Guys - this is the email chain back and forth with Ubi tech support:
Subject
Far Cry 3 is completely unstable on my custom-built PC. It crashes after 5-10 mi...
Discussion Thread
Response Via Email (Matt Y.) 12/14/2012 10:02 AM
Hello,
I am terribly sorry but it appears that you are having some kind of technically issue that we are not able to assist with at this time. The issue can be caused by a number of various issues centered around different hard ware components with various PC's. Unfortunately, we are only able to provide general troubleshooting with these issues and are not able to provide additional support at this time.
Customer By Web Form (Eric S) 12/13/2012 06:50 PM
I have installed the latest beta drivers from AMD and set in game settings per the instructions below.
Regarding CPU performance, my CPU is an Intel 3770k overclocked to a very stable 4.5 ghz.
Please inform.
Response Via Email (Matt Y.) 12/13/2012 06:00 PM
Hello,
Here is some information on possible steps to improve your performance using your current graphics card:
Nvidia users :
• Should use official 310.70 drivers for optimal perf (no longer need the beta driver)
• SLI should be disabled for now, we are working with NV to provide a SLI profile asap
• Users experiencing the disco-colored hair issue should make sure to use the 1.01 version of the game
o Some cards still have the issue with 1.01, in particular the GTS 250. We will fix this in the upcoming patch (with the TU4 fixes). We will also expose the workaround flag in the .ini file, so that users can enable it themselves if we've missed other problematic cards.
AMD users:
• *MUST ABSOLUTELY* use at least the 12.11 BETA8 drivers (12.11 BETA11 drivers are also ok). Anything lower will result in erratic framerate and stuttering.
• Crossfire should be disabled. It has a big negative impact on performance at the moment. We are working with AMD to provide a Xfire profile asap.
Performance tips:
This game is a very CPU intensive game to begin with and the "Environment quality" option only makes it more demanding.
• On the "Very High" setting, the rendered surface area is twice as big as on console and the objects are 4 times more detailed.
• Users whose systems don't have cutting-edge CPUs or that want higher framerates should consider bringing this setting down a notch.
On the GPU side:
• "AA quality" will most affect performance. Using the "Very High" or "TXAA" settings will enabled 4x MSAA, which will require beefy GPUs, especially as resolutions go up.
• "Shadow quality" will also affect performance when on "Very High", as the shadow filtering is quite sophisticated at that setting.
Contact us again if you have additional questions.
Customer By Web Form (Eric S) 12/12/2012 06:00 PM
The following information your requested:
Problem signature:
Problem Event Name: APPCRASH
Application Name: farcry3_d3d11.exe
Application Version: 0.1.0.1
Application Timestamp: 50ba42e8
Fault Module Name: ntdll.dll
Fault Module Version: 6.2.9200.16420
Fault Module Timestamp: 505aaa82
Exception Code: c0000005
Exception Offset: 0004f55b
OS Version: 6.2.9200.2.0.0.256.103
Locale ID: 1033
Additional Information 1: 5861
Additional Information 2: 5861822e1919d7c014bbb064c64908b2
Additional Information 3: dac6
Additional Information 4: dac6c2650fa14dd558bd9f448e23afd1
Response Via Email (Matt Y.)
Hello,
SYSTEM FILES
If you continue to experience problems, we will need two files from your system (Direct X and MS System Information). These files report all drivers for your sound and video card, as well as other vital information about your system that will help us in resolving your problem.
First, make sure you have the latest version of DirectX installed on your system. Use this link for more info on DirectX:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/179113. After installing DirectX, follow these steps:
1. From Windows, click Start -> Run (XP), Start Search (Vista), or Search Programs and Files (Win 7). (Alternately, press the Windows key and the "R" key at the same time.)
2. In the Open box, type "dxdiag" (without the quotes) and click OK.
3. Once the DXDIAG file is open, click on the "save all information..." button.
4. Click the save button to save the file as a text file to your Desktop.
5. Click on Start -> Run.
6. In the Open box, type "msinfo32" (without the quotes) and click OK.
7. When the program comes up, click on File. Click on Save.
8. Click the "save" button to save the file as a .nfo file to your Desktop.
9. Click on the url (web link) for your incident in this email.
http://ubisoft.custhelp.com/app/account/overview
10. Type in your ubi.com login name and password and click Login.
11. Click on the question you wish to update and click 'update question'.
12. Type a response in the "Results and/or Additional Information" section.
13. Click "browse" and find the "dxdiag.txt" you saved earlier and click Open.
14. Click Update to complete the incident
15. Repeat steps 11-14 to attach the "msinfo32" file.
Once received, we will examine your system info and get back to you as soon as we can.
Customer By Web Form (Eric S)
Far Cry 3 is completely unstable on my custom-built PC. It crashes after 5-10 minutes of gameplay with an APPCRASH d3d11 error.
After extensive research on this problem, and numerous attempts to fix this error, it is obvious that the game itself needs to be patched or both NVIDIA and AMD need new drivers for this title. FC3 is completely unplayable. Please see dxdiag attachment for system specs.
Please contact me at the email address provided in my ubi account should I be of any assistance.
Regards,
Eric S