Clothing detalization is mostly determined by number of vertices, forming a physical cloth mesh.

So, just for curiosity, we decided to count them in Mafia II (with help of AgPerfMon profiler), using different APEX PhysX settings and various Vito’s suits.

Leather Jacket.

Casual Suit with Hat.

Casual Suit with Raincoat.

According to data we’ve collected, Clothing based on APEX Framework is 6x times (in average) more detailed than low-resolution PhysX Cloth you can see with APEX “Off” settings.  As result, APEX based Cloth behaves more realistically.

But what about performance – APEX Clothing is 6x times more detailed, maybe it is running 6x times slower ?

Performance.

For testing purposes we’ve used simple character motion sequence, from begining of Chapter 9. All character clothing is disabled except for Vito.

Thus, while APEX Clothing assets are containing 5-7x times more vertices than PhysX Cloth suits (APEX PhysX OFF settings), performance degrades only about 15%. And don’t forget, that in both cased Cloth simulation is running purely on CPU.

Update: APEX Clothing in numbers

While preparing our PhysX tweaking guide we have discovered that physically simulated clothing on characters is affecting performance the most. Why that ? Cloth is one of the basic effects, used intensively in many GPU PhysX games – just remember Mirror’s Edge and it’s countless tearable banners and flags. Two answers come to mind:

• Clothing simulation in Mafia II is so detailed and so high-resolution, that only top dedicated GPUs can run it at proper fps.

Unlikely. Even in most intensive scenes total cloth vertices count is not exceeding 8000, while framerate is crawling around 20 fps – on GTX 470.

• Clothing simulation is running on CPU, while it is supposed to be hardware accelerated on GPU.

Plausible. Some users, measuring utilization of dedicated PhysX GPUs, have made same conjecture.

Combine it with facts that a) Cloth in PhysX SDK is not using all available CPU resources by default b) Clothing is heavy computational task in any case – and you’ll see the probable reason of poor performance. Let’s check this theory.

PART I – MAFIA II BENCHMARK.

For the first part of tests we’ll use benchmark, built into Mafia II, running with two sets of APEX effects – Clothing only (Particles are disabled using methods from tweaking guide) and Particles only (Clothing is omitted) – and PhysX acceleration enabled/disabled from NVIDIA Control Panel.

Settings: 1680x1024, AO/AA On, AFx16, APEX High. System: C2Q 9400, GTX 470, 4GB RAM, Win 7 x64, 198.32 GPU drivers, PSS 9.10.0513

Interesting results. While Particles are benefiting from GPU acceleration without doubt, PhysX switch is not affecting Clothing simulation at all.

It seems our assumption was correct – APEX Clothing is calculated on CPU in any case – but let’s confirm it with some deeper research.

PART II – AGPERFMON.

Best way to find the truth is to look into entrails of PhysX SDK/APEX implementation in Mafia II.

Coarse tools like PhysX Visual Indicator won’t help, connecting PVD to the game is not easy task, so we’ll use profiler called AgPerMon, that will allow us to collect and review specific PhysX SDK simulation events.

Firstly, to find out which events are referring to GPU Cloth simulation, lets profile a simple application – SampleCloth.exe from PhysX SDK 2.8.3.

SampleCloth.exe

We are using scene 2: only one Cloth object in scene with applied wind acceleration.

Comparing two sets of data, extracted from SampleCloth running on GPU (left picture) and CPU (right picture) we can identify which events are responcible for GPU simulation – their names are starting with “NgPrDeformable“, “NgPrCloth” and “_cuda_kernel_Deformable“.

Now, let’s check actual game.

Mafia II – Chapter 15

For testing we used one scene from Chapter 15 – APEX is set to High, no additional characters on screen, APEX Clothing is represented by Vito’s casual suit with hat (616 dynamic cloth vertices). Also, we’ve spawned some APEX Particles events by shooting at walls.

————

First run – with GPU PhysX enabled in drivers.

As expected, we weren’t able to find any GPU Cloth specific events (left picture), familiar to us from SampleCloth. Instead, CPU Cloth simulation events were collected, thus - Clothing simulation is running on CPU.

What about Particles (right picture) ? They are running on GPU, as you may notice from lots of “NgPrFluid” events gathered.

————

Second run – with GPU PhysX disabled in drivers.

Results is predictable – both APEX Clothing (left picture) and APEX Particles (right picture) simulations are running on CPU – as they should.

PART III – CONCLUSION.

According to our results – In current version of Mafia II additional APEX Clothing content is running on CPU regardless to PhysX settings (while it is expected to be hardware accelerated by NVIDIA GPUs) and, thus, producing a huge performance drop.

This does not look like it was done by purpose and unlikely it is engine limitation – more like a bug. Let’s hope it is going to be fixed with following patches.

Update #2: According to responce we’ve got from NVIDIA – Clothing is running on CPU unless you have a GPU, fully dedicated to PhysX. Sadly, we don’t have one currently, so can’t check this out.

In any case, in order to improve performance you can either disable (fully or partially) clothing simulation as described in our guide, or overclock your CPU. Dedicating more powerfull GPU for PhysX won’t help here.

APEX Particles effects are working normally, and can be calculated on GPU without any major performance loss.

Previous comparison video, dedicated to APEX Clothing module, is available here.

APEX Particles effects are including:

• Various dynamic debris (concrete fragments, glass pieces, wood splinters, etc) from bullet impacts.
• Additional physically simulated chunks from explosions, car crashes, wheel slip, trash cans, mailboxes and other destructible objects.
• Vehicle tire burnout effect -  realistic fluid smoke, which reacts to environment and character/NPC movement.
• Up to 3000 (APEX Medium settings) or 10 000 (APEX High settings) unique particles on screen.

Sum: You can find dynamic particles almost in every single GPU/PPU PhysX game, but in Mafia II particle effects are close to their perfection – realistic collision simulation, various particle types (for both graphical mesh and physical behaviour), LOD based resource management (particles are not dissapearing over time, like in earlier games) – and, most important, pretty decent performance.

If your system can handle such effects, we recommended to leave them enabled, or you’ll loose significant piece of game’s immersion.

Finally, keep an eye on Mafia II GPU PhysX info mini-site for additional information and comparison screenshots.

This particular video is focused on how APEX Clothing module is used the enhance game experience.

Update: Part II, dedicated to APEX Particles effects, is released.

Update #2: APEX Clothing in numbers

In general, APEX Clothing content includes:

• Much more detailed (you can even notice how wrinkles are formed), fully simulated clothing for main character – Vito Scaletta.
  Standart PhysX Cloth is still being used on consoles and PC (APEX Off settings), but in comparison to APEX Clothing based simulation (APEX High and Medium settings), it is looking chunky and crusty.
• Dynamic clothing for additional characters (Joe, Derek, Steve, etc) and some NPCs, instead of simple skinned mesh.
• Several supplementary effects, like cloth reaction to the wind and shockwaves from explosions.

Sum: High-resolution clothing simulation is nice looking, immersive and promising technology. However, in Mafia II resources are used not optimally – hardly noticable, but very demanding clothing simulation on NPCs can bring your system to knees.

Fortunately, PhysX tweaks discovered for Mafia II demo are working nicely in final version too. Following this guide, you can easily tweak amount of APEX Effects (for example, disable clothing simulation for NPC, but leave it for Vito) and find a compromis between visual fidelity and performance.

Also, keep an eye on Mafia II GPU PhysX info mini-site for additional information and comparison screenshots.

Mafia II is about to hit the shelves in US, and since it is, probably, most heavyweight title in 2010 GPU PhysX games line, we can expect a lot of detailed reviews about APEX PhysX special effects, added to the game.

We’ve already posted an benchmarks overview for Mafia II Demo, so let’s focus on final version now:

[23.08.10] Mafia II: Perfection for NVIDIA’s Graphics Plus Technologies ? by HardwareCanucks

APEX effects decription and comparison are pretty basic, and only two GPUs [GTX460/GT240 dedicated] were used for testing, but enough attention was paid to CPU scailing [i5/i7] and CPU usage graphs.

According to benchmarks results, Mafia II is pretty playble on CPU even with APEX set to High.

Conclusion:

In the past NVIDIA and their developers took an incredible amount of flak over the use of GPU-processed physics due to the utter lack of optimizations the PhysX API had for the CPU. With Mafia II’s use of the open-minded APEX routines, a corner seems to have been turned because we finally see that it is possible to run these calculations quite smoothly with only a few hiccups on a multi core CPU.

The GPU is still more efficient at physics processing but in some cases you will likely want all of the rendering horsepower it brings to the table. This feature is still nothing more than eye candy but if you can run it, we suggest you do so because it does increase the overall believability of certain scenes.

[23.08.10] Mafia II Full Version Review with 3D Vision and Physx Benchmarks by HiTechLegion

APEX Technology description and comparison screenshots are pretty similar to their Mafia II demo review, but GPU setup was changed this time.

Conclusion:

Unlike most PC PhysX titles, Mafia II relies completely on PhysX to render an immersive gangster’s paradise.  Turning PhysX off results in a hum-drum gameplay that resembles 3rd person shooters from the early part of the decade but with Ambient occlusion and higher res textures.

I would rather trade graphical quality than play the game in its highest settings with PhysX disabled.  It simply is just not the same game without the dust, debris, smoke and of course, the stylistic trench coats!

[23.08.10] Mafia-II Video Game Performance Review by BenchmarkReviews

Includes not only performance testing, but initial gameplay overview and impressions, however, APEX description does not provide any significant details.

Conclusion:

To experience Mafia II with all it’s high-quality graphical glory, gamers are going to require at least a GeForce GTX 470 video card to produce optimal frame rates. Of course, the game’s settings can all be dialed down, but once you’ve experienced APEX PhysX there’s really no turning back. Although I’ve generally been rather quiet in regard to PhysX quality enhancements for video games, this silence ends with Mafia II.

APEX PhysX literally helped turn Mafia II from video game to video reality – it’s that different. Add NVIDIA’s GeForce 3D-Vision onto this, whether it be single display or 3D-Vision Surround, and you’ll experience realism not found in any other title before this.

[26.08.10] Mafia II: How To set up AMD & Nvidia cards for APEX PhysX by PCGamesHardware

Not a review actually, but a german guide on how to configure Hybrid PhysX system for Mafia II.

Includes some benchmarks – HD 5870 + dedicated NV 9800 GTX.

[27.08.10] Mafia II: Hardware Performance Guide by Gamespot

Wide overview on how different graphics setting (ambient occlusion, shadow quality, resolution) are affecting performance, CPU and memory tests, and, of course, benchmarks with APEX PhysX effects enabled.

Conclusion:

Apex PhysX is really where the action is at for this game. The requirements are steep, but you’ll be treated to debris and fluid clothing like never before.

[31.08.10] Mafia II GPU & CPU Performance In-depth by TECHSPOT

Detailed APEX PhysX performance overview, with lots of GPUs tested (NV, NV + NV dedicated, ATI + NV – 23 different graphics cards in total).

More interesting are CPU scaling graphs – with APEX set to High it scales better, than with APEX Off. But we know what is the cause now, right ?

Conclusion:

Playing through a few levels of Mafia II while enabling and disabling PhysX we found that the effects visually improve some select scenes, making them more realistic, but for the most part they do little to enhance the game itself.

Although I am a sucker for eye candy, it is hard not to feel like you are not getting enough of it based on the perfrormance hit.

[02.09.10] Mafia II: Is Applied PhysX Worth It ? by ExtremeTech

Pretty mediocre article – two comparison screenshots, APEX Framework (which is simply called – PhysX) effects description just from Reviewer’s Guide, few GPUs tested, no CPU scaling graphs, no detalization on CPU/GPU Cloth problem or Clothing tweaking tests – not something you can expect from such late material.

Conclusion:

The Mafia II benchmark with PhysX enabled does look a lot better than the plain version—as does the full game.

But for us, the increased visual reality is unquestionably offset by the decreased smoothness of game play, which is where we like to get our immersion.

But as much as we like the myriad little PhysX touches that make Mafia II look far more exciting than it actually is to play, we’d prefer bullet-proof frame rates.

[03.09.10] Mafia 2 PhysX Performance by bit-tech

Decent read this time. Includes interesting manipulations with Hybrid PhysX/dedicated PhysX GPUs setups and CPU overclocking .

Conclusion:

From what we’ve seen, [GPU PhysX] is certainly worth using an ageing 8-series of GTX 2xx series card for PhysX if you already have one, but so far as buying a card expressly for PhysX or running an ATI/Nvidia Hybrid setup goes it might be that Mafia 2 is one game and you can live with turning PhysX off.

– We’ll update this post as more articles emerge –

Mafia II in Slow Motion 3 by MikeX1978

Being immersive enough, APEX Particles are looking even better in slowmotion.

BioReplicant Crowd Simulation by ActionReactionLabs

Dynamic animation system (yes, like Euphoria) prototype, called “BioReplicant”. This crowd simulation demo is based on PhysX SDK.

RayFire building demolition compilation by Hondash3

Compilation of building demolitions using RayFire Tool and PhysX solver.

unity fps shooter game by dorumonstr

Using Unity3D engine, author is trying to reproduce “Cellfactor” style gameplay, with intensive use of physical objects and vehicles.

Newest PhysX SDK 2.8.4.2 is ready for public beta testing – this is last and most stable current generation SDK, next one is going to be 3.0.

In addition, SDK 2.8.4. will be used as basis for upcoming APEX 1.0 toolset.

[18.08.10] Update: Release notes were supplemented with “driverless” mode description.

[19.08.10] Update #2: bug in the PhysXLoader code, that was preventing it from loading the local DLLs in 2.8.4, is now fixed. Replace the PhysXLoader.dll and PhysXLoader64.dll in your SDK installation with the new files from the archive “2.8.4_Loader_patch.rar“, found in the 2.8.4 folder on the developer download site.

[20.08.10] Update #3: PhysX SDK 2.8.4.3 with fixed PhysXLoader .dlls and included (previously missing) PhysXDevice.dll – is ready.

Currently, binary builds are available for 32- and 64-bit PC Windows, and Xbox 360

RELEASE NOTES:

General

• Removed PhysX Loader source code from source distribution. THIS WILL BE REVERTED FOR RELEASE. PhysXLoader code will be supplied to source licensees.
• Discontinued the Training Programs.
• Added source code of NxTetra (tet-maker) utility to source distribution.
• Removed spin waits from sample code.
• Added API to permit the user to specify the order in which compartments are simulated.
• Added compression limits to cloth.
• Cloth simulation no longer performs prediction for kinematic rigid bodies for improved interaction behavior.
• New driverless loader option for PC CPU distribution. In 2.8.4, application developers must ship PhysXCore.dll, PhysXCooking.dll, the cudarXX_XX_X.dll and physxdevice.dll with the application ‘locally’, in the directory where the .exe is located:

1. The application requests PhysXCore or PhysXCooking (v 2.8.4) from the PhysXLoader.

2. PhysXLoader searches for another DLL called ‘PhysXUpdateLoader’.

3. If PhysXUpdateLoader is not found, PhysXLoader will load the local PhysXCore or PhysXCooking.

4. If PhysXUpdateLoader is found, it looks for an updated replacement for the PhysXCore or PhysXCooking dlls.

5. If PhysXUpdateLoader cannot find the specified replacement DLL, PhysXLoader will load the local PhysXCore or PhysXCooking dlls.

6. If PhysXUpdateLoader can find the replacement DLLs, these will be loaded in place of the local PhysCore or PhysXCooking dlls.

7. The net result is that the developer has more control over the game installation process, doesn't have to worry about shipping a large System Software with the game, doesn't have to worry that the player will break his System Software somehow, etc.

• Better rotation matrix input validity checking.
• Made Desc::isValid() more verbose.
• CUDA errors are now reported to the debug stream.
• Added extended scene statistics for GPU memory usage.
• Lowered the default GPU memory heap size to 32 MB from 128 MB. You may use NxPhysicsSDKDesc::gpuHeapSize to change how much GPU memory is allocated for physics.
• Disabled GPU acceleration by default. Clear NX_SDF_NO_HARDWARE to enable it.
• Corrected inertia and volume computation for capsule. For the same capsule dimension and density, the mass and inertia is slightly different compared to the previous release.

Performance

• Enabled /arch:SSE2 compiler switch for all optimized PC builds.
• Optimized PS3 SPU Memory Manager
• Optimized AgPerfmon AgPerfUtils wrapper
• Optimized cloth simulation on PS3, XBOX 360, PC CPU

Fixed Bugs

• Debugged PS3 SPU Memory Manager
• Fluids now collide properly when static shapes are removed or added.
• Fixed crash bug in character controller sample.
• Fixed a number of bugs in the HSM.

API changes

• Cloth
  • NxCloth::getShapePointers() no longer returns shape flags.
  • Added methods to NxCloth and members to NxClothDesc to set compression parameters.
  • NxCloth::setFlag() can no longer be used to change NX_CLF_BENDING_ORTHO, use flag in NxClothDesc instead.
• Fluids
  • Removed NxFluidFlag::NX_FF_ENABLE_STATIC_FRICTION. Static friction is enabled by default now.
• Removed NX_SDKF_EXTENDED_DESCRIPTOR.
• Added NxPhysicsSDK::resizeGpuHeap() to allow changing the GPU heap size after SDK creation. See the GPU Memory section of the User’s Guide for details.
• NxPhysicsSDKDesc::flags has NX_SDKF_NO_HARDWARE set by default.
• Added checkValid() method to descriptors that return an error code instead of the boolean of isValid().
• The experimental NxScene::simulateCompartments() method has been added. It gives more control over the order in which compartments get simulated.

You can download PhysX SDK 2.8.4.2 Beta via Developer Support Center.

If you are experiencing trouble with registration of PhysX Developer account, please refer to our registration guide.

Mafia II demo version was released only few days ago, but several websites have already prepared some benchmarking and testing articles, focused on APEX PhysX part of the game.

Update: Mafia II Final version – PhysX Reviews roundup.

[11.08.2010] Mafia II – Public Demo GPU test by gamegpu.ru

Russian article. Includes game overview and detailed testing part, with various settings and used ATI/NV GPUs.

[11.08.2010] Mafia II Performance Benchmarks: PhysX and 3D Vision Tested by HiTechLegion

Decent review, with some PhysX benchmarks. Author’s conclusion – “I would rather trade graphical quality than play the game in its highest settings with PhysX disabled.”

[11.08.2010] Minireview – PhysX in Mafia II Demo by CTTL.cz

A small performance review by czech website, using Intel Dual Core E5200@4GHz CPU and GTX 275 GPU. However, since CPU and GPU PhysX framerates are the same, it seems they have cought a bug with PhysX System Software not installed properly.

[13.08.2010] Mafia 2 – Performancebericht by ComputerBase

Detailed performance review (with different Nvidia GPUs and APEX settings), PhysX effects decription, comparison videos.

[13.08.10] Mafia II Performance Preview by OverclockersClub

Some benchmarks with APEX High and various Nvidia GPUs.

– We’ll update this post as more articles emerge –

Since Mafia II Demo is a hot topic these days, lets browse through most decent videos, showcasing APEX PhysX effects in this title.

Mafia 2 Demo – PhysX Tire Smoke by MrTeeh

Immersive tires burnout effect – with dynamic smoke simulation. Best look with APEX set to High, as particle count is much bigger. One of the best SPH smoke simulation so far – comparing to other PhysX games.

Mafia II smoke turbulence by gbushimprov

Another demonstration of dynamic smoke effect.

Mafia 2 – Apex Physics Comparison by Robersdee24

Decent video, showcasing various gameplay situations (shooting, explosions, clothing) with APEX content enabled and disabled.

Mafia 2 Physx on-off comparison (car explosion) by NortonCommander

Car explosion comparison. Interesting detail – it seems that with APEX enabled, explosions are damaging nearby cars more intensive, that with APEX disabled.

Maffia 2 PHYSX Comparison by makraipeter

Short video, comparing impact debris particle effects.

Mafia 2: PhysX-on vs PhysX-off comparison by jhwejr34

Built-in benchmark comparison, with different APEX PhysX settings.

Mafia II Gameplay With the new (PhysX 9.10.0513) by Tonho0112

Just a gameplay sequence, running smooth with APEX effects enabled.

Mafia 2 Physx Demo Gameplay by CptBingo

Vito goes on rampage. Lots of shooting , destruction and particles.

Mafia 2 Demo – Physx Test Video by dani83bp

Intence shooting with lots, lots of debris and particles.

Mafia 2 Nvidia PhysX: Breakable Objects by SaiteK1911

Various destructible objects in Mafia II. BTW, many of them are based on APEX Destruction module.

Nvidia has revealed new PhysX System Software package – 9.10.0513

According to release notes, main difference from previous PhysX drivers is

• Bug fixes for Mafia 2

You can download 9.10.0513 PSS from here

Update: We can’t notice any performance increase in Mafia II.