How to add DLSS to Starfield on PC

Starfield, with its thousands of planets and vast Star Systems, is one of the most demanding games released in 2023, and features like DLSS can significantly improve performance on PC. While the official DLSS support is in the works, here’s how you can currently add DLSS to Starfield on PC.

DLSS 3 has been one of the biggest highlights of the RTX 40 series graphics cards by Nvidia thanks to the Optical Mutiframe Generation technology that grants you a major FPS boost without heavily compromising on graphics.

From Cyberpunk 2077 and Hogwarts Legacy to Fortnite and Payday 3, some of the most popular games out there officially support DLSS or are confirmed to get the feature soon. This explains the disappointment of Nvidia users when they discovered that Starfield doesn’t have DLSS 3 officially.

If you prefer DLSS 3 over AMD FSR 2, here’s the mod list to add DLSS to Starfield and how to use the feature to get the best performance.

Mod list and steps for adding DLSS to Starfield

To swap FSR 2.0 for DLSS in Starfield, you’ll need to install the Starfield Upscaler mod on NexusMods from PureDark.

Follow these steps to install these files in their desired locations:

1. Download the Starfield Upscaler, and extract it in the game’s root folder.
2. Download UpscaleBasePlugin, and extract it to the /Starfield/mods/ folder.
3. Download nvngx_dlss.dll and move it to the /mods/UpscaleBasePlugin folder.

In certain cases, the nvngx_dlss.dll file might not work there. In such cases, try placing the file in the root folder, the same as the Upscaler. Now you are ready to use your DLSS mod in Starfield.

How to use Starfield DLSS mod

These were the basic steps to achieve the DLSS option in the game. If you have successfully followed these steps, you should have DLSS available in your game menu. To check it:

1. Go to the in-game graphical settings and enable FSR 2.0 first if not already enabled.
2. Press the END button on your keyboard to reveal a menu and a slider that controls the DLSS upscaling in the game.
3. Select DLSS under Upscaling Type and choose your preferred preset.

The DLSS presets work pretty much like any other game. For your convenience, the exact description of the presets are as follows:

• DLAA: 100% Render Resolution Scale
• DLSS Quality: 67% Render Resolution Scale
• DLSS Balanced: 58% Render Resolution Scale
• DLSS Performace: 50% Render Resolution Scale
• DLSS Ultra Performace: 33% Render Resolution Scale

If you are using an RTX card from NVIDIA, using DLSS should grant you a significant boost in your game’s in-game frames per second and overall performance. However, the performance boost will vary from system to system. This means that if you are not receiving a major boost, it might be something to do with your CPU and GPU combination and bottlenecking issues, rather than the mod itself.

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