How to improve FPS in Brawlhalla (PC)
Brawlhalla is a free-to-play platform fighter on a proprietary engine, graphically very basic (sprites and simple models, flat stages, no complex lighting effects). It's not a game that needs optimization in the classic sense: any PC from the last 8-10 years, including Intel or AMD iGPUs, runs it above 200 FPS with no effort. The real goal here isn't "looking good," it's minimizing input lag and maximizing frametime stability, because Brawlhalla uses rollback netcode and how input feels is directly tied to framerate and frametime consistency, not just to average FPS. This guide is meant for anyone competing in ranked 1v1/2v2 or wanting the lowest possible input lag.
This is what you'd gain with a NVIDIA RTX 3050
Calculations based on our FPS model combined with the % gain of each setting (measured in public benchmarks).
1. Quick wins (no visual loss)
Start here. Each one adds a little, but together they give +78% free FPS.
V-Sync
Brawlhalla doesn't need V-Sync to feel smooth given how light it is, and enabling it adds direct input lag by capping the framerate to the monitor's refresh rate and queuing frames.
Límite de FPS
Brawlhalla's engine can generate frames well above 144 FPS on almost any hardware. Competitive players with 240 Hz+ monitors want the game to not artificially limit the framerate.
Calidad gráfica general
The low preset disables post-processing and reduces the resolution of some background textures. The FPS impact is modest because the game is already light, but it eliminates frametime variability in scenes with many simultaneous particle effects.
Modo de pantalla
Exclusive fullscreen mode avoids the Windows Desktop Window Manager (DWM) compositing layer that adds one or more frames of latency in windowed or borderless mode.
Procesos en segundo plano
Since the game already runs at hundreds of FPS with plenty of headroom, the bigger risk isn't average FPS but occasional micro-hitches caused by overlays competing for CPU during the critical frames of a hit exchange.
2. Medium impact settings
Here's where most of the FPS is. Minor visual impact, major performance impact.
Resolución de renderizado
On 99% of systems this is irrelevant because the game already runs well above 200 FPS at native resolution. It only makes sense to lower it on very old iGPUs.
Conexión de red
Doesn't affect FPS, but it's the optimization with the biggest real impact on how the game feels. Rollback netcode compensates for ping, but high or unstable ping generates more frequent corrections, which feel like hitches.
Afinidad de CPU
Unlike games with heavy modern multi-thread engines, Brawlhalla doesn't benefit from core-affinity tricks or High process priority; in practice this can even introduce instability on systems with heterogeneous cores.
Escalado de pantalla de Windows
On 1440p/4K monitors with Windows scaling above 100%, some users report a small extra input delay in the launcher and in the game itself if it doesn't run in exclusive mode.
3. Upscaling (DLSS / FSR / XeSS)
The biggest gain in the game. Compatible with almost any modern GPU.
4. Tips by GPU
NVIDIA
- •Enable "Low Latency Mode: Ultra" in the NVIDIA control panel for the Brawlhalla executable; it reduces the GPU frame queue and lowers input lag even though the framerate is already very high.
- •Disable the GeForce Experience overlay while playing ranked matches: in such a light game, the overlay can introduce disproportionate micro-stutters.
- •You don't need a powerful dedicated model: even a GTX 1050 saturates any 240Hz monitor in this game; prioritize spending on the monitor's high refresh rate itself.
AMD
- •Enable Radeon Anti-Lag to reduce rendering latency in the driver, especially useful if you cap FPS below what the GPU can produce.
- •Disable Radeon Chill and any dynamic FPS limiter: in a fast platform fighter, these power-saving systems generate frametime variations that show up in hit timing.
- •Integrated Radeon iGPUs run Brawlhalla well above 200 FPS with no need for a dedicated GPU.
Sistema
- •Set the Windows power plan to High Performance to prevent the system from lowering CPU frequencies during the frametime spikes of the most chaotic fights.
- •Prioritize a high-refresh-rate monitor (144Hz-240Hz) with low input latency over any GPU upgrade: in Brawlhalla the perceived bottleneck is almost always the panel.
- •Use Ethernet instead of Wi-Fi and close background bandwidth-consuming applications to minimize rollback netcode corrections.
5. Known game issues
Microstutter from Discord Overlay and capture software
A recurring problem reported on Brawlhalla forums and Reddit: the Discord overlay and certain streaming capture tools introduce occasional frametime spikes that, in a game decided by inputs of just a few frames, are much more annoying than in AAA titles with more FPS headroom.
Input desync after hot-swapping resolution
Changing resolution or screen mode without restarting the game can leave mouse/controller input slightly misaligned relative to the render until the client is restarted. It's a long-standing known bug in the game's proprietary engine.
6. Frequently asked questions
Do I need a powerful GPU to play Brawlhalla at 240 FPS?▾
Why is my framerate high but the game "feels" delayed?▾
Does V-Sync help avoid tearing without hurting the game?▾
Is it worth upgrading from a 144Hz monitor to a 240Hz or 360Hz one for Brawlhalla?▾
Want to know exactly how many FPS YOUR PC will get?
Enter your GPU and CPU in our calculator and measure the real impact of each setting.
Calculations based on consensus of technical sources and our own FPS model. More about our methodology →