks a million, now off to kill some zombies.
Yer I know but my friend
Yer I know but my friend game me his config file and I replaced mine with his and its back to default. And I went on this site and one other and changed tweaks. And black ops runs fine but only a little lag at times. So thanks for all your help. If I have any problems ill come to u thanks.
re: Black Ops weapon disappearing after tweaking [nat]
Hi nat. One of the config settings that was changed disabled the weapon from showing. I am not sure which one that is. You probably need to test it out by editing 1 setting at a time to what it was originally.
Don’t forget to UNcheck the “Read-only” option so the config file can become editable again. Then edit the file. Save. Last, go back to the config file and make it Read-only again. Play Black Ops and test.
Hey I went on a few sites
Hey I went on a few sites like these with tweaks, and u changes my configmp and config file and then when I played I realized that when I'm playing and walk up to a weapon it doesn't show "press F to pick up M16" and so on. Do u know wat tweak it is. Or how I can get it back. Thanks. And I was the person that was talking to u before.
thanks
ok ill do it and let u know
ok ill do it and let u know
Create a copy of the
Create a copy of the original file you are altering. Place that file on your desktop. If something goes wrong then all you have to do is copy that file to its original location, no damage done.
ok but what if i do this and
ok but what if i do this and when i open black ops it doesnt work. in scared of reaking the whole game if i do the tutorial above.
re:
Processor: Intel T4400 dual-core 2.20 GHz
RAM: 4 GB
Graphics Card: nVidia GeForce G 103m
Hello, both the processor and graphics card are below the minimum requirements. Since you already bought the game I can’t tell you to not buy it. It should install without a problem. But you will have a tough time running Call of Duty: Black Ops smoothly when there are a lot of people or explosions around you. It will run super laggy.
My best recommendation knowing that you already own the game is to follow every step of my tutorial above. It will show you how optimize your PC to run Black Ops.
yes im guest since
yes im guest since yesturday,
this is my details
Processor: Pentium Dual-Core CPU T4400 @ 2.20GHz
Memory (RAM): 4GB
GRAPHICS: NVIDIA GeForce G 103M
Gaming graphics: 1775 MB Total available graphics memory
re: 4gb ram nvidia geforce g 103m Black Ops compatibility
Processor: ???
RAM: 4 GB
Graphics Card: GeForce G 103m
Hello, since you posted as “Guest” I am not sure if you posted your processor spec or not before since there are several guests that posted on here.
The GeForce G 103m is slightly below the minimum requirements. But if you have a fast processor like an Intel “Core 2 Duo” 2.4 GHz or faster it will run. If not then definitely follow my guide above to make it run as smoothly as possible.
4gb ram nvidia geforce g
4gb ram
nvidia geforce g 103m.
i bought the game already so we will see how it goes
re: Intel Pentium Dual Core 2.20 GHz Black Ops compatibility
The 2.20 GHz Intel Dual Core processor is below the minimum requirements for Cal of Duty: Black Ops. It will install fine but when you play it will run super slow, you will not like how slow it runs.
(This is assuming that you have 2+ GB of RAM and a compatible graphics card. If you don’t have 2+ GB of RAM.)
its 2.20ghz
its 2.20ghz
re: Intel Pentium Dual Core running Black Ops
Do you know the model number of the Intel Pentium Dual core? If not do you know how fast is it? Like 3.6 GHz or what?
Thanks :-)
intel pentium dual core is
intel pentium dual core is that good enough for black ops?
Intel Core i5-2540M 2.60 GHz CPU running COD: Black Ops
Yes, the Intel Core i5-2540M is a multi-core processor. If it is paired with a decent video card it will run Black Ops very smoothly :-)
Intel Core
Hi There. Can i ask Is Intel i5-2540M CPU @ 2.60GHz Multi Core?
re: Call of duty black ops
Follow the tutorial I created above to make your system run the game faster.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Join Us on FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/pages/ClearTechInfo/109350766964
Intel Core i3
Hi, yes the Intel Core i3 is a multicore CPU.
Call of duty black ops
Hi i hope you are doing well .
i just find your site in Google so i installed call of duty black ops every thing is Ok .
only i have problem when i want to play this game it is very slow everything is slow ...if it possible please help me
thanks...
my cpu core is intel core
my cpu core is intel core i3....is it multicore?
Kelski
Thanks for the info. That patch has been long awaited. Black Ops is such a CPU hogger. Good to hear it can work on a Mobile Core2Duo 2.0 GHz now :-)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Join Us on FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/pages/ClearTechInfo/109350766964
thanks for this heads up,
thanks for this heads up, also, you might wanna patch your cod black ops to the latest, it fixes the sluttering.
my laptop can now play cod black ops at decent frame rates but has high texture settings(not bad for a student laptop).
so to sum up, my core2duo 2.0 w/ ati radeon mobility hd3450 256mb can play cod black ops from 40-60 fps avg 42, thank you very much mate
ASUS K42F laptop, Intel GMA HD Black Ops compatibility
Hello,
The problem is the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator HD. Don't let the "HD" name fool you. You can play HD movies pretty smoothly but not high performance 2011 games like Black Ops.
To play Black Ops you need a Mid-Rance to High-End ATI or nVidia graphic card. The Intel graphics cards are too slow to be compatible.
Also like most laptops the Asus model you have the graphics card is not upgradable.
I have an ASUS K42F laptop
I have an ASUS K42F laptop but my COD BO is still running slow. what do you think is wrong with it? should I still perform adjustments with that 'config_cfg' thing or there is really something wrong with my laptop.. by the way, here are my laptops' specs: CPU- Intel Core i3-370M, 2.4GHZ
VGA- Intel Graphics Media Accelerator HD
HDD- 320 GB
Memory- 2GB
if ever that those specs were enough and no adjustments on the graphic settings are necessary, i'm planning to return my laptop to the dealer because its still under warranty and tell them that its not performing the way it should be. i hope you could help me on this.. thank you.
re: Is it enough - COD BO
Hi JovanP,
The Asus K52F laptop specs you posted are good to play HD movies, Facebook games and listening to music. But it’s not meant for high end PC games like Call of Duty: Black Ops. Black Ops would probably freeze that laptop.
COD: Black Ops needs an Intel “Core2Duo”, Intel “Core i-series” (i3, i5, i7) or AMD equivalent to run. It also needs a fast “dedicated” graphics card. All integrated/on-board graphics cards are not fast enough for Black Ops. This includes every graphics card made by Intel.
Is it enough - COD BO
Hi there!
I was just wondering for someone's opinion is it possible to run this game on my laptop, because, in two days, I'm going to get ASUS K52F.. Here's the performance:
System: Windows 7 Home Premium (64bit)
Screen: 15.6'' / HD resolution 1366x768
Processor: Intel Pentium P6200 / 2.13 GHz
Memory: DDR III 3 GB
HDD: 500 GB
Video: Intel GMA HD / HDMI 2048x1536
Graphics hardware : Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
Thanks in advance!
Bye!!