Dying Light 2 Not Using GPU & Poor Performance

Dying Light 2 Not Using GPU & Poor Performance: How to FIX

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Dying Light 2 Not Using GPU & Poor Performance: Dying Light 2: Stay Human delivers a vast, beautiful, and chaotic open world filled with zombies, parkour, and dynamic lighting effects. But the fun disappears quickly if your system starts stuttering, freezing, or barely using your GPU.

One of the most frustrating problems players face is when Dying Light 2 doesn’t properly use their graphics card (GPU) — instead relying on the CPU or integrated graphics, resulting in poor performance, low FPS, and even thermal throttling.

If your game is lagging, running at low frame rates, or your GPU usage stays around 0–30%, don’t worry — you’re not alone. This comprehensive guide will explain why Dying Light 2 sometimes ignores your GPU and show you proven fixes for both NVIDIA and AMD systems.

Let’s dive in and get your game running as it should — smooth, fast, and visually stunning.

🎮 Symptoms of GPU Not Being Used

Here’s how you can tell if your system isn’t properly utilizing your graphics card:

  • GPU usage stays below 30% while CPU is maxed out

  • GPU temperatures remain low (below 50°C) during gameplay

  • Poor FPS despite having a high-end GPU

  • In Task Manager or MSI Afterburner, GPU activity barely moves

  • The game feels like it’s running on integrated graphics

  • You experience lag spikes or stuttering even on low settings

If you’re seeing these signs, Dying Light 2 might be defaulting to the wrong GPU or facing driver/configuration conflicts.

⚠️ Common Causes

Here are the most frequent reasons Dying Light 2 fails to use your GPU:

  1. The game is running on integrated graphics (Intel/AMD APU)

  2. Outdated or corrupted GPU drivers

  3. Power plan limiting GPU performance

  4. Incorrect GPU settings (NVIDIA or AMD)

  5. Windows Graphics Settings not prioritizing the dedicated GPU

  6. Fullscreen optimization conflicts

  7. Overlays or background apps interfering

  8. Thermal throttling or power-saving mode

  9. Outdated DirectX or Visual C++ redistributables

  10. Corrupted game installation or config files

Now let’s go through every possible fix — from simple steps to advanced optimizations.

🧰 Fix 1: Verify the Game is Using Your Dedicated GPU

For NVIDIA Users:

  1. Right-click on your desktop → NVIDIA Control Panel

  2. Go to Manage 3D Settings → Program Settings

  3. Click Add, then locate and select:

    DyingLight2.exe

    (Located in your Steam or Epic Games installation folder)

  4. Under “Preferred graphics processor,” select High-performance NVIDIA processor

  5. Click Apply.

For AMD Users:

  1. Open AMD Radeon Settings

  2. Go to System → Switchable Graphics

  3. Locate Dying Light 2 in the list (or add it manually)

  4. Set it to High Performance

Restart your PC afterward, then relaunch the game.

For Windows Graphics Settings (All GPUs):

  1. Press Windows + I → System → Display → Graphics Settings

  2. Browse to your Dying Light 2 installation folder and add the .exe file

  3. Click Options → High performance → Save

This ensures the game always uses your dedicated GPU instead of integrated graphics.

🧩 Fix 2: Update GPU Drivers

Outdated or faulty GPU drivers are the leading cause of performance problems.

NVIDIA

AMD

Intel Arc / Integrated

💡 Pro tip: Use Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU) in Safe Mode to completely remove old GPU drivers before reinstalling new ones — this avoids driver conflicts.

⚙️ Fix 3: Set Power Plan to “High Performance”

By default, Windows uses a Balanced power plan that limits GPU boost clocks to save energy.

Windows Settings

  1. Press Windows + R, type powercfg.cpl, press Enter

  2. Select High performance or Ultimate Performance

  3. Restart your PC.

NVIDIA Control Panel

  • Go to Manage 3D Settings → Power Management Mode → Prefer maximum performance

AMD Radeon Settings

  • Open Performance → Tuning → Power Tuning → Enable → Set to Maximum

🧠 Fix 4: Disable Integrated GPU (Laptop Users)

If you’re on a laptop, Windows may automatically run the game on the integrated GPU (Intel UHD/AMD Vega).

  1. Press Windows + X → Device Manager

  2. Expand Display adapters

  3. Right-click your Integrated GPU (Intel or AMD) → Disable device

⚠️ Don’t disable your dedicated GPU — that will cause display loss.
After this, restart your laptop and relaunch Dying Light 2.

🧾 Fix 5: Run the Game as Administrator

Sometimes Dying Light 2 lacks proper permissions to access your GPU settings.

  1. Navigate to:

    C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Dying Light 2\

  2. Right-click DyingLight2.exe → Properties → Compatibility

  3. Check:

    • ✅ Run this program as administrator

    • ✅ Disable fullscreen optimizations

  4. Apply → OK

This ensures the game runs with full access to GPU drivers and hardware acceleration.

🔧 Fix 6: Disable V-Sync or Frame Capping

Incorrect sync settings can limit performance and create GPU underutilization.

  • Go to Settings → Video → Display

  • Turn V-Sync OFF

  • Set Frame Rate Cap to Unlimited or match your monitor’s refresh rate (e.g., 60, 120, 144 Hz)

  • Apply changes and restart the game

You can later re-enable V-Sync if screen tearing occurs.

🧹 Fix 7: Close Background Apps and Overlays

Apps like Discord, MSI Afterburner, Steam Overlay, or GeForce Experience Overlay can hook into the rendering process, causing GPU bottlenecks.

Disable them:

  • Steam: Settings → In-Game → Turn off overlay

  • Discord: Settings → Game Overlay → Disable

  • GeForce Experience: Settings → In-Game Overlay → Off

  • Close other apps like OBS, Rivatuner, or browser tabs before launching.

🖥️ Fix 8: Enable Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling

This Windows 10/11 feature can improve GPU utilization and reduce latency.

  1. Go to Settings → System → Display → Graphics → Default Graphics Settings

  2. Toggle Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling ON

  3. Restart your PC.

💾 Fix 9: Verify or Reinstall Game Files

Corrupted shaders or missing textures can cause severe GPU underuse.

Steam:

  1. Library → Right-click Dying Light 2 → Properties → Installed Files → Verify Integrity of Game Files

Epic Games:

  1. Library → Click “…” under Dying Light 2 → Manage → Verify

Once done, restart your PC.

⚒️ Fix 10: Update Windows & DirectX

Keeping your OS and APIs updated ensures your GPU communicates properly with the game.

  • Windows Update: Settings → Windows Update → Check for Updates

  • DirectX Update:
    Run the official DirectX Web Installer from Microsoft.

  • Visual C++ Redistributables:
    Reinstall from \Dying Light 2\_CommonRedist\vcredist\

🧩 Fix 11: Disable Background Recording (Xbox Game Bar)

The Windows Xbox Game Bar can consume GPU cycles even when not in use.

  • Settings → Gaming → Captures

  • Turn Record in the background while I’m playing a game to Off

  • Also disable Game Mode if performance issues persist.

🚀 Fix 12: Adjust In-Game Settings

You may be running settings that are too demanding for your GPU setup.

Try the following:

  • Set Ray Tracing to Off (huge FPS gain)

  • Lower Volumetric Fog Quality and Shadow Quality

  • Disable Motion Blur and Film Grain

  • Use FSR 2.0 (AMD) or DLSS (NVIDIA) if available
    → These boost FPS without noticeable visual loss.

Apply, restart, and monitor performance again.

🧠 Fix 13: Use Dedicated GPU in BIOS (Advanced Users)

If the game keeps defaulting to integrated graphics, you can force the system to use your discrete GPU.

  1. Restart your PC → Enter BIOS/UEFI (usually F2, Del, or Esc)

  2. Locate Graphics Configuration / Advanced → Primary Display

  3. Set to PEG / PCI-E / Dedicated GPU

  4. Save changes and exit.

🔥 Fix 14: Monitor GPU Usage and Temps

Use tools like:

  • MSI Afterburner

  • HWInfo

  • GPU-Z

Check if GPU usage climbs above 80% while in-game.
If temps exceed 85°C, the GPU may throttle. Ensure proper cooling and clean airflow.

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🧰 Fix 15: Reinstall Dying Light 2

If all else fails, a clean reinstall may fix corrupted installation files or configs.

  1. Backup your saves (Documents\Dying Light 2)

  2. Uninstall via Steam or Epic

  3. Delete leftover folders:

    C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Dying Light 2

  4. Reinstall fresh and reapply Fix #1 and #2 (GPU selection and driver update).

🧩 Performance Optimization Tips

Even after fixing GPU usage, you can further enhance FPS and smoothness:

Setting Recommendation
DLSS / FSR ON (Performance Mode)
Ray Tracing OFF
Shadows Medium
Texture Quality High (if VRAM > 6GB)
Resolution Scaling 100%
Anti-Aliasing TAA or FSR Quality
Post-Processing Low
Motion Blur / Film Grain OFF

Keep your drivers, BIOS, and firmware updated for long-term stability.

💡 Optional: Use Custom Launch Options (Steam)

Right-click Dying Light 2 → Properties → Launch Options
Add this line:

-high -useallavailablecores -dx12

These commands:

  • Force DirectX 12 rendering

  • Use all CPU cores

  • Set high system priority for smoother GPU scheduling

⚡ Bonus: Check GPU Bottlenecking or CPU Limit

If your GPU usage is low but CPU usage is 100%, you may be CPU-bound.

Try:

  • Lowering resolution or effects that depend on CPU (e.g., view distance)

  • Ensuring background processes are closed

  • Upgrading to a CPU with higher single-core performance (if consistently limited)

❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: Why is my GPU usage only 20-30% while playing Dying Light 2?

This usually means the game is using your integrated graphics instead of your dedicated GPU.
Go to your GPU control panel and set Dying Light 2 to High Performance.

Q2: My FPS is terrible even though I have an RTX 3080. Why?

You may be CPU-bound or using an outdated driver. Disable V-Sync, cap FPS to 144 or less, and make sure DLSS is enabled in Performance Mode.

Q3: How do I check which GPU the game is using?

  • Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc → Task Manager → Performance Tab

  • Look under GPU Engine for DyingLight2.exe

  • If it says “GPU 0 (Integrated),” the game isn’t using your dedicated card.

Q4: Does Dying Light 2 support DLSS and FSR?

Yes. DLSS (for NVIDIA) and FSR (for AMD) are available in the video settings and can massively boost performance by upscaling frames efficiently.

Q5: Should I disable integrated graphics permanently?

Only if you’re sure your dedicated GPU handles all workloads. On laptops, keep it enabled for power saving when unplugged.

Q6: Why is my GPU temperature low but FPS terrible?

Low temperature and low usage together mean your GPU isn’t being used — check GPU assignment settings or disable power-saving modes.

Q7: Does reinstalling the game help?

Yes, if the issue stems from corrupted shader or configuration files. Always verify or reinstall as a last resort.

Q8: Is Dying Light 2 CPU or GPU intensive?

It’s mostly GPU-intensive due to its large open world, ray-traced lighting, and detailed environments. However, older CPUs can bottleneck performance at higher settings.

Q9: Can overheating cause poor performance?

Absolutely. Thermal throttling can reduce both GPU and CPU performance. Keep temps below 85°C and ensure proper case ventilation.

Q10: My GPU is fine in other games but not in Dying Light 2 — why?

That often means corrupted shader cache or driver conflict specific to DL2. Delete shader cache, update GPU drivers, and reverify the game files.

🧭 Final Thoughts

Dying Light 2 is a visually rich, GPU-demanding title. If your system isn’t using the graphics card properly, it can feel like you’re playing on a potato — even with high-end hardware.

The fixes above address every known cause — from GPU assignment and power plans to driver issues and software conflicts.

Here’s a quick summary of what usually works best:

Problem Solution
Low GPU Usage Force high-performance GPU in settings
Poor FPS Enable DLSS/FSR, update drivers
Game using integrated GPU Disable integrated graphics / switch in BIOS
Stuttering or freezing Verify files, disable overlays
Laptop GPU not detected Set preferred GPU in Windows settings
Overheating Clean system, use performance power mode

Once configured correctly, Dying Light 2 should use your GPU fully — delivering smooth 60+ FPS gameplay with rich lighting and detail.

Now, get back to exploring Villedor and slaying Infected — at the frame rates your hardware deserves.

Would you like me to include a performance optimization chart (FPS vs settings) for NVIDIA and AMD GPUs (e.g., RTX 3060, RX 6700 XT, RTX 4070) to help readers choose the best settings? It makes the article even more practical for blogs or guides.

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