Spider-Man 2 Swings Onto Steam With Forgiving PC Specs

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 swings onto PC today, January 30th, offering a highly optimized port designed to run smoothly across a wide range of PC hardware. Developer Nixxes Software detailed the impressive PC features on the PlayStation Blog, promising finely tuned performance and visual fidelity.

A new trailer showcases the game's enhanced capabilities. Notably, the PC version eliminates the PlayStation Network (PSN) requirement and introduces advanced ray tracing features, including DLSS 3.5 Ray Reconstruction. Nixxes graphics programmer Menno Bil highlighted the improvements: "With ray reconstruction enabled, we see more detailed ray-traced reflections and sharper ray-traced shadows, particularly at steep angles. We've also enhanced ray-traced interiors and reduced ghosting and noise in ray-traced ambient occlusion."

The game also boasts DLSS 3 and FSR 3.1 upscaling and frame generation, along with Intel XeSS support. While DLSS 4's Multi-Frame Generation isn't directly supported, users can potentially leverage the Nvidia app to utilize the newer transformer model for improved DLSS 3 Frame Generation image quality.

Ultrawide monitor support extends to an impressive 48:9 aspect ratio, with cinematics viewable up to 32:9.

System requirements are categorized into ray-traced and non-ray-traced configurations. For players prioritizing performance over ray tracing, a modest system with an Nvidia GTX 1650, Intel Core i3 8100, and 16GB of RAM can achieve 720p at 30 FPS. High-end configurations, targeting 4K 60 FPS with "Ray Tracing Ultimate," demand an RTX 4090, AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D, and 32GB of RAM.

Steam Deck compatibility remains uncertain. While possible, the high RAM requirements and need for a modern GPU make verification unlikely, particularly considering the game's PS5 origins compared to the more scalable PS4 ports of previous Spider-Man titles.

The broad range of supported configurations has garnered significant online praise, with Reddit users commending the comprehensive and impressive system requirements. The overall positive reception suggests high expectations for the game's performance.