Honestly, if you want high quality visuals, I think the BEST solution is to run the game in a high-res mode with AA and AF enabled...and simply use "fps_max 30". That's right, limit the game to 30 fps.
That sounds CRAZY, doesn't it? However, you will not have to suffer from any ups and downs and the entire game will feel very constant while also looking reallllly good. I love my 60 fps, but watching the framerate drop from 60 fps whenever something major occurs is really painful. Now, if the game were to hold 30 fps 99% of the time, every scene would feel the same and you'd never have to deal with ups and downs. I really do think that is a better solution...
Also, if you have a large enough 4:3 monitor, it's worth trying the 16:9 or 16:10 mode out. I used this on CSS and it was awesome! You DO have to shrink your screen down a bit using the monitor controls, but it really is similar to the pulldown mode available on 4:3 TVs. When you combine this with AA and AF, you get a crystal clear picture with a wider view.
