On a NVIDIA GeForce MX330 (laptop) (paired with a balanced Intel Core i5-8600K-class CPU), The First Descendant runs at roughly 18 FPS at 1080p with our optimized settings — up from about 8FPS with everything maxed. Here's the configuration and what each setting costs.
The NVIDIA GeForce MX330 (laptop) is a entry-level graphics card with 2GB of VRAM, and The First Descendant is a demanding, graphically heavy game. Paired with the Intel Core i5-8600K, it is a real challenge at 1080p — about 18 FPSwith FrameCoach's optimized settings, a clear jump from roughly 8 FPS with everything on High.
Across resolutions you can expect around 18 FPS at 1080p and 11 FPS at 1440p, dropping to roughly 6 FPS at 4K. The First Descendant offers ray tracing, but the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 (laptop) isn't built for it, so we leave it off. With only 2GB of VRAM, keep textures a notch below max in The First Descendant at higher resolutions to avoid stutter. The biggest free win is FSR upscaling — set it to Quality for a large FPS boost at little visual cost.
| Resolution | All-High FPS | Optimized FPS |
|---|---|---|
| 1080p | 8 | 18 |
| 1440p | 5 | 11 |
| 4K | 3 | 6 |
⚡ Fine-tune this for your exact CPU & target FPS →
🎯 Can the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 (laptop) run The First Descendant? See the verdict →
With FrameCoach's optimized balanced settings, the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 (laptop) averages around 18 FPS at 1080p in The First Descendant — up from about 8 FPS with everything on High.
At 1440p with optimized settings, the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 (laptop) averages roughly 11 FPS in The First Descendant; turn on upscaling or aim for a locked 60 for the best feel.
Turn on FSR (Balanced), keep ray tracing off for maximum FPS, and ease the heaviest options like Global Illumination (Lumen) and Shadow Quality down a notch. The full per-setting breakdown is above.
FPS figures are estimates from a generalized model (hardware tier × game load × per-setting weights), not live benchmarks — real performance varies by scene, drivers and game version.