Should I Turn DLSS On or Off in Apex Legends? | Straight Answers (2023)

Deep Learning Super Sampling, or DLSS for short, is another impressive feature in NVIDIA’s technology stack. At least the RTX 20 and 30 series graphics cards support this feature. In addition, a growing number of games now support DLSS as well.

I have used many technical tips and tricks and tested many features from hardware manufacturers in over 20 years of competitive gaming, including Apex Legends. In the end, I’m always interested in whether the performance of the game is improved and at the same time, of course, there a technology should not come with disadvantages.

DLSS is supposed to have precisely this effect, according to NVIDIA, and that’s why I immediately tested it with different games. To the question of whether to enable DLSS in Apex, I’ll give you a condensed answer first:

In general, enabling Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) leads to performance improvements in the Unreal and Unity Game Engine. DLSS reduces input latency and improves frames per second (FPS) for games that support this technology. Apex Legends does not support DLSS.

Different games were compared with and without DLSS enabled in this Youtube video. Naturally, your hardware configuration is guaranteed to be different and thus produce different results, but for a first impression, the video is interesting:

Note: This article was written in English. Translations into other languages may not provide the same linguistic quality. We apologize for grammatical and semantic errors.

Is DLSS 2.X Supported in Apex Legends?

According to NVIDIA’s list of supported games, Apex Legends does not support DLSS 2.X. A rollout of the feature in Apex has not been announced yet.

NVIDIA DLSS supports the Unreal Engine and Unity Engine. Apex Legends is built upon the Source Engine that DLSS does not support. Other BR games such as Fortnite have DLSS integrated into the game.

DLSS is proprietary and only works with certain graphics cards (See the complete list here in a new browser tab).

Does DLSS Improve or Hurt Input Latency in Apex Legends?

In general, DLSS 2.X reduces the input latency of a supported video game. Tests with many other FPS games show that it depends on many hardware factors how significant the influence of DLSS on the input latency is. 

Many comparative tests of various FPS games show that DLSS really positively influences the input latency.

Besides the implementation of DLSS in the game itself or the underlying game engine, of course, your hardware components play a significant role. 

DLSS is mainly generated by the Graphical Processor Unit (GPU) on your graphics card. The so-called tensor cores within the GPU contain the logic of the AI rendering technology. 

However, tasks are also outsourced to the CPU. So it doesn’t only matter which NVIDIA graphics card you have installed, but also how powerful the CPU is.

No one can tell you how positively DLSS will affect your configuration and thus the game you play.

There have been cases where the input latency has been reduced by 60%.

If you can enable NVIDIA Reflex Mode, you should certainly notice a noticeable effect in the game. If you are not familiar with NVIDIA Reflex, you can learn more about it here:

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Does DLSS Improve or Hurt FPS in Apex Legends?

In general, DLSS 2.X increases the number of frames per second (FPS) of a supported video game. Tests with many other FPS games show that it depends on many hardware factors how significant the influence of DLSS on the FPS is.

Many factors play a role in the calculation of a frame. It starts with the selected resolution in the game goes over CPU, RAM, and hard disk up to the graphics card. 

Numerous tests (and I don’t mean the marketing material from NVIDIA) have proven that DLSS enables more FPS in every supported game. 

This can lead to an FPS increase of up to 100% in FPS games. However, it can be as little as 5% depending on your equipment.

The result is incredibly individual, so I can only recommend simply enabling DLSS and measuring the FPS baseline beforehand. 

DLSS can’t harm the FPS since, in principle, fewer graphical elements have to be calculated here through intelligent optimization. And the saved power can be converted into more FPS.

Does DLSS Affect Quality?

According to many different testings, DLSS in version 2.X has a minimal effect on graphics quality if the performance mode is used. The release version of DLSS had affected the image sharpness too much at low resolutions.

As mentioned in the previous point, DLSS in performance mode is a trade-off. It reduces graphics quality and thus reduces latency and gains FPS.

The trick with NVIDIA DLSS is that you don’t almost notice this trade-off in the game. This is because the AI in the GPU automatically looks for optimization opportunities.

So the graphics quality is actually reduced, but in the best case, it’s hidden so that you as a player don’t notice any difference.

Just try it out.

Enable DLSS in Performance mode, and you’ll instantly see if the graphics quality changes for your eyes.

How to Turn On DLSS in Apex Legends

According to the list of supported games from NVIDIA, Apex Legends does not support DLSS. A provision of the function in Apex is not planned.

At this point, there are no steps to activate the function. As soon as Apex supports DLSS, we will add instructions here.

Should I Use DLSS or FSR in Apex Legends?

According to NVIDIA and AMD, Apex Legends does not support DLSS or FSR.

Comparisons between FSR and DLSS bring clear results based only on the hardware used and the game played. For you personally, you can’t derive anything concrete from the results unless you happen to have the same conditions 1:1.

If you don’t have an NVIDIA graphics card or a graphics card that is not supported (you can find a list in our main article about DLSS), then your only choice is FSR if your game is supported. So if you want to learn more about FSR from AMD, jump to this post:

Final Thoughts on DLSS for Apex Legends

It’s a real shame that Apex Legends doesn’t support DLSS because it isn’t a placebo.

For any supported game, I can only recommend enabling DLSS. You either want to gain more performance in the form of more FPS as a competitive gamer or gain higher resolution with the same number of FPS as a casual gamer. 

In both cases, DLSS is the right measure.

The fundamental prerequisite is the proper hardware, which, as always, comes with steep prices.

However, FSR from AMD seems to be a good alternative if you cannot use DLSS.

If you have a question about the post or pro gaming in general, write to us: contact@raiseyourskillz.com

Masakari – moep, moep and out!

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