Undocumented SSE Visual Bugs

[Choreese]

Hey all, I've found a few visual bugs that I could find no information on and have gotten no feedback on as of yet. Feedback is highly appreciated.

 

(1)

Hey all, I have been noticing these weird visual bugs which make it seem that some meshes move depending on where the player character is walking.

I first noticed it happening on a tower near whiterun and was amazed that I couldn't find anything about it on google.

It looks like some kind of seam under the flag that closes itself when the player moves closer.

EDIT: I've found proof that the bug is not confined to my game only and it seems to only affect Special Edition.

Look at the screenshots of the Whiterun Western Watchtower here:

https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/2077?tab=images&BH=1

After playing some more, I had other bugs that may or may not be related:

Portrusion of mesh behind the front of the hearth: Left is modded so you see it better, the left portrusion disappears if you're so close to the hearth that you can touch it but the right square disappears much faster.

Sometimes the smoke near this chandelier in fort Greymoor flickers on and off.

All screenshots are taken in an unmodded game unless otherwise mentioned, here are some more screenshots of bugs that may be related from a modded game:

Really blended roads

SkyBeRoads shows this phenomenon really good

What I've already tested(and didn't fix it):

-With mods

-Without mods

-Fresh install

-Fresh .ini files

-Tried all presets

-Updated Nvidia drivers

-Started new game

-Restarted PC

The only thing that may be "special" about my setup is that I have the CK installed.

Has this phenomenon ever been documented and is there a fix for this?

Can people that read this, test this in their game to see if they have it too?

How to get to the tower: run from whiterun to the tower where you are supposed to fight a dragon in the main quest iirc.

How to get to the hearth: go from the tower to fort greymoor and inside(via the main entrance in the middle) you will find a few places with hearths that give this bug.

(2)

Download the screenshots below, focus on the area marked with the red ellipsoid and switch quickly between the picures to see the bug.

I would describe it as some sort of jitter, it's also visible on grass and plants but the bug remains even when the command window is opened so it isn't the wind or anything.

It has something to do with the Antialiasing:

These screenshots are taken with TAA on and the bug is both on the stones in the red ellipsoid and the plants.

With FXAA, the bug is reduced to one or 2 stones inside the red ellipsoid but it's still the same on the plants.

With Antialiasing turned completely off, the bug is gone on the stones in the red ellipsoid but still remains the same on the plants.

Has this phenomenon ever been documented and is there a fix for this?

Can people that read this, test this in their game to see if they have it too? (The stones are from Really blended roads and the plants from Viscous Foliage performance textures btw)

Thank you for reading

Edited April 8, 2018 by Choreese

[3aq]

the light/shadow thing you mentioned is a rather well documented occurance, the search terms you should use would follow under: external/internal light source shadow flickering.

 

the tldr explanation is: skyrim and skyrim se has a hardcoded 4 dynamic lightsource limit, once it exceeds that you'll see disco light/shadow flickering because the game engine is determining where the lightsource nearest to the player should be rendered.

 

best way to address this is.. well you'll get mixed results and it isn't really pretty, lower the draw distance pretty much so that the game has less work to determine which source is closest.

[Choreese]

the light/shadow thing you mentioned is a rather well documented occurance, the search terms you should use would follow under: external/internal light source shadow flickering.

 

the tldr explanation is: skyrim and skyrim se has a hardcoded 4 dynamic lightsource limit, once it exceeds that you'll see disco light/shadow flickering because the game engine is determining where the lightsource nearest to the player should be rendered.

 

best way to address this is.. well you'll get mixed results and it isn't really pretty, lower the draw distance pretty much so that the game has less work to determine which source is closest.

I know about the dynamic shadow bug but I don't think I ever mentioned a problem with shadows in this post.

If you are referencing to the smoke near the chandelier flickering on and off, this has nothing to do with lightsources since the smoke isn't a lightsource.

 

Thank you for feedback though and if you have any time to spare, could you check for the seam in the Whiterun Western Watchtower and the portrusions in the hearths of Fort Greymoor in your game?

[Algabar]

Well, you got a good eye for details ^^

 

The Whiterun Guard Tower and the stone bridge are clearly a case of messed up LOD textures (and maybe LOD meshes, too). Not a nice sight, but things like this happen... BTW, I use mostly custom textures and I don't have the Guard Tower issue. Neither do I see anything unusual with the hearths / fireplaces in my (modded) Fort Greymoor. I checked it today. Massacred almost everyone in Fort Greymoor because they wouldn't let me have a close look at their hearths...

 

The thing with the disappearing smoke is strange indeed. No idea here.

 

The gap in the road looks like a mesh issue. Never seen something like this in my game. But again I'm using custom textures and partly custom road meshes, too. You're right: Texture mismatch between roads and the surrounding landscape are a common problem in Skyrim. Maybe something Bethesda should have taken more care of.

 

IMHO, the (almost unnoticeable) mismatch on the road in the last series of screenshots is a LOD issue, too.

 

So in the end it comes mostly down to this: Skyrim Vanilla textures (and sometimes meshes, too) aren't perfect. There's a reason why we have so many replacers. Using custom textures and meshes is probably the best "solution".

[Choreese]

Well, you got a good eye for details ^^

 

The Whiterun Guard Tower and the stone bridge are clearly a case of messed up LOD textures (and maybe LOD meshes, too). Not a nice sight, but things like this happen... BTW, I use mostly custom textures and I don't have the Guard Tower issue. Neither do I see anything unusual with the hearths / fireplaces in my (modded) Fort Greymoor. I checked it today. Massacred almost everyone in Fort Greymoor because they wouldn't let me have a close look at their hearths...

 

The thing with the disappearing smoke is strange indeed. No idea here.

 

The gap in the road looks like a mesh issue. Never seen something like this in my game. But again I'm using custom textures and partly custom road meshes, too. You're right: Texture mismatch between roads and the surrounding landscape are a common problem in Skyrim. Maybe something Bethesda should have taken more care of.

 

IMHO, the (almost unnoticeable) mismatch on the road in the last series of screenshots is a LOD issue, too.

 

So in the end it comes mostly down to this: Skyrim Vanilla textures (and sometimes meshes, too) aren't perfect. There's a reason why we have so many replacers. Using custom textures and meshes is probably the best "solution".

A big thank you for your input :)

[Choreese]

Going to post the most important bugs in the Skyrim Special Edition Technical Support section since it's more appropriate. If you want to help: https://forums.nexusmods.com/index.php?/topic/6553396-dolly-zoom-bug-help-wanted/ , this post can die now.

Edited April 11, 2018 by Choreese