Ideal FOV for Games with Each Resolution / Aspect Ratio

[Yuhaney]

When it comes to PC games, I just crank every setting to the maximum and start playing. However, there is this one setting called FOV (Field of View) that I have never really paid too much attention to and usually leave it at default value (seems to be 70-75 with most games) or increased it very slightly.

I think this is somewhat controversial topic since there are all kinds of different reports with low FOV setting, varying from no difference to nausea and headache.

Now, I do understand what the setting does. But I am interested to know which is so called ideal/optimal setting for different resolution and aspect ratios?

4:3 - 1024x768 / 1280x960
16:9 - 1280x720 / 1920x1080
16:10 - 1440×900 / 1920x1200

At some point the image starts to get this 'fish-eye' or 'tunnel' effect and I'm interested to know when does this start to affect the image?

[Googolplex]

That depends from game to game. There is no "perfect value".
I would let it as it is. The only reason I would change it is when an old game doesn't support widescreen resolutions properly and shows an incorrect cutted image.

[eliasfrost]

It depends on the screen size, the width of the screen (though to a lesse extent) and your distance from the screen.

A normal FOV for PC games is around 90-110, because you are usually very close to the screen, while on a console the FOV is usually 60-75 because the screen is so far away. It's sort of like looking out a window, the closer you are the more you see outside, while you see less and less the farther away you are. One common problem is that the FOV doesn't match the distance from the screen/window. Imagine standing 2 feet close to a window but the things you see outside is as if you're 15 feet away.

This is one of the reasons Metro feels weird to play on a PC or why everyone asks for the FOV console command for Skyrim on PC, the default FOV doesn't match your distance from the screen, and thus a lot of people get nausea or head aches.

[Yuhaney]

Doesn't the Field of View change if you are playing on nVidia Surround / ATi Eyefinity even if you don't change the setting at all?

Because as I think it, it would change wider because the extra monitors bring more pixels into the image and you can now see far more than on just one monitor. I don't have such setup to test it since I game on a single Full HD monitor.

[eliasfrost]

The FOV itself doesn't change, but you do (as you say) see more stuff because it's basically the same as having a wide-ass screen. If you look at nVidia Surround screenshots, you notice that the middle screen is the same as a normal screen (because it is), the extra two screens only add more stuff to the side, it doesn't actually change your Field of View.

[Tiger]

It depends on what you think looks best. Usually in first person games(Take a shooter for example) you want it to be high enough so you can see your weapon, your hand and part of your arm.

Imo it doesn't look very good when you have a too high FOV-value, but try to find one that doesn't look too "zoomed-in" and one that doesn't look too "zoomed-out" if that makes any sense.