Todd Howard, studio head and executive producer at Bethesda, is excited for DLSS 5 - a controversial new graphic update on PC that brings photorealistic lighting and materials to Starfield, The Elder Scrolls VI and Fallout 5, as well as many other games.
DLSS 5 is a NVIDIA-exclusive technology that uses AI to boost gaming performance and make all your favourite games look ‘better’.
While some people think NVIDIA DLSS 5 think it’s the biggest overhaul since the jump from PS2 to PS3, others aren’t so convinced. It’s led to some hilarious before-and-after ‘yassified’ memes on the internet.
In a recent video, Todd Howard confirmed the successful rollout of DLSS 5 in Starfield, which you can watch below.
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With the successful rollout in Starfield, it’s likely this controversial technology will be included in The Elder Scrolls 6 and Fallout 5.
“We have such a rich history pushing graphics with NVIDIA, going all the way back to Morrowind, that incredible water. When they showed us DLSS 5 and we got it running in Starfield, it was amazing, how it brought it to life.”
Turns out, even the incredible graphics of Morrowind weren't enough to spare Todd Howard from the scorn of angry players.
One user said: “Todd realizing he doesn't have to update the prehistoric creation engine because now he can simply fake good graphics with a snapchat filter”
Another said: “I'm not surprised that Todd is excited he barely made two games in the last 10 years and both were dogsh*t”
Well, everyone disliked that.
Why is DLSS 5 proving to be so controversial?
The Elder Scrolls and Fallout have such a distinct art styles and vibes, that fears have been raised over how DLSS 5’s AI-powered technology could negatively impact the games.
One user fairly pointed out the impact this would have on the artistic integrity of gaming as a medium. In reply to Todd Howard’s tweet, they said: “Girl your ai slop filter looks bad and diminishes all the hard work artists, 3d artists, and developers have done to make their games. Instead this washes out all their hard work. Whoever greenlit this needs to reconsider. This should not be the standard”.
Jensen Huang, President and CEO of NVIDIA has responded to the comments calling DLSS 5 AI slop:
"First of all, they're completely wrong. The reason for that is because, as I have explained very carefully, DLSS 5 fuses controllability of the geometry and textures and everything about the game with generative AI. It’s not post-processing, it’s not post-processing at the frame level, it’s generative control at the geometry level."
He then added: "This is very different from generative AI; it’s content-control generative AI.”
Yes, really. Whatever you call it, the reception is clearly a net negative for the gaming industry.
If more and more games look to include this controversial 'next-gen' technology in its games, it could be the final nail in the coffin of AAA releases.
Games already pursue hyper-realistic graphics, and will age as poorly as Heavy Rain has. This new technology only makes every game chase an imaginary ideal of 'realism' we should move away from, as soon as possible.
Topics: The Elder Scrolls, Fallout