Okay, I'm officially tired of this.  I realize options are good, but I don't feel like tweaking a game for three days to find the right combination of options to make the game playable.  My FPS varies from 90 or so down to 2 or 3 when in a gunbattle.  I usually lag so horribly I die before I can get a shot off.  What fun!

It's not like my system is complete crap.  It's a P 733 with a Radeon 8500 card.  Most games are fine, but this one I can't tweak enough to get a consistent fps.  Heck I'd settle for 15-20 FPS during a gunbattle.  It's crazy, and it has ceased to be any fun.  Thanks Raven!

I loved the first game.  It was easy to get into, it ran just fine, and the graphics almost seemed better to me.  I don't know, but the fun factor on this one is a bit low for me.  I was waiting and waiting for this sequel, and now I want a do-over.  The gore system was better on the first game, even if it wasn't as deep.  And, hey, the game almost never slowed down.  Oh well...

I feel better now.  If anyone has a tweak here or there that is simple and will make a real difference then please god help me out.  Believe me, I've done the searches and tried to scale things back.  I shouldn't have to run a game at 640X480 to get it to run well.  What is this, 1992?  I mean, sure I can cut all the options until I'm basically shooting at stick figures, but who wants to do that?  Pretty lame, this game.  

Stop worrying so much about every graphic option that only two guys with a mainframe and Big Blue can run properly and just make a friggin' fun game.  

That's all...

Dude, it's time for a new computer. Thisgame plays fine on mid-range machines, but yours is low-end already.
I understand you don't have problems with other games, but SOF2 really pushed the envelope in the graphics department, an to really appreciate it, you need a machine capable of coping with the load, which is really heavy.
Don't take this as a flame, because it's not that. It's just a friendly advise. Welcome to the forums!

You can reduce textures to "high" and try turning back some of the scalability options: these will give you a quick performance boost without costing you visuals.  The biggest help to you will come in reducing CPU-intensive rather than pure video options.  For example, altering anisotropic filtering settings will not help you as much as reducing shadows and decals.