Thanks to their wider aspect ratios, ultrawide monitors can give you better immersion in video games. They can also increase the field of view of first-person shooters.
However, before getting an ultrawide monitor, you should make sure that your computer can handle your favorite games at ultrawide resolutions. Otherwise, games will slow down and have low FPS with your new ultrawide monitor.
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Do Ultrawide Monitors Affect Video Game Performance?
Ultrawide resolutions have more pixels than respective standard resolutions. With more pixels, the GPU has to handle a higher load which can lower the frame rates of video games.
For example, let’s consider a standard 16:9 monitor with a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels and an ultrawide 21:9 monitor with a resolution of 3440 x 1440 pixels. The 16:9 monitor has 3,686,400 pixels and the 21:9 monitor has 4,953,600 pixels.
Therefore, the 21:9 ultrawide monitor has approximately 1.34 times pixels compared to the standard 16:9 monitor. Because of this higher pixel count, the same GPU will only give a lower FPS when playing on the ultrawide monitor.
However ultrawide monitors don’t always give lower FPS than standard monitors. It is the total pixel count of the monitor that affects the video game performance. For example, a standard 4K (3840 x 2160) monitor has 8,294,400 pixels. That is 1.67 times compared to the ultrawide monitor with a resolution of 3440 x 1440 pixels. In this case, the ultrawide monitor will give better FPS compared to the standard resolution monitor.
How To Get Better FPS When Using An Ultrawide Monitor
There are a few ways to get better video game FPS when using an ultrawide monitor.
If the higher graphics settings of a game give you low FPS on an ultrawide monitor, you can simply lower the graphics settings to get better FPS. You have to experiment with different graphics settings to find the balance between graphics quality and performance.
You can also lower the resolution of the game to get better FPS. If the native resolution of your ultrawide monitor gives poor FPS in a game, you can get better FPS by lowering the game’s resolution.
For example, if a game has low FPS on an ultrawide 3440 x 1440 monitor, you can lower the game’s resolution to 2560 x 1440 to get significantly better FPS. However, in this case, you’ll get black bars at the sides of the monitor. This is called the pillarbox effect.
Pros And Cons Of Using Ultrawide Monitors For Video Games
Ultrawide monitors can give you significantly better immersion in video games. This is especially noticeable in open-world games. They can also give you a higher field of view for first-person shooters.
However, ultrawide monitors can lower the FPS of games due to their higher pixel counts. Some video games also don’t support ultrawide resolutions. Then you have to use a 16:9 standard resolution, which causes the pillarbox effect.
Some gamers also prefer smaller 16:9 monitors compared to ultrawide monitors. The wider field of view of ultrawide monitors can make those gamers slower in competitive games.
However, you can simply use a standard 16:9 resolution in an ultrawide monitor to fix all the ultrawide-related issues. The pillarbox effect you get from using a 16:9 resolution is not distracting for most gamers.
Conclusion
Because of their higher pixel counts, ultrawide monitors can lower the frame rates of video games compared to standard-resolution monitors.
When a game has low FPS in an ultrawide monitor, you can simply use a standard 16:9 resolution to get better FPS. You can also lower the graphic settings of the game to get better FPS on an ultrawide monitor.
Thanks to their better immersion, ultrawide monitors can give you a better gaming experience. They are well worth it if your GPU can handle their native resolution.