Performance: turn on graphics acceleration

Solwaris draws a real 3D board. To stay smooth and sharp, it relies on your computer’s graphics card. When the browser does not give it access, the game switches to light rendering. This page explains why, and how to restore graphics acceleration in a few minutes.

Why the game switches to light rendering

At launch, Solwaris asks the browser which engine draws the 3D. If it is a software engine (SwiftShader, llvmpipe, “Microsoft Basic Render Driver”…), every frame is computed by the processor, far more slowly than with a graphics card. To keep the game playable, it then switches automatically to light rendering:

• image rendered at a lower resolution, without anti-aliasing;
• no cast shadows and no dynamic lights;
• simplified materials and reduced outdoor scenery;
• 30 frames per second at most.

Rules, damage and the course of the fight do not change: only the display is lightened. But the game looks much better, and often responds faster, with graphics acceleration.

Step 1: check your browser

Open a new tab and enter the address for your browser:

• Chrome, Brave, Opera: chrome://gpu
• Edge: edge://gpu
• Firefox: about:support, “Graphics” section

On chrome://gpu and edge://gpu, find the “WebGL” line: “Hardware accelerated” means all is well; “Software only” or “Disabled” confirms that the graphics card is not being used. On Firefox, the “Compositing” line should read “WebRender”, not “WebRender (Software)”.

Step 2: turn on acceleration in the browser

Google Chrome and Brave

1. Open Settings from the menu at the top right.
2. Go to “System”.
3. Turn on “Use graphics acceleration when available”.
4. Click “Relaunch”.

Microsoft Edge

1. Open Settings from the menu at the top right.
2. Go to “System and performance”.
3. Turn on “Use graphics acceleration when available”.
4. Click “Restart”.

Mozilla Firefox

1. Open Settings, “General” tab.
2. Under “Performance”, uncheck “Use recommended performance settings”.
3. Check “Use hardware acceleration when available”.
4. Close Firefox, then restart it.

Opera

1. Open Settings, then the “System” section.
2. Turn on “Use hardware acceleration when available”.
3. Restart Opera.

Safari (Mac)

Safari always uses the Mac’s graphics card: there is nothing to turn on. If the game still switches to light rendering, update macOS from System Settings › General › Software Update.

Step 3: if nothing changes

Update the graphics driver

An old or faulty driver is the most common cause: the browser blocks it as a precaution and falls back to software rendering, even when the option is on.

• Windows: Settings › Windows Update › Advanced options › Optional updates, or directly on your card maker’s website (NVIDIA, AMD or Intel).
• Mac: drivers are included in macOS updates.
• Linux: install the driver recommended by your distribution (for example the “Additional Drivers” tool on Ubuntu).

Laptops with two graphics cards

On Windows, open Settings › System › Display › Graphics, select your browser and choose “High performance”. The game will then use the more powerful card.

Remote desktop and power saving

In a remote desktop session or a virtual machine, the graphics card is usually not available to the browser: launch Solwaris directly on the computer. A strict power-saving mode can also throttle the graphics card: plug the computer in to play.

Step 4: back to Solwaris

Reload the game page. In Auto mode, Solwaris detects the graphics card again and switches back to high quality. You can also pick the level yourself with the “Quality” button on the home screen: Auto, High or Light.

Frequently asked questions