Nvidia tones down DLSS 5 ahead of Hogwarts Legacy update

In short: Nvidia says DLSS 5 will arrive in Hogwarts Legacy on November 5, and new previews show the effect looks more subtle than earlier demos.

What happened

Nvidia is preparing to roll out DLSS 5 in the game Hogwarts Legacy on November 5. It is also coming to the game Where Winds Meet late next month.

DLSS stands for Deep Learning Super Sampling, which is a tool that uses AI to help games run faster and look smoother. You can think of it like a smart filter that tries to fill in extra detail and motion, so your computer has less work to do.

When Nvidia first showed DLSS 5 earlier this year, some players complained that it changed characters’ faces too much. In particular, people pointed out that a teenage character in Hogwarts Legacy looked much older in the DLSS 5 version.

Now Nvidia has shared new comparison screenshots. According to The Verge, the updated DLSS 5 look appears “toned down,” with fewer noticeable changes to faces and more subtle changes to the environment.

Nvidia also says an October update to its “neural rendering system” (the AI part that helps create the final image) will reduce the performance cost of DLSS 5. The company claims it should run about twice as fast on its RTX 50-series graphics cards. Nvidia also says the updated model is smaller and uses less video memory at 4K resolution.

Why it matters

For players, this is about tradeoffs. DLSS 5 aims to improve performance, but if it also changes how characters look, it can distract from the game. A more subtle version could make it easier for game makers to use DLSS 5 without making people feel like the game’s art style has been altered.

Source: The Verge AI