Starfield is getting DLSS support, but not from Bethesda themselves.
This all started from something that Bethesda announced. Yesterday, they suddenly named AMD as their official partner, meaning that they will be customizing Starfield for FSR and FSR 2.0.
As reported by PC Gamer, Bethesda clarified the situation by stating that they would not hinder other companies, entities, or individuals from adding support for other GPUs to Starfield. While it isn’t a clear confirmation or denial that they would only be working on AMD’s GPUs, it does open up the opportunity for what we’re reporting below.
As reported by GameRant, a modder named PureDark has promised that they will work on DLSS support for Starfield, and that they will get it finished before the end of Early Access.
PureDark has proven themselves capable at adding DLSS support for modern day AAAs, that did not get that support from the developers themselves. This will likely be their most high profile project to date. Presumably, they have the experience to get it done in time.
PureDark did clarify that they will start work on DLSS 3.0. This is only available in Series 4000 of Nvidia’s RTX cards. That means the more high end GPUs are getting priority treatment, which is perhaps understandable since that would be easier to work on.
PureDark will also work on DLSS 2.0, which will then support the lion’s share of RTX cards in gamers’ computers.
It must be said, in spite of PureDark’s commitment, there’s no reason to believe that Nvidia isn’t working on this support as well. For that matter, the new kind on the block, Intel, is also definitely going to work on adding that support for their Intel Arc GPUs.
Let’s say Bethesda is giving preferential treatment to AMD, but could work with other GPU brands later. The current arrangement may be best for most gamers. If Bethesda has identified that most of their potential audience will have AMD GPUs, they would be right to focus on what will benefit most of their audience.
But this all depends. If they take too long or eventually not help on other cards, then Bethesda’s decision will ultimately be harmful to PC gamers. This issue goes beyond one game or company, and is about making PCs as easy to use as game consoles as possible.
We do expect that eventually all potential PC builds will get full utilization. Hopefully everyone involved puts the work in to make that sooner rather than later.
Starfield will be released on September 6, 2023, on Windows via Steam and on Xbox Series X|S. It will also be Day One on Game Pass.