The Elder Scrolls Online

The Elder Scrolls Online

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How to increase the game's FPS limit while playing
By 󠀡󠀡 and 1 collaborators
This short and "straight-to-the point" guide will teach you how to increase the game's maximum FPS limit while you're still playing it.
   
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A few details about ESO's maximum FPS limit
As some of you may already know, The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited is one of the few games that do not feature an option (in the settings menu) to change the maximum FPS limit. Why the developers haven't added such an important option to the settings menu remains unknown, but there are a few ways you can change that limit. The most common one is to edit a certain file from your game's installation directory, while your game (and its launcher) is closed. This might prove to be difficult for certain, unexperienced, users, thus I felt the need to create this guide and let others know that there is an easier way.
The command used to change the maximum FPS allowed while playing
The easiest way to change that limit is to use a chat command, which I will first mention below, then I'll explain below what it does and how you should use it:

/script SetCVar("MinFrameTime.2","value")

Please note: The "value" field DOES NOT mean that you should type the number of FPS you want instead of the word "value". Also, you can type this command in any type of chat (/zone chat, /guild chat, /group chat, etc.).

How to use this command and what it does:
This command allows you to set a value for the time you want between 2 different frames, thus "telling" the game what FPS limit you want. The word "FPS" means "Frames Per Second", as you probably already know, thus here's the formula for calculating this value:
1 / X, where X is the maximum FPS you want. The slash ("/") means that you divide 1 by X.

So, for example, let's say you want to set the maximum FPS limit for the game to 144. That means the number 144 is the value that X has, in the formula mentioned above. So you divide 1 by 144 (1/144), resulting in the number 0.00694 (approximately). So, you will take this result (0.00694) and type it instead of the "value" word in the command like this:
/script SetCVar("MinFrameTime.2","0.00694")

This might seem a little complicated, but trust me: it's not. And you don't really have to know/remember the way you calculate it if you don't want to. I will mention below a few values and exactly how to use the command for the most commonly used FPS limits.

A table that contains exact details about how to use the command to set your FPS limit to a certain number:

As I mentioned above, here is a table that tells you exactly how to use that command and the values you should use for it (I already calculated them for you).

The maximum FPS you want
The value you should use for the command
Exactly how to type the command for that limit of FPS
60 FPS
0.01666
/script SetCVar("MinFrameTime.2","0.01666")
100 FPS (default)
0.01000
/script SetCVar("MinFrameTime.2","0.01000")
144 FPS
0.00694
/script SetCVar("MinFrameTime.2","0.00694")
200 FPS
0.00500
/script SetCVar("MinFrameTime.2","0.00500")
What risks are involved/other informations
If you correctly use the command, as I mentioned above, everything should be fine and there should be no risks involved. For safety reasons, please DO NOT:
  • modify the syntax of the command
  • type huge values for the command (you might end up with less than 1 FPS, meaning that you won't be able to play the game anymore untill you change it)


Thank's to The Fool for this guide's display image!
22 Comments
Zeptomonkey 25 Feb, 2023 @ 7:10am 
is there a way to cap the fps to 30 or does it break?
󠀡󠀡  [author] 27 Jul, 2020 @ 2:58am 
Thank you and glad you found this guide useful, I'll be sure to drink to that! :beatmeat:
𐂃𐂃𐂃𐂃𐂃𐂃 26 Jul, 2020 @ 12:37pm 
Yer a godman legend m8 grab a fucken stubby!
MuddyMaps (SIKORA) 27 Mar, 2018 @ 5:42pm 
better
󠀡󠀡  [author] 8 Feb, 2018 @ 11:42pm 
I believe that is a matter of perspective, but in order to try and solve that issue for those that find it misleading, I have slightly changed the title. I hope that the new title is not misleading at all and perfectly reflects what this guide is all about!
MuddyMaps (SIKORA) 8 Feb, 2018 @ 6:55am 
The title is a little misleading. It should be how to set fps limit in ESO
󠀡󠀡  [author] 10 Jun, 2017 @ 10:43pm 
No, it will automatically be saved in your settings file, meaning that it will remain as you set it even after you restart your game.
Tenacious 10 Jun, 2017 @ 7:57pm 
Do I have to enter this command every time I restart ESO?
󠀡󠀡  [author] 16 Apr, 2017 @ 11:21pm 
Generally speaking, the more FPS you have in a game, the smoother your visual experience is. The problem is that even if your PC can handle a high number of FPS in a game, your monitor's refresh rate dictates how many FPS you can actually see. E.G: If you have a monitor with a refresh rate of 60Hz, even if your game is running at 144 FPS, you still can't literally see a difference compared to your game running at 60 FPS. But if you have a monitor with a higher refresh rate, like 144Hz, you can see a clear difference between running the game in 60 FPS and 144 FPS. There's no point in running the game at a higher number of FPS than your monitor's refresh rate, to put it simply.

When it comes to your question, yes, you might find your mouse movements a lot smoother/finer when you play with a higher amount of FPS and if your monitor supports that amount.

Feel free to add me to your friends list if needed. I'd be happy to provide additional info or to answer more of your questions.
Sly-Scale 16 Apr, 2017 @ 2:07pm 
I've never understood the point of FPS caps. Does it reduce power usage or smooth out your mouse/keyboard input or something?