Key findings

• Curved ultrawide monitors enhance immersion and provide a cinematic gaming experience.
• Games benefit from expanded aspect ratios because they improve environmental awareness and make interfaces larger.
• Ultrawide gaming may require more GPU power, and pillarboxing may occasionally occur in cutscenes and games that don’t support the wider aspect ratio.

Since I first got introduced to OLED technology, I’ve been very picky about my screens. While I thought I’d reached the pinnacle of what I wanted from a gaming display, my recent purchase of a curved ultrawide monitor—two features I’d previously dismissed as gimmicks—has changed my gaming experience forever.

Why I chose a Curved Ultrawide

I recently got back into the PC gaming world after nearly a decade away. My work increasingly required access to a PC, but the rig I built in 2011 was all but dead, so when I saw a pre-built rig at a deep discount, I decided to take the plunge. At the same time, I decided to upgrade to a gaming-ready monitor to complement the capabilities of my new PC.

There was a catch, however. My PC wouldn’t deliver 4K graphics, nor would any screen meet the high standards of my beloved 65-inch LG CX OLED. Whatever monitor I bought would need something special that would make me want to game at my desk instead of on my couch. That’s why I decided to try out a curved ultrawide monitor and, after a combination of research and ongoing sales, settled on Alienware’s 34-inch AW3423DWF model.

To be clear, this purchase was a leap of faith. I had only ever used an ultrawide monitor in an office environment, and certainly never a curved one. Suffice it to say, I had my concerns about the formats. Would pillarboxing (black bars at the edge of the screen) of video content and games that don’t support the ultrawide 21:9 aspect ratio be a constant point of criticism? Would the curvature of the screen result in an unnatural, distorted image? And most importantly, how would I even like this form factor compared to the 16:9 displays I’m used to?

Most of my fears were quickly allayed. Yes, pillarboxing is an ever-present reality to preserve the cinematography of cutscenes, and the transition between them and ultrawide gameplay can be jarring. However, the extra screen real estate when actually playing makes it easy to forgive. The curved screen barely affected the visuals, but instead deepened my immersion by covering my entire peripheral vision.

The result was a level of immersion that only VR could achieve and that my other displays couldn’t match.

Bigger, better gaming

Logic would dictate that I would immediately test gaming’s biggest and most powerful powerhouses on this upgraded setup, but this area of ​​gaming is not one I normally indulge in. Instead, I opted to make comparisons with games I am already familiar with. There was no better first point of contact than Final Fantasy VII: The Complete Seriesa port of a mobile gacha game that I play daily.

In view of this Always a crisis is designed for a pocket-sized touchscreen, my expectations for the PC version were low, so I was pleasantly surprised to find that it filled my entire screen. The widescreen layout repositioned the menu interface so that the game’s collectible wallpapers could be viewed without confusion.

Battles felt grander since you had more space to see party members and the scenery. Even little touches like being able to see my entire party on victory screens made this a better experience than the mobile original.

While that was a great first impression, my love for the monitor was truly transformative for the games I would play next. Final Fantasy XIVthe game I most hoped would benefit from the expanded aspect ratio. And it did.

The MMO’s environments felt larger than ever before, both due to the newfound space to spread out the UI elements and the fact that more of the world was on screen at once. In fact, my environmental awareness improved when playing multiplayer content as I could see more of the game at any given time, making this a superior gaming experience on a mechanical level.

Next, I wanted to give an old-school classic a chance in a format it was never intended for. Chrono trigger was an easy choice as it is my favorite game. Once again I braced myself for impact, expecting many visual glitches that were originally hidden by the 4:3 aspect ratio. What I got was anything but that; this was Chrono trigger as if I had never experienced it before.

The experience is best summed up by this anecdote that left me in awe: Standing in the middle of Leene Square during the Millennial Fair, I was able to watch the entire race lap. While not every moment offered this new perspective (there are many moments where you’re greeted by a sea of ​​trees filling the extra space), it’s the most refreshing gaming experience since the 2008 DS remake, and it’s all thanks to the capabilities of Ultrawide.

With this successful retro conversion in my luggage, I tested the current Downfall + Downfall II repackage and hope for similar results. It delivered on the ultrawide promise and essentially presented a super-wide field of view. This was a cool new perspective on a game I had played countless times and how Final Fantasy XIV, offered the advantage of better situational awareness.

However, I am not sure if this is the optimal way to play Downfall as the amount of information on screen at any given time was often more distracting than helpful, and it feels a little odd playing a first-person shooter with such a wide field of view. Still, it was a memorable “wow” moment when E1M1 loaded up in widescreen glory.

Cyberpunk2077 worked a little better as a widescreen port of a first-person game, in part because of the fisheye effects on wide field of view settings that felt natural on a curved display. The curvature also helped sell the world of Night City better than ever, as it felt like you were playing on a screen that would be commonplace given the futuristic technology of the place.

Interacting with computer terminals felt particularly immersive given the form factor. And because the screen covered a larger portion of my peripheral vision than a flat panel, I felt like I was looking through V’s cybernetic eyes (something the game’s UI is designed to simulate). This is perhaps the strongest argument for gaming on a curved monitor that I’ve experienced so far in my journey.

There are many other games where I have enjoyed the benefits of Ultrawide, such as a wider view of SteamWorld Heist II’s Cards for better strategies and increased emptiness for control surreal office landscape. I also like Vampire Savior Solved by creating transparent pillarboxes that allow you to see enemies you wouldn’t see at 16:9, while retaining the wall-bounce mechanics based on that aspect ratio.

I’m always surprised at how versatile a curved ultrawide monitor is and how well it supports a wide range of games.

However, it is not perfect

While my overall experience was positive, there are aspects of widescreen gaming that I’m less excited about.

As I mentioned before, I have never experienced a game without pillarboxing. The occasional pillarboxing cutscene doesn’t bother me too much, but in a game like Final Fantasy XIV where they are plentiful, the constant switching between aspect ratios is jarring. I understand the need and have learned to live with it, but even so, I constantly feel like the way I play a game doesn’t match the experience the developer intended.

This is especially notable in games that attempt to blend cutscenes and gameplay seamlessly. Not every game supports ultrawide, which results in permanent pillar boxes; this has always been my experience with fighting games.

When I purchased the monitor, I hadn’t considered the extra GPU power needed to render games in 21:9. This caveat is easily overlooked, but it’s perhaps the most important factor when purchasing an ultrawide monitor. In the more demanding games I tested, there was a noticeable difference in frame rates when using the wider aspect ratio.

I had to learn to adjust some settings if I wanted a smoother experience. I feel the larger screen real estate is worth the performance hit, assuming your PC can already run games to your expectations, but that may not be the case if your PC already struggles with standard definition gaming and you don’t want to compromise on graphical fidelity.

I can never go back

For gaming purposes, I’ll have a hard time giving up the curved ultrawide form factor now that I’ve bought into its font. It improves on just about any game that supports that aspect ratio, and any outliers are at least interesting to experience in this cinematic presentation. If you’re looking for a way to spice up your PC gaming and have the money and power to spare, I recommend giving a curved ultrawide monitor a shot.

For some ideas, check out our best ultrawide monitors and best curved monitors pages.