A week after its PC release, Rise of the Tomb Raider received its first post-launch update. Obviously, the patch repaired a few issues reported by some users, but it also added some new features based on the first wave of user feedback.
Aside from the usual tweaks and fixes, the 147.9 MB patch repaired some startup problems, such as a C++ runtime error and a work-around for an issue where the Visual C++ Redistributable app was not properly installed, which meant the game couldn’t run at all.
Startup issues (Steam Only):Fixed C++ runtime error showing up on startup preventing some users from running the game. Provided work-around for issue where the VC++ redist would not properly get installed, stopping the game from starting at all. Solved problem where the game would crash on startup when tools like Bins Taskbar organizer or Spacedesk are installed.Updated options screen with among other things:Independent mouse sensitivity control for aim and regular navigation. Mouse and gamepad X-axis inversion Option to disable keyboard button prompts. Option to disable mouse smoothing (very light mouse smoothing is present otherwise)Other fixes included in this patch:A variety of fixes and improvements to UI including map, basecamps, and Remnant Resistance mode. New graphics option 'Specular Reflection Quality' to enhance resolution and reduce aliasing of specular reflections, at some performance cost. New graphics option to disable film-grain independently from 'Screen Effects'. Improved HBAO+ quality, including better occlusion for distant objects. Improved NVIDIA SLI performance. (Steam only) Fixed SLI glitches during water/snow effects. (Steam only) Resolution Modifier option that allows you to use a lower rendering resolution independent from window size when running in windowed mode. Performance optimization for situations where Razer Chroma features are enabled. (Steam Only) Improvements to Razer Chroma effects. (Steam Only) Fixed an issue that could rarely lead to an error on machines with 16 hardware threads or more. Fixed mouse cursor not always being hidden when using gamepad. Fixed major stuttering in Endurance mode. Fixes for Endurance leaderboards. Fixed Remnant Resistance missions occasionally not starting.Fixed rendering glitches on some objects on NVIDIA 6x0 and 7x0 hardware. Some issue do still happen and we are working with NVIDIA to resolve those in future patches or drivers. Warning messages for users turning textures to Very High or enabling SSAA to indicate high-end hardware is required. A variety of other smaller optimizations, bug-fixes, and tweaks.
On the other end of the patch, the developers also made some improvements. Certain parts of the UI, such as the map and basecamps, are improved, although details weren’t available in the patch notes. Razer Chroma performance in certain parts of the game were also optimized. The developers partnered with Razer to include some special Chroma lighting effects in the game. Obviously, you’ll need a Razer peripheral with Chroma lighting to see the unique light show.
Rise of the Tomb Raider also received some visual upgrades for its PC version, as highlighted by the developers prior to release. But that didn’t stop them from adding even more visual options. There’s a new graphics option called “Specular Reflection Quality,” which, as the name describes, increases the resolution and also reduces the aliasing of specular reflection. However, the improvements do have an overall effect on game performance. You can now also disable the film grain effect independently from other screen effects.
If you use an Nvidia GPU, there are exclusive graphics improvements, as well. The Horizon Based Ambient Occlusion Plus (HBAO+) effect (realistic shading) received an upgrade, and distant objects have better occlusion. The patch also fixed an issue where glitches would appear with snow and water effects on systems with two GPUs in SLI.
In the event that the new patch doesn’t work, the developer also launched the beta build of the older version, so you can switch back if any issues arise. As always, more patches will come if needed, and the developers said they are always available for customer feedback.
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