Unlock Starfield's Visual Splendor: Ultimate Steam Deck Graphics Settings Revealed!

Starfield, the highly anticipated game, was finally released on PC and Xbox Series X|S a few months ago. However, opinions among critics and fans are mixed, and one common criticism is its performance. Particularly for low-to-mid-tier PCs, Starfield is not optimized well. Interestingly, the Steam Deck, a compact yet powerful device, also faces difficulties running Starfield smoothly. In comparison to other AAA games such as Elden Ring, Starfield experiences more challenges on the Steam Deck. Nevertheless, by adjusting in-game graphics and utilizing external Steam Deck settings, Starfield can be played relatively smoothly.

Starfield In-Game Graphics Settings

For optimal performance on the Steam Deck, Starfield players can utilize both in-game graphics settings and the settings available in the external Steam Deck menu.

While the following settings should enable gameplay on the Steam Deck, it is important to note that achieving a consistent 60 FPS, particularly in city areas such as New Atlantis and Neon, may not be feasible. However, these settings should provide a relatively stable frame rate of 30 to 45 FPS until further adjustments are made in the external Steam Deck settings.

Display

To access the Graphics settings menu within the game, navigate to the main menu and choose "Settings." From there, scroll down until you find the option labeled "Display." It's important to note that not all settings available in the menu are listed below. Only the Starfield Graphics settings that players have the ability to directly adjust are included.

Borderless Fullscreen: On

Dynamic Resolution: Off

Render Resolution Scale: 50%

Shadow Quality: Low

Indirect Lighting: Low

Reflections: Low

Particle Quality: Low

Volumetric Lighting: Low

Crowd Density: Low

Motion Blur: Off

GTAO Quality: Low

Grass Quality: Low

Contact Shadows: Low

VSync: Off

Upscaling: FSR 2.0Sharpening: 80%

Enable VRS: Off

Film Grain Intensity: 50%-100%

Depth of Field: On

Starfield Steam Deck Settings

The external settings on a Steam Deck may not be revolutionary, but they can impact the performance of games and can be adjusted to optimize the Steam Deck's ability to run Starfield.

The following settings are suggested for achieving a relatively smooth gameplay experience in Starfield. However, it is possible to manually increase the GPU Clock and set a higher refresh rate to enhance the capabilities of the Steam Deck. It is important to avoid setting this value too high as it could potentially harm the Steam Deck's GPU and reduce its lifespan.

In order to access the settings menu on the Steam Deck, simply press the button located on the right side of the device that consists of three dots. Next, navigate down to the Performance section where you will find a set of modifiable settings, including the FPS Limit which can be adjusted to 60.

Refresh Rate: 60

Allow Tearing: Off

Half-Rate Shading: Off

TDP Limit: Off

Filter Scaling: Linear

GPU Clock: Disabled

Proton Layer: Proton GE 8-15 (After downloading Preview for OS 3.5)

Starfield is available for PC and Xbox Series X|S.