How do I make my games look great with this free AMD tool

If you want your games to look good, you may think your only option is to upgrade your computer. However, there are software solutions that can get the job done, and this free AMD tool might be just the thing you're looking for.

What is AMD FSR?

AMD FSR or FidelityFX Supersolution uses open upscaling and framerate generation to help boost in-game FPS while also maintaining or even improving graphics quality. You can activate the feature in the graphical settings of the games that support it.

FSR is AMD's answer to Nvidia DLSS. However, while both technologies upgrade games and help boost FPS, they work very differently under the hood.

Both FSR and DLSS display your game at a lower native resolution so it's easier for your computer to run, then upscale them before the game hits your screen for more resolution. As for FPS boost, it automatically detects when your game skips frames and uses image interpolation algorithms to fill this gap. This results in significant gains in performance and image quality at the expense of less dedicated GPU space.

AMD's FSR uses a spatial upscaling algorithm to capture low-resolution graphics and upscale them to be more visually appealing. The technology is also open source, which means it's easier to integrate into games and run on more GPUs, unlike DLSS. We've covered the differences between FSR and DLSS if you want to see a direct comparison.

The FSR has seen four generations since its release in 2021. Depending on which version of the FSR you use (1, 2, 3, or 3.1), the end result will vary. Frame generation is also a fairly new concept for FSR, as it was recently released as FSR 3. AMD has teased FSR 4 with a lot of AI features as well.

So, how much of an improvement does FSR offer in performance? According to AMD, you can combine upscaling and frame generation to get up to 3.3x higher frame rates on Radeon RX 7000 series GPUs when gaming at 4K or 1440p.

Games like Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, Ghost of Tsushima Director's Cut, and The Last of Us Part I deliver more than three times the FPS you get at maximum graphics settings using the FSR and Radeon RX 7000 series GPU combination.

Real-world performance will vary based on your computer's configuration, especially the GPU. However, you can expect a significant performance boost when using the FSR's upscaling and image creation capabilities.

What GPUs does it run on?

Since FSR is an open source technology, it works on both AMD and Nvidia GPUs – unlike DLSS, which is limited to Nvidia hardware. Here's a quick chart showing the supported and recommended graphics hardware for FSR 3 and 2.

Additionally, while FSR 3 and 2 are optimized to work with a dedicated graphics card, they can only be used with select Ryzen processors that come with AMD's Radeon integrated graphics.

How to use AMD FSR to upgrade your games

Using FSR is simple to enable the setting in any game you play. Keep in mind that the game needs to support FSR in order to be able to use the tool, so it will not be available in every single game.

Fortunately, the list of supported games is rather long, with over 100 games supported across FSR releases. You can check the FSR Supported Games page on the AMD website for details. New games are also constantly being added to the list, so the game you want to play is likely supported.

If a game doesn't support AMD FSR, you can still use something called Radeon Supersolution, or RSR, to upgrade any game you want. The technology is based on FSR 1 and should work in any full-screen exclusive game without the game developer having to add any software support. The only downside is that you need at least an AMD 5000 series GPU to run it as the feature is part of the AMD graphics driver and can only run on AMD GPUs.

Until recently, I had a laptop with a GTX 1650 Ti, which meant I wasn't able to use any of the features that DLSS has to offer. However, I can play newer games like Call of Duty: Warzone, Forza Horizon 5, Warframe, and Ghost of Tsushima using the FSR with an average boost of around 25 to 30 fps without sacrificing much graphics quality.

However, FSR won't magically make every game better, as your computers still need to do all the heavy lifting. When I tried to play Hellblade 2, my laptop had trouble surpassing 20 frames per second even with the graphics settings turned down to the lowest possible and the FSR turned on at full power.

Different games also respond differently to FSR interference, which means your performance will vary. In my case, while Forza Horizon 5 and Warframe averaged over 60fps with respectable graphics, Warzone and Ghost of Tsushima were stretched thin, with random glitches popping up here and there.

AMD FSR vs. Microsoft ASR vs. Nvidia DLSS vs. Intel XeSS

AMD and Nvidia aren't the only companies offering upscaling technology these days. Intel has jumped into the GPU space with its Arc family of GPUs and offers XeSS, a similar upscaling tool. On the other hand, Microsoft is also working on ASR – an upgrade tool built into Windows that does not require any additional software support from the game developer.

All of these upgrade tools aim to do the same thing, which is make your games look better without taxing your GPU. But they use different methods to get there. As mentioned before, DLSS is exclusive to Nvidia hardware, but ASR, FSR, and XeSS will work on most if not all dedicated GPUs.

In terms of performance, DLSS is still ahead thanks to its excellent game support and Nvidia's proficiency in making drivers. If Microsoft's claims are true, you should get the lowest latency in ASR. FSR and XeSS sit in the middle of the pack, balancing performance and latency numbers.

It's difficult to make a direct comparison between the four upgrade technologies, considering the diversity of game and hardware support. However, the comprehensive support for FSR plus the fact that you can run it on practically any GPU automatically makes it one of the best options – especially considering that you don't have to do anything to use this feature.

As long as you have a relatively powerful PC and are playing a game that supports FSR, you should see a significant improvement in performance and graphics at the expense of a little latency. If you have an AMD GPU, your gains will likely be better. But the good thing here is that you are not limited by your GPU brand.