👀 Nvidia has announced when DLSS 5 is coming to its first game
🏀 NBA 2K27 is set to get the new upscaler on September 3
🙂 It introduces 3D-Guided Neural Rendering, which should allow for better representation of how skin and facial features are lit
🤔 DLSS 5 had been criticized as “AI slop” by some, although Nvidia has taken major steps to address these claims
Nvidia just dropped a surprise announcement that the first game to support DLSS 5 is literally just a few days away.
As per a press release, Nvidia has announced DLSS 5 is debuting in NBA 2K27 on September 3, meaning it’s just a couple of days until you can get your hands on Team Green’s newest upscaler.
The Nvidia presser notes that DLSS 5 introduces 3D-Guided Neural Rendering, which it describes as “a major step forward in using AI to bring real-time graphics closer than ever to Hollywood-grade photorealism”.
The implementation of DLSS 5 in NBA 2K27 is designed to showcase “how light naturally passes through player ears, the natural lighting of skin, and how light catches hair, all while preserving the facial geometry scanned from real-world athletes.”
Nvidia says you’ll need an RTX 50-series GPU on either a desktop or a laptop to experience DLSS 5, while those without a discrete GPU can experience it via the GeForce Now cloud gaming service.
DLSS 5 was first announced back in March, and it’s fair to say that it didn’t receive the nicest reception from folks. Gamers were quick to label it as “AI slop” due to its drastic effect on character’s faces, for instance, even though Nvidia was quick to correct this claim at the time.
Nvidia has previously come out and said that developers have “artistic control” over DLSS 5 and could choose not to use this specific version of the brand’s upscaler if they wanted to.
Since then, Nvidia has provided more details on how DLSS 5 implementation works, noting that developers have access to three different models to allow for granular control over settings such as tone and intensity to preserve a developer’s artistic intent for a game.
Up next: I asked a non-gamer what they thought of Nvidia’s DLSS 5 – and it went exactly how I expected
Reece Bithrey is a journalist with bylines for Trusted Reviews, Digital Foundry, PC Gamer, TechRadar and more. He also has his own blog, UNTITLED, and graduated from the University of Leeds with a degree in International History and Politics in 2023.