On October 28, 2026, S-Game warned PC players that Nvidia driver 621.01 showed performance instability in Phantom Blade Zero.
In its official Steam announcement, āReason and Madness,ā the studio said 617.42 gave the best experience in its testing and recommended staying on that version until Nvidiaās next driver update. That is the developerās recommendation, not a claim that every GeForce PC will fail on 621.01.
What Happened
IGN and PC Gamer report that S-Game warned against Nvidia driver 621.01. The studio reportedly got the best results with 617.42 and advises a clean installation when rolling back from a newer driver.
The warning applies to PC players using Nvidia GeForce graphics. According to the official wording, it describes instability in certain situations, not a guarantee of trouble on every GeForce PC.
The developerās statement does not provide a controlled frame-rate comparison or a complete list of affected GPUs. That limits what we can conclude about an individual PC.
Coverage also describes an approximately 5 GB day-one game patch that improves ray-tracing and path-tracing performance and fixes bugs. The announcement discusses the patch and driver recommendation together; it does not establish that they are unrelated or that the patch fixes driver-related instability. (IGN; Wccftech)
The developerās October 28 āReason and Madnessā announcement is published through the gameās Steam community page.
How It Stacks Up
Thereās no controlled benchmark in the reports. Your choice depends on the studioās reported advice and how the game runs on your PC.
| Choice | What the evidence supports |
|---|---|
| Keep your current driver | Reasonable if Phantom Blade Zero is stable. S-Game reportedly warned of problems in certain situations, not on every PC. |
| Install or keep 621.01 | S-Game reportedly warned against this version. The reports donāt show that it fails on every GeForce PC. (IGN) |
| Roll back to 617.42 | S-Gameās October 28 statement recommends 617.42 with the clean-install option, staying on it until Nvidiaās next driver update. No frame-rate comparison was supplied. (PC Gamer) |
| Wait for community workarounds | Community claims alone do not establish a fix. Check the exact releaseās official notes before treating it as a replacement for the developerās recommendation. |
Windows: Check before changing drivers
Check your installed Nvidia driver version and see whether the game is unstable. S-Game recommends a clean installation of 617.42 when rolling back from a newer version; this is its stated procedure for this game. Donāt assume every performance dip has the same cause. The reports donāt name a required Windows version or point to Windows as the cause.
Web: Check for a confirmed update
Before downloading another driver, check whether S-Game or Nvidia has posted an update that names Phantom Blade Zero. Community discussions may mention newer drivers or workarounds. We could not retrieve Nvidiaās linked hotfix advisory in this check, so we cannot establish from it whether a newer release resolves this specific game issue. Unavailable verification does not mean a release is unofficial.
The Steam community page is a place to check for game announcements. Treat discussion posts as unverified reports until an official update confirms a fix.
The Reaction
Reaction is still forming. The available social evidence doesnāt show a broad view across X, Reddit, and Hacker News.
The linked Steam discussion is community commentary, not the developerās announcement. It cannot establish whether a driver resolves the issue for other players.
Our Take
Verdict: Keep your current driver if the game runs well. Consider rolling back to 617.42 if Phantom Blade Zero becomes unstable on 621.01. Apply the day-one game patch where available, then judge the driver by how the game runs on your PC.
S-Gameās reported warning is worth heeding, but thereās no measured evidence here that every GeForce player needs to roll back. Check the date and scope of any subsequent official driver advisory before following community advice.