Space Marine 2 console Performance mode breakdown, Quality vs Speed

The best way to play Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 on Xbox Series X and PS5.

Saber Interactive / Focus Entertainment

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is one of the goriest games you can play in 2024, and if you want to enjoy all of that viscera – in the Omnissiah’s name – then you should be aiming to play the game as smoothly as possible. If you’re playing on PS5 or Xbox Series X, that means there are two options for you to weigh up.

The two options for console performance are Quality and Speed, and the game doesn’t explain those two options past “Prioritise performance or image quality.” That’s not a lot to go on, but we’re breaking down everything you need to know about PS5 and Xbox Series X performance in Warhammer 40k: Space Marine 2 below.

Space Marine 2 console performance breakdown

1. Quality mode breakdown – Space Marine 2
2. Speed mode breakdown – Space Marine 2
3. Best Performance mode to play Space Marine 2

Thanks go to Digital Foundry for specific performance measurements.

Quality mode breakdown – Space Marine 2

You don't need to know what a Carnifex is to enjoy ripping it apart. / Saber Interactive

Quality mode is the one that aims for a locked 30fps performance. Resolutions are high, and performance is overall very smooth. If you want a guaranteed, smooth performance, this is a very good mode, and it complements 4K displays very well. If you’re sensitive to framerate fluctuations, this is the mode for you. 

The Xbox Series S version of the game essentially only uses the “Quality” mode, with its own graphics preset to be played at 30fps.

Speed mode breakdown – Space Marine 2

Putting the 'space' in Space Marine. / Saber Interactive

Speed mode is a weird name for a Performance setting, but this essentially aims for 60fps performance, and it’s not entirely smooth. Xbox Series X manages to achieve 60fps more often than the PS5, but PS5 has the potentially to drop outside of the VRR window, making it a truly unstable experience.

For now, players with a VRR display or not sensitive to framerate fluctuations will have a good experience on Series X in Speed mode, but PS5 is much more variable, and even VRR will struggle to fully compensate for the framerate instability.

As a result, we can recommend Speed mode on Xbox Series X with VRR, but without VRR or on PS5, Speed mode is very playable but with some significant caveats.

Best Performance mode to play Space Marine 2

Showing fear when facing a swarm of monsters that wants to eat you? That'll get you the firing squad. / Saber Interactive

As usual with modern games, our recommendation comes down to whether or not you have a VRR-capable display, and which console you’re playing on.

If you’re an Xbox Series X player, you’ll have the best experience in Speed mode, as it holds close to 60fps very reliably, and VRR will easily clear up any discrepancies. Xbox Series S players, sadly, do not have a choice of performance mode.

If you’re a PS5 player, Speed mode is unreliable. While it can offer a great experience most of the time, especially with VRR, you will inevitably see framerate instability as you play through the game at specific points. Quality mode is a safer, and stable option ford PS5 players.