Draw Distance in Assassin's Creed 2

[Xanorak]

Hello, just recently I started playing Assassin's Creed 2 again. It was already previously installed, and I had stopped playing it for a long time. I installed Resident Evil 5 and was a zombie for a few weeks, then started a new game on AC2.

After a while, I noticed that details and shadows were popping in only when I was near and looking at them. At first, I thought it was nothing. But as I progressed, it became more and more noticeable. Trees, bushes, and even leaves on the ground would drop in as I ran along. It's extremely distracting, and I'm really really REALLY sure I never noticed that before, in AC1 or AC2.

So I searched it up online, to see if anyone else had that problem. It seems many people were complaining about the draw distance, and there were a few threads about it. Most of the responses were "It's a console port so it's expected", but one guy actually said he hadn't noticed it before either.

There were other threads I stumbled upon that were not only about Assassin's Creed, but about all games having poor view distance. Most replies were "update your drivers, reinstall, reset your Nvidia Control Panel settings" and other stuff. None of these threads were resolved in the end, and none of the methods worked. One thing I noticed though, a few people said it might be because of a failing graphics card, correct me if I'm wrong. I truly hope this is not the case, and I hadn't noticed any draw distance issues on other games. If there was any, it's rather slight. I only tested a few games, but I'll try testing the more big scale, open world ones next time.

I truly, sincerely, do not remember Assassin's Creed 2 having such bad draw distance. I always remembered it having beautiful, detailed landscapes. So I have no idea what's happened, as no major hardware changes took place recently. I don't really have the money to go around buying lots of stuff

There were some tips about updating the Realtek HD Driver or something like that, but I really don't understand lots of computer talk, and if you ask me to post my specs, I probably won't know how. Sorry, I really hope somebody can help me! I want to quickly finish off AC2 before I get AC: Brotherhood! Thanks.

 

[Tamz_msc]

I would check more games before coming to any conclusion.

 

[Xanorak]

I'll try out a few open world games and see. So far I'm not seeing any issues like other threads I've seen, where in L4D2 or RE5 the draw distance is bad. It seems this problem only affects ACII. How strange! This problem is driving me mad.

 

[mactronix]

I'll try out a few open world games and see. So far I'm not seeing any issues like other threads I've seen, where in L4D2 or RE5 the draw distance is bad. It seems this problem only affects ACII. How strange! This problem is driving me mad.

Do you own or know someone who owns Oblivion. It would be an exelant way of testing for Hardware issues concerning Draw distance as it has an ingame setting for it under the graphics options.
Im sure other games do as well but im not familiar with any other than Oblivion.

Mactronix

 

[Xanorak]

Well, no and no unfortunately. But I know many people are saying it's draw distance is bad. And most games nowadays don't really have an option for draw distance. Thanks for your help, though.

By the way, I tried out Batman: Arkham Asylum. I'm not sure if it's a new problem or it's just me being paranoid, but I did notice one or two bushes popping up at certain locations. Certainly easy to miss, though. Also, I noticed that if the screen is not facing something (such as a handrail), and I turn back to quickly face it, the details will drop in shortly after. I only noticed this effect on the handrails, not on walls or rocks or anything else (so far). I don't think this is related, though, and I think other games are like that too. However, like I said, I wouldn't know.

I'll try my best to test out some other games (Prince of Persia, Call of Pripyat) but I honestly think it's an ACII only issue. But I just recently tried out MW2 because other threads mentioned that having draw distance issues, and I noticed a bit of grass popping in only once, at one level. It's hard to notice unless you're looking out for it, so I think it's always been there. I hope these aren't signs that my graphics card is faulty, though.

And I really think I would've noticed had ACII had this problem before, so I'm sure it was never like this.

 

[mactronix]

What i have found is that unless your are looking for it or its your second time playing through then you are too imersed in the action going on around to notice. The draw distance per say isnt really the issue, its the character/tree/bush fade that is the issue.
This was bad in AC 1, i have not played AC 2 but would assume it would be pretty much the same.

Of course it could just be your system struggling a bit keeeping up with teh rapid mavements in batman as its a pretty taxing game with every thing enabled. Especially with the PhysX enabled.

Mactronix

 

[Xanorak]

I have played all these games before. I have completed Batman, played AC1, played halfway through AC2, and NEVER experienced this! I understand Batman, of course, because what I mentioned is VERY unnoticeable. I was looking for it, which is why I found it. But AC2 was just so blindingly obvious this time round, I truly do not remember it being this bad. Trees, bushes, and even leaves on the ground are appearing 10 feet in front of me. I think I would've remembered! And all the games I mentioned have ran smoothly for me. Just a few details I can remember about my PC is that:
1. It's Windows XP
2. Nvidia GeForce 9800GT
3. 3GB RAM

That's all . Oh by the way, do you think upgrading my processor might help? Whether or not it fixes the issue, I've been meaning to get a new one. I can't run stuff like Dead Rising 2 on minimum. I have an Intel Core Duo CPU E4500 @ 2.20ghz, something like that. But will I lose my stuff if I upgrade it?

 

[jerreece]

Have you tried reinstalling AC2 yet?

 

[Xanorak]

Yeap. I wonder if deleting the save files or something would work, cause I find my save is still there. I tried searching for some folder where they store those, but couldn't find one anywhere.

 

[jerreece]

Yeap. I wonder if deleting the save files or something would work, cause I find my save is still there. I tried searching for some folder where they store those, but couldn't find one anywhere.

Save game files are often hidden these days. They're stored in a "Hidden" folder under the User directory on your computer. You may have to alter the properties of the file folder to unhide it.

Try looking here with Windows XP:
C:\Program Files\Ubisoft\Ubisoft Game Launcher\storage

Try this for Vista/Win7:
C:\Users\(UserName)\AppData\Roaming\Ubisoft

It would be a good idea to back up the saved game files first, so that you can restore the saved game files if it doesn't fix your problem. That way you aren't starting the game from scratch again!

 

[Xanorak]

Thanks! I deleted it, will try next time. I doubt it will work, but right now I'd try anything

But not right NOW, since it's 3:15 AM for me.

However, I'm seeing pop-up for TF2 even, such as wooden crates. Hard to notice, but I was looking out for it. I think it really must be my graphics card (or me being paranoid). Still, I'll keep testing out other games

 

[Xanorak]

Just asking, but does anyone actually have AC1 or AC2 and has the same issue? From what I see, only a few people are having this issue.

 

[jerreece]

I've played both and never seen your particular problem. I haven't played either in a little while though. Although your thread has given me the urge to reinstall AC2. I just have too many different games snagging my attention lately. LOL

Batman, Just Cause 2, Bad Company 2, Mafia 2... all recent play examples.

 

[Xanorak]

Haha, So it's the same situation as me. I would love it if anyone could try it out and see if they have the issue. Since you seem to have never noticed it, I assume it's not part of the game. I've seen AC: Brotherhood on Xbox 360, and there was absolutely no draw distance issue. Many people responding to threads like mine simply said, "It's because it's a port" or "It's such a huge game" but I'm really hoping it's not meant to be like that. In reviews I read, this was never mentioned. Something this drastic would be mentioned, right?

 

[jerreece]

You're generally hard pressed to see problems on the XBOX 360 though. Because the games on XBOX360 are designed for ONE specific set of hardware. Because every XBOX 360 has essentially the exact same equipment inside. So it's all completely optimized. So if you see a graphical glitch, everybody else would too.

PC games take a lot more patches/tweaking because they run different on everyone's machine. Plus, there's tons of other software on the PC that can wreak havoc on stuff. LOL

 

[Xanorak]

So it has to be my computer then. I tried playing NFS: Hot Pursuit, and it has some pop-up too. Slight, but noticeable. One last thing I'm gonna do is just see a bunch of AC2 videos on YouTube, just to confirm that it's a real issue. Thanks for all your help! I'll try to buy a new card, I guess.

 

[Tetanus]

Just asking, but does anyone actually have AC1 or AC2 and has the same issue? From what I see, only a few people are having this issue.

Hi guys!
First of all sorry for my English.
I've got the same problem. (with Ati 4570 HD)
Everything was perfect with AS1 & 2, The Witcher & lots of other games (like COD 4 & 6)
BUT
after i've installed Farcry2 and Crysis (in the same time because i've get them in the same time) every single game is look like crap now... like no draw distance...

Assassin's creed 2, The Witcher, COD 4
These games now just simple unplayable.
It's quiet annoying when i don't see the objects and characters.

believe me, i've done with every single variation in vga control centre and game settings.
like set anisotrop filtering and mipmap details quiet high in vga control centre.
And yes, i've already reinstalled the driver of my vga card. (and yes, first uninstalled and delete everything, and after then i've installed it again.)
Unfortunately older drivers dosen't help at all too...

and i have to say again: I haven't had any problem previously.
But something happened and now all games are not enjoyable...

 

[Xanorak]

Hi guys!
First of all sorry for my English.
I've got the same problem. (with Ati 4570 HD)
Everything was perfect with AS1 & 2, The Witcher & lots of other games (like COD 4 & 6)
BUT
after i've installed Farcry2 and Crysis (in the same time because i've get them in the same time) every single game is look like crap now... like no draw distance...

Assassin's creed 2, The Witcher, COD 4
These games now just simple unplayable.
It's quiet annoying when i don't see the objects and characters.

believe me, i've done with every single variation in vga control centre and game settings.
like set anisotrop filtering and mipmap details quiet high in vga control centre.
And yes, i've already reinstalled the driver of my vga card. (and yes, first uninstalled and delete everything, and after then i've installed it again.)
Unfortunately older drivers dosen't help at all too...

and i have to say again: I haven't had any problem previously.
But something happened and now all games are not enjoyable...

But the strange thing is, the only change I did to my computer was install Resident Evil 5. I think I have around 10 or more games in my computer, but I don't have Crysis or Far Cry 2 installed.

P.S. have you tried uninstalling either Far Cry 2 or Crysis or even both, then testing the other games? Please let me know if it works.

 

[Tetanus]

But the strange thing is, the only change I did to my computer was install Resident Evil 5. I think I have around 10 or more games in my computer, but I don't have Crysis or Far Cry 2 installed.

P.S. have you tried uninstalling either Far Cry 2 or Crysis or even both, then testing the other games? Please let me know if it works.

Yes, i've already done with uninstalling those games.
nothings happened.

 

[Xanorak]

I think I'll try to uninstall Resident Evil 5, cause I think that's when the problems sort of started. I started playing AC2 once I got slightly tired of RE5. I'll post back if it works or not

 

[Xanorak]

I haven't gotten to uninstalling RE5 yet, because I've run into another problem.

At first, I watched a few videos of AC2 on YouTube with maxed out graphics, and it seems I'm not the only one who has this. This led me to believe the game was that way from the start, and after playing it some more I can see myself overlooking it. I also assumed that the other games were just because I was looking out for pop-up.

But now I'm getting really weird stuff. When I play games (or maybe even when I'm not, I'm not so sure) after a while the screen will start reacting odd, and it'll be full of weird patterns and colors. Then the computer usually freezes and I have to manually restart it. When I say that I'm not sure if it's only for games, it's because I only notice it happening a minute after launching the game. I had experienced a freeze once though, when I wasn't running anything. I'm pretty sure it's a graphics card issue, but I'm not sure. I've reset the Nvidia control panel, but it didn't help.

I actually had this problem yesterday, then suddenly it got fixed all of a sudden (after a restart and running TF2, I believe) and I could play AC2 for a good hour or more. Then I stopped to let my brother use it, and he complained my computer was having blue screen errors. I've never had a blue screen in a long long time, the last time I had it was when my computer was blue screening every 20 minutes last year (the issue was fixed by simply wiping away the dust inside of my computer). Now it's blue screening pretty often (though it usually freezes instead of getting the BSOD), and no amount of restarts has helped.

I plan to just try wipe the inside again, like I said I don't know anything about computers so I had no idea dust could be such a big problem. Do you think this is a graphics card related issue, though? It'd explain the draw distance issues I noticed in other games. Please help!

 

[Digital Dissent]

I saw the same problem in asc2 with my 6950. Never saw it with my 4890 and with my new gtx 570 it dosent show up much either. I think its a driver issue from ati. It does have a bad draw distance in general but it seems to be exceptionally bad on the 6900 series.

 

[jerreece]

So I played Assassin's Creed 2 night before last for about 30-40 minutes. I didn't notice any annoying draw distance issues.

If your PC is freezing without a Blue Screen, I'm guessing it's a CPU issue.

RAM issues usually cause a reboot or blue screen. GPU issues usually cause the image to freak out (colors, spots, etc). At least in my personal experience.

Is your CPU overclocked?

 

[Xanorak]

I think I fixed the freezing issue, I found out the blue screens were because of nv4_disp.dll, and I noticed I had 2 of them so I deleted one. Worked fine, but I ran into a stupid virus called System Tool. Wasting my time. When I fix this little thing I'd get back to this

Anyway, Digital Dissent, why don't you look at some YouTube vids and see if it's that bad? Thanks.

 

[Xanorak]

I experienced the freezing and weird color thing again. I wiped my computer for dust, seems to be working. It might come back, though.

Just a quick question, I heard somewhere that your sound driver might lag the computer, and you should update them. I don't know how, though. Please help?

Also could anyone tell me if they experience pop-up on games like NFS: Hot Pursuit, Batman: Arkham Asylum, or any other game of the sort? It would help if you look out for it, just so I know it's not my computer and it's just my paranoia. Thanks!