Some games helpfully include an FPS reporting widget. For instance, World of Warcraft's mouse-over tool displays both your current FPS, your ping to the server, and a couple other useful bits of info. For games that don't, applications such as Fraps offer this functionality, plus some additional tools, like recording and benchmarking utilities. Some titles split the difference, by running in a "demo mode" -- sort of a pre-recorded walk-through of virtual gameplay -- and then retroactively report the framerate figure based on execution time. Unfortunately, this has tended to get further and further from the real-world gameplay experience as a result of benchmark creep.


Well, that's great, BI, but what good is that FPS number in a vacuum?

We're glad you asked. While not set in stone, you're going to want to maintain a minimum of at least 30 FPS. With advances in video effects, most notably the recent introduction of motion blur, this figure represents a nice, smooth visual environment. Before motion blur, 60 FPS was generally the bar you wanted to exceed -- even though we can't consciously process visual information this fast, the slight stutter present below these values was still noticable. Consult your nearest opthamologist or neurosurgeon for exactly why this is the case.

By and large, regardless of what your framerate widget tells you, always trust your eyes. If you're pushing the limits of what your system is capable, you're apt to notice that your video becomes choppy or laggy when things get visually interesting. Maybe traversing a particular part of town brings your framerate to a staggering lurch as you make your way through it, or dropping a certain flavor of explosive down the shorts of your arch-nemesis results in a slow-mo bloom of viscera as opposed to their smooth vaporization.