The Evil Within 2 Laptop and Desktop Benchmarks

Thrilling. While it is rather rare that horror movies stand out due to their high quality, there are various horror games for the home computer that could be considered first-rate. In addition to "Resident Evil 7" we could also currently mention "The Evil Within 2" here, which we tested for its performance using several notebooks and desktop GPUs.

Florian Glaser, ✓ Manuel Masiero (translated by Mark Riege), Published 10/25/2017 🇩🇪 🇫🇷

Technology

For the original German review, see here.

Unlike the first part which was released in 2014 and was technically based on "id Tech 5" by the id Software shooter expert, "The Evil Within 2" uses a slightly newer version of the engine which – fitting to the story – is called "STEM”. Even though the textures could have still been much sharper and more detailed in some places, we can attest to a decent to good quality level of the graphics overall.

In the disciplines of illumination and shadow, which are particularly important for horror games, "The Evil Within 2" convinces almost in every respect. The remaining effects such as fire and smoke are also not too bad. In addition, there are the nifty character models and an overall atmospheric look, which is created by masterful light and color accents. So the developer Tango Gameworks can be satisfied with their work.

The graphics options also give little cause for complaint. If you scroll to the bottom of the corresponding menu, you can see the access to the additional settings, which contain more than 10 different detail settings. The optional presets in particular are useful, since they adjust the overall appearance with one setting. It is also commendable that all the settings are explained as text and changing them does not require a restart. The introductory video which cannot be skipped could be very annoying. We did also become annoyed after a while that each opening of a preset menu would result in a warning message.

"The Evil Within 2" offered FXAA and TAA as anti-aliasing. Both modes smooth out diagonal edges to some extent only and provide somewhat softer looks. We did not notice any great technical problems during the test. Our only problem was that the resolution setting was often completely wrong and set too low when restarting the game, which required revisiting the graphics menu.

The performance in lower settings is also a bit strange. Even with high-end GPUs, the frame rate hardly rises in minimal and medium details. This is also related to the graphics quality hardly deteriorating when lowering the details, which is similar to other games that use the id Tech engine. You often have to look for the visual differences between the presets with a magnifying glass. You can only see larger differences in the detail level of the shadows (see screenshots below). The game uses almost 33 GB on the hard drive.

Benchmark

Since "The Evil Within 2" does not have an integrated benchmark, we had to select a representative sequence in the game play. Our final selection was the third chapter, where the gamer can move relatively freely through the small central town of Union. In order to cover the performance indoors as well as in outdoor areas, we ran from the saved point first through a building and then on the roads towards the church, in front of whose door the recording with the Fraps tool ends (see video).

The whole benchmark lasts for about 30 seconds and reflects the average performance to be expected. So it is not a worst-case-scenario, which rarely happens. While "The Evil Within 2" appears playable at 30 FPS, it really only becomes smooth from about 40 FPS.

Results

Owners of laptops without a dedicated GPU should forget about purchasing "The Evil Within 2." In the test with an Intel HD Graphics 630, there was extreme stuttering even at 1280x720 pixels and minimal details. For these settings you will need at least a model of the lower mid-range, such as the GeForce MX150.

1920x1080 pixels and the medium preset require at least a GeForce GTX 1050, and for the same resolution and the high preset we recommend at least a GeForce GTX 1050 Ti. Maximum settings only become really enjoyable with a real gaming chip (GeForce GTX 1060 and above). Anyone wanting to play on a QHD display with 2560x1440 pixels should have a GeForce GTX 1070 in their computer for higher settings, and 4K enthusiasts (3840x2160) will only be happy with a GeForce GTX 1080, if at all. The influence of the processor seems to remain very limited with all ranges of GPUs.

The Evil Within 2
3840x2160 Ultra Preset AA:FXAA + T 2560x1440 Ultra Preset AA:FXAA + T 1920x1080 Ultra Preset AA:FXAA + T 1920x1080 High Preset AA:FXAA + T 1920x1080 Medium Preset AA:FXAA + T 1280x720 Low Preset AA:T
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti (Desktop), 4790K Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti Founders Edition	40.6 (34^min) fps ∼92% 87 fps ∼88% 87 (67^min) fps ∼88%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 (Desktop), 6700K Desktop PC	32.7 (30^min) fps ∼74% 55.7 (50^min) fps ∼100% 65.3 (56^min) fps ∼66% 77.1 (60^min) fps ∼82% 82.9 (65^min) fps ∼83% 108 (91^min) fps ∼86%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Mobile, i7-7820HK Alienware 17 R4	29.2 (27^min) fps ∼66% 51 (44^min) fps ∼92% 57.3 (52^min) fps ∼58% 58.4 (52^min) fps ∼62% 61.9 (53^min) fps ∼62% 96.9 (79^min) fps ∼78%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (Desktop), 6700K Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070	27.1 (24^min) fps ∼62% 47.6 (44^min) fps ∼85% 58.9 (55^min) fps ∼59% 59.1 (55^min) fps ∼63% 59.3 (56^min) fps ∼59% 103 (85^min) fps ∼82%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 Mobile, 6820HK Asus G752VS	23.7 (20^min) fps ∼54% 41.1 (36^min) fps ∼74% 55.9 (48^min) fps ∼56% 57.6 (50^min) fps ∼61% 59.4 (51^min) fps ∼59% 82.9 (67^min) fps ∼66%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980, 6700K Desktop PC	20.5 (18^min) fps ∼47% 37.7 (34^min) fps ∼68% 53.1 (49^min) fps ∼54% 55.4 (50^min) fps ∼59% 58.4 (52^min) fps ∼58% 92.8 (82^min) fps ∼74%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (Desktop), 6700K Desktop PC	18.6 (16^min) fps ∼42% 34.2 (30^min) fps ∼61% 48.6 (45^min) fps ∼49% 51.4 (45^min) fps ∼55% 56.6 (51^min) fps ∼57% 89 (76^min) fps ∼71%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 Mobile, 6820HK MSI GT62VR	16.1 (14^min) fps ∼37% 28.9 (26^min) fps ∼52% 41.6 (36^min) fps ∼42% 43 (37^min) fps ∼46% 47 (41^min) fps ∼47% 69 (59^min) fps ∼55%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i7-7700HQ MSI GE72 7RE-046	2 (0^min) fps ∼5% 31 (27^min) fps ∼31% 32.9 (29^min) fps ∼35% 36.1 (23^min) fps ∼36% 61.8 (54^min) fps ∼49%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M, 6700HQ MSI GE72 965M Ti	26.3 (24^min) fps ∼27% 28.1 (25^min) fps ∼30% 31.3 (28^min) fps ∼31% 53.1 (47^min) fps ∼42%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i7-7700HQ Asus GL753VD	8.7 (7^min) fps ∼20% 17.3 (15^min) fps ∼31% 23.9 (22^min) fps ∼24% 26.6 (24^min) fps ∼28% 30.1 (26^min) fps ∼30% 51.9 (45^min) fps ∼42%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M, 6700HQ MSI PE60 2QD	17.3 (14^min) fps ∼18% 19.6 (16^min) fps ∼20% 36.6 (33^min) fps ∼29%
NVIDIA GeForce MX150, i7-7700HQ MSI PL62	14.6 (13^min) fps ∼15% 15.6 (14^min) fps ∼17% 17.8 (15^min) fps ∼18% 32.1 (27^min) fps ∼26%
NVIDIA GeForce 940MX, 6700HQ MSI CX72 6QD	9.3 (6^min) fps ∼9% 17.8 (15^min) fps ∼14%
NVIDIA GeForce 940M, 5700HQ MSI GP62 2QD	17.8 (16^min) fps ∼14%
Intel HD Graphics 630, i7-7700HQ MSI PL62	6 (5^min) fps ∼6% 6.7 (5^min) fps ∼7% 12.4 (11^min) fps ∼10%
NVIDIA GeForce 920M, 2970M MSI CX61 2QC 2970M MS-16GD	12 (10^min) fps ∼10%

Overview

Test Systems

Device	Graphics Card	Processor	RAM	Operating System
Desktop-PC I	MSI GeForce GTX 1080 (8 GB GDDR5X) MSI GeForce GTX 1070 (8 GB GDDR5) Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB GDDR5) Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 (4 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-6700K	2 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
Desktop-PC II	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti (11 GB GDDR5X) Asus GeForce GTX 980 Ti (6 GB GDDR5) XFX Radeon R9 Fury (4 GB HBM) Sapphire Radeon R9 290X (4 GB GDDR5) Sapphire Radeon R9 280X (3 GB GDDR5) MSI Radeon R7 370 (2 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-4790K	2 x 4 GB DDR3	Windows 10 64 Bit
Alienware 17 R4	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 (8 GB GDDR5X)	Intel Core i7-7820HK	2 x 16 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
Asus G752VS	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 (8 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-6820HK	2 x 16 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GT62VR	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-6820HK	4 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GE72	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti (4 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-7700HQ	2 x 4 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
Asus GL753VD	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 (4 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-7700HQ	2 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GL62	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 (2 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-7700HQ	2 x 4 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GE72	Nvidia GeForce GTX 965M (2 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-6700HQ	1 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI PE60	Nvidia GeForce GTX 950M (2 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-6700HQ	2 x 4 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI PL62	Nvidia GeForce MX150 (2 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-7700HQ	2 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI CX72	Nvidia GeForce 940MX (2 GB DDR3)	Intel Core i7-6700HQ	2 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GP62	Nvidia GeForce 940M (2 GB DDR3)	Intel Core i7-5700HQ	1 x 8 GB DDR3	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI CX61	Nvidia GeForce 920M (2 GB DDR3)	Intel Celeron 2970M	1 x 8 GB DDR3	Windows 10 64 Bit
Asus N551ZU	AMD Radeon R9 M280X (4 GB GDDR5)	AMD FX-7600P	2 x 4 GB DDR3	Windows 10 64 Bit

4K Monitor	Nvidia Driver	AMD Driver
2 x Asus PB287Q, Philips 328P6VJEB	ForceWare 387.92	Crimson 17.10.1

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Editor of the original article: Florian Glaser - Managing Editor Gaming Laptops - 615 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2009

I discovered my interest in computers in my childhood, growing up with MS-DOS and Windows 3.1 in the early 1990s. I was especially fascinated with computer games, even from an early age. From Monkey Island through Lands of Lore to Doom, I tried every game I could get my hands on. I have been working for Notebookcheck since 2009 with my focus mostly being on high-performance gaming laptops.

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > Reviews > The Evil Within 2 Laptop and Desktop Benchmarks

Florian Glaser, 2017-10-25 (Update: 2017-10-26)

Legend
5	Stutters – This game is very likely to stutter and have poor frame rates. Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, average frame rates are expected to fall below 25fps
	May Stutter – This graphics card has not been explicitly tested on this game. Based on interpolated information from surrounding graphics cards of similar performance levels, stutters and poor frame rates are expected.
30	Fluent – Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, this game should run at or above 25fps
40	Fluent – Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, this game should run at or above 35fps
60	Fluent – Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, this game should run at or above 58fps
	May Run Fluently – This graphics card has not been explicitly tested on this game. Based on interpolated information from surrounding graphics cards of similar performance levels, fluent frame rates are expected.
?	Uncertain – This graphics card experienced unexpected performance issues during testing for this game. A slower card may be able to achieve better and more consistent frame rates than this particular GPU running the same benchmark scene.
	Uncertain – This graphics card has not been explicitly tested on this game and no reliable interpolation can be made based on the performances of surrounding cards of the same class or family.
The value in the fields displays the average frame rate of all values in the database. Move your cursor over the value to see individual results.