For as long as PC gamers have dubbed the standard performance on PC as 60fps, FOV sliders have been asked for in games too. It’s a staple of the PC gaming community now that if a game ships without an FOV slider then it’s a terrible PC port. Come on, it’s 2021 people, and we still have to put up with games that launch without FOV sliders?
Either way, Field of View is a very important feature for PC gamers, but no one ever seems to really talk about what FOV they actually use. Consoles generally lack the horsepower to run the latest games at full graphics settings (at least, before the latest generation of consoles) and so had to cut corners like a reduced FOV for less geometry rendering.
That, and the fact that most console players will likely be playing on a big TV from further away, meant low FOV’s were never really something to get that much annoyed about on consoles. On PC however, where players are often just mere inches from their monitor, a low FOV can cause serious motion sickness issues among others.
So what is the optimal FOV for PC gamers? Well, that generally comes down to the distance you are from the monitor, and what you personally prefer. It also depends on whether you have a multi-monitor setup, as these can increase your FOV without adding distortion to the image.
What do you think? What FOV do you normally set your games to? Do you have a wider FOV to see more around you? Or do you go for lower FOVs to increase immersion and/or save on FPS performance? Let’s debate!
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PC Specs
Usually, I leave it around the default, which is usually 90 on PC. Bumped it up to 96 on Apex and now I put all FPS games at the same FOV for consistency.
PC Specs
Usually between 85 and 90 horizontally (it depends per game how fisheye-lens the vision becomes).
Last time I booted MW3 up, I immediately got a headache from the default (65 degree?) FoV. I downloaded an FoV changer program to just set it at boot, but unfortunately it caused issues with co-op sessions, thus I had to disable it.
FoV sliders are really needed, unless the games use a FoV of about 85-90 by default, which should be comfortable for the majority of the players with a widescreen display.
PC Specs
I see people using the "fisheye" when talking about game FOV and, as a photographer, I facepalm a bit :D
It's a rectilinear distortion, not a fish-eye.
Fish-eye (curvilinear) distortion looks like THIS - it does not keep straight edges.
Rectilinear distortion looks like THIS - it keeps the lines straight at the expense of stretching at the edges.
Just something to keep in mind, since a wide FOV in games never gives you a fisheye distortion, it's just not how the 3D projection works. Where are you guys picking up the "fisheye" term from?
PC Specs
Well, at least now I know the name... fish-eye never felt right, but people were using it so I just kind of started using it without asking any questions. I guess I just put it under "we click floppy for saving and I can't remember last time I used floppy disk" type of things that just kind of stuck around to keep things simple. But I guess it was bit fishy... :-D
PC Specs
Ah, so it's just one of those random fishy internet misnomers :D
PC Specs
I usually put FOV into like around 90, give or take 10, depending on game, just to get wider viewing angle and less of a feeling I am just camera on the gun with zoomed in view. And I definitely do believe FOV should be setting in all games. I see no reason why not give people more options. But yeah, default usually feels bit too close to me.
PC Specs
Depends on the game in question, since some use a vertical FOV, some use a horizontal one and some diagonal...so a single value can't possibly work to answer the question!
That being said - I go WIDE. In Skyrim - FOV 110, same in DOOM Eternal, for reference. Since I'm close to my screen and I want to see a bunch of stuff and for it all to feel natural - I have to go wide. "Binocular vision" just looks odd to me and there's never enough stuff in the view to play comfortably.
PC Specs
Interesting choice. Since you already use a 21:9 aspect ratio monitor, how does a 110 degree FoV differ on 21:9 or 16:9? What would be the aproperiate 16:9 FoV to match 110 degree FoV on 21:9?
PC Specs
I'm not sure where you got that I use a 21:9, since my monitor res (2560x1440) and model both indicate that I'm at 16:9 :)
That being said - I can't answer that question unless I do some math, since I don't use such a screen. On top of that - it really would depend on how the game handles FOV. Some games on a 21:9 display would show more at the edges if they use a vertical FOV. Some would show the same horizontal view as a 16:9 screen, but crop the top and bottom, if they use a horizontal or diagonal FOV (which means a 21:9 user would need to adjust the FOV wider to get the benefits).
Standardization is important, yet the devs don't do it...
I totally agree with you
1v1 battle
PC Specs
The above message is obvious spam
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90 for shooters, 75-80 or whatever the default is for RPGs and whatever else.
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Mostly just the games default, unless it's really obviously too big or small. The only time it's really important to set is racing games.
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65-80 rarely any more then this.
I use a TV and sit afar, so a large FOV looks bad.
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90-120, usually 105-110, but depends on the game, and some cap you at 90, and in some 120 is like 110 in others or so it seems.
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Usually the highest option possible. Unless it's something ridiculous like in Minecraft the "quake pro settings" . 110-120ish
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FOV 100%, just the way the dev intended it
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Higher if playing a competitive shooter as it reduces recoil (but makes targets smaller), and allows for more peripheral awareness. For any other game an FOV that looks the most 'right' so not to be distracted as fish-eye or too-tight an angle, as they can be distracting/annoying.
PC Specs
That is why I have ultrawide monitor... No need to care about visibility in games.
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Yeah, but that just increases your FOV anyway, so you're, in essence, using a wide FOV like many of us :P
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96 for 1st person, 80 for 3rd person games. I find those values to be respective sweet spots for a 16:9 ratio.
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As high as it's possible without warping the image. Usually always above 100. 100-110 for single player games. Close quarter games like Call of Duty maybe even 120. Games with bigger maps that need visibility on higher distances like battle royales 105-110.
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I normally play at 90. Doesn't look completely warped and it's not as claustrophobic as the "less than 80" many console shooters got enabled by default.
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It's always whatever the games default is. Anything higher or lower than the default automatically feels weird to me for some reason.
PC Specs
same for me, i really dont understand people here who play at something ridiculous like 120 regularly. Some games have really low like 60-70 then if i feel uncomfortable then i set to something like 75-85 range, but never higher than 90 in those rare cases when i adjust from default at all.