Ambient occlusion still looks terrible

It looks like a low-resolution dark spotty filter applied over the screen. This wasn't the case in older versions (0.24 and earlier if I recall correctly). We need to have more options for AO besides just turning it off or on.

 

Best solution right now is enabling higher quality GTAO in CK Graphics Mod
https://www.beamng.com/threads/ck-graphics-settings-mod-v2-1-fix-for-beamng-0-26.87586/
cleans it right up

 

Thanks! That does look a lot better. I also asked the mod author if there's a way to make the AO less dark, which is part of my complaint. Certainly the resolution / light samples are much better with this mod, but the darkness isn't affected. I like AO but not heavy.

 

This option should be better for you then:

https://www.beamng.com/threads/ssao-mod-ssao-changes-in-photo-mode-stays-ingame.84125/

You have to go into photo mode each time you start BeamNG and pick the settings you like. Remember to put quality on high!
Turn the contrast down 'till you're happy.

 

@Kevin_Hahn Does that affect only the photo mode or the gameplay as well? Thanks, but that might not be a good solution if it has to be set up each time the game is launched. I'm hoping this and the AO quality is something that will be part of the base game, hopefully soon. I think it was a poor decision on the devs' part to force this AO change on us before all the vehicles have been revamped to not be so dark.

 

@Unster Yes, it retains the settings in gameplay! It's just a hacky way to adjust settings using the photomode sliders. I agree it should be a vanilla option, although personally I'm very happy with the higher quality GTAO in CK Graphics Mod.

 

@Kevin_Hahn Yes that CK mod is nice. I was surprised to see it improves the shadow resolution as well. I don't understand why these options aren't already part of the game, especially for the AO that looks so bad.