The Last of Us 2 Remastered PC optimization guide: Best settings for optimal performance

The Last of Us 2 Remastered for PC was released on April 3, 2025. However, the game's minimum as well as recommended system requirements are a bit high, considering it's a PS4 and PS4 Pro-era game. This makes it difficult for lower-end GPUs to get a smooth 60 FPS or at least 45 FPS for a decent gameplay experience.

Switching to Low or Very Low graphics settings will deliver 60+ FPS on most PCs, but the game will look worse than the PS4, a 12-year-old console. Going with Very High settings will obviously make The Last of Us 2 Remastered look better than the PS4 Pro but at the cost of performance. So, optimized settings must be applied to ensure you get 60 FPS with at least PS4 or PS4 Pro-like graphics.

This article showcases an optimized set of graphics settings that will run at 60 FPS or 45 FPS balanced performance while delivering at least PS4 or PS4 Pro-like image quality.

Note: Aspects of this article are subjective and reflect the writer's opinions. Please ensure your PC meets the minimum or recommended system requirements.

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The Last of Us 2 Remastered PC optimization guide

Ellie in The Last of Us: Part 2 (Image via Sony Interactive Entertainment)

The Last of Us 2 Remastered port for PC doesn't suffer the same issues The Last of Us Part 1 did at launch. However, the game doesn't compile all the shader cache, except for the initial portion. The rest of the shader cache is compiled dynamically as you progress through the world. This is why you must apply a 60 FPS cap to ensure you don't experience any in-game stutters.

There's also an issue where an unlocked framerate can increase the loading times. Locking the frame rate or using VSync brings down the loading time considerably. Apart from those issues, The Last of Us 2 Remastered has a lengthy graphics settings page, which can be quite confusing and difficult to optimize manually. However, we took the time to do it for you.

Below, you will find all the best The Last of Us 2 Remastered PC settings to get an optimal performance without sacrificing the visual quality too much.

PS4 Pro-like graphical fidelity settings to achieve 60 FPS or 45 FPS balanced performance

Before we provide the graphics settings, let's look at the game's system requirements. Your PC must have these requirements or above to achieve a PS4 Pro-like graphical fidelity with 60 FPS.

Components	Recommended system requirements
CPU	Intel Core i5-8600 AMD Ryzen 5 3600
Memory	16 GB
GPU	NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 AMD Radeon RX 5700
Operating system	Windows 10/11 64-bit
DirectX version	DirectX 12
Storage	150 GB SSD

To get a PS4 Pro-like graphical fidelity with 60 FPS on The Last of Us 2 Remastered, you will need an Nvidia RTX 3060, Radeon RX 6600 XT, Radeon RX 5700, and above. These two GPUs can easily deliver 60 FPS at 1080p with the settings provided below:

• Framerate Cap: 60
• DLSS or FSR: Quality
• Level of Detail: Medium
• Texture Quality: High
• Visual Effects Quality: High
• Texture Filtering: 2X ANISO
• Shadow Quality: Custom
• Spotlights Shadow Resolution: Very High
• Point Lights Shadow Resolution: High
• Ambient Shadows: High
• Directional Shadow Resolution: High
• Directional Shadow Distance: Medium
• Screen Space Shadows: Off
• Dynamic Screen Space Shadows: Off
• Contact Shadow Quality: Off
• Image Based Lighting: On
• Bounced Lighting: On
• Ambient Occlusion: Quality
• Screen Space Reflections: High
• Real-Time Reflections Quality: High
• Real-Time Cloud Shadows Reflections: On
• Screen Space Sub-Surface Scattering: On
• Refraction Quality: High
• Depth of Field: High
• Motion Blur Quality: Medium
• Particle Density: High
• Volumetric Effects: Low
• Lens Flare: Half Resolution

Graphics cards lower than the Nvidia RTX 3060 or Radeon RX 6600 XT can also use the above settings but may only get around 45 FPS.

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PS4-like graphical fidelity settings to achieve 60 FPS or 30 FPS balanced performance on lower-end PCs

To play The Last of Us 2 Remastered, users with lower-end PCs must meet the minimum system requirements, which are provided below:

Components	Minimum system requirements
CPU	Intel Core i3-8100 AMD Ryzen 3 1300X
Memory	16 GB
GPU	NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 AMD Radeon RX 5500XT
Operating system	Windows 10/11 64-bit
DirectX version	DirectX 12
Storage	150 GB SSD

Users with older GPUs like Nvidia GTX 1650, Radeon RX 5500 XT, or equivalent should use the settings provided below for an optimal 30 FPS balanced performance:

• Framerate Cap: 60
• DLSS or FSR: Quality
• Level of Detail: Medium
• Texture Quality: Medium
• Visual Effects Quality: Low
• Texture Filtering: 2X ANISO
• Shadow Quality: Custom
• Spotlights Shadow Resolution: Medium
• Point Lights Shadow Resolution: Medium
• Ambient Shadows: Medium
• Directional Shadow Resolution: Low
• Directional Shadow Distance: Low
• Screen Space Shadows: Off
• Dynamic Screen Space Shadows: Off
• Contact Shadow Quality: Off
• Image Based Lighting: On
• Bounced Lighting: On
• Ambient Occlusion: Quality
• Screen Space Reflections: Low
• Real-Time Reflections Quality: Medium
• Real-Time Cloud Shadows Reflections: Off
• Screen Space Sub-Surface Scattering: On
• Refraction Quality: Medium
• Depth of Field: Off
• Motion Blur Quality: Low
• Particle Density: Low
• Volumetric Effects: Low
• Lens Flare: Half Resolution

Other GPUs, like the Nvidia RTX 2060 and the Radeon RX 5600 XT, can achieve a solid 60 FPS when used with the above settings.

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The above settings are designed to provide PS4-like visual fidelity on The Last of Us 2 Remastered while delivering 60 FPS or 45 FPS for an optimal gaming experience as long as you use a framerate cap.