As a seasoned gamer with a penchant for portable gaming devices, I’ve had the pleasure (and occasional frustration) of testing Path of Exile 2 on both the Steam Deck and the ASUS ROG Ally. Now, let me tell you, these handheld powerhouses have seen their fair share of games, but none have tested their mettle quite like this action-RPG did.
Path of Exile 2 by Grinding Gear Games recently kicked off Early Access a week ago, a game I had been eager to try out. After attending a preview event where I inquired about Steam Deck compatibility from the game director, Jonathan Rogers, it became clear that I needed to dive into it sooner rather than later. Over the past week, I’ve enjoyed playing it on my Steam Deck, ROG Ally, and Xbox Series X.
In order to offer a comprehensive review for my early access piece, which includes trying out various classes and reaching the endgame, I’ve decided to focus on providing an initial impression of Path of Exile 2 on Steam Deck in this article. Here, you’ll find suggested settings, thoughts on the ROG Ally, and other related topics. Please keep in mind that as I continue to explore different characters and delve deeper into the game, updates will be made to this article.
At the moment of writing, I’ve invested approximately 20 hours playing different characters and platforms, and this piece presents my initial thoughts and visuals from patch version 0.1.0d. To get a feel for the latest updates and observe any enhancements in the early stages, I created a new character specifically for testing purposes.
Path of Exile 2 lag issues and gateway selection
When starting Path of Exile 2, it’s crucial to verify your server (gateway) allocation promptly. Upon initial play, I encountered significant input lag and delay that made the game almost unplayable. Initially, I assumed this was a Steam Deck issue, but it persisted on Xbox Series X as well. Upon investigation, I realized the automatic server selection had placed me in the Texas gateway rather than one closer to my location.
Whenever you switch your gateway, there might be a delay before the change takes effect, typically requiring you to log out and then log back in again. For an optimal solo play experience in Path of Exile 2, pick a location near you. To check the ping, simply look at the image I’ve provided. If you’re playing with a friend from another country, I advise choosing a server midway between both players to reduce lag. In my case, when I played with an overseas friend, their game ran smoothly while mine was laggy.
Path of Exile 2 default graphics settings are not good
In Path of Exile 2, NIS upscaling is activated as a standard feature, which isn’t visually appealing even on handheld devices or consoles. Interestingly, HDR is disabled by default in Path of Exile 2, but it can be activated and used with the Steam Deck OLED. I tested both enabled and disabled versions, and temporarily switched off HDR to compare performance on the ROG Ally under similar settings.
Apart from specific settings, Path of Exile 2 offers customizable interface features such as adjustable button prompts and HUD size. Notably, it supports button prompts for Xbox, DualShock 4, DualSense, and Steam Deck controllers. Given that the game is being developed for the Steam Deck, this isn’t unexpected, but it’s reassuring to see such options in a fresh launch. I personally chose to use DualSense button prompts on both my devices.
Path of Exile 2 graphics and display options on PC
In terms of visual settings, Path of Exile 2 offers a variety of customization options:
It’s important to mention that Vulkan only allows you to utilize NIS or FSR upscaling on the Steam Deck; if you want to use XeSS, you must opt for the DirectX12 renderer. I opted for DirectX 12 because I frequently switched between FSR and XeSS. In certain situations, XeSS appeared superior, while I preferred FSR for specific visual effects. I didn’t detect any significant performance discrepancy between both renderers.
Path of Exile 2 Steam Deck recommended settings so far
Prior to adjusting your graphics settings, it’s important to first navigate to the interface settings and increase the HUD Scale for better visibility. I personally prefer setting it to maximum on Steam Deck and ROG Ally as the default scale was found to be a bit small. Additionally, consider disabling global chat which can be found towards the bottom of the interface settings.
Initially, I’d like to mention that there are two suggested sets of options for playing Path of Exile 2 on Steam Deck at this point, but it’s important to note that the experience might not be exceptional. The game’s performance within towns leaves much to be desired. In fact, you might find that Path of Exile 2 initially runs at around the low 20s, or even lower, in these areas.
As a gamer, I’d suggest cranking up your game to fullscreen mode, opting for XeSS or FSR upscaling on performance setting, turning off v-sync, setting sharpness around 60%, and keeping all other settings at their lowest, apart from texture filtering where I used 8x and 16x. I also chose only shadow lighting over the default shadow + GI lighting. The key settings here are engine multithreading, dynamic culling, and dynamic resolution for a smoother gaming experience.
To achieve a consistent 30 frames per second (fps) gameplay, consider disabling dynamic resolution. However, keep in mind that playing online with others might cause occasional drops to the high twenties. I kept dynamic resolution enabled while aiming for 40fps, and it still dipped to low 30s during certain indoor boss battles when playing with friends.
So the key takeaway from my testing is to leave engine multithreading and dynamic culling enabled and then making sure to use the performance upscaling option for FSR or XeSS. Dynamic resolution should be enabled, but expect the resolution to drop quite a bit if you play with others who also use effect-heavy skills and spells. The resolution drops even more when playing online.
It’s clear that turning everything to its lowest setting may not be sufficient for ensuring a stable gaming experience when playing with others online, as it might still be prone to issues.
Path of Exile 2 Steam Deck OLED HDR support
As an enthusiast, I discovered that to tweak HDR settings on my Steam Deck OLED, I first need to enable it within the display options. Only then can I adjust both the scene and user interface brightness for a more personalized experience.
Path of Exile 2 Steam Deck gameplay impressions
I’ve been thoroughly enjoying Diablo IV on the Steam Deck, but I hadn’t dabbled in Path of Exile prior to starting Path of Exile 2. My initial impressions are that it’s an engaging game, yet there’s room for improvement before I can wholeheartedly suggest it as a Steam Deck exclusive. Path of Exile 2 seems tailor-made for handheld gaming, and the Steam Deck’s back buttons significantly boost the overall experience. However, it might be wise to wait for some more updates and optimizations before investing in early access solely for playing on Steam Deck.
What’s striking about this game is its impressive attention to detail in terms of graphics, sound effects, music, combat mechanics, and swift resolution of significant problems. Put simply, it’s an outstanding game thus far, and I can hardly wait to delve deeper. In reality, I plan on diving back into it for several hours after wrapping up this piece.
Path of Exile 2 ROG Ally recommended settings and impressions so far
Path of Exile 2 on the ASUS ROG Ally (Z1 Extreme) with the GPU memory set to 5GB has been a much better experience than Steam Deck. I initially played at 720p since I wanted the best performance possible and also to see how it compares to the Steam Deck running the game with the same settings. At 720p, it ran above 60fps consistently in the first act when I tested with a friend and on my own running around, doing optional bosses, and just general combat. It also went to the 70s and 80s in some less busy areas. The town still drops to the 50s though. I can say that VRR definitely helps on the ROG Ally with minor drops here and there.
After changing to a 1080p resolution with the same settings, there was an average drop of around 10-15 frames per second (fps). This resulted in the town running at approximately 40 fps, while the open world managed to maintain its frame rate quite well. However, during intense boss battles that were heavy on effects, I observed drops to about 50 fps with the same settings. In my testing, I didn’t activate dynamic resolution on the ROG Ally, and I played it in 25W turbo mode without being plugged into a wall adapter. I haven’t tested it at 30W yet, but I plan to do so for my full early access article that covers later acts and more.
Should you buy Path of Exile 2 early access on Steam Deck or ROG Ally right now?
At this moment, Path of Exile 2 can only be accessed through paid supporter packs. Since it’s still in the early stages, I wouldn’t suggest it as an ideal choice for playing on the Steam Deck due to its performance issues. If you’re currently playing Path of Exile 2 on your primary PC or console and wish to have a portable device for on-the-go gaming, there is a significant drawback when it comes to playing on the Steam Deck. This is because the image quality decreases significantly to maintain even a 30fps or 40fps target at the lowest settings. If you’re willing to accept this drop in quality, you can proceed, but keep in mind that some updates and Steam Deck-specific optimizations are yet to come.
If you own an ASUS ROG Ally, your experience with Path of Exile 2 might differ slightly. Compared across platforms, the game runs and appears more smoothly on the ROG Ally overall. I haven’t tested the later areas yet, but so far, it performs well on the ROG Ally, though not optimally on Steam Deck. Keep in mind that I will be revisiting this comparison with every update to check for improvements on both handheld devices.
Currently, Path of Exile 2 can be played in its Early Access phase on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, as well as personal computers via Standalone, Steam, or the Epic Games Store.
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2024-12-13 21:26