Best Dead Island 2 graphics settings for Steam Deck

Developed by Deep Silver, Dead Island 2 is a survival horror game and a sequel to the 2011 title. The latest iteration comes with a plethora of new features and graphical enhancements over the original title. The game is currently only available on Epic Games for PC gamers, which means it is not directly accessible on the Steam Deck.

The popular device is Valve's take on the handheld gaming system. It packs a punch despite its small form factor. It is powered by an AMD APU with a Ryzen Zen 2 CPU and RDNA 2 GPU. In fact, this system is so powerful that it is capable of not only running games but also emulating them from different platforms.

This guide will take a closer look at the best Dead Island 2 graphics settings for the Steam Deck, while also exploring the process of getting the game running on the device.

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Dead Island 2 runs surprisingly well on the Steam Deck

The PC version of Dead Island 2 is well-optimized. Despite being unavailable on Steam and not having a playability rating from Valve, the game runs exceptionally well on the Steam Deck. Additionally, players can easily customize their experience with the title's diverse graphical settings.

Moreover, they can take advantage of AMD FSR to achieve even higher framerates without compromising much on image quality. Keeping this in mind, here are the recommended settings to use with Dead Island 2 on the Steam Deck:

Display

• Resolution: 1200x800
• Window Mode: Windowed Full Screen
• VSync: No
• Maximum Framerate: Unlimited
• Field of View: As per the player's preference
• Motion Blur: As per the player's preference

Advanced

• Overall Quality: Custom
• Anti Aliasing: Temporal AA High
• View Distance: Medium
• Post Processing: Low
• Shadows: Low
• Textures: Medium
• Effects: Low
• Foliage Detail: Low
• SSAO: Low
• Indirect Shadows: Low
• Depth of Field: As per the player's preference
• Screen Space Reflections: Low
• Material Quality: Medium
• Shading Quality: Low
• AMD Fidelity Super Resolution 2: Quality
• AMD Fidelity Variable Shading: Off

These settings should provide users with the most optimal in-game experience. However, if players aren't satisfied with the results, they might consider dropping the resolution, the AMD FSR preset, and/or the graphics settings. On the other hand, if they want better image quality, they should turn up a few settings and turn off FSR.

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How to play Dead Island 2 on the Steam Deck

As previously stated, the title is not available on Steam. Thus, users must take matters into their own hands to get the game up and running on their devices. For those interested, here's how you can play Dead Island 2 on the Steam Deck:

1. First, enable Desktop mode on your Steam Deck. To do so, press the Steam button, and then under the Power menu, find 'Switch to Desktop.'
2. Now launch the Discover Software Center and look up 'Heroic Games Launcher.' Proceed to install the app.
3. Once installed, turn on the Heroic Games Launcher and proceed to use the login function to log into your Epic Games account.
4. Next, head into the Library section of the Heroic Games Launcher and find Dead Island 2.
5. Proceed to download the game and once installed, launch it and play.

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These are all the steps involved in getting the game running on the Steam Deck, along with the best graphics settings to use. It is essential to note here that the game is not officially verified by Valve for the Deck and might pose some issues while playing.