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Splits directional-light shadows into distance ranges around the camera.
FPS
Medium
Visual
High
VRAM
Low
CPU
Low
Latency
None
What it does
Splits directional-light shadows into distance ranges around the camera. More cascades improve distant detail but add rendering work.
Games may also call it: CSM, Shadow Cascades, Cascade Count
Decision guide
Lower it when
Lower it after the biggest settings are tuned and you still need a little more headroom.
Keep it high when
Keep it high when the visual difference is obvious and the target frame time already has enough headroom.
Handheld advice
Treat this as a secondary handheld tweak after resolution, upscaling, shadows and heavy lighting are under control.
Restart
Usually not required
Some games still apply changes only after reloading a scene or restarting.
Do not overread the meter
More cascades improve distant detail but add rendering work. This score is an editorial cross-game estimate, not a measured result for every engine.