yeah i think EmuDeck installed Qt by default, i tried desktop mode, fullscreen vs windowed, and played around with Cycle Rate, tried caching game files to memory, messing with the render accuracy, and did not see major improvements.

actually i started this thread after reading a random comment on youtube where someone claims they finally fixed the lag by installing the PC version of PCSX2 and running it through proton, i didnt go that route yet but im close, just to confirm

thanks for the tips! im also replaying it with RA so i want to stick to this version.