Modern video game releases usually incorporate an upscaling technique of sorts, with the most common ones in use being Nvidia’s DLSS, Intel’s XeSS and AMD’s FSR tech. Upscalers help dynamically adjust the resolution without sacrificing too much on the game’s visuals in order to deliver a balance between image quality and framerate.
However, the situation is a lot more complicated with games that do not support these upscalers natively (as is seen with older titles such as The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim). As such, third party alternatives come into play.
A Steam app known as Lossless Scaling has seen a resurgence in popularity, offering players a quick and easy way to boost framerates for most games. Details on how to use the app, and its quirks can be found detailed below.
Using Lossless Scaling to boost your game’s FPS
To use Lossless Scaling, you must first purchase it on Steam. Once installed, boot up the game you wish to tweak, and the app itself. Next, adjust the following in-app settings to your liking to boost performance at an acceptable visual quality:
- Scaling Mode: Keep this at Custom.
- Scaling Factor: Choose as per your preference. A value lower than 1 is recommended for lower end devices (such as handheld gaming PCs).
- Scaling Type: A plethora of options can be found within this tab. For best image quality and performance, it is recommended to use AMD FSR.
- Sharpness: Can be used to add image sharpening. Ideal for lower resolutions.
- Performance: Enable this setting to dramatically boost FPS at the cost of reduced image quality.
- Frame Generation: Can be used to generate extra frames, using AI. Can massively increase FPS, but is prone to abnormalities in visuals with lower-end PCs.
- Other miscellaneous options such as HDR control and Vertical Sync.
As always, readers are encouraged to experiment with the settings on offer to find a preset to their liking.
Things to keep in mind while using Lossless Scaling
While Lossless Scaling is a fantastic tool, it does come with several limitations:
- The software is quite GPU-limited, and demands a powerful graphics card.
- Windows 10 or newer is required. Linux and macOS are entirely unsupported.
- Games must be running in windowed mode for the software to work.
Despite these (rather minor) drawbacks, Lossless Scaling is most definitely worth the low asking price of $6.99 – thanks to its universal compatibility.
