AMD introduces “System Lag” metric in the latest preview drivers, works on RDNA3 GPUs

AMD “System Lag” metric now available, only for RDNA3 GPUs

The latest preview driver adds a new metric for certain Radeon users.

AMD is rolling out a new metric known as System Lag, specifically designed to gauge the latency between the generation of frames by a game engine and their subsequent rendering by the graphics card. This System Lag metric can be likened to NVIDIA’s PC Latency (PCL) for comparison.

Crucially, this feature will exclusively function with graphics cards that support Anti-Lag+. Presently, this includes only the Radeon RX 7000 series and RDNA3 iGPUs. This capability has been integrated into the drivers and is now automatically activated. With this feature, AMD is committed to ensuring that users gain a deeper understanding of how Anti-Lag+ enhances their gaming experience, a technology that was introduced concurrently with FSR3.

AMD’s Anti-Lag+ technology represents an enhanced iteration of the original Anti-Lag technology. It brings frame alignment directly within the game code. This feature results in better frame synchronization and even further reductions in latency. However, it’s important to note that this feature is currently restricted to specific games (listed below).

While the introduction of the System Lag metric is a significant step toward better comprehension of latency, it’s essential to acknowledge that this metric does not encompass all forms of latency. Other technologies, such as Frame Generation, can contribute additional lag to the overall gaming experience.

System Lag, Source: VideoCardz

System Lag is the measured latency between when the game generates the frame and is finished rendering by the GPU. This does not include factors like display latency, which may be further increased by features like Enhanced Sync. Additionally, system lag does not include the additional latency of the frame generation from AMD Fluid Motion Frames. The Frame Generation lag metric can be used to display this. System lag is only available when Radeon Anti-Lag+ is active. For Anti-Lag+ games that support both DirtectX11 and 12, system lag is only available with DirectX 12. System lag will be displayed as N/A when using DirectX 11.

— AMD (driver tooltip)

AMD explains that Anti-Lag controls the pace of the CPU work to make sure it doesn’t get too far ahead of the GPU, reducing the amount of CPU work queued up. With AMD Radeon™ Anti-Lag+, applying frame alignment within the game code itself, allowing for a better frame syncing which leads to even lower latency and great gaming experiences.

System Latency as explained by NVIDIA, Source: NVIDIA

The Anti-Lag+ works only in the following games. These games must use DirectX12 API for System Lag feature to display data.

• AMD Radeon Anti-Lag+ Supported Games:
• Apex Legends
• Overwatch 2
• Dying Light 2
• Shadow of the Tomb Raider
• Rise of the Tomb Raider
• Resident Evil 4
• Ghostwire: Tokyo
• Fortnite
• Last of Us: Part 1
• Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
• Resident Evil 3
• Borderlands 3

The System Lag metric is enabled by default in the latest preview driers. It can be found in Performance → Metrics → Tracking options.

Source: CapFrameX