{"id":81765,"date":"2026-09-03T09:05:59","date_gmt":"2026-09-03T01:05:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=81765"},"modified":"2026-09-03T09:05:59","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T01:05:59","slug":"nvidia-dlss-4-5-ray-reconstruction-improves-path-tracing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=81765","title":{"rendered":"NVIDIA DLSS 4.5 Ray Reconstruction improves path tracing"},"content":{"rendered":"
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NVIDIA has released DLSS 4.5 Ray Reconstruction<\/b>, completing the latest version of its AI-assisted rendering suite with an upgraded model intended to produce cleaner ray-traced and path-traced graphics. It is available now for all generations of GeForce RTX graphics cards, although this initial rollout is technically an Early Access<\/b> release through the Nvidia App. A wider official release is planned for September, and users will need to install GeForce Game Ready Driver 580.88 WHQL <\/b>or newer.<\/p>\n
But what is Ray Reconstruction? I hope you have a cup of coffee because this might get a bit long-winded.<\/p>\n
What is Ray Reconstruction?<\/h2>\n\n
Image: NVIDIA<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
For those unfamiliar with Ray Reconstruction, it is not another frame-generation feature. Path tracing works by sampling a limited number of light rays rather than calculating every possible ray bouncing around a scene, which would require an incredible amount of processing power from the GPU. The incomplete image then has to be cleaned up by a denoiser, but the downside is that the process can produce smearing, ghost trails, unstable textures and a \u201cboiling\u201d effect.<\/p>\n
Ray Reconstruction replaces the game\u2019s conventional hand-tuned denoisers with an AI model that combines denoising and Super Resolution. At a media briefing, NVIDIA says the new second-generation transformer model has 35% more compute capability and processes 20% more parameters<\/b>, while offering similar performance to the previous version. It has also been trained using a larger dataset and given better access to game-engine pixel samples and motion data.<\/p>\n\n
Image: NVIDIA<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
In layman terms, DLSS 4.5 Ray Reconstruction is supposed to make path-traced lighting settle into place more quickly and remain stable when the camera starts moving. This is important because path tracing can look wonderful in screenshots, only for fine details, reflections or shadows to become noticeably \u201cunrefined\u201d when viewed in motion.<\/p>\n
On Cyberpunk and Alan Wake 2<\/h2>\n
NVIDIA provided an early driver that I could test with our GeForce RTX 5090 Founders Edition (alongside an AMD Ryzen 9 9950X and 32GB of RAM) on Cyberpunk 2077 and Alan Wake 2, and my immediate impression is that this new Ray Reconstruction is a noticeable improvement. To be sure, it doesn\u2019t make both games look any different, and I doubt I would have noticed every change without switching between the old and new models. Once I knew where to look, though, it became harder to go back to the old model.<\/p>\n
In Cyberpunk 2077, the improvements were the easiest to spot, which is hardly surprising considering how NVIDIA has used the game to showcase DLSS and path tracing over the years. With the older Ray Reconstruction model, certain floors and darker surfaces could look restless as I moved the camera, almost as if the game was still deciding what detail should be visible. The new model settles these surfaces more quickly, while reflections and fine patterns also remain clearer in motion.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not a gamechanger, if I have to be honest, and it\u2019s very easy not to notice the improvements in the middle of a frantic shootout. But does it make the game look prettier? Oh yes. Smearing across reflective surfaces was less obvious, and fine details did not break up as readily when I turned the camera.<\/p>\n\n
Image: HWZ<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Alan Wake 2 showed the same results, particularly around moving characters and the fine detail on wooden floors. The faint trails that can appear around feet and limbs were less obvious, while background textures held together better. It\u2019s not perfect, however, as I could still see some artefacts around fast-moving objects. Path-traced graphics are not completely solved, then, but the new Ray Reconstruction model appears to be dealing with their messier moments more effectively. I also suspect that future drivers will resolve many of these issues eventually.<\/p>\n
No performance sacrifice<\/h2>\n
Path tracing itself remains extremely taxing on GPUs, but it\u2019s worth mentioning that there wasn\u2019t any meaningful performance hit when I tested DLSS 4.5 Ray Reconstruction on the above two games. The caveat here is that two titles are admittedly a very small sample, so it is too early to say whether this will be true across every supported game and GPU. Still, the new model appears to deliver its cleaner and more stable image without demanding noticeably more performance than the previous version \u2013 which makes leaving it enabled an easy decision. NVIDIA also says DLSS 4.5 Ray Reconstruction is supported on older GeForce RTX cards all the way down to the 20 Series<\/b>, but performance will vary depending on the game\u2019s visual settings and the resolution it is played on.<\/p>\n
At the moment, 30 games will support DLSS 4.5 Ray Reconstruction including Cyberpunk 2077, Alan Wake 2, Doom: The Dark Ages, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Hogwarts Legacy, Marvel\u2019s Spider-Man 2 and Star Wars Outlaws. Developers will also be able to add the new model directly through future game updates.<\/p>\n
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![\"DLSS](\"https:\/\/cassette.sphdigital.com.sg\/image\/hardwarezone\/1f2ced8ffc2f0ea0c8b5c9e0a5840391d40e676e25d37fd4e4338c45a4e5cdcf?w=660&q=85\")
![\"Alan](\"https:\/\/cassette.sphdigital.com.sg\/image\/hardwarezone\/965d9e2fb3bdf7e06648882b2eb08dcd9bd0e8840b62923e2e9badae69dc94fc?w=660&q=85\")