Call of Duty: Modern Warfare PC Performance Review and Optimisation Guide

PC System Requirements

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is a DirectX 12 only game on PC, a first for the Call of Duty series. This is, in part, due to the game’s use of DXR raytracing, which is only possible under DirectX 12, and due to the fact that releasing a game under a single API simplifies the game’s development. 

Looking at the game’s minimum requirements, we can see that 2019’s Modern Warfare is designed to run on modest PC hardware, with AMD’s HD 7950 being a graphics card from 2012. Based on this, we know that Modern Warfare requires a minimum of 3GB of VRAM on PC and at least 8GB of system memory. We can also see that the game can run on dual-core, quad-threaded PCs. 

Right now, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare doesn’t require 175GB of storage. That said, the game already uses over 100GB of space, and future patches will only make the game’s storage needs larger with time. 
 

Minimum Requirements

Operating System: Windows 7 64-bit (SP1) or Windows 10 64-bit
Processor: Intel Core i3-4340 or AMD FX-6300
Video: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670 / NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 or AMD Radeon HD 7950 – DirectX 12.0 compatible system
Memory: 8GB RAM
Storage: 175 GB available hard drive space
Internet: Broadband Internet connection

Recommended Requirements

Operating System:Windows 10 64-bit latest update
Processor: Intel Core i5-2500K or AMD Ryzen R5 1600X
Video: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 / NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 or AMD Radeon R9 390 / AMD Radeon RX 580 – DirectX 12.0 compatible system Memory: 12 GB RAM
Storage: 175 GB available hard drive space
Internet: Broadband Internet connection

 

PC Settings
 
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare lacks dedicated graphics presets. As such, we decided to make some of our own for some performance scaling tests. These are shown on page 4 of this review. 

Resolution Scaling is one of Modern Warfare’s primary graphics options. This will allow gamers to scale back Modern Warfare’s internal resolution to a sub native value to help increase the game’s performance. Sadly, there is no variable resolution scaling options within Modern Warfare’s PC version. Variable Resolution Scaling would be great for those who can’t quite maintain 60+FPS framerates at all times in Modern Warfare. Such an option could ensure that PC players can maintain high framerates at the cost of temporary dips in resolution. 

Modern Warfare’s DXR Raytraced Shadows option is only available on compatible hardware. This means that AMD Radeon graphics cards are not shown Modern Warfare’s DXR settings. Users of DXR compatible Geforce hardware will receive simple on/off option for DXR raytracing. 

 
DXR Raytracing

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare’s Raytracing has been implemented using Microsoft’s DXR API, which is an optional API that can be used under DirectX 12. This means that Call of Duty’s raytracing implementation should be usable on future DXR compatible hardware generations, including those from GPU makers like AMD and Intel. 

Yes, while this is an Nvidia partnered game, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare’s Raytracing features are not RTX only. That’s the beauty of Microsoft’s DXR API. 

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare’s raytracing is designed to be relatively light on performance. Not all light sources cast raytraced shadows. Only Point lights and other man-made lights can cast DXR shadows. Sunlight will not cast raytraced shadows, severely limiting the impact of raytracing in daylight scenes.  

Below we can see how raytraced shadows can impact Call of Duty: Modern Warfare’s visuals. See the plants at the center of the image, and how shadow maps fail to capture their detail correctly. Raytraced shadows can create more accurate shadows, creating soft shadows where necessary while creating detailed shadows where traditional shadow maps fail.