Hey there Tech Support and fellow GW2 players,
So, for the longest time I had no other explanation for why my frames per second rate was so pathetic while playing Guild Wars 2 as a whole, not just in WvWvW. I scanned my computer up and down for hardware issues, did research on system specifications that worked well with Guild Wars 2, and tried numerous fixes and still couldn’t figure it out. In the end I gave up thinking there was anything I could do and that my CPU was just never going to be good enough for how old it was. Story continues after desktop system specs:
Operating System: Windows 7 Professional 64-bit (6.1, Build 7601) Service Pack 1 (7601.win7sp1_gdr.130801-1533)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd.
System Model: M68MT-S2
BIOS: Award Modular BIOS v6.00PG
Processor: AMD Phenom™ II X4 925 Processor (4 CPUs), ~2.8GHz
Memory: 8192MB RAM
Available OS Memory: 8190MB RAM
Page File: 3857MB used, 12521MB available
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
Card name: AMD Radeon HD 6700 Series
And so on and so forth…Well after a buying a new laptop for work & mobile gaming [Sager NP8235; well worth it] and going through all the programs and games I wanted to transfer to it I discovered something just wasn’t right with Guild Wars 2 after installing a few programs in particular on a single day. It played beautifully when I first got the laptop and then it didn’t after I installed a certain program. Given the title you’ve probably already guessed what it was: the software & drivers for the Belkin N52TE gamepad. For some crazy reason the software and drivers that come with that device (which are essential to the device’s function) absolutely kill your frames per second in Guild Wars 2 and maybe other games as well. No idea why, it just does. It’s kind of disappointing because I did rely on that device for a lot of handy macros and key maps but it’s nothing I can’t wean myself off of in a week or so as keyboards do just as well for the rest of the world and can do for me. So if you’ve got a n52te and are having FPS issues, try uninstalling the drivers & software and ridding yourself of the device. As far as I know, the Razer Nostromo & Orbweaver shouldn’t have any issues, however. Enjoy having good FPS again if this ends up working for you and happy hunting if it doesn’t.