Results: UHD And Quality Presets
UHD With Ultra Preset
Since we’re testing the worst-case scenario here, every graphics card down to AMD's Radeon R9 390X and Nvidia's GeForce GTX 980 delivers acceptable frame rates.
The quality preset scaling results below might be worth a look, though, if you're looking for a smoother gaming experience. On the lowest graphics preset, even a Tahiti-based AMD Radeon R9 280X works at 4K. A stock Nvidia GeForce GTX 770 with its 2GB of GDDR5 can't always keep up, on the other hand.
Scaling With Different Graphics Presets
How much performance can you add by lowering the graphics quality settings? Regardless of resolution, performance roughly doubles when you go from the Ultra quality preset to Low.
The subjective differences between presets is smaller than you might think. Moreover, they're certainly smaller than you'd expect given the impressive performance bars. Endor's vegetation, including its flowing water, does look a bit flatter and more static, but it's certainly not like the graphics quality takes much of a hit.
Fortunately, the differences are just as small on Tatooine. What jumps out are the simpler shadows and reduced depth. The rest ceases to matter once your online enemies enter the game.
Bottom Line
Whether you end up liking Star Wars Battlefront will depend on opinion of its gameplay, including the fact that it’s almost exclusively a multi-player affair. If you end up setting Star Wars aside, we can guarantee it won't be because of graphics quality or performance. This isn’t the place or time to lament missed opportunities for a stellar campaign. We're here evaluating the title's technical aspects, which EA did a great job with.
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