What NOVA changes for Apex Legends, every launch option rated from Use to Skip, and how to measure the difference on your own PC.
No FPS promise here: what Apex gains depends on how your PC is set up today. NOVA shows what's holding it back, then measures before and after.
These are in Tweaks, off until you switch them on. Each edits Apex's own settings file, only while the game is closed: the same change as its video menu, made for you. Your current value is backed up first; switch it off and it goes back.
Turns off V-Sync in the game's own settings, which holds each frame until the next refresh and adds input lag. With G-SYNC, use NVIDIA's G-SYNC setup instead of in-game V-Sync. Close the game first.
Exactly what it changesIn %USERPROFILE%\Saved Games\Respawn\Apex\local\videoconfig.txt, sets the existing "setting.mat_vsync_mode" value to "0" (no line is added if it's missing). Nothing is changed while r5apex.exe or r5apex_dx12.exe is running.
Plus everything that isn't game-specific: Windows, power, network and input settings, and Game Boost, which applies per-game settings each time Apex runs and puts the PC back when you close it. Every tweak →
Guides still pass these around. NOVA's Games page shows the same verdicts for Apex: Use, Your choice, Test (prove it on your PC) or Skip.
| Option | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|
-novid | Use | Skips the intro videos, so the game reaches the menu sooner. Startup only: no effect on FPS. |
+fps_max <refresh − 3> | Your choice | Caps the frame rate (the fps_max console command). With a G-SYNC or FreeSync monitor, a cap a few frames under the refresh rate keeps every frame inside its range; with NVIDIA Reflex and V-Sync on, Reflex caps by itself. 0 removes the cap. |
-dev | Test | Skips start-up splash screens in some versions. No effect on FPS, and updates change whether it does anything. |
-high | Test | Starts the game at High CPU priority, the same as NOVA's per-game option. No lab has measured a gain; prove it on your PC before keeping it. |
-preload | Skip | From older Source-engine guides. No measured effect in Apex today. |
-forcenovsync | Skip | Old Source option. Apex's own V-Sync setting decides; turn V-Sync off in its video settings instead. |
+mat_queue_mode 2 | Skip | The engine already picks its threading mode; no measured gain from forcing it. |
-threads | Skip | The engine picks its own thread count; no measured gain from setting one. |
NOVA