Warhammer 40K: Darktide system requirements

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Warhammer 40,000: Darktide launches on November 30, but if you preorder the game you can jump in as early as November 17. With just one day left before that early access starting gun goes off, developer Fatshark has unveiled the full system requirements, along with an impressively detailed blog post breaking down how the various settings—and there are many—will impact overall performance.

First things first, the hardware. Fortunately, Darktide isn't too demanding at the low end—any basic gaming PC should be able to handle it—while those with heavy iron will be able to take advantage of all the latest and greatest eye-candy tech.

Warhammer 40,000: Darktide system requirements — (Image credit: Fatshark)

Warhammer 40K: Darktide system requirements

Recommended system requirements (1080p, medium settings, 60 fps)

Tips for maximizing performance in Darktide

The specs above give everyone a pretty simple breakdown of what they can expect from their systems, but for those who want to go deep—I mean, deep—into what it all means, Fatshark co-founder and chief technical officer Rikard Blomberg did just that in a blog post on how players can maximize the Darktide's performance.

It's pretty dense as these things go, explaining (very basically, obviously) the roles of the CPU and GPU, lighting technology, "parallelization," and what a game has to do in order to render a frame in 16.7 milliseconds or less—the time required to achieve a 60 fps framerate. But after all that, there's information on what each individual graphical setting does, and how it will impact Darktide's CPU and GPU usage.

A few standout tips:

If you're CPU constrained, turn down Max Ragdolls and Scatter Density
If GPU constrained, turn down Max Weapon Impact Decals and Max Blood Decals
DLSS / FSR options are the easiest way to increase GPU performance
Use Nvidia Reflex to lower latency

The Warhammer 40,000: Darktide beta begins at 10 am PT/1 pm ET on November 17—for the start times in other regions, have a look at our complete Darktide preorder beta release time post. Be aware that while the full release is only a couple weeks away, Fatshark does appear to be treating this as a proper final best test, and some aspects of the game may be incomplete or absent.

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Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.