AMD gets rid of ghosting and improves performance with FSR 2.1

Hardware upscaling has been the surprise hit for this generation of GPUs. Being able to render at a lower resolution equates to higher frame rates, and as long as the final image looks right, everyone is a winner. Maybe not that surprising a hit after all really.

Nvidia's DLSS may have got the ball rolling, but AMD is catching up and it keeps improving its FidelityFX Super Resolution too. If you need proof, it's just announced that FSR 2.1 is available right now.

AMD has shown off the new version of FSR 2.1 running in Farming Simulator 22 alongside FSR 2.0 for comparison, and it looks significantly better, with far less ghosting in the newer version. This is all thanks to some significant changes to the underlying algorithm specifically designed to reduce artifacts such as ghosting and shimmering. There's still some ghosting visible (especially when zoomed in), but it's certainly better.

The good news is that while the algorithm has changed, developers should find it relatively straightforward to update their games. "The application-side FSR 2 API has not changed, so updating to FSR 2.1 from 2.0 should be simple."

AMD has already updated the FSR 2 source code to move over to FSR 2.1 and updated the Unreal Engine plugins so developers can upgrade to FSR 2.1 straight away. Speedy work. 

AMD has also taken this opportunity to highlight how quickly FSR 2 is being picked it. A total of 45 games either already support the tech or will do shortly. AMD lists a total of 20 games that are currently available, with another 25 on the way. Those up-and-coming games include Cyberpunk 2077, Hitman 3, and Saints Row among many others.

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Alan Dexter

Alan has been writing about PC tech since before 3D graphics cards existed, and still vividly recalls having to fight with MS-DOS just to get games to load. He fondly remembers the killer combo of a Matrox Millenium and 3dfx Voodoo, and seeing Lara Croft in 3D for the first time. He's very glad hardware has advanced as much as it has though, and is particularly happy when putting the latest M.2 NVMe SSDs, AMD processors, and laptops through their paces. He has a long-lasting Magic: The Gathering obsession but limits this to MTG Arena these days.