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Start with an upscaler, not the lowest preset. On Steam Deck, use 1280×800 output, a 30 FPS cap, and FSR (or DLSS where the hardware offers it) in Quality mode. On a PC close to the minimum specification, use 1080p, Low settings, and Quality upscaling; on a machine near the recommended specification, begin at High and tune one demanding option at a time. These are sensible starting points, not guaranteed frame-rate results: no published source currently provides reproducible Steam Deck benchmarks or a setting-by-setting FPS chart for the 1.0 release.
What the published specifications tell you
Among the Trolls is a first-person narrative adventure with survival elements. Its published PC requirements place it well above a lightweight indie game, so graphics choices matter on both a handheld and a desktop.
| Tier | Processor | Memory | Graphics card | API and storage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum | Intel Core i5-10400 or AMD Ryzen 5 1600 | 16 GB | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 or AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT | DirectX 12; 30 GB available storage |
| Recommended | Intel Core i7-10700K or AMD Ryzen 7 4800H | 32 GB | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti or AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT | DirectX 12; SSD preferred |
These are the specifications listed on the current Steam page (Valve/Steam listing, indexed for this guide). They describe supported PC tiers, not a promise that a Steam Deck will achieve a particular frame rate. The recommended GPUs are substantially faster than the minimum cards, which is why a single “best preset” is unlikely to suit every PC.
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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11The full-release settings reference for version 1.0, checked October 15, 2026, confirms DLSS and FSR upscaling. Those options render internally at a lower resolution and reconstruct the output, often reducing GPU workload while preserving more detail than simply selecting a very low resolution. No source in this guide’s evidence set publishes a repeatable Steam Deck FPS figure, frame-time graph, or tested preset for the release build.
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Steam Deck: a dependable starting profile
Use the following profile as a controlled starting point. Apply it, play the same demanding area for several minutes, and then change one setting at a time. Steam Deck models and operating-system versions can behave differently, so treat the profile as a recommendation rather than a benchmark.
| Option | Starting value | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Output resolution | 1280×800 | Matches the Deck’s native 16:10 display and avoids unnecessary scaling. |
| Frame-rate limit | 30 FPS | A conservative target for consistent frame pacing on demanding software; the game has not been independently measured here at 30 FPS. |
| Upscaler | FSR, Quality mode | Uses the documented reconstruction option before sacrificing large amounts of image quality. |
| Alternative upscaler | DLSS, Quality mode, only where exposed by the hardware and runtime | DLSS is documented for the PC release, but availability depends on compatible graphics hardware and the game’s menu. |
| Textures | Medium | Retains surface detail while leaving memory headroom; lower to Low if hitching or memory pressure persists. |
| Shadows | Low or Medium | Usually a substantial GPU cost and less important to readability than textures. |
| Volumetric and post-processing effects | Low | Reduces fog, lighting and screen-effect workload when frame time is uneven. |
| Foliage | Low | Dense vegetation can increase both rendering and scene-management cost. |
| View distance | Low or Medium | Limits how much distant geometry must be drawn. |
| Motion blur | Off if you prefer a sharper image | This is a clarity preference, not a guaranteed performance improvement. |
If Quality upscaling still produces uneven frame times, change FSR to Balanced before dropping every individual option to its minimum. Balanced lowers the internal render resolution further and can look softer, especially on fine foliage. If the image becomes too soft, return to Quality and reduce shadows or volumetric effects instead.
How to apply the profile on Deck
- Install the current SteamOS update and the latest game update. Steam Support’s Deck guidance is to keep both current before troubleshooting compatibility.
- Open the game’s properties and check the Compatibility section. Steam identifies any unmet Verified requirements there; the panel is more useful than assuming that every Deck model has identical behavior.
- Launch the game and open its graphics or display settings. Select 1280×800, choose FSR Quality, set the frame-rate limit to 30 if the game exposes an in-game cap, and apply the change.
- Set textures to Medium, then set shadows, volumetric/post-processing effects, foliage and view distance to Low or Medium as shown above. Turn motion blur off only if you want a clearer camera image.
- Load a representative save or area. Walk, turn the camera, enter an outdoor scene and wait for streaming to settle. Observe consistency rather than a brief peak number.
- If frame pacing is poor, switch FSR from Quality to Balanced. If the picture is acceptable but still stutters, lower shadows first, then volumetric/post-processing effects, foliage and view distance in that order.
- Restart the game after major changes. Steam Support recommends a restart when problems continue, and it removes uncertainty about settings that were not fully applied.
A fixed 30 FPS target is intentionally conservative. The available evidence does not establish whether a particular Deck model can hold 30, 40 or 60 FPS in every scene, so do not treat the cap as a measured guarantee. If your own testing shows sustained headroom, you can try a higher cap; if it does not, retain 30 and prioritize stable frame times.
PC profiles by hardware tier
Match the starting preset to your graphics card rather than to the name of your monitor. The minimum and recommended specifications are the only published performance tiers available for this release; they do not include an FPS table.
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| PC position | Resolution | Preset and textures | Upscaling | Adjustment order |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Near the published minimum (GTX 1070 or RX 5600 XT class) | 1080p or the display’s native resolution | Low preset; raise textures to Medium only when VRAM use and stability allow | DLSS or FSR Quality, if available | Shadows → volumetric/post-processing effects → foliage → view distance → textures |
| Between minimum and recommended | 1080p first; test higher resolution only after frame times are stable | Medium, with High textures if memory permits | Quality mode first; Balanced if frame time remains uneven | Lower the most expensive effect one step at a time and retest |
| Near the published recommended tier (RTX 2080 Ti or RX 7700 XT class) | Native 1440p or 1080p depending on the monitor and target | High preset as a starting point | Quality mode for additional headroom | Change one demanding option at a time; preserve textures unless VRAM is constrained |
For a minimum-tier PC, selecting Low first prevents a heavy scene from overwhelming the GPU while you establish a baseline. Enable Quality upscaling before making a large resolution cut. If frame time is still inconsistent, lower shadows, volumetric or post-processing effects, foliage and view distance before reducing textures. Textures primarily consume graphics memory; lowering them may not solve a shader or lighting bottleneck, and it can make the game look needlessly muddy.
On a recommended-tier PC, High is a sensible first pass, not a promise of a particular refresh rate. Keep the upscaler at Quality, then test the settings that affect lighting, fog, vegetation and distant geometry. If you use a high-refresh monitor, an in-game cap matched to a frame rate your system can actually sustain is preferable to an unstable uncapped output.
Which settings to lower first
When performance drops, change the setting that addresses the likely bottleneck. Make one change, apply it, and repeat the same route through the game so that you can tell what helped.
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Shadow maps require additional rendering from lights and can become expensive in scenes containing several light sources. Moving from High to Medium or Low is often less visually damaging than reducing the entire resolution. Look for smoother camera movement and fewer spikes when entering lit areas.
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- Steam Deck users: For optimal gaming performance, including the ability to store and load video games, we suggest using a Gen4x4 2230 SSD.
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2. Volumetric and post-processing effects
Fog, volumetric lighting, ambient effects and screen-space processing can consume considerable GPU time. Lower these before textures when the image is sharp enough but frame time is erratic. The trade-off is less atmospheric depth and simpler lighting transitions.
3. Foliage
Vegetation adds many objects and transparent surfaces. Lower foliage when outdoor scenes are substantially slower than interiors. The world will look less dense, but this change can target a problem that a texture reduction cannot.
4. View distance
View distance determines how far the game keeps geometry and detail active. Reduce it when turning toward a distant landscape causes a repeatable slowdown. Very low values can make objects appear late, so use the smallest reduction that solves the problem.
5. Textures
Textures are the last item in the recommended reduction order unless you are running out of VRAM or experiencing texture-streaming hitches. Lowering them reduces memory use and can stop swapping, but it does not directly fix every GPU workload.
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6. Resolution and upscaling mode
After the individual expensive effects are controlled, move FSR from Quality to Balanced. A lower internal resolution can deliver a larger performance gain than several small slider changes, at the cost of fine-detail clarity. Keep the output at 1280×800 on Deck or the monitor’s native mode on PC unless you have a specific reason to change it.
Understanding FSR and DLSS in this game
The 1.0 settings reference documents both FSR and DLSS. They are not identical options: FSR is designed to work across a broad range of GPUs, while DLSS requires compatible NVIDIA hardware and the implementation exposed by the game. Select the option that your menu and GPU support; do not expect DLSS to appear on hardware that cannot run it.
- Quality: the best first choice when you want to preserve detail while gaining some GPU headroom.
- Balanced: a stronger performance intervention that can soften foliage, thin geometry and distant detail.
- Native or off: use only when you have enough headroom and prefer the sharpest un-reconstructed image.
Upscaling cannot cure a CPU-limited scene, shader compilation stutter or storage-related streaming delay. If the GPU is not close to full utilization when the slowdown occurs, lowering resolution may have little effect; test shadows, world-detail settings, background processes and storage health instead.
Steam Deck versus PC: what actually differs
| Comparison point | Steam Deck | Desktop or laptop PC |
|---|---|---|
| Target consistency | Start with a 30 FPS cap and judge frame pacing on your own model; no game-specific published Deck figure is available. | Choose a cap that your GPU and CPU can sustain; the published requirements do not establish a tested FPS number. |
| Output resolution | 1280×800 is the practical native target. | Use 1080p, 1440p or another native mode according to hardware headroom. |
| Upscaler | FSR Quality is the broad starting choice; DLSS appears only where compatible hardware and the game expose it. | DLSS or FSR Quality can be tested, with Balanced as the next step if frame time remains uneven. |
| Shadows and effects | Lower these before textures to protect clarity while reducing GPU work. | Minimum-tier systems should lower them early; recommended-tier systems can tune them individually from High. |
| Textures and memory | Medium is a cautious starting point; lower it if streaming or memory pressure persists. | Texture quality depends on available VRAM; Medium or High may be appropriate above the minimum tier. |
| Power and thermals | Higher settings increase power draw, heat and fan noise and can reduce battery life. | Desktop power is less constrained; laptops still need to account for heat, plugged-in performance modes and battery drain. |
| Hardware qualification | Use Steam’s Compatibility panel and current SteamOS/game updates; published PC GPU tiers are not Deck benchmarks. | Compare your GPU and CPU with the listed minimum or recommended parts and use DirectX 12-capable drivers. |
Storage, updates and display checks
Storage capacity
The listing requires 30 GB of available storage. A microSD card can provide that extra capacity on a Deck with limited internal space, but it does not make the GPU render faster. Leave additional free space for updates and shader data rather than filling the card to its limit. An SSD is preferred in the recommended PC specification, which points to faster loading and streaming behavior, not a higher graphics ceiling.
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Keep the software current
Steam Support’s recommended sequence is straightforward: update SteamOS and the game, check the Compatibility section for unmet Verified requirements, restart when a problem persists, and then review the in-game graphics controls. Follow that order before changing compatibility tools or assuming that a setting is broken.
Fixing a soft Windows image
If the game looks unexpectedly soft on Windows, the release settings reference suggests checking Windows Display Settings → System → Display → Scale and layout and setting the scale to 100%. This is a desktop-scaling workaround; it is not a frame-rate tweak and should not be presented as one. Also verify that the game is using the intended monitor resolution and that an upscaler has not been switched to Balanced unintentionally.
Troubleshooting by symptom
The game is slow everywhere
- Confirm that the PC meets at least the listed GTX 1070/RX 5600 XT graphics tier and has 16 GB RAM.
- On Deck, use 1280×800, a 30 FPS cap and FSR Quality, then lower shadows and volumetric/post-processing effects.
- On PC, start with the Low preset near minimum hardware and enable Quality upscaling.
- Close GPU-intensive background applications and make sure the game is running on the intended discrete GPU in a laptop.
Only outdoor areas stutter
- Lower foliage and view distance before reducing textures.
- Use a cap that the system can hold rather than allowing large frame-rate swings.
- Allow the scene to settle after loading; repeat the same route to distinguish streaming from a persistent rendering cost.
The image is too blurry
- Return the upscaler from Balanced to Quality.
- Confirm that output resolution is 1280×800 on Deck or the monitor’s native resolution on PC.
- On Windows, check Display Settings scale and layout and set it to 100% if it is unusually high.
- Keep textures at Medium or High when VRAM allows; do not lower texture quality to solve a reconstruction-softness problem.
Changing resolution leaves controls in a strange state
An official PC launch announcement for October 14, 2026 reported a fix for confirm/cancel buttons when changing resolution settings. If your build does not reflect that fix, update the game, apply the resolution change again, and restart. Because Steam availability and compatibility metadata can change, check the live store page and your installed build’s update status.
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The game will not start or behaves inconsistently after an update
- Install pending SteamOS, driver and game updates.
- Open the game’s Steam Compatibility section and note any unmet Verified requirements.
- Restart the Deck or PC and relaunch the game.
- Reapply the starting profile instead of assuming an update preserved every graphics value.
- If the problem remains, record the hardware tier, operating-system version, resolution, upscaler and graphics preset when reporting it; those details make a compatibility report actionable.
A practical tuning routine for any system
- Record a baseline. Note output resolution, preset, upscaler mode, frame cap and whether the slowdown occurs indoors, outdoors or during camera turns.
- Stabilize the target. Choose 30 FPS on Deck or a sustainable cap on PC before chasing a higher peak number.
- Enable Quality upscaling. Use FSR broadly or DLSS on supported hardware.
- Reduce expensive effects. Lower shadows, volumetric/post-processing effects, foliage and view distance in that order.
- Address memory symptoms. Reduce textures only when VRAM pressure, texture pop-in or streaming hitches indicate a memory problem.
- Try Balanced upscaling. Use it when the previous steps do not produce even frame times and accept the softer image.
- Change one value per test. Repeat the same scene after each change and keep the best compromise for image quality and consistency.
This process gives you a setting profile tied to your hardware and play style without pretending that an unverified FPS number applies to every Deck or PC.
What is and is not established
The documented facts are the PC hardware requirements, the presence of DLSS and FSR in the full release, Steam’s compatibility and update guidance, and the 30 GB storage requirement. The evidence does not establish a game-specific Steam Deck frame rate, frame-time chart, or universally optimal preset. Consequently, any claim that the game definitively runs at 30, 40 or 60 FPS on every Deck model would go beyond the available data. Use the profiles above as controlled starting points and validate them on the exact hardware, operating-system version and game build you use.
Quick Recap
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