Spider-Man 2 Faces 'Mixed' Steam Reviews Due to PC Performance Issues

The much-anticipated PC release of Spider-Man 2, developed by Nixxes, has garnered a 'mixed' user review rating on Steam, with only 55% of reviews being positive. Many players have voiced concerns over the game's technical performance, despite initial expectations of a smooth experience based on the revealed system requirements.

Players equipped with high-end hardware, such as those with an RTX 4090 and the latest Nvidia drivers (5.66.36), have reported frequent crashes. One user stated, "Despite having a high-end GPU and running the latest Nvidia drivers, the game frequently crashes." Another echoed this sentiment, saying, "The game is completely unplayable on PC. The game crashes to desktop every five minutes. I have already requested a refund."

The general consensus among reviewers is to wait for stabilization patches before purchasing. One review highlighted a range of issues, stating, "To say this is 'rough' is an understatement. Lighting doesn't load in some cutscenes, those same scenes run at seconds-per-frame, audio desync issues up the wazoo, freezing, stuttering, and just about every other performance issue I can think of. I'm gonna get a refund for now because frankly, there's other stuff I could use $70 for right now."

A common problem appears to be the frequent crashing of the game's graphics controller, even on high-end systems. A typical error message reported by users reads, "A problem has occurred with your display driver. This can be caused by out of date drivers, using game settings higher than your GPU can handle, an overheating GPU, or an error with the game. Please try updating your graphics drivers, or lowering your in-game settings."

Additional complaints include malfunctions with features like DLSS and ray tracing, as well as long loading times, missing textures, and audio issues. Some players have reported performance stuttering after extended play sessions, which often leads to a hard crash. There is speculation that a memory leak might be the root cause of these problems.

In response to the feedback, Nixxes has acknowledged the issues on the Steam forums, advising users to consult the troubleshooting guides on the Nixxes Support website and to submit logs and crash dumps for further assistance. They have also identified a specific bug during the photo-op missions that can occur at low frame rates (below 20 FPS), suggesting that players lower their graphics settings or resolution as a temporary fix.