I'm sure many of you who have played Arkham City have noticed that this game on PC isn't the most optimized game when it comes to the frame rate as it can fluctuate when in the open world environment or even when your just playing the AR challenge maps. Unfortunately I haven't found a way to fully get rid of performance issues in the open world environment as I'm still trying to find a way to fully get rid of the weird stutter that many people have experienced when traversing the open world environment. I'll just be going over how to get rid of the low frame rate when it comes to the AR challenge maps.

Click on file explorer --> Go inside your documents folder --> Go inside WB Games --> Open Batman Arkham City GOTY --> Open BmGame --> Open Config --> Open BmEngine.ini

Once inside BmEngine.ini you will want to hit Ctrl + F on your keyboard to bring up the search menu you will now want to find every line of code that says bSmoothFrameRate=TRUE
You will need to change the TRUE to FALSE do this for every line of code that you find that has this value set to TRUE and change it to FALSE.

Next make sure to change the code that is below bSmoothFrameRate and change the values as follow:
MinSmoothedFrameRate=0
MaxSmoothedFrameRate=1000
Just like before find all instances that have Min and Max and change the values to the ones shown in this guide.

After you have made those changes go ahead and hover your mouse cursor over file in the top left hand corner and click save. Now make sure to right click BmEngine.ini and set the ini as read only and click apply and ok.

Before you boot up the game click on configure settings and disable the DirectX11 features as for some reason when you have this enabled it kills your PC performance so make sure that this remains off.

Now when you boot up Arkham City and do AR Challenge Maps you should instantly notice how much smoother the overall experience is compared to before.

Some people may ask why is having a higher framerate important or even helpful??

Framerate directly impacts a player's reaction time. Higher framerates provide more up-to-date visual information, allowing players to perceive and react to in-game events more quickly. This is particularly critical in fast-paced games where rapid decision-making is essential for success. With smoother gameplay, players can anticipate enemy movements, dodge incoming attacks, and capitalize on opportunities more effectively. Furthermore, A stable framerate ensures consistent performance, allowing players to develop muscle memory and hone their skills over time. Inconsistent framerates, on the other hand, can disrupt this process, leading to frustration and hindering skill progression. Whether it's mastering complex movement mechanics or perfecting aim and timing, a stable framerate provides the foundation for skill development.

Lastly just wanted to say that When you invest in top-of-the-line hardware, you naturally expect smooth and flawless performance in all your gaming experiences. So, encountering low framerates feels like a letdown, as it doesn't meet the expectations set by your high-end setup when you know that your PC can handle a old PC game.

I hope someone finds this helpful if they have been experiencing frustration with the gameplay in AR Challenges feeling somewhat choppy.


Before the fix

https://youtu.be/bXdSAocR2E4

After the fix

https://youtu.be/ImgAAavpduU

It may be hard to tell the difference between the before and after videos but trust me when you apply this fix and try it for yourself the difference will be very noticeable.