Over the last few days, many modders have been taking advantage of the leaked version of DLSS 5.0. For those not familiar with DLSS, DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling) is NVIDIA technology that uses AI to improve game performance by rendering at a lower resolution and reconstructing the image at a higher resolution. Newer versions can also generate additional frames and improve ray tracing, helping deliver higher frame rates while maintaining strong image quality.
This has become somewhat of an industry standard for PC games, with almost all games shipping with it in recent times. DLSS 5.0 was announced earlier this year to much controversy as it heavily leans on AI to fundamentally change the look of the games it is implemented on. However, NVIDIA clairifed to note that creators would have full control over how this would be implemented within their projects.
“DLSS 5 is NVIDIA’s next major evolution of DLSS, introducing a real-time neural rendering model that uses generative AI to enhance lighting, materials and overall image realism. Rather than focusing purely on higher frame rates and upscaling, DLSS 5 is designed to actually transform rendered pixels toward photorealistic quality while preserving the developer’s original artistic direction. It is scheduled to launch in autumn 2026.” Check out NVIDIA for more information.
Kenzo, of Kenzo Games, has taken the liberty of preparing a mod for the PC version of Shenmue 3. Many will remember Kenzo for his game Hood Story and he is currently working on a JRPG called Arx Temporis. Using a Reshade Add on to install this into the games executable, you are given the option to turn on DLSS 5 and the results are astounding overall. While there is a fuzz/off look to Ryo, the games envrionments become more realistic, lighting is changed and the colour pallete modified for that more ‘real’ look. In short, while Shenmue 3 looks great, this provides another look at what is now a 7 year old game!
Screenshots from Kenzo’s initial test – Credit Kenzo Games
It should be noted that this comes with a heavy performance cost. When running on my PC with a RTX 4090 and AMD Ryzen 9 7059x3d, it dropped to an average of 45fps in game. This stayed at a solid 60fps at 1440p. So users will need to change their in-game resolutions according to the performance they are looking for.
In conclusion, this mod is well worth a look, is easy to install and gives us Shenmue fans something new to play with while we endure the everlasting wait for Shenmue 3 Enhanced!
Oh… I expect this will work with that when the game is released too!
Mod in Action
