Hey everyone, I need some advice. I have a laptop with Intel Iris Xe integrated graphics running Windows 11. Fortnite finally launches now, but the gameplay is super laggy and basically unplayable. Earlier, the game wouldn’t start at all and gave me an error about needing a D3D11-compatible GPU with Feature Level 11.0 and Shader Model 5.0. My system supports DirectX 12, so I’m confused why this happened. I tried uninstalling Intel graphics drivers, but they always reinstall on restart. Updating drivers hasn’t helped either. I don’t have a dedicated GPU, only the integrated Intel graphics. Before, I was able to play fine using an older driver, but after an update (I think my boyfriend did it), performance tanked. Does anyone know how I can fix this or make Fortnite playable on my setup? Any tips would really help!
3 Answers
You might want to experiment with forcing Fortnite to run in DirectX 11 mode instead of DirectX 12. Some people have had crashes or bad performance with DX12 on certain setups. From what you said, DX12 is enabled on your laptop but the game might run better on DX11 if you disable DX12 in the launch options.
Honestly, integrated GPUs like the Intel Iris Xe usually struggle with Fortnite, especially under Windows 11. One workaround is to try using GeForce Now if you have a decent internet connection. It’s cloud gaming, so the heavy lifting happens on their servers, letting you play smoothly regardless of your laptop’s GPU. It’s not free, but if you play a lot, it might be worth it until you get your new PC.
Thanks! I was hoping to avoid paid options since I’m getting a new PC next month, but I might give the performance tier a shot to hold me over.
The sad reality is that most iGPUs, including Iris Xe, aren’t really designed for demanding games like Fortnite. Even optimized Minecraft modpacks can be a stretch! If you can’t upgrade to a dedicated GPU soon, the performance issues are probably because the hardware just isn’t strong enough to run the game smoothly.
Yeah, I’m getting a new PC next month, so hopefully that will fix things. Just frustrating because the game worked fine before the driver update.
Good call, I’ll try switching the game to DX11 and see if that helps the lag issues.