Lost Ark is a free-to-play game that offers a perfect blend of ARPG combat and MMO depth, creating a vast and immersive world with exciting battles. It was co-developed by Tripod Studio and Smilegate’s game development subsidiary Smilegate RPG. PC users can now download and play the game for free on Steam. However, some players have reported stuttering, lagging, and freezing issues after the latest update.
To run the game smoothly, a PC must have sufficient hardware configuration. Unfortunately, not everyone has the necessary configuration to play the game at full resolution and higher FPS due to its high performance requirements, which is typical of most PC games. In this guide, we have provided some steps to help fix Lost Ark’s stuttering and lagging issues.
It’s unfortunate that some PC players of Lost Ark are experiencing multiple issues like stuttering, lags, crashes, and frame drops while playing the game. Depending on computer compatibility, the problems can be severe on some PCs. Therefore, it’s always better to fix the issue to play the game with a decent FPS count. This guide outlines several reasons behind the issue and provides solutions to resolve them.
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Check System Requirements
Check out the system requirements of the Lost Ark game below to ensure that your PC configuration meets the game’s system requirements.
Minimum Requirements:
- OS: Windows 10 (64-bit only)
- Processor: Intel i3 or AMD Ryzen 3
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 / AMD HD6850
- DirectX: Version 9.0c
- Network: Broadband Internet connection
- Storage: 50 GB available space
Recommended System Requirements:
- OS: Windows 10 (64-bit only)
- Processor: Intel i5 or AMD Ryzen 5
- Memory: 16 GB RAM
- Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050
- DirectX: Version 11
- Network: Broadband Internet connection
- Storage: 50 GB available space
Fix: Lost Ark Stuttering and Lags Badly
Fixing in-game lags or frame drop issues isn’t easy because it depends on multiple factors, such as PC hardware, the display resolution of the game, maximum FPS limit count, conflicting third-party apps, and more. So, we recommend you try following all the methods one by one until the problem gets fixed or reduced. Changing the in-game graphics-related settings or keeping them low can fix several problems in a jiffy.
It may include the Screen Resolution of the game, in-game Texture Resolution, Shadow Resolution, Maximum Frame rate, number of Characters Displayed, or other visual effects that require higher graphics or memory. So, you can follow the steps below to try reducing the lags or frame drops up to some extent depending on which resolution and quality you’re playing the game, apart from FPS count.
1. Use Launch Options
- Open your Steam client > Go to Library > Right-click on the Lost Ark.
- Select Properties > On the General tab, you’ll find Launch Options.
- Enter the launch options -fullscreen = Forces the engine to start in fullscreen mode.
2. Update Graphics Drivers
- Right-click on the Start Menu to open up the Quick Access Menu.
- Click on Device Manager from the list.
- Now, double-click on the Display adapters category to expand the list.
- Then right-click on the dedicated graphics card name.
- Select Update driver > Choose Search automatically for drivers.
- An update will automatically download and install the latest version if available.
- Once done, make sure to reboot your computer to change the effects.
3. Run the game as an administrator
Make sure to run the game exe file as an administrator to avoid user account control regarding privilege issues. You should also run the Steam client as an administrator on your PC. To do this:
- Right-click on the Lost Ark exe shortcut file on your PC.
- Now, select Properties > Click on the Compatibility tab.
- Make sure to click on the Run this program as an administrator checkbox to checkmark it.
- Click on Apply and select OK to save changes.
4. Set High Priority in Task Manager
Make your game priority in the higher segment via the Task Manager to tell your Windows system to run the game properly. To do this:
- Right-click on the Start Menu > Select Task Manager.
- Click on the Processes tab > Right-click on the Lost Ark game task.
- Select Set Priority to High.
- Close Task Manager.
- Finally, run the Lost Ark game to check for the issue.
5. Verify the Integrity of Game Files
If there is an issue with the game files and they somehow gets corrupted or missing, then make sure to perform this method to check for the issue easily. To do so:
- Launch Steam > Click on Library.
- Right-click on Lost Ark from the list of installed games.
- Now, click on Properties > Go to Local Files.
- Click on Verify Integrity of Game Files.
- You’ll have to wait for the process until it gets completed.
- Once done, just restart your computer.
6. Change GPU Settings
Make sure to change the graphics card settings on the PC by following the steps below to check whether the problem has been fixed.
For Nvidia:
- Open up Nvidia’s Control Panel > Right-click on the desktop screen.
- Click on Nvidia Control Panel > Click on Manage 3D Settings.
- Select Program Settings > Find ‘Lost Ark’ and manually add the game if it’s not in the list:
- Monitor Tech: G-Sync (If available)
- Maximum Pre-rendered frames: 2
- Threaded optimization: On
- Power Management: Prefer Maximum Performance
- Texture Filtering – Quality: Performance
For AMD:
- Monitor Tech: G-Sync (If available)
- Maximum Pre-rendered frames: 2
- Threaded optimization: On
- Power Management: Prefer Maximum Performance
- Texture Filtering – Quality: Performance
7. Disable Fullscreen Optimizations
Full-screen optimization and DPI settings are the default ones on Windows. You should try disabling it by following the steps below:
- Locate the Lost Ark game directory.
- Find and right-click on the Lost Ark.exe file.
- Select Properties > Click on the Compatibility tab.
- Checkmark the ‘Disable Full-Screen Optimizations’ box.
- Now, click on the ‘Change high DPI setting’s button.
- Checkmark the ‘Override high DPI scaling behavior’ > Select ‘Application’ from the drop-down menu.
- Click on Apply and then OK to save changes.
8. Update Lost Ark
If, in case, you haven’t updated you’re Lost Ark game for a while, then make sure to follow the steps below to check for updates and install the latest patch (if available). To do this:
- Open the Steam client > Go to Library > Click on Lost Ark from the left pane.
- It’ll automatically search for the available update. If there is an update available, make sure to click on Update.
- It may take some time to install the update > Once done, make sure to close the Steam client.
- Finally, reboot your PC to apply changes, and then try launching the game again.
In conclusion, the occurrence of stuttering, lagging, crashes, and frame drops in Lost Ark for some PC players is a pressing issue, particularly for those with compatibility concerns on their computers. To ensure an enjoyable gaming experience with a decent frame rate, it’s crucial to identify and address these problems. The solutions and reasons outlined in this guide aim to assist players in troubleshooting and resolving such issues, thereby enhancing their overall gameplay experience.