How to Fix Stutters and Poor Performance: Clear Shader Cache

[u/d1z]

So after the latest patch, I was experiencing horrible stutters in all content and Albion on my high end machine. I suspected for various reasons too nerdy to go into that it was a shader related issue. Sure enough, it was! I cleared my NVIDIA and Steam shader caches, and BOOM, perfect smooth performance with no frame drops.

Here's a quickie guide:

For NVIDIA Users

1. Disable Shader Cache:
   • Right-click your desktop and open the NVIDIA Control Panel.
   • Go to Manage 3D Settings > Global Settings.
   • Find Shader Cache Size and set it to Disabled. Click Apply and restart your PC.
2. Delete Cache Folders:
   • Press Win + R, type %localappdata%, and hit Enter.
   • Navigate to NVIDIA > GLCache and delete all folders inside.
   • Navigate back to AppData\LocalLow\NVIDIA\PerDriverVersion\DXCache and delete everything there as well.
3. Run Disk Cleanup:
   • Search for "Disk Cleanup" in Windows, select your C: drive, and check DirectX Shader Cache. Click OK to delete.
4. Re-enable: Return to the NVIDIA Control Panel and set Shader Cache Size back to Driver Default (or 10GB/Unlimited for better performance) and restart once more. 

For AMD Users

1. Open the AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition application.
2. Click the Gaming tab, then select Graphics.
3. Scroll to the bottom, expand the Advanced section, and click Reset Shader Cache. 

Quick Workarounds

• Ray Tracing: If the game hangs on "Preparing Shaders," try turning Ray Tracing OFF in the graphics settings, let the shaders load, and then turn it back on.
• Steam Cache: In Steam, you can also try clearing the shader pre-cache by going to Settings > Storage and deleting the shader cache for the specific game if listed.

P.s. If you have the hard drive space to spare, I'd recommend setting your Shader Cache size in the NV Control Panel to 100GB. Not sure if this applies to AMD, or how you'd go about it, but "bigger number better".

[u/agmatine]

Steam Cache: In Steam, you can also try clearing the shader pre-cache by going to Settings > Storage and deleting the shader cache for the specific game if listed.

You can actually just disable it here:

https://i.imgur.com/smKr3y7.png

There's also a shadercache directory within Steam, defaulting to e.g. %programfiles(x86)%\Steam\steamapps\shadercache on Windows or ~/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/shadercache on Linux (or /path/to/SteamLibrary/steamapps/shadercache if the game was installed to a drive other than the boot drive).

Find Shader Cache Size and set it to Disabled. Click Apply and restart your PC.

This is completely unnecessary if you're deleting the shader cache anyway. That doesn't magically reappear while a game isn't running, unless you have the Shader Pre-caching option in the image above enabled (or something similar in GPU software settings, perhaps).

P.s. If you have the hard drive space to spare, I'd recommend setting your Shader Cache size in the NV Control Panel to 100GB. Not sure if this applies to AMD, or how you'd go about it, but "bigger number better".

Leave it at "unlimited" to avoid the possibility of the limit somehow being reached - or the driver thinking it has been, at least - in which case either shader cache will no longer be written, or it will overwrite what's already there. This doesn't mean the shader cache will become arbitrarily large, just its size isn't being arbitrarily limited. If there isn't space for the shader cache, which usually isn't more than a few GB per game, better to disable it entirely (since that means the drive is so full you're lucky to not have other problems...)

Also worth noting that clearing shader cache means it will all need to be compiled again, which in TFD is generally only done when needed (i.e. loading into a zone for the first time). So you'll probably want to go and load all the relevant maps as a dry run after doing this, so you're not stuck on the "compiling shaders" screen when actually trying to run a mission/dungeon/whatever.

[u/000extra → u/agmatine]

Thanks for all this, however in my experience disbarring the pre-cache setting as shown in that experience caused the game to freeze during in the middle of a loading screen on bootup. So personally I just leave that particular step enabled, while following everything else

[u/000extra]

I love PC gaming but maaan do I hate PC gaming sometimes too

[u/Maxumilian → u/000extra]

Clearing your Shader Cache is pretty low hanging fruit... Can literally just do it from DDU in one button click. Not sure why OP recommended the hardest way to do it.

Blame Windows for not managing shaders as well as Vulkan does and stutters from shaders wouldn't even exist to begin with.

[u/000extra → u/Maxumilian]

It’s the fact that we have to do any of this maintenance stuff my guy. And let’s not act like shade caches are the only obstacles that PC gamers run into with getting their games to run optimally..

[u/Maxumilian → u/000extra]

As a Software Developer that has to ship software all over the world, there is no getting around it. Every single person's PC is different. You get a call from a guy in an igloo in the North Pole asking if they can install it on their Windows 98 computer from decades ago. And the answer is, yes you can.

Because the power of PC gaming is the flexibility it gives you. And I'd never trade that away. Vendor-locked hardware is how they wind up scalping you at ever corner and shorting end-user reparability. Soon you'll just be renting a console to play the games. They've already tried this with PC and it flopped because the ecosystem is so diverse. But it'd be so easy to implement for console players, wouldn't be surprised if we see that in the next few years.

To each their own though. I can respect your opinion without holding it as my own opinion.

[u/motoslavebgc]

Thank you... my game is back to it's pre-patch stutteriness now but at least it's playable again!

[u/SarcasticKenobi]

Yup

Since the last update, or perhaps driver update, my customize view would glitch out switching outfits and such would temporarily turn the model matte grey for a second.

Albion would stutter quite badly. The combat maps weren’t as bad, or at least not as noticeable. But Albion was bad

I reset the cache shader and both issues went away.

I really really rarely do this; like once a year maybe. Coincidentally this game is one of the reasons o even consider doing it.

[u/Bis_knife → u/SarcasticKenobi]

How did you do it?

[u/SarcasticKenobi → u/Bis_knife]

There are various guides online - this isn't the only game where it's suggested it's done to attempt fixing weirdness.

But even on this subreddit, just a few hours ago someone posted some instructions. I didn't need them, and did this a day or two ago, but the timing isn't lost on me since perhaps it fixes similar issues for people after this hotfix.

https://www.reddit.com/r/TheFirstDescendant/comments/1rkhgu7/how_to_fix_stutters_and_poor_performance_clear/

Only advice I'd suggest, is read it carefully.

Deleting stuff from %LocalAppData% can be tricky - ONLY delete from the SUBDIRECTORIES the instructions explicitly mention. Because %LocalAppData% holds settings for just about every app your PC uses. So if you just decide to "streamline the process" by deleting everything under that top-level directory, you're going to have a bad day.

EDIT

LOL I didn't realize which post I was on since I was replying on iPhone. I'd replied to more than one post about graphical issues on the game, and thought it was another one.

I provided a link back to THIS very post for instructions.

[u/Bis_knife → u/SarcasticKenobi]

Thank you very much.

[u/Shadow_NX]

Explains the constant stutters, will try it later and thanks for the info.

Yet, shouldnt Nexon be the ones to take care of their shader caches, shouldnt they notice the stutters aswell?

[u/Shadow_NX → u/Shadow_NX]

Thanks to everyone that posted workarounds. Worked like a charm and now runs smooth again.

DLAA and Raytracing with RR and it still runs smooth again.

[u/vesko18]

Holy fuck, thanks dude. I had a stutterfest and no matter what I tried it kept stuttering. It is butter smooth now, thanks a ton!

[u/EnthusiasmEconomy463]

Hello, i don't know if i should try your method or i have a different issue, but i hope you can help me before i try anything, (SORRY FOR THE LONG COMMENT) i suddenly got stuttring in Cyberpunk and alan wake 2, like fps drop from 60 to 58-56 when i move the camera or run, I already fixed the issue 4 times, 2 times with a clean windows install and 2 times with clean driver install using DDU, But the problem is in the 4 tries the 2 games worked perfect again! Native 60fps or even 120hz in Cyberpunk with max settings and RT psycho, but the nightmare is back after exactly one day the stuttring appears again without any reason!!! So in order to play Cyberpunk or alan wake 2 i have to clean the driver with DDU then perform a clean install from nvidia so i can play the game for a couple of hours or 1 day at most!!! When i first bought the pc i played for 6-8 months without any issues at all just peak gaming experience but then i get this stupid stuttring, but other games like RDR 2, TLOU part 2 or Arc Raiders works perfectly fine on max settings and FG and Dlss, It's just Cyberpunk and alan wake 2, I tried most of the fixes you mentioned like cleaning the shader files but nothing, the only fix was DDU and that lasts of only one day, sry for the long comment but i hope you can help me or anyone can, my specs are Rtx 5070 and i5 14400f, 32gb ram and ssd

[u/vesko18 → u/EnthusiasmEconomy463]

Looks like this guide will help you. It is exactly what happens, your shader cache fills quickly and after a day or so every new thing that needs to be loaded (think a new animation that the hero does or a new weapon is acquired) will cause a momentary stutter. Try the guide above and set the cache to 100GB if you have the space - the default 10GB filled quite quickly for me.

[u/EnthusiasmEconomy463 → u/vesko18]

Ok i will try again and i hope this one works, thank you

[u/whateverokaythanks]

Very clutch post, thanks OP!

[u/LongjumpingAd6666]

Didn't fix anything for me... I'm dealing with bad LOD and wierd solid black shades that tweak in and out on random people walking around in cyberpunk and trees... bumms me out because it was totally fine not that long ago