How to Record High-Quality Gameplay Videos Using OBS Studio

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How to Setup OBS Studio to Recording Game Play

Before recording your gameplay, you must set up OBS Studio. Unlikebasic screen recording softwarelike Snipping Tool, which only focuses on the video aspect of your gameplay, OBS Studio lets you control and tweak other settings, too. You can pick the display source, adjust audio, video, and output settings, and map hotkeys as shown below.

Select Source

Selecting Source in OBS Studio means picking the display area you want to capture. You can capture the entire screen (all open windows) or select a single window (a game in this case). We recommend using the Game Capture mode because of its built-in anti-cheat hook feature. Follow the steps below.

Step 1:Click on the plus button in the Sources section. Select theGame Captureoption.

Step 2:Type a name and click on theOKbutton.

Step 3:Select theUse anti-cheat compatibility hookoption and clickOK.

Once done, your game capture window will be ready.

Configure Audio and Video Settings

Next, you must configure the audio and video capture settings in OBS Studio. Click on theSettingsoption at the bottom right. Then, click on theAudiooption.

Here are the following settings you must check:

Sample Rate:A higher sample rate means your audio capture will be nearly identical to the source. If the 48 kHz sample rate option isn’t set as the default, use it.

Channels:By default, onlyMonoandStereoare supported. To enable and capture surround sound, you must restart the app.

Global Audio Settings:Here, you can choose up to six different audio devices and capture their audio. However, the desktop and microphone audio should suffice for most users.

Notably, you can also disable any audio device before a recording session. To do so, go to theAudio Mixersection in the app and click on thespeaker iconto disable any audio source.

For now, these presets should help you get up and running quickly.

Moving on to the Video settings in OBS. Click on theVideooption in the settings to switch to it. Here are a few settings with their meanings:

Base (Canvas) Resolution:It is the resolution in which you want to record the gameplay. While you can pick1080pand720pas a base resolution, we suggest you pick the one that matches your monitor’s resolution.

Output (Scaled) Resolution:This refers to the resolution in which you want the final output video. Keep it the same as the Base resolution unless you want to downscale the output.

Downscale Filter:Only applicable if you set the output resolution lower than the base resolution. We recommend using it with default settings.

Common FPS Value:By default, OBS Studio captures video at 60 FPS, which is enough for uploading and streaming.

That being said, if you want to capture gameplay in 120 FPS, repeat the following steps:

Step 1:Click on the arrow icon and select theInteger FPS Valueoption.

Step 2:Type120in the box and click theApplybutton.

Remember that recording at 120 FPS will load your PC extensively. Use anFPS checker to determine the maximum FPSyou are getting with the current game settings.

Configure Output Settings

Next are the output settings, which control the location, formats, and encoders used for the gameplay recording. Switch to theOutputtab in the OBS Studio and go to the Recording section.

Recording Path:This is the location where OBS will save the recorded clip. By default, it is the Video folder in Windows File Explorer.

Recording Quality:This indicates the final quality and clarity of the output video. By default, it is set to theHigh-Qualityoption, which produces a moderate-sized video clip of decent quality. You can choose theIndistinguishable Qualityoption, but be prepared for bigger files that eat into a sizeable portion of your storage.

Recording Format:This refers to the video clip’s file format. OBS uses MKV as the default format, but you can also use MP4, MOV, or FLV.

Click onApplyto save the changes. Don’t change theAudio Encoder,Video Encoder, andAudio Tracksettings.

Map Hotkeys for Recording

Switching to the OBS window every time you want to record a clip is cumbersome. Instead, you can map hotkeys for basic actions such as starting, pausing, or ending a recording. Repeat the following steps:

Step 1:Click on theHotkeystab in the OBS Studio settings.

Step 2:Then click on theStart Recordingoption and press the desired key combination, e.g.,Shift+R.

Step 3:Similarly, map the hotkeys for other basic actions and click theApplybutton.

Step 4:Click on theOKbutton.

Now, OBS canrecord gameplay without issues.

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Last updated on 17 July, 2024

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