Kingdom Come director posts DLSS 5 before-and-after, says tech restored intended lighting

GG Brief Editorial Desk · AI-assisted, source attributed

Daniel Vávra, director of both Kingdom Come: Deliverance games, posted a side-by-side comparison on X showing DLSS 5 applied to a Kingdom Come 2 character model and said the result restored shadows, skin detail and normal-map fidelity. He argued the game's engine previously failed to render helmet shadows and normal maps as the team intended, calling critics who dislike DLSS 5 'literally gone crazy.' Other players disputed the change, saying DLSS 5 'oils up' characters and removes human imperfections. The exchange underscores ongoing debate over DLSS 5's AI-driven aesthetic changes and whether they preserve or alter developers' artistic intent.

• Daniel Vávra posted a before-and-after image on X showing the same KCD2 model with and without DLSS 5 and said the DLSS 5 version improved shadows, skin texture and normal-map detail without any geometry changes.
• Vávra said the game's original lighting system could not properly render helmet shadows, skin texture and normal maps, and that those issues were not the team's original artistic vision.
• Some community members responded that the DLSS 5 output 'oils up' characters and smooths out human flaws, arguing the change is not an improvement.
• DLSS 5 is the focal point of a broader debate about AI-driven visual enhancements and whether such tools preserve or change a developer's intended look for a game.