If there is anybody left trying to play ME3 on a laptop, here is my conclusion:
The last and therefore best working driver for the HD4000 chip is 15.33.22.64.3621 (May 2014).
The problems start with 15.33.29.64.3945 (Sept 2014), although I couldn't find a version tracker for Intel drivers, so I don't know if
there was another package released between those two.
The most current is 15.33.35.64.4176 (March 2015) and works a little better, but is still unfeasible.
My quick and totally unscientific Fraps benchmark of the first 30sec in the Armax Arena yielded those results:
2015-05-27 20:56:29 - MassEffect3 (15.33.35.64.4176 - current)
Frames: 1004 - Time: 30000ms - Avg: 33.467 - Min: 25 - Max: 44
2015-05-27 21:06:50 - MassEffect3 (15.33.22.64.3621 - last working)
Frames: 1139 - Time: 30000ms - Avg: 37.967 - Min: 30 - Max: 43
2015-05-27 21:23:15 - MassEffect3 (15.33.29.64.3945 - first one showing issues)
Frames: 963 - Time: 30000ms - Avg: 32.100 - Min: 23 - Max: 43
So it seems even performance has degraded over time.
Google offers enough mirrors for the old driver, as for now it can be found on Intel's servers: http://downloadmirror.intel.com/23885/eng/Win64_153322.exe
There's now a thread about this over at the Intel support forums.
https://communities.intel.com/thread/76283?q=red
Looks like someone has at least acknowledged the problem.
Its not just Mass Effect 3, so the culprit may lay somewhere else.
