Modern Warfare 2 Stuttering PC Fix: How to Fix Frame Drops

Are you experiencing frustrating frame drops in Modern Warfare 2? Users worldwide have reported frame drops while playing the single-player campaign and multiplayer game modes, even with high-end rigs. We have scoured the forums to find information about fixing these annoying frame drops so you can enjoy a smooth gameplay experience. This guide comes with a proceed at your own risk warning since most of these fixes involve changing important driver software, system settings, and in-game settings. With that out of the way, let’s proceed with possible fixes!

How to Fix Frame Drops in Modern Warfare 2

We have listed all the possible fixes we found online, starting with the most successful fixes reported by Operators like you.

Change Nvidia Driver Version

The fix that seems to have the most success is installing a different Nvidia driver version. Players have had luck using version 522.25 instead of the current driver version. Also, keep an eye out for any post-launch GPU updates from Nvidia. They are usually pretty quick with fixing errors.

Disable On-Demand Texture Streaming

Turn off on-demand texture streaming which you can find in the game’s visual settings menu. This setting will download high-quality textures when you are playing the game. In addition, turning this off will allow the game to use only local textures, which could help with frame drops.

Regulate Processor Threads

You can regulate the number of processor threads Modern Warfare 2 will use by editing one of the game’s configuration files:

1. Navigate to the Call of Duty folder in your Documents folder
2. Right-click on the options.3.3cod22.cst with a text editor
3. Search for “RendererWorkerCount”
4. The number you enter should be half the number of threads your processor has

Change CPU Affinity

CPU affinity helps optimize cache performance and forces multiple threads trying to access the same information to run on the same processor. You can change CPU affinity to core 0,1,2,3:

1. Open task manager
2. Click details
3. Right-click on cod.exe
4. Go to Set Affinity
5. Click the ‘All Processor’ check box

Use a Different DirectX Version

One possible fix is forcing the game to use a specific DirectX Version. However, this seems to be more effective with computers running older GPUs.

DirectX Launch Option: -d3d11, -dx11, or -dx12

Steam

1. Find Modern Warfare 2 in your Steam library
2. Right-click it and go to Properties
3. Navigate to the launch options box on the General tab
4. Enter one of the three options based on the DirectX version you want to use

Battle.net

1. Open your Battle.net Launcher
2. Select the Modern Warfare 2 Tab
3. Click the Gear icon
4. Click Additional Command Line Arguments
5. Enter the version of DirectX you would like to use

Install Modern Warfare 2 on an SSD

A Solid State Drive will load your game and transfer data faster than a traditional Harddrive. This means loading times will be shorter. SSDs are particularly effective with larger games like Modern Warfare 2.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is available now on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.