SkyrimSE:Display Settings

A guide to configuring the best display settings for Skyrim Special Edition

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WIP

This guide is a work in progress.

Guide scope

It is the intent of this guide to direct users to the optimal settings to be used for Skyrim Special Edition for their hardware. This includes setting up unofficially supported display methods and workarounds for different use cases.

Resolution

Your resolution can be set by modifying the following lines in SkyrimPrefs.ini:

[Display]
iSize H=1080
iSize W=1920

Alternatively these can be set in an INI editor such as BethINI, or, if you are using the SSE Display Tweaks mod, by changing the following line in the SKSE\Plugins\SSEDisplayTweaks.ini file:

[Render]
Resolution=1920x1080

SSE Display Tweaks also allows you to set a resolution lower than your screen resolution and upscale it to your screen while in borderless windowed mode. In order for this feature to work, you must change BorderlessUpscale to true.

[Render]
BorderlessUpscale=true

A quick and easy way to change the resolution scale is also provided with the ResolutionScale tweak. This tweak is a multiplier for your resolution to modify it lower or higher while maintaining the aspect ratio as used in the Resolution tweak. This can be uncommented and lowered to improve performance at the cost of resolution.

[Render]
ResolutionScale=0.75

Ultra Widescreen

While the game does not natively support ultra widescreen aspect ratios, the Complete Widescreen Fix mod is able to fix the user interface issues that would otherwise inhibit their use. Simply install the appropriate files for your modded setup and ensure its files overwrite any of the original mods you may have installed.

Screen modes

The game supports both windowed and fullscreen modes, with the option to run in borderless windowed mode, via the following INI settings in the SkyrimPrefs.ini file:

[Display]
bBorderless=0
bFull Screen=1

Fullscreen mode

Without mods, fullscreen mode will provide the best performance. Without SSE Display Tweaks, this is the only method that G-SYNC (and FreeSync?) will be able to be successfully used. Setting bFull Screen=1 will enforce this method unless overwritten by a mod that overwrites this setting. SSE Display Tweaks users can use the following setting in the SKSE\Plugins\SSEDisplayTweaks.ini file to set this:

[Render]
Fullscreen=true

Borderless windowed mode

Borderless windowed mode is often preferred because of the ease of alt-tabbing to other applications. However, without SSE Display Tweaks, G-SYNC (and FreeSync?) will not work in windowed mode. SSE Display Tweaks users, however, can use G-SYNC or FreeSync in borderless windowed mode. Setting bFull Screen=0 and bBorderless=1 will enforce this method unless overwritten by a mod that overwrites this setting. SSE Display Tweaks users can use the following settings in the SKSE\Plugins\SSEDisplayTweaks.ini file to set this:

[Render]
Fullscreen=false
Borderless=true

Framerate handling

By default, Skyrim Special Edition runs at a maximum of 60 frames per second. While this is fine for most users, some may find this restrictive. These users should disable this framerate lock by disabling bLockFrameRate in Skyrim.ini and installing SSE Display Tweaks.

[Display]
bLockFrameRate=0

Fixing Havok

The game's physics only supports a framerate of 60 frames per second. There are several mods that can fix this, but should not be used all at the same time. It is recommended to use SSE Display Tweaks fix, as it is the most comprehensive and complete. The SKSE\Plugins\SSEDisplayTweaks.ini file comes preconfigured with the Havok fix enabled:

[Havok]
Enabled=true
DynamicMaxTimeScaling=true

If your system is struggling to meet 60 frames per second, lowering MinimumFramerate may improve performance.

[Havok]
MinimumFramerate=60

If you have set a framerate limit, are utilizing Fullscreen mode, or have VSync enabled, it is recommended to set MaximumFramerate=0 to allow the plugin to determine this value automatically.

[Havok]
MaximumFramerate=0

Skyrim has an alternative physics mode that lessens CPU usage in complex scenes such as the civil war battles at the expense of simulation quality. Users with weak CPUs can set PerformanceMode=true to use this mode everywhere if they experience performance issues, especially when a lot of NPCs are around.

[Havok]
PerformanceMode=true

VSync

NOTE:

If you are using G-SYNC or FreeSync, it is still recommended to have VSync enabled!

VSync (vertical synchronization) is recommended to be enabled in one manner or the other to prevent screen tearing. It is recommended to enable this in only one place so you know exactly which VSync method you are using. VSync can be set in multiple places, but the most common places include the following:

• SkyrimPrefs.ini (the official game INI settings)

[Display]
iVSyncPresentInterval=1

• ENBLocal.ini (ENB users only)

[ENGINE]
ForceVSync=false

• SKSE\Plugins\SSEDisplayTweaks.ini

[Render]
EnableVSync=false

• Driver Settings
  • NVIDIA Control Panel (NVIDIA graphics cards only)
  • AMD Radeon Settings (AMD graphics cards only)

Best method is VSync + FPS Limit that is 0.01 FPS less than your monitor's maximum refresh rate (e.g., typical 60HZ is actually 59.940HZ - 0.01 = 59.93).

G-SYNC

Best method is G-SYNC + VSync + FPS Limit that is 3 FPS less than your monitor's maximum refresh rate.

FreeSync

Presumed best method is FreeSync + VSync + FPS Limit that is 3 FPS less than your monitor's maximum refresh rate.