How To Solve Fallout 4 Next-Gen Update Performance Issue On OLED Steam Deck

Muhammad Ali Bari April 26, 2024

Despite being verified for the Steam Deck, Fallout 4 has issues running on the OLED version of Valve’s handheld gaming device. Here’s how it works.

The issue stems from a workaround implemented by the game developers, likely to ensure compatibility with high refresh rate monitors. This workaround interacts with Proton’s dxvk library, responsible for converting DirectX to Vulkan. Due to this interaction, dxvk renders two frames for every render loop initiated by the game. Consequently, the frame rate monitor and limiter in gamescope overlap. Neither of dxvk or gamescope appear to be at fault here. Instead, the original workaround in the game’s code causes the problem.

How To Fix Fallout 4 Next-Gen Update Frame Rate Issue On OLED Steam Deck

As a result of a technical issue, Fallout 4 runs at half the frame rate on the OLED version of the Steam Deck. However, some players have figured out a .ini file tweak that resolves the problem. It works by disabling the game’s v-sync, and then relying on the deck’s game mode frame rate limiter to keep it running at a higher frame rate. This is more of a hack, so it isn’t a permanent fix, as the .ini file gets overwritten every time you adjust the in-game settings.

There is, however, a more elegant fix that can be seen below. Follow the steps listed below.

Create a file named /home/deck/fallout4.conf
Inside that file write: dxgi.syncInterval = 1
Open up Fallout 4’s Steam Properties
Set the Launch Option to be: DXVK_CONFIG_FILE=/home/deck/fallout4.conf %command%

Following the above steps should override the hack made inside the game’s code, making it run just like it does on the LCD deck.

The next-gen Fallout 4 update has been rather problematic across several platforms. Digital Foundry’s Thomas Morgan recently reported that only the 60 fps performance mode added via the update currently works on the Xbox Series consoles. This is due to a bug that is expected to be patched out sometime soon. Read about it here.