Death Stranding 2 PC performance: How well does it run?

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As a big fan of the first Death Stranding, I was really hoping the PC version of ‘On the Beach’ would be great, and honestly, it totally is! It lives up to all my expectations.

While the PS5 Pro can display visuals at a greater scale, the improvement is primarily in image quality and detail. It doesn’t offer different ray tracing settings, but the game still looks fantastic – the characters in Death Stranding 2 appear remarkably lifelike.

Similar to other games released on PlayStation, this game requires a fairly powerful computer to achieve the same level of performance and graphics as the console version. However, since the PlayStation 5 has been available for nearly six years, this requirement is becoming less of a concern over time.

If your computer isn’t as strong as a PlayStation 5, you can lower the game’s graphics settings, making it playable on a wider range of machines.

Launching a new game involves some initial shader compilation that takes a bit of time. While it’s generally smooth, we occasionally noticed brief stutters during cutscenes.

One of the most notable features of the PC version is the addition of PICO, an image upscaling technology developed by Guerilla Games. Like Unreal Engine 5’s TSR, PICO is created in-house, meaning it’s different from upscaling solutions like DLSS, FSR, and XeSS which are made by other hardware companies. PICO debuted in Horizon: Forbidden West on the PlayStation 5 Pro, and this release of Death Stranding 2 is its first appearance on PC.

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If you’re using an Nvidia graphics card, DLSS is usually the better choice, particularly if your computer isn’t very powerful. DLSS Model L in Ultra Performance mode provides good image quality, even when increasing resolution to 4K, and typically looks better overall than PICO.

PICO is particularly noticeable when playing Death Stranding 2 on PCs without advanced upscaling technology, like those with AMD RX6000/7000 series graphics cards or handhelds like the Steam Deck and ROG Ally X. While PICO is still visible, it mainly shows up as visual imperfections around details like hair and the edges of clouds.

If you have an AMD RX 9000 series graphics card, you can use FSR4. We haven’t been able to test it ourselves, so we can’t say how PICO performs in comparison.

Using a Razer Blade 17 laptop with a powerful Nvidia RTX 3080Ti graphics card, 32GB of fast RAM, and an Intel i9 processor, we were able to achieve a smooth 60 frames per second in games. We did this by using DLSS 4.5, setting the performance mode to ‘Ultra’, and the graphics settings to medium with high texture quality. The image still looked good overall, though we noticed some slight shimmering in shadows and hair.

The character designs are the best part of the game, and that was true even on the PlayStation 5. If you have a strong computer or console, they look even more impressive.

If you have a VRR-compatible monitor, DLSS Balanced Mode can make your games look sharper, even if it means some frames are dropped. This isn’t usually a problem when using a controller, as you’re less likely to notice slight changes in the frame rate compared to using a mouse. If you’re comfortable playing with a controller, you can still enjoy a good gaming experience even at 40 frames per second.

Death Stranding 2 feels surprisingly responsive and quick to play, especially if you can achieve higher frame rates. Enabling features like Nvidia Reflex can make it even smoother.

While it doesn’t affect how the game looks, the sound quality in Death Stranding 2 is exceptional. We highly recommend using good headphones or speakers – the audio is just as stunning as the graphics.

Most PC gamers should be able to play Death Stranding 2: On the Beach without major issues, as long as they’re willing to tweak the settings to match their hardware.

Authors

Cole LukeFreelance Writer

Cole Luke is a freelance journalist and video creator who works with TopMob Gaming. His work also appears on websites like Digital Foundry, PC Gamer, and Network N.

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2026-03-19 19:07