Fix: Destiny 2 Stuttering, Lags and Freezing constantly

Destiny 2: Lightfall is the latest major expansion for the popular first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie. Released on February 28, 2023, the seventh expansion marks the game’s sixth year of extended content. The expansion’s storyline centres around Calus, the exiled Cabal emperor who frequently appears throughout Destiny 2.

To run the game requires enough hardware configuration to run properly, especially for PC, because not everyone may have such a configuration to run the game in full resolution and higher FPS. It’s quite common for most PC titles because they’re performance-hungry. Here we’ve provided steps to fix Destiny 2 Stuttering and Lags issues.

It’s quite unfortunate that some Destiny 2 PC players are experiencing multiple issues like stuttering, lags, crashes, frame drops, etc., while in gameplay. Depending on the compatibility factor, it can be a severe issue on some PCs. So, it’s always better to fix the issue so that at least you can play the game with a respectable FPS count. There may be several reasons behind such an issue that can be resolved by following this guide.

Check System Requirements

Check out the system requirements of the Destiny 2 game below to ensure whether your PC configuration meets the game’s system requirements.
Minimum System Requirements:

• Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
• OS: Windows 7 / Windows 8.1 / Windows 10 64-bit (latest Service Pack)
• Processor: Intel Core i3 3250 3.5 GHz or Intel Pentium G4560 3.5 GHz / AMD FX-4350 4.2 GHz
• Memory: 6 GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 2GB or GTX 1050 2GB / AMD Radeon HD 7850 2GB
• Network: Broadband Internet connection
• Storage: 105 GB of available space

Recommended System Requirements:

• Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
• OS: System Windows 7 / Windows 8.1 / Windows 10 64-bit (latest Service Pack)
• Processor: Processor Intel Core i5 2400 3.4 GHz or i5 7400 3.5 GHz / AMD Ryzen R5 1600X 3.6 GHz
• Memory: 8 GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 4GB or GTX 1060 6GB / AMD R9 390 8GB Memory 8 GB RAM
• Network: Broadband Internet connection
• Storage: 105 GB of available space

Fix: Destiny 2 Stuttering, Lags, and Freezing Badly

Fixing in-game lags or frame drop issues isn’t easy because it depends on multiple factors, such as PC hardware, the display resolution of the game, maximum FPS limit count, conflicting third-party apps, and more. So, we recommend you try following all the methods one by one until the problem gets fixed or reduced. Changing the in-game graphics-related settings or keeping them low can fix several problems in a jiffy.

It may include the Screen Resolution of the game, in-game Texture Resolution, Shadow Resolution, Maximum Frame rate, number of Characters Displayed, or other visual effects that require higher graphics or memory. So, you can follow the steps below to try reducing the lags or frame drops up to some extent depending on which resolution and quality you’re playing the game, apart from FPS count.

1. Update Graphics Drivers

• Right-click on the Start Menu to open up the Quick Access Menu.
• Click on Device Manager from the list.
• Now, double-click on the Display adapters category to expand the list.
• Then right-click on the dedicated graphics card name.
• Select Update driver > Choose Search automatically for drivers.
• An update will automatically download and install the latest version if available.
• Once done, make sure to reboot your computer to change the effects.

2. Run the game as an administrator

Make sure to run the game exe file as an administrator to avoid user account control regarding privilege issues. You should also run the epic client as an administrator on your PC. To do this:

• Right-click on the Destiny 2 exe shortcut file on your PC.
• Now, select Properties > Click on the Compatibility tab.
• Make sure to click on the Run this program as an administrator checkbox to checkmark it.
• Click on Apply and select OK to save changes.

3. Set High Priority in Task Manager

Make your game priority in the higher segment via the Task Manager to tell your Windows system to run the game properly. To do this:

• Right-click on the Start Menu > Select Task Manager.
• Click on the Processes tab > Right-click on the Destiny 2 game task.
• Select Set Priority to High.
• Close Task Manager.
• Finally, run the Destiny 2 game to check for the issue.

4. Verify Integrity of Game Files

If there is an issue with the game files and somehow it gets corrupted or missing, then make sure to perform this method to check for the issue easily. To do so:

For Epic Users

For Steam Users

• Open the Steam Library by logging into the account
• Right-click on Destiny 2
• Click on Properties
• Select the Local Files tab

• Then click on Verify Integrity of Game Files
• Wait for the process and then restart the game to check whether the Destiny 2 Freezing issue has been fixed or not.

For Uplay Client:

• Open the Ubisoft Connect App on your PC/Laptop.
• Now, log in to your account > Click on Games.
• Hover over the Destiny 2 game tile > Click on the arrow icon to expand the drop-down list.
• Here choose Verify files > If prompted, select Repair.
• Wait for the process to get completed.
• Ubisoft Connect will automatically restore all missing or corrupted game files (if any).
• Once done, close all running programs, and restart the computer to apply changes.

5. Change GPU Settings

Make sure to change the graphics card settings on the PC by following the steps below to check whether the problem has been fixed.

For Nvidia:

• Open up Nvidia’s Control Panel > Right-click on the desktop screen.
• Click on Nvidia Control Panel > Click on Manage 3D Settings.
• Select Program Settings > Find ‘Destiny 2’ and manually add the game if it’s not in the list:
  • Monitor Tech: G-Sync (If available)
  • Maximum Pre-rendered frames: 2
  • Threaded optimization: On
  • Power Management: Prefer Maximum Performance
  • Texture Filtering – Quality: Performance

For AMD:

• Monitor Tech: G-Sync (If available)
• Maximum Pre-rendered frames: 2
• Threaded optimization: On
• Power Management: Prefer Maximum Performance
• Texture Filtering – Quality: Performance

6. Disable Fullscreen Optimizations

Full-screen optimization and DPI settings are the default ones on Windows. You should try disabling it by following the steps below:

• Locate the Destiny 2 game directory.
• Find and right-click on the Destiny 2.exe file.
• Select Properties > Click on the Compatibility tab.
• Checkmark the ‘Disable Full-Screen Optimizations’ box.
• Now, click on the ‘Change high DPI setting button.
• Checkmark the ‘Override high DPI scaling behavior’ > Select ‘Application’ from the drop-down menu.
• Click on Apply and then OK to save changes.

7. Update Destiny 2

If in case, you haven’t updated your Destiny 2 game for a while, then make sure to follow the steps below to check for updates and install the latest patch (if available). To do this:

Steam Users:

• Open the Steam client > Go to Library > Click on Destiny 2 from the left pane.
• It’ll automatically search for the available update. If there is an update available, make sure to click on Update.
• It may take some time to install the update > Close the Steam client.
• Finally, reboot your PC to apply changes and launch the game again.

Epic Users:

• Open the Epic Launcher client > Go to Library > Look for Destiny 2 from the left pane.
• You must tap on the three-dot icon on your Destiny 2 application.
• Make sure to check the auto-update to get a new update installed automatically.
• It’ll automatically search for the available update. If there is an update available, make sure to click on Update.
• Finally, reboot your PC to apply changes, and then try launching the game again.

That’s it, guys. We assume this guide is useful to you. For further queries, you can comment below.