Assassin's Creed: Mirage's Steam Release Is Great For Steam Deck - Steam Vs. Ubisoft Connect Comparison

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Yesterday, Ubisoft released Assassin's Creed: Mirage on Steam as part of their push to now release more of their games on Steam. I'm a huge fan of Ubisoft doing this, and I am always happy to increase my Steam library with their titles. When Mirage was first released last year, I tested it out on Steam Deck through Ubisoft Connect, and it ran decently, but with the Steam release, I wanted to know if there would be any performance difference.

So, here we come to this article! I am going to be testing the game's benchmark and opening areas to see if there is any difference in how the game performs. To test this, I am using two Steam Deck OLEDs (a 1tb limited edition and 512GB model) without any modifications (no CryoUtilities or 4GB UMA Buffer), as well as the same exact settings in the game. I will be using the Low quality preset with adaptive quality set to 60 FPS. HDR is on for both games for this testing.

I started off with the in-game benchmark tool, and while the games do get close to each other, it definitely has some differences. The Ubisoft Connect version of the game held an average of 48 FPS with a minimum of 10 and a max of 90. The lowest 1% was at 25 FPS, and the lowest 0.1% was sitting at 16 FPS. The Steam version of the game had an average of 53 FPS with a minimum of 20 and a max of 124. The lowest 1% hit 34 FPS, while the lowest 0.1% hit 24 FPS.

From that data, the Steam version has an almost 10% increase in average framerate, with a higher minimum, maximum, and 1%/0.1%. In addition, the game seemed to spike more often in the Ubisoft Connect version and spike lower than the Steam version. Ubisoft Connect's version also has a higher CPU and GPU ms timeframe with a significantly higher max than the Steam version (and we want this to be as low as possible).

By all accounts, this shows a solid performance increase just by playing the game directly on Steam. Yes, the average framerate is minimally increased, so you can theoretically play at 30 or 40 FPS with either version, but based on the data from the benchmark, you will get less noticeable drops playing on the Steam version. I did also notice that turning HDR off can get around 1 FPS extra performance based on the benchmark, but all the stutters and drops were still there. There's also a slight RAM increase on the Ubisoft Connect version, most likely due to playing through the DRM.

On top of the benchmark, I also wanted to try running around and going through the opening of the game to see if there was a difference, and right off the bat, I could see some issues popping up. The Ubisoft Connect version's framerate bar was a little more erratic at the beginning of the opening cutscene, but with it being a cutscene, this wasn't a huge issue. RAM usage was definitely higher as well, with at least a 500MB difference, though VRAM usage on the Steam version was around 200MB higher.

The rest of the game was pretty similar to the benchmark, with the Steam version having a noticeable performance boost over the Ubisoft Connect version. The Steam version consistently stuck above 40 FPS, while the Ubisoft Connect version did have some drops below 40 and some stutters that I could feel as I played. Interestingly, the battery drain of the Steam version is also around 1W lower, which, again, could be due to not going through Ubisoft Connect's DRM.

However, one other thing I did notice was graphical artifacting. Both versions of the game have it in the same areas, so you won't be able to get rid of it, sadly.

Overall, with Mirage being 50% off on Steam until October 24th, this is going to be the best way to play on the Steam Deck. The game has noticeable performance improvements across the board with less noticeable drops, smaller RAM usage, and even slightly less battery drain. All of this is at the same exact settings with as much of a similar environment as possible, and I am impressed. I am more confident the Steam version could hold 40 FPS over the Ubisoft Connect version, and with the discount, it may be worth it enough to double dip and get this one.

Assassin's Creed: Mirage can be purchased on Steam for $24.99 at 50% off until October 24th.

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