If games became choppy immediately after a graphics driver update, the new driver is the first suspect. A driver can introduce a regression, install poorly over the old version, or conflict with one game until a hotfix arrives.
These steps apply to Windows 10 and Windows 11 PCs with NVIDIA or AMD dedicated graphics cards.
Does this affect you?
Use this if games that used to run smoothly now hitch, stutter, or feel uneven right after a GPU driver update.
Roll back to the previous driver
- Right-click Start and choose Device Manager.
- Expand Display adapters.
- Right-click your graphics card and choose Properties.
- Open the Driver tab.
- Click Roll Back Driver if the button is available.
- Follow the prompts, restart the PC, and test the game again.
If performance returns to normal, the new driver was the likely cause. Wait for a newer stable or hotfix release before updating again.
Do a clean reinstall with DDU
Use this if Roll Back Driver is unavailable or stutter remains after rolling back. A normal uninstall can leave old driver pieces behind.
- Download Display Driver Uninstaller from its official Guru3D page.
- Restart Windows into Safe Mode from Settings > System > Recovery > Advanced startup.
- Run DDU and select your GPU maker.
- Choose Clean and restart.
- After Windows restarts normally, download the correct current driver directly from NVIDIA or AMD.
- Install it fresh, restart again, and test the game.
A clean install is especially useful when the issue started after several driver upgrades layered over each other.
Turn off overlays and recording features
- For NVIDIA, open the NVIDIA app or GeForce Experience and turn off In-Game Overlay.
- For AMD, open AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition and disable Instant Replay and Performance Overlay.
- Close Discord, Steam, recording, RGB, and monitoring overlays for testing.
- Turn features back on one at a time if the stutter disappears.
Overlay conflicts can look exactly like a bad driver because they start using the same graphics hooks after an update.
Hotfixes, timing, and Windows Update
NVIDIA and AMD sometimes release hotfix or optional drivers shortly after a major driver if a regression affects popular games. Check the driver history if the latest release caused problems.
If a driver launches around the same time as a big game patch, waiting a few days before updating can avoid early bugs.
Windows Update can also replace a manually installed driver with an older one. If stutter returns after a Windows update, check the driver version and reinstall the current NVIDIA or AMD driver directly.
Sources
- NVIDIA Support – Rolling Back a Graphics Driver (2025)
- AMD Support – Clean Installing Radeon Software (2025)
- Microsoft Support – Managing Device Drivers in Windows (2025)