With the release of Starfield, PC players will need to consider the hardware performance requirements of this new interstellar adventure. However, Starfield will tax your PC to the limit, so we've compiled the optimal graphics settings for a seamless gaming experience.
The good news about Starfield is that, based on our testing so far, it works really smoothly with very few stutters or crashes. Our group saw comparable results while using a range of modern PC hardware. However, it's evident that there is room for improvement in the overall framerate optimization. The average framerates should be greater even if the game plays well. Starfield is not a poorly designed game by any means, but certain elements of the artwork are out of date.
The suggested specifications for hardware are not very strict, but they are also ambiguous since it's impossible to say what kind of performance these setups will provide. You may look at those prerequisites down below.
Starfield Requirements for PC hardware
<- OS: Windows 10 version 21H1 (10.0.19043)
- Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 2600X, Intel Core i7-6800K
- Memory: 16 GB RAM
- Graphics: AMD Radeon RX 5700, NVIDIA GeForce 1070 Ti
- DirectX: Version 12
- Storage: 125 GB available space
- Additional Notes: SSD Required
- OS: Windows 10/11 with updates
- Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 3600X, Intel i5-10600K
- Memory: 16 GB RAM
- Graphics: AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080
- DirectX: Version 12
- Network: Broadband Internet connection
- Storage: 125 GB available space
- Additional Notes: SSD Required
Hot systems
I used a liquid-cooled Nvidia RTX 4080 FE to run Starfield. WD Black SN850 SSD, 32GB G.Skill DDR5 6400, and Intel 13900K running Windows 11 on an ASUS ROG Strix-E Z690 motherboard. Even with the highest graphical settings, the performance of Starfield has been surprisingly low when compared to other recent releases on the same hardware, despite the fact that this is a high-end PC with the newest hardware.
To be fair to Bethesda, however, this remark has to be accompanied by some conditional caveats. We conducted our testing on the private pre-Early Access build. Although we were using the Nvidia drivers that specifically specify compatibility for Starfield, the framerates remained same. Although Bethesda says there will be mainframe improvements soon, speed may be enhanced by next patches.
How therefore does Starfield function in real life? Given that it was always operating at maximum capacity, the GPU seems to be the limiting component. Based on my tests, the GPU seems to be the primary worry, although you'll certainly want something that can equal an AMD 3700X in terms of CPU. In wide areas, I was only able to average 80–110 frames per second, depending on how much was going on nearby. In confined places like mines and facilities, framerates are substantially higher, and I often hit my imposed framerate limit of 165 frames per second.
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This was all accomplished using a combination of medium settings and AMD's FSR 2 image upscaler, which can handle images up to 3840 x 2160 (4K) at a base resolution of 2304 x 1296 (60% scale). The good news is that Starfield typically looks fantastic with the integrated TAA solution. and complements FSR 2 well. There isn't much motion blur, and when it does happen, apparent pixilation usually doesn't distract too much. Upscaling problems are visible in a few places, such as New Atlantis while seeing items in front of glass, however we discovered that this is a problem with the game itself rather than FSR 2. For this reason, using FSR 2 in this game will definitely help you perform better.
For Starfield, the ideal PC graphics settings
For Starfield, these are the ideal PC graphics settings to improve poor frame rates. We advise studying how to upgrade your Nvidia graphics drivers if you're having any other strange performance problems. and reading through our instructions on resolving GPU and CPU bottlenecks.
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As you can see, we usually advise using medium settings for everything. To optimize your framerates, make sure you turn off the motion blur and film grain effects in addition to turning on VRS. As a starting point, consider our recommended PC graphics settings for Starfield, which strike a balance between the quality of the scene and the framerate you'll get. However, take note that at high and extreme settings, the lighting, ambient occlusion (GTAO), and shadow effects seem much better.
Keeping all of this in mind, you should start considering the lowest framerate at which you can play Starfield. This will depend on personal taste, but Starfield is a highly fluid and noncompetitive game. For me, the minimal frame rate at which I could still enjoy the game was 90 fps. That's a lot slower than the 120–165 fps range I usually like.
Without much increased lighting and shadow effect settings, certain situations will seem much worse. With a 2023 game release, you'll notice poor resolution or a lack of shadow depth, which makes everything seem bland and subpar. This is another way to use FSR 2 to reduce the render resolution and improve, although little blurred, the appearance of Starfield. See which you prefer by contrasting a higher resolution with fewer effects with a lower resolution with more effects.
Finally, a remark on FSR 2: you may reduce the FSR 2 resolution scale with less effect on visual quality if you're playing at higher resolutions. However, if you're playing at 1080p, avoid decreasing the resolution scale below 85% since this could cause additional unwanted problems like visual shimmering in addition to making everything seem hazy. Simply put, Nvidia DLSS performs better at low resolutions than FSR 2, and DLSS isn't officially supported for Starfield.
After you've set up the ideal PC graphics settings for your hardware and are playing Starfield, we suggest that you read our primer tutorials on the best controller settings, the best skills (ranked), and 7 pro tips I wish I knew before playing.
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