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Start by separating a frame-pacing problem from an image-quality problem. Disable any second frame-generation layer (especially Smooth Motion), keep NVIDIA Reflex enabled when the game supports it, test one change at a time, and restart after changing display modes. If stutter remains in every scene or severe ghosting, flickering, broken HUD elements, magenta output, or disjointed characters appear, the cause may be a game integration defect that only a patch or different DLSS build can correct.
DLSS Frame Generation inserts AI-generated frames between conventionally rendered frames. That can make motion appear smoother, but it also depends on correct motion vectors, depth, exposure, frame indices, and UI buffers supplied by the game. The steps below address the problems a player can fix and identify the problems that belong to the game developer.
What DLSS Frame Generation is—and why it can look wrong
Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) is NVIDIA’s neural-rendering suite. Its Frame Generation component creates additional frames from rendered images and game data rather than rendering every displayed frame conventionally. The technology is designed to work with NVIDIA Reflex, which coordinates CPU and GPU work to reduce latency.
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RTX 40-series and RTX 50-series graphics cards support the documented Frame Generation model features. RTX 50-series cards additionally support Multi Frame Generation; NVIDIA describes that feature as generating up to five frames for each rendered frame. That is a capability limit, not a promise that every game, setting, or display will look better. NVIDIA also documents Frame Generation model upgrades for RTX 40- and RTX 50-series users.
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Generated frames are predictions. They are convincing when the game supplies accurate motion and scene information, but errors become visible around fast-moving objects, particles, transparent surfaces, camera cuts, and interface elements. A high displayed frame rate therefore does not guarantee low latency or clean image quality.
Identify the symptom before changing settings
| What you see | Most likely category | First action |
|---|---|---|
| Uneven motion, hitching, or a repeating cadence while the frame counter is high | Frame pacing, CPU/GPU scheduling, or competing frame-generation systems | Disable Smooth Motion, keep Reflex enabled, and test with one change at a time |
| Trails behind characters, weapons, foliage, or particles | Incorrect or incomplete motion vectors, depth, exposure, or a model mismatch | Reduce motion blur, then compare the game’s native model with the latest override |
| HUD text, icons, reticles, or subtitles flicker or warp | UI buffers or HUD-less color not supplied correctly by the game | Turn Frame Generation off to confirm; if the defect disappears, look for a game update |
| Pink or magenta-tinted output, severe corruption, or sudden latency increase | Frame-index or Reflex integration mismatch | Restore the game’s native settings, relaunch, and check for a patch |
| Artifacts begin after changing resolution or display mode | Frame Generation left active during a display-state transition | Disable it, apply the display change, return to normal gameplay, then re-enable it |
Use a repeatable scene when testing. Record whether the problem occurs in every location or only during one effect, camera angle, cutscene, or interface state. A defect that follows one effect points toward game data; a cadence problem that occurs everywhere points toward scheduling or configuration.
Fix competing frame-generation technologies
NVIDIA’s driver guidance states: “Native DLSS Frame Generation and Smooth Motion are competing technologies and should not be used together.” Smooth Motion is a driver-level feature; native DLSS Frame Generation is enabled by the game. Running both can reduce performance and introduce visual artifacts because each layer is attempting to create additional frames from the other layer’s output.
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- Exit the game completely.
- Open the NVIDIA App and select the game’s profile, or open its global graphics settings if no profile exists.
- Find the Smooth Motion setting and set it to Off.
- Apply the change and relaunch the game.
- Enable only the game’s native DLSS Frame Generation option.
If the game has no native Frame Generation option, you can test Smooth Motion by itself, but do not use it at the same time as native DLSS Frame Generation. Compare motion in the same scene and keep the option that gives stable pacing and acceptable latency.
Stabilize Reflex and frame pacing
NVIDIA Reflex synchronizes CPU and GPU work to reduce latency. Frame Generation relies on the game and Reflex integration agreeing on frame indices and timing. NVIDIA documents that mismatched constants or frame indices can produce increased input latency, stutter, or a magenta-tinted image.
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Recommended test sequence
- Restore the game’s own DLSS and Reflex controls to their default or recommended values.
- Keep Reflex enabled when the game recommends it. If the game offers “On” and “On + Boost,” test the game’s documented recommendation first rather than changing several latency controls together.
- Use a single frame-generation mode. Do not combine native Frame Generation with Smooth Motion or another interpolation layer.
- Play a repeatable section for several minutes and note whether hitching occurs during camera movement, combat, menus, or all of them.
- Change only one setting, relaunch if requested, and repeat the same section.
Do not judge latency from the displayed frame rate alone. Generated frames increase the number of images shown, while the game’s rendered-frame cadence and input sampling determine responsiveness. If controls feel delayed even though motion looks smooth, disable Frame Generation temporarily and compare the same scene. A large improvement with Frame Generation off indicates a pacing or integration issue rather than a simple graphics-quality preference.
Update or revert the DLSS Frame Generation model
The NVIDIA App provides a Frame Generation model override. Its documented workflow offers a Latest model option and a Use the 3D application setting option that returns control to the game’s native model.
Apply an override safely
- Close the game; do not change the model while it is running.
- Open the NVIDIA App and select the game profile.
- Locate the DLSS Frame Generation model setting.
- Choose Latest to test the current override, or choose Use the 3D application setting to return to the game’s bundled model.
- Save the profile, launch the game, and test the same reproducible scene.
NVIDIA’s support documentation for the 2025 override workflow listed driver version 572.16 or later and NVIDIA App version 11.0.2.312 or later. The article was updated on February 3, 2025. Those are historical minimums for that documented workflow, not permanent requirements; current app and driver releases may use different minimum versions.
Use the native model as the control condition. If the override fixes a repeatable trail or flicker, keep it only after checking several scenes, menus, and camera movements. If it introduces new artifacts, revert with Use the 3D application setting. A model change cannot repair missing motion vectors, incorrect exposure, or broken UI buffers supplied by the game.
Reduce motion blur that is being applied twice
NVIDIA’s Streamline checklist warns that incorrect motion blur can create image-quality artifacts because blur may be effectively doubled when generated frames are added. This is most visible as smeared edges, long trails, or an unusually soft image during camera movement.
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Practical adjustment
- Open the game’s graphics or accessibility settings.
- Find Motion Blur, Motion-Blur Distance, or Motion-Blur Magnitude.
- Reduce the distance or magnitude substantially, or turn the effect off for a clean diagnostic comparison.
- Keep Frame Generation unchanged and replay the same fast movement.
If reducing blur removes the trail without changing the underlying ghosting around independently moving objects, the blur effect was amplifying the problem. If trails remain around characters, foliage, or particles, continue with model and integration checks.
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Frame Generation should be disabled while changing resolution or switching between fullscreen, borderless, and windowed modes. NVIDIA also recommends leaving it off during menus, loading screens, and pauses, then re-enabling it after the game returns to normal rendering.
Safe display-change procedure
- Open the graphics menu and turn Frame Generation off.
- Change resolution, refresh rate, HDR state, or fullscreen/windowed mode.
- Apply the setting and wait until the game returns to active gameplay.
- If the game requests a restart, exit and relaunch it before testing.
- Enable Frame Generation again only after the display state is stable.
Leaving interpolation active while the swap chain or render targets are recreated can produce temporary corruption, flicker, or an abnormal cadence. A clean relaunch distinguishes a transition-state problem from a persistent defect.
Understand ghosting, flickering, and broken HUD elements
Severe artifacts are often caused by data the game supplies to the Frame Generation pipeline, not by a player-selected quality slider. NVIDIA’s Streamline documentation identifies several required inputs and failure modes.
Motion vectors and depth
Motion vectors describe how pixels move between rendered frames; depth describes their position in the scene. If either buffer is missing, stale, incorrectly scaled, or excludes an object, the generated frame can place that object incorrectly. Typical results include character trails, disjointed limbs, detached particles, and shimmering foliage.
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HUD-less color and UI buffers
Interface elements do not behave like world geometry. The game must identify HUD-less color and provide appropriate UI information so generated frames do not invent, duplicate, or distort text and icons. Flickering reticles, subtitles, status bars, or menus that disappear between frames strongly suggest an interface-buffer problem.
Exposure and camera matrices
Exposure controls scene brightness between frames; camera matrices describe the view transformation. NVIDIA states that improper exposure can cause increased ghosting, flickering, and other image-quality issues. Incorrect camera data can produce instability during camera cuts, zooms, or rapid viewpoint changes.
Frame alignment and buffer lifetime
The game must present matching frame indices and keep each required buffer valid for the correct duration. Incorrect alignment can create stutter, latency increases, or magenta output. A buffer released too early can cause intermittent corruption that is difficult to reproduce outside a particular level or effect.
When these defects are present, toggling sharpening, texture quality, or ordinary anti-aliasing will not repair the missing integration data. The practical remedies are a game update, a developer-provided DLSS change, or temporarily disabling Frame Generation.
Decide whether to keep Frame Generation enabled
| Situation | Keep it enabled when | Disable it or seek a patch when |
|---|---|---|
| Frame pacing | Motion is consistently smoother, controls remain responsive, and no competing interpolation layer is active | Hitching repeats across scenes, latency is clearly worse, or frame indices produce magenta output |
| Ghosting | Only mild trails remain and reducing motion blur or changing the model resolves them | Characters, particles, or foliage remain visibly disjointed in every model |
| HUD/UI | Interface elements remain stable during gameplay and menus | Text, reticles, subtitles, or status icons flicker or warp |
| Display changes | The feature is enabled only after the new mode is applied and the game has returned to normal rendering | Artifacts appear immediately after a mode or resolution switch and persist after a clean restart |
Disabling Frame Generation is a valid diagnostic and gameplay choice. It lowers the displayed frame count, but it removes interpolation from the pipeline and can restore cleaner motion and more predictable input while a game-side fix is unavailable.
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What to report to a game developer
A useful bug report makes an integration defect reproducible. Include:
- GPU model and whether it is an RTX 40-series or RTX 50-series card.
- Game version, operating-system version, graphics-driver version, and NVIDIA App version.
- DLSS Super Resolution mode, Frame Generation state, Reflex state, Smooth Motion state, resolution, refresh rate, and display mode.
- The exact location, camera movement, effect, or menu where the artifact appears.
- Whether the issue occurs with Frame Generation off, with the native model, and with the latest model override.
- A video showing the same scene with identical settings before and after the change.
Describe the symptom precisely: pacing stutter, input delay, ghost trails, flickering HUD, disjointed geometry, magenta tint, or full image corruption. This helps distinguish a timing mismatch from a missing buffer and prevents unrelated graphics settings from obscuring the diagnosis.
Hardware and feature boundaries
Native DLSS Frame Generation is documented for RTX 40-series and RTX 50-series hardware, while RTX 50 adds Multi Frame Generation. Buying a compatible card can enable the feature, but hardware compatibility is not a guaranteed cure for a game with incorrect motion vectors, exposure, frame alignment, or UI integration. Treat a GPU upgrade as a compatibility option, not as a fix for a title-specific defect.
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No independent performance benchmark or failure-rate statistic establishes how often these fixes work across games. NVIDIA’s statement that Multi Frame Generation can generate up to five frames per rendered frame describes product capability under supported conditions; it is not a troubleshooting success rate or a guarantee of lower latency.
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