NVIDIA made big waves this week with the reveal of the new DLSS 5. And many are not impressed with it, me included. It’s a gaming age where technology is getting more advanced. Developers of gaming studios are using new tech to further push their own capabilities. This is allowing for some great leaps and bounds. However, as NVIDIA also tries to increase its prowess, it’s shown that the path can be treacherous. And the ways of enhancing the gaming world can be a disappointing surprise. The demonstrations of DLSS 5 have put a stain on gaming, and we need to talk about it.
Filters, is That You?
The first thing that came to mind with DLSS 5 was a Snapchat filter. I mean, the examples that NVIDIA showcased gave that impression right away. The best scenario of this was during the reveal of the Grace Ashcroft render from Resident Evil Requiem. It takes a unique character like Grace and seems to throw a filter on it. It almost seems jarring to look at, and something that doesn’t seem to fit in a game at all.
Another case was that of Starfield, where even the NPCs you talk to in the game look ridiculous. And that’s the best way to put it, it looks ridiculous.
A rendering model like the DLSS 5 should be enhancing already-made graphics. Instead, it feels like it’s completely replacing them with something else. To a point that even if you want it lifelike, it feels the furthest from reality. Rendering is always an important part of a game’s graphics, especially on PC. But when it comes to the latest from NVIDIA, it just feels like a lens filter. And one that shies away from the positive enhancements for gaming.
DLSS 5 Robs Developer Creativity
Another big issue with DLSS 5 is the lack of creativity or the robbing of it. When you put the render into games, it negates the developers’ work on those models. Rather than showing their vision of what they created, the render changes it completely. It’s something that feels like a blowback to developers in the industry. If I draw a character and someone filters it to make it “better”, but in the process, my design is changed, it doesn’t feel like mine anymore. It’s something that feels almost akin to the Ship of Theseus concept. It gets to the point that the original design isn’t even around.
Gaming lives in an era where AI is infringing on design and creativity, leaving many developers out of work or just sidelined. While it may not be intended, it feels like DLSS 5 does this, to the point that even many developers are voicing their disdain for it. Bumping up the rendering on works by developers is one thing. But to use AI to change it in an unappealing way feels like a bad misstep, moreso when AI in gaming is a very sensitive topic for many.
NVIDIA, You Can Do Better
NVIDIA gave us incredible ray-tracing designs back in 2018. But with DLSS 5, it feels like a big step backwards – creating rendering in games that make it feel almost alien rather than natural to development. There is nothing wrong with technology innovation or ways to improve gaming. But with the way DLSS 5 is going, it gives the feeling that the rendering is fake, rather than something that betters work that is from the heart. Although the use of the feature is up to the artist, it doesn’t stop the fact that its introduction is tone deaf.
It feels like Nvidia made a huge misstep here, and it’s a shame that the reveal has left a sour taste. There is room for improvement in the future for sure. But the fact that the use of AI is now doing some rough rendering isn’t sitting right with me and many others, says something. In the meantime, though, it feels like NVIDIA needs to go back to the drawing board, and let rendering be done the proper way, so that it doesn’t completely change the hard work that developers put in.
