Catalyst 8.10 Hotfix Cripples Environment in FarCry 2

The world of gamers was enriched on October 22nd with the launch of FarCry 2, a new high-end game for enthusiasts. In order to enhance the performance levels of its graphics cards at playing this game, AMD rapidly released a hotfix driver, which is optimized for use with FarCry 2 with both DirectX9 and DirectX10, as stated in the release notes. The hotfix provides performance enhancements for Stalker Clear Sky, as well as a fix for Brothers in Arms - Hells Highway.

The hotfix does indeed help FarCry 2 gain higher FPS when compared to Catalyst 8.10, says hardspell, yet there is a catch. It seems that the hotfix was boosting FPS while chopping something off the game. The environment does not look as good as it does with Catalyst 8.10, and this is not something gamers would really like to experience. The test system used featured an Intel Core 2 Duo E5200 processor, the ASUS Striker II Extreme motherboard, PowerColor Radeon HD 4830 graphics and KingSton DDR3 1066 1GBX2.

According to hardspell, the Catalyst drivers have some sort of “profiles” which allow it to tweak different applications by monitoring names of executable, make them run slower or faster. The situation repeats with FarCry 2 since the same FPS will be seen if the environment is renamed. The images published on the site speak for themselves.

Those interested in downloading the hotfix and using it for their game can find it listed on our site as well, for both Windows XP and Windows Vista. “The hotfix download package includes both the Display Driver and Catalyst Control Center,” is stated in the release notes. AMD also reveals there that “This driver is provided as is and is not supported by AMD. It has not completed full AMD testing, and is only recommended for users experiencing the particular issue described above“.

Still, if it can provide better performance for DirectX 10 and DirectX 10.1, versions of Stalker Clear Sky on both single and CrossFireX configurations at higher resolutions and if Brothers in Arms - Hells Highway no longer displays corruption on the 'Black Friday' level, as described by the Company, the hotfix is worth trying.