Keep your game’s output resolution at your display’s intended resolution, then choose how the game renders each frame. Use native rendering if it meets your smoothness needs; if it does not, compare DLSS Super Resolution with native rendering in the same scene. If its image is not acceptable, lower demanding graphics settings one at a time. The right choice depends on your game, GPU, display, and visual preferences—not a universal frame-rate target.
What each option does
Native resolution
With native rendering, the game renders at the selected output resolution rather than using DLSS Super Resolution to reconstruct that output from a lower-resolution input. Native is a straightforward baseline for comparing image quality, but it is only the best practical choice if performance is smooth enough for you in that game. There is no universally supported FPS threshold that determines when native is adequate.
DLSS Super Resolution
DLSS Super Resolution uses a lower-resolution input and temporal and motion information to reconstruct a higher-resolution output. NVIDIA describes it as a way to boost performance; that is the vendor’s account of the feature, not an independent performance result. The appearance and performance you get depend on the specific game and implementation, GPU, output resolution, DLSS mode, and scene. NVIDIA’s DLSS overview explains the feature.
Lower graphics settings
Reducing a demanding setting can improve performance while leaving the game at its native output resolution. The cost is a change to that setting’s visual effect. Which setting to lower first—and how much performance or image quality changes—varies by game, so there is no reliable universal order.
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DLAA and Frame Generation are different options
DLAA uses DLSS technology at native resolution for image quality and anti-aliasing; it is not the performance-upscaling choice described above. It may suit a game that offers DLAA when you have performance headroom and prioritize image quality. NVIDIA’s DLSS feature descriptions distinguish DLAA from Super Resolution.
Frame Generation is different again: it generates additional displayed frames rather than reconstructing higher-resolution output from a lower-resolution input. NVIDIA says Frame Generation works with Reflex, but generated frames are not equivalent to additional natively rendered frames, and you should not assume they universally improve responsiveness. NVIDIA’s DLSS overview describes these features.
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How to choose in your game
- Confirm the output resolution. Check the game’s display or graphics settings and set its output resolution to the intended resolution for your display. Keep that output resolution consistent while comparing options.
- Check support for the specific feature. Availability depends on both the game and the GPU; support for one DLSS feature does not establish support for every DLSS feature. Check NVIDIA’s GeForce feature-support comparison for your GPU generation, and check the game’s own settings for the feature it implements.
- Establish your native baseline. Play a demanding, representative scene at native rendering and judge whether performance meets your own smoothness needs. Use the same scene for later comparisons.
- Try DLSS Super Resolution if native performance falls short. Select it in the game’s graphics settings, then compare the same camera view and motion. Look for fine-detail clarity and distracting artifacts as the scene moves, as well as whether performance now meets your needs.
- Adjust settings if the reconstruction is not acceptable. Return to native rendering and reduce one demanding graphics setting at a time. Recheck the same scene after each change so you can see that setting’s individual visual and performance tradeoff.
- Consider DLAA when image quality takes priority. If the game offers DLAA and performance headroom is available, compare it at native resolution with your other options.
- Test Frame Generation separately. Treat it as an additional-frame feature, not as another Super Resolution mode, and evaluate its effect in the game rather than assuming it will improve responsiveness.
What to compare before deciding
- Performance: Does the option meet your own smoothness goal in the scenes you actually play?
- Image during motion: Is fine detail clear, and do reconstruction artifacts become noticeable as the camera or objects move?
- Output and display: Are you comparing at the same intended output resolution?
- Visual tradeoff: When lowering settings, do you accept the change to that setting’s appearance in exchange for performance?
- Compatibility: Does your GPU support the exact DLSS feature, and does the game implement it?
Official feature descriptions explain how NVIDIA’s technologies are intended to work, but they do not establish a universal image-quality or latency ranking among these choices. Performance and appearance can differ by setup, so the comparison in your own game is the useful test.
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Practical decision guide
- If native rendering is smooth enough and you prefer its image, stay with native.
- If native falls short and DLSS Super Resolution looks good to you, use it.
- If you dislike the reconstructed image, keep native output and lower demanding settings individually.
- If you have headroom and want native-resolution anti-aliasing, consider DLAA where available.
- If considering Frame Generation, judge it independently from Super Resolution.
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