Marvel Tōkon runs smoother on PC, but the PSN login still drags down Steam reviews
The latest update cut CPU use by removing repeated audio checks during startup and matches, though some players still report sub-60 fps dips and rollback trouble.
Marvel Tōkon is in a much better place on PC after ArcSystem Works’ first major performance update arrived on August 10. The 4v4 tag fighter had been hit by frame drops severe enough to produce as many as eight rollback frames during online matches, but the patch addressed the main source of that trouble.
ArcSystem Works traced part of the problem to repeated checks for audio input. The game was also using too much CPU during startup and running periodic audio processing during matches, adding load at exactly the wrong moments for a fighter where stable frame timing matters.
Marvel Tōkon Patch Notes
According to the Steam patch notes, the update targets audio polling and CPU usage without changing the game’s PSN requirement. It also fixes frame-rate drops tied to certain resolutions, prompts PC players to warm up shaders for a smoother experience, and improves automatic spec detection so the game can select a graphics profile that better fits each PC. The performance-related entries cover six issues:
- “These unnecessary checks could cause sudden frame drops and performance drops. This has now been addressed.”
- “the CPU ran high throughout the startup process,”
- “additional load on the system was being created due to periodic audio processing during matches.”
- Frame-rate drops caused by choosing certain resolutions were fixed.
- PC players are now prompted to warm up shaders, which should result in a smoother experience.
- Automatic spec detection was improved so the game can select a graphics profile that better fits each PC.
Those changes appear to have helped. Steam’s user rating moved back to Mixed after the update, following a slide from Mixed at launch to Mostly Negative over the weekend. That improvement does not mean every PC player is seeing a locked 60 fps, though.
Some recent reviews still describe frame-rate dips that trigger rollback frames and make online play difficult. Reports also mention stage-specific lag during offline play and slowdowns during Episode cutscenes, which is a particularly odd place for a performance issue to show up. The patch has improved the port, but it has not cleared every rough edge.
One review cited a Windows 11 system with a 13th Gen Intel Core i7-13650HX, 16GB of RAM, and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU, yet still described the PC version as unplayable after the update. That kind of feedback suggests the problems are not limited to weaker machines.
The other major complaint remains untouched: players still need a forced PSN login. Since the update did not remove that requirement, reviews criticizing Sony’s account policy continue to weigh against the game’s reception even after the technical fixes. Better performance can make matches more playable, but it cannot solve a login requirement players object to before they reach the character select screen.
Have the performance fixes changed your view of Marvel Tōkon, or is the PSN login still a deal-breaker? Share your thoughts in the comments, and follow us on X, Bluesky, YouTube, Instagram, Steam, Telegram.
