The Last of Us Part 2 was first released in 2020 for the PlayStation 4, with a remastered version for the PlayStation 5 following in 2024. Now, after five years, the game has finally arrived on PC. Given the disappointing PC launch of The Last of Us Part I on Steam, many users didn't have high hopes for Part II, but it seems that Naughty Dog and Nixxes Software weren't lying when they said they were focusing more on optimization. At the time of writing, the game enjoys a ‘Very Positive‘ rating on Steam.

Part II benchmarks reveal smooth performance

Performance benchmarks posted on Steam claim that, apart from the RTX 2080 Ti struggling at 4K (which is to be expected), the 3090 averages around 60 FPS with slight dips during demanding scenes. As for the 4090 and 5090, performance is buttery smooth, with the latter sitting at around 150 FPS. This is all with DLSS and Frame Generation disabled, which is a great sign.

However, that’s a relatively small sample size, so let’s move on to more extensive tests performed by German outlet Computerbase. They’ve run a long list of benchmarks while using DLSS and FSR quality modes for solid performance.

If you drop the resolution to 1440p, you’ll be able to run the game on a wide range of GPUs, and you can also utilize DLSS and FSR here to boost performance further. For example, the RTX 4070 Super managed an average FPS of 121.5 with DLSS set to quality, and even the 7700 XT was able to churn out an average of 86.8 FPS. This means that for a stable 60 FPS 1440p experience, the GeForce RTX 4060, GeForce RTX 5070, Radeon RX 7700 XT, or RX 9070 will get you through easily.

1% lows are also something to pay attention to, as these can make sudden performance drops obvious. Thankfully, they remain relatively stable across the board, even when running at 4K.

However, watch out for the VRAM limitation

Judging by these benchmarks, The Last of Us Part II comes with much better PC performance than its predecessor, and the game looks and runs beautifully on most modern GPUs. For those on AMD's latest RDNA 4 generation, the performance is worth every penny, and you get to see how much of a leap the new 9070 series GPUs offer over RDNA 3 GPUs like the Radeon RX 7900 XT.

However, there is one caveat that we've previously addressed: the 8GB VRAM limitation, meaning the game will struggle with 8GB VRAM at max texture settings. Computerbase, in their review, also bluntly said that “8 GB is insufficient for maximum texture detail in The Last of Us Part II.” But it's not like you won't be able to run the game at all, as turning the texture settings down to low or medium should do the trick for 8GB VRAM GPUs like the RTX 4060.

About the Author

Hassam Nasir

Hassam boasts over seven years of professional experience as a dedicated PC hardware reviewer and writer.