Can Valve’s modest PC handheld handle cutting-edge modern games?
Or do these latest PS5 ports push past the limits of Valve’s handheld?
Rift Apart in particular is one of themost cutting-edge current-gen titles, but the game is surprisingly scalable.
Performance is generally good, with around a 40fps average and the game rarely dipping below 30fps.
Unsurprisingly, combat brings the lowest frame-rates, while non-combat locomotion hovering a little below 60fps.
Each of these options delivered a consistent 30fps, with only occasional and minor frame-pacing issues.
Intel’s XeSS, again running in its DP4A path, fares much better.
It does have some disocclusion artefacting, but it’s perfectly presentable on the Steam Deck’s display.
Graphical tweaks need more finessing as well.
We really need to step up to medium configs or above to get a good image.
Unfortunately, that does come with a performance cost - often 30fps at 720p with XeSS in performance mode.
Further options enhancements beyond medium come with a similar performance penalty, with ultra options hovering around 22fps.
Remnant 2 fares substantially worse, requiring a big resolution cut-back and still suffering from substandard performance.
Ratchet is definitely the former, while Remnant 2 pushes the portable powerhouse a little too far.
