Zooming In
AMD’s recent update to its Adrenaline drivers has finally brought FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) 4 support to the highly popular and graphics-intensive game, Cyberpunk 2077. After an anticipation buildup of nearly six months, this upgrade marks a significant enhancement for AMD users, aiming to optimize their gaming experience with improved upscaling and frame generation.
What is FSR 4 and Why Does It Matter?
FSR 4 is AMD’s answer to Nvidia’s Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS), a technology that leverages AI to deliver higher frame rates in gaming without sacrificing visual fidelity. With the gaming industry increasingly focusing on maximizing graphic performance and quality, technologies like FSR and DLSS play crucial roles in advancing how users interact with and perceive digital environments.
Cyberpunk 2077, known for its demanding graphics and immersive environments, is an excellent showcase for such technologies. By enabling FSR 4, players can enjoy a smoother gaming experience with richer visual quality, especially critical in a game set in a vibrant and complex open world.
Current Support and Comparisons
Despite the excitement surrounding Cyberpunk 2077’s inclusion, AMD’s overall FSR 4 adoption lags behind Nvidia’s DLSS, which has broader support across games and hardware. Currently, FSR 4 supports a limited range of AMD’s latest GPUs, specifically a few models from the RX 9070 and RX 9060 series, comparable to Nvidia’s initial rollout of DLSS that was restricted to a handful of RTX 20-series models.
Alongside Cyberpunk 2077, FSR 4 support has been extended to a few other games including “Wuchang: Fallen Feathers,” “Mafia: The Old Country,” and “Lies of P.” While this extension marks progress, it highlights the ongoing need for broader support to match the versatility offered by Nvidia’s solution.
Industry Insights and Future Outlook
Industry experts note that with only a limited subset of AMD’s GPU line-up supporting FSR 4, widespread adoption remains constrained. For developers, the incentive to implement FSR 4 in gaming projects may not yet rival the established precedent set by DLSS, which benefits from support across four generations of RTX GPUs.
Nevertheless, AMD continues to evolve its offerings with planned machine learning improvements in future updates, such as the teased Redstone update, which promises further advancements in machine learning-driven enhancements.
For now, the focus will likely be on expanding the support base for FSR 4, as gamers await the next NVIDIA vs. AMD showdown concerning new hardware releases. Until then, the adoption of FSR 4 is expected to be gradual, with each addition potentially pivoting AMD closer to its competitor.
For those eager to experience these enhancements firsthand, the new Adrenalin 25.8.1 drivers are now available for download, bringing the promise of enhanced gaming immersion and performance to AMD users.
