Bethesda was quick to respond to the stuttering issues and investigated them as their main priority before releasing a hotfix on September 21, 2021.
It seems that the problem is caused by an anti-piracy and digital rights management software called Denuvo. Bethesda also claims that a patch released on 21 September 2021 might fix the stuttering issue, although to a limited degree.
While Bethesda has already acknowledged the issue and released a patch fixing this, there are several things you can do for an even smoother experience and ensure no fps issues moving forward. Let’s get into the fixes.
V-Sync & Refresh Rate
If you own a G-Sync monitor that has variable refresh rates, you need to turn V-Sync off by going to the ‘Video Settings’ menu in-game. Also, ensure you set your FPS limiter to 60 fps or 120 fps depending on your PC specifications.
Normally, V-Sync is used to fix such PC stutters. But, in this case, and according to Digital Foundry, the stuttering issue was related to the movement of your mouse rather than the refresh rate. This is probably one of the reasons why a user on the Reddit thread commented about the problem fixing itself when they switched to a controller and set the FPS limiter to 60 fps.
Beta & Hotfix
Before September 21, 2021, there was a quick beta fix released by Bethesda that you could install by entering a code into the access field in Steam. This could be done by going into Properties > Betas. The code was ‘juliannashotme’ and could be entered into the access code field and activated by clicking on the ‘Check Code.’ That gave you a new public beta to opt into from the drop-down menu above the access code field. You got an update option after opting into the new public beta.
However, as of September 21, 2021, Bethesda has released a new hotfix and you may no longer require the beta for the stuttering issues to be fixed. It is now just a matter of updating your game to the latest build.
— DEATHLOOP (@deathloop) September 21, 2021
Lower Specs
Finally, another reason you could be experiencing stuttering issues is setting your graphics settings higher than your PC can handle. Try lowering some of the graphical elements such as the shadow details, water details, texture details, etc.
