{"id":126410,"date":"2026-03-18T00:21:44","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T03:21:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tech.einnews.com\/article\/900128166"},"modified":"2026-03-18T00:21:44","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T03:21:44","slug":"nvidia-new-ai-tech-turns-video-game-graphics-into-slop-as-fans-are-outraged","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/2026\/03\/18\/nvidia-new-ai-tech-turns-video-game-graphics-into-slop-as-fans-are-outraged\/","title":{"rendered":"Nvidia new AI tech turns video game graphics into slop as fans are outraged"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Resident\t<\/div>
Companies like Capcom have already approved of the tech (Nvidia)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The reactions to Nvidia\u2019s new DLSS 5 tech have been extremely negative, with people accusing it of turning games into AI slop.<\/p>\n

While some are incredibly hostile to the idea of any AI related technology in their video games<\/a>, it still has some benign uses. AI upscalers have been a thing for years and no one has any problems with them, since they simply make games look better, with higher resolutions and frame rates.<\/p>\n

Even the Nintendo Switch 2<\/a> uses AI upscaling, which is why visually demanding games such as Cyberpunk 2077<\/a> still look good on the hardware, while Sony\u2019s recent PSSR update<\/a> has been described as finally justifying the existence of the PS5 Pro.<\/p>\n

The same can not be said for Nvidia\u2019s latest upscaling efforts. Recently, it unveiled DLSS 5, its latest breakthrough in upscaling technology, and the consensus is that it actually makes games look worse.<\/p>\n

Nvidia describes DLSS 5 as being AI powered, which all previous DLSS versions were anyway, but in a blog post<\/a>, Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang tacitly admits that generative AI tech \u2013 the more maligned side of the technology \u2013 is being used here.<\/p>\n

\u2018DLSS 5 is the GPT moment for graphics \u2014 blending hand-crafted rendering with generative AI to deliver a dramatic leap in visual realism while preserving the control artists need for creative expression,\u2019 says Huang.<\/p>\n

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Anyone with eyes, though, can see how it\u2019s anything but an improvement. Take Nvidia\u2019s first example, which uses Resident Evil Requiem<\/a>. Protagonist Grace Ashcroft suddenly looks like she\u2019s wearing heavy wake-up, had a nose job, and has been given poutier lips, looking like a woman prepared for a night out rather than the skittish and introverted FBI agent she actually is.<\/p>\n

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\"Resident\t<\/div>
Do you think DLSS 5 has improved the visuals? (Nvidia)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On ResetEra<\/a>, someone put the same frame through other AI filters, like Nano Banana 2 and ChatGPT, which produced similar results. Although funnily enough the ChatGPT example is a bit better than DLSS 5, in that it still looks a bit like Grace.<\/p>\n

This highlights how video game graphics have very much hit a dead end. They\u2019ve already become so photorealistic that attempts to go beyond that just have the opposite effect.<\/p>\n

It\u2019d be one thing if DLSS 5 actually benefitted games with subpar visuals, such as Starfield<\/a>, but its characters somehow look even more uncanny with the upscaling applied.<\/p>\n

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\"Starfield\t<\/div>
This looks like an awkward photoshop (Nvidia)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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The official announcement video<\/a> on Nvidia\u2019s YouTube channel has been met with an overwhelmingly negative reception: 57,000 dislikes compared to 12,000 likes at the time of writing.<\/p>\n

\u2018Now your game can look like an AI generated image,\u2019 reads the top comment by DomZZZ23.<\/p>\n

\u2018We went from ray tracing to slop tracing,\u2019 writes ContentThatMakesMeContent.<\/p>\n

Our favourite reply is this one from Wallrod: \u2018This is like hiring someone to lick all the flavour off a potato chip before you get to eat it.\u2019<\/p>\n

This has also prompted a lot of unflattering (and funny) memes on social media, alongside unambiguous and harsh criticism of DLSS 5.<\/p>\n

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\u2018Every example of DLSS 5 I\u2019ve seen makes everything look like a s***** YouTube thumbnail, like are we serious,\u2019 says bobvids<\/a> on Bluesky.<\/p>\n

Serendi Pity<\/a> calls it a \u2018slopification tool\u2019 and that \u2018Your favourite games will lose all character and will instead look like every AI generated slop on the internet.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u2018Hide this trash with the rest of the Nvidia filters that no one uses,\u2019 adds Jeff Grubb<\/a> of Giant Bomb, while IGN\u2019s Michael Higham<\/a> simply calls it \u2018absolute dogwater and belongs in the bin.\u2019<\/p>\n

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Nvidia have acknowledged the hostility, as it has since pinned a comment below its announcement video to deny accusations that DLSS 5 is just an AI filter and that developers ultimately have final say on how their games should look.<\/p>\n

\u2018Game developers have full, detailed artistic control over DLSS 5\u2019s effects to ensure they maintain their game\u2019s unique aesthetic,\u2019 says Nvidia. \u2018The SDK includes things like intensity, colour grading and masking off places where the effect shouldn\u2019t be applied.<\/p>\n

\u2018It\u2019s not a filter \u2013 DLSS 5 inputs the game\u2019s colour and motion vectors for each frame into the model, anchoring the output in the source 3D content.\u2019<\/p>\n

We\u2019re sure many will continue to label DLSS 5 as an AI filter, but a number of publishers have approved of the tech and say they will be supporting it, including Capcom, Bethesda, Ubisoft, Warner Bros. Games, and Tencent.<\/p>\n

The plan is for DLSS 5 to become widely available this autumn, with Nvidia listing numerous more games that will use it, such as Assassin\u2019s Creed Shadows<\/a> and the upcoming Phantom Blade 0.<\/p>\n

For the time being, this should only apply to PC games, but if more of the industry embraces it, we could see similar technology be applied to future consoles.<\/p>\n

Sony and Microsoft have partnered with AMD on their PlayStation 6<\/a> and Project Helix consoles<\/a>, but they\u2019ve also promised AI integration of some kind. It\u2019s unclear what Sony has in mind, but Microsoft has plans to integrate its Copilot AI tool into current Xbox hardware so that\u2019ll no doubt apply to Project Helix too.<\/p>\n

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\"Mock\t<\/div>
Should we expect something similar to be brought to the PlayStation 6? (Credits: Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Arrow<\/title><br \/>\n<span class=\"mor-link\" data-track-module=\"mor-link_article\">MORE: <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/03\/17\/nintendo-switch-2-gets-a-surprise-boost-mode-fans-call-a-game-changer-27488932\/?ico=more_text_links\" class>Nintendo Switch 2 gets a surprise boost mode that fans call a \u2018game changer\u2019<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"metro-more-link\"><title>Arrow<\/title><br \/>\n<span class=\"mor-link\" data-track-module=\"mor-link_article\">MORE: <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/03\/17\/games-inbox-requiem-best-resident-evil-game-27479358\/?ico=more_text_links\" class>Games Inbox: Is Requiem the best Resident Evil game?<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"metro-more-link\"><title>Arrow<\/title><br \/>\n<span class=\"mor-link\" data-track-module=\"mor-link_article\">MORE: <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/03\/17\/ooo-review-classic-indie-puzzle-gaming-a-budget-27477960\/?ico=more_text_links\" class>\u00d6oo review \u2013 classic indie puzzle gaming on a budget<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"newsletter-end-card accent--gaming\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-end-card__inner\">\n<h4>GameCentral<\/h4>\n<p>Sign up for exclusive analysis, latest releases, and bonus community content.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/blockads.fivefilters.org\"> <\/a><\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/blockads.fivefilters.org\/acceptable.html\"> <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>… of any AI related <span class=\"match\">technology<\/span> in their video games … latest breakthrough in upscaling <span class=\"match\">technology<\/span>, and the consensus is that … generative AI <span class=\"match\">tech<\/span> \u00e2\u0080\u0093 the more maligned side of the <span class=\"match\">technology<\/span> \u00e2\u0080\u0093 is being … , we could see similar <span class=\"match\">technology<\/span> be applied to future …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-126410","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126410","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=126410"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126410\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=126410"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=126410"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=126410"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}