The Sinking City 2 Graphics and Performance Settings
Tune Unreal Engine 5 for stable frame times before launch night.
The Sinking City 2 runs on Unreal Engine 5 with dense water simulation, rain, and destructible horror set-pieces. Frogwares targets 1080p/30 on minimum PC specs and 1440p/60 on recommended hardware, but preview builds — including the Steam demo — can stutter on otherwise capable machines. This guide explains which settings to change first, how TSR upscaling fits official benchmarks, and what to expect from the HDR patch after launch.
Pair it with System Requirements for official tables and the PC Spec Checker for a component checklist.
Boot disclaimer and demo expectations
The demo displays a message that optimization is still in progress. Frame drops in flooded outdoor scenes or the fish-market preview footage do not always predict retail performance. Judge the shipping build after day-one patches listed on Gone Gold & Launch.
Recommended settings order (PC)
When frame times spike, adjust in this sequence:
- Install on NVMe SSD — HDD installs violate official requirements and cause streaming hitches.
- Enable TSR / resolution scaling — Frogwares benchmarks used Temporal Super Resolution before touching textures.
- Lower shadow quality and water simulation — outdoor Arkham streets hammer both.
- Cap frame rate to your monitor refresh if GPU usage oscillates wildly.
- Update GPU drivers to the latest WHQL package — demo audio bugs sometimes correlate with outdated drivers.
Only after those steps should you reduce texture or effects presets. The game’s horror readability depends on flashlight range and wet-surface reflections; crushing effects too early makes combat harder.
Preset targets from official specs
| Tier | Target | Preset guidance |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum | 1080p / 30 fps Low | TSR quality mode, low shadows, medium textures |
| Recommended | 1440p / 60 fps Balanced | TSR balanced, high shadows, high textures |
| Enthusiast | 4K native | Expect to exceed RTX 4070 Ti / RX 7900 XT unless DLSS/FSR options expand at launch |
Console builds likely offer Quality vs Performance modes similar to other UE5 horror titles. Full menu names will be verified August 18.
DLSS, FSR, and XeSS
Official materials emphasize TSR on PC. NVIDIA DLSS or AMD FSR may appear in launch-day options — test each after patches if you own a 40-series or RDNA 3 card. Document findings in community threads linked from Official Links.
HDR at launch vs post-launch
Retail builds at gold master prioritize SDR certification paths. Frogwares confirmed a free HDR patch shortly after release with groundwork already done. Until the patch ships:
- Disable forced HDR in Windows if colors look washed out.
- Use in-game brightness calibration on first boot.
- Expect patch notes on News Timeline.
Known demo issues and workarounds
Audio cutting out after first scene
Some players report complete audio loss after the opening cutscene until a full game restart (not just reload). Workaround:
- Quit to desktop entirely.
- Relaunch the demo from Steam.
- Verify game files if the issue persists after driver updates.
We will mirror official fixes if Frogwares patches the demo separately from the full game.
Stuttering in UE5.8 builds
Preview events noted hitching when entering new sub-levels — common in UE5 titles still compiling shaders. Let the first-load shader cache finish; avoid alt-tabbing during initial area loads.
Soft-lock on fuse puzzle
Rare if fuses are inserted out of order. Reload the last gramophone save — see Demo Puzzles & Codes.
Laptop and handheld notes
Mobile GPUs sharing power with the CPU may throttle below 30 fps in the demo floodgate fight even when specs look adequate. Plug into wall power, enable high-performance mode, and use a cooling pad.
Steam Deck is not certified. Treat handheld play as experimental until community reports stabilize post-launch.
Console storage and pre-load
PS5 and Xbox installs approach 70 GB plus day-one patches. Keep double that free for updates or optional texture packs. Pre-load when available — CDN congestion is common on August 17–18.
Monitoring tools
Use MSI Afterburner, Xbox Game Bar, or PlayStation FPS overlays to watch frame pacing during combat. If frame times spike only when rain effects activate, lower water simulation before shadows.
Related guides
Controls for input lag checks, How to Survive if low fps makes dodging unreliable, and Demo Notes for broader impression summaries.
We will add per-GPU setting screenshots after launch-week testing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the most common questions.
Why does the demo stutter on a good PC?
Active development builds often compile shaders on the fly. SSD, TSR, and updated drivers help; wait for day-one patches before judging final performance.
Is HDR available at launch?
Not at gold master. Frogwares plans a free HDR patch soon after release.
How do I fix missing audio in the demo?
Fully quit and relaunch the game. Reloading a save may not restore audio.