In this article
Three letters, a lot of confusion. Here is the short version of what modern performance features are doing to your image.
Temporal upscaling
DLSS, FSR and XeSS in their upscaling modes render the game at a lower internal resolution and reconstruct a higher-resolution image using information from previous frames plus motion vectors. Done well, the result is close to native and noticeably faster. Done badly, or in a poorly integrated game, you get ghosting behind moving objects, shimmer on fine detail, and smeared transparencies.
The cost is mostly image quality in edge cases, and it is usually worth it.
Frame generation
Frame generation is a separate feature that inserts synthesised frames between rendered ones. It raises the frame-rate counter without making the game respond any faster — input latency is tied to the real frames, not the generated ones. It works best when your real frame rate is already decent and you want motion smoothness. It feels worst when your base rate is low, because you get a smooth picture attached to sluggish controls.
Practical rules
- Turn upscaling on; pick the quality preset and only drop it if you need to.
- Use frame generation to go from good to great, never from bad to playable.
- If something looks wrong in motion, upscaling is the first setting to check.
