Spider-Man 2 Swings Onto Steam With Forgiving PC Specs

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 swings onto PC today, January 30th, and its PC port boasts impressive features and surprisingly broad system compatibility. Developer Nixxes Software, in a PlayStation Blog post, detailed the extensive PC enhancements designed to optimize performance across a wide range of hardware.

A new trailer accompanies the announcement, highlighting the removal of the PSN requirement for PC players and the inclusion of advanced ray tracing features, including DLSS 3.5 Ray Reconstruction. Nixxes graphics programmer Menno Bil explained the improvements: "With ray reconstruction enabled, we see more detailed ray-traced reflections and sharper ray-traced shadows, particularly at oblique angles. We've also enhanced ray-traced interiors and reduced ghosting and noise in ray-traced ambient occlusion."

The game also supports DLSS 3 and FSR 3.1 upscaling and frame generation technologies, along with Intel XeSS. 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 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. The high RAM requirements and need for a relatively modern GPU suggest it might be playable, but official Steam Deck verification isn't expected. Unlike the previous Spider-Man titles, which had PS4 ports, Spider-Man 2's PS5 origins may present greater hardware demands.

The flexible system requirements have garnered positive online feedback, with Reddit users praising the comprehensive configuration options and expressing optimism about the game's performance.