Recording
OBS recording settings for game footage
For recording games in OBS Studio, use your graphics card's hardware encoder, a quality-based rate control with a value between 16 and 23, and record to MKV or hybrid MP4 so a crash doesn't destroy the file. Put game sound and microphone on separate audio tracks. Those are the settings OBS's own knowledge base recommends.
Encoder
OBS generally recommends a hardware encoder over its bundled x264 encoder for performance: NVENC on NVIDIA cards, AMF on AMD, Quick Sync on Intel and VideoToolbox on Apple. Use the one on the graphics card that runs the game.
Rate control and quality
| Encoder | Rate control | Value |
|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA NVENC | Constant QP | 16 to 23 |
| x264 | CRF | 16 to 23 |
| AMD | CQP | 16 to 23 |
| Intel Quick Sync | ICQ | 16 to 23 |
Lower numbers mean higher quality and bigger files. OBS also recommends a keyframe interval of 2 seconds and the High profile. Unlike a fixed bitrate, a quality setting gives fast action the data it needs and saves space on still scenes.
File format
- MKV (Matroska) stays playable if the recording is cut off by a crash or power loss. Some editors don't open it, so use File, Remux Recordings to turn it into MP4 without re-encoding, or turn on automatic remuxing.
- Hybrid MP4, added in OBS 30.2, is also recoverable after a crash.
- Plain MP4 or MOV may be unrecoverable if writing stops early, so OBS advises against recording to them directly.
Audio tracks
In Advanced output mode, choose which audio tracks to record, and assign game sound and microphone to different tracks in the Advanced Audio Properties. That lets you fix the balance afterwards, or leave copyrighted music off one track. See recording sound for why this matters.
After recording
OBS recordings made at these settings are already H.264 or HEVC and can often be uploaded as they are. To shrink them further, re-encode with x264 or x265 at a CRF; see x264 or x265.