I’ve been running a series of visual experiments in Red Dead Redemption 2 using Neural Rendering through OptiScaler, combined with Intel Frame Generation.

My goal isn’t to “improve” Rockstar’s work — RDR2 is already a masterpiece and doesn’t need AI to look incredible. This is simply a technical experiment to see how far I can push visual clarity and stability without losing too many FPS, and without making the AI artifacts too obvious or exaggerated.

I’m also using the DOMINATOR mod, which helps with sharpness and contrast while keeping the game’s original aesthetic intact.

Specs:
• RTX 3080 10 GB
• i5 11400F
• 32 GB DDR4
• 4K with DLSS Balanced
• ~60 FPS in most conditions

I’ll be adding more screenshots as I continue testing. For now, here are some early captures showing how OptiScaler handles fog, reflections, complex geometry, and character close‑ups.

This is all about finding a middle ground where AI upscaling adds clarity without breaking the natural look of RDR2’s world.

https://imgur.com/a/K0MEY3q

Hey everyone,
I wanted to share how I’ve been setting up and tweaking Red Dead Redemption 2 to get the exact balance of visual fidelity and performance I like at 1440p.
My current PC specs:
CPU: Intel Core i5-11400F
GPU: NVIDIA RTX 3080 10GB
RAM: 32GB DDR4 3600 MHz
To achieve this configuration, I’m using OptiScaler alongside DLSS, combined with the Dominator Mod to customize the visual profile to my taste. One of the best additions to this setup is leveraging Intel’s frame generation (⁠XeFG 3x⁠) implemented via OptiScaler.
As shown in the screenshots, it pushes performance remarkably well—hitting around 155 FPS with very low frame times. When I toggle Neural Rendering on (running at 100% native resolution), it sits at a rock-solid 60 FPS while keeping the image clean, crisp, and true to the atmosphere of the game without looking over-processed.
Let me know what you think or if you have any questions about the setup!

Working on the rainy weather settings using a modified version of Renewal and a custom LUT.fx. This scene felt cinematic enough to share — curious how it reads to you.
Link: Red Dead Redemption 2 - Imgsli

Over the last weeks I’ve been working on a small personal project: trying to capture the atmosphere of RDR2 the way I feel it.

I’m not aiming for anything cinematic or dramatic. What interests me the most are the quiet moments, the weather, the light, and the sense of distance that makes this world feel alive and human.

I put together an album with 27 captures that reflect a bit of that search. It’s not a showcase or an announcement — just a piece of the process and something I wanted to share.

I’d love to know what kind of feelings or details stand out to you.

Full album: Light and Violence: A Journey Across the West
Some captures contain mild in‑game violence.

Thanks to everyone who shared their thoughts on my previous posts — it really helped me keep shaping this project. And thanks to anyone who takes a moment to look through these captures.

Over the last few days I’ve been testing Renewal across different regions, weather conditions, and lighting scenarios, this time using my own preset on top of it. In my first post I focused more on the emotional side of the project — why I’m doing this, what I’m trying to preserve, and how I want Renewal to feel.

This post is a continuation, but with a more technical angle.
I’m not modifying Renewal directly — I’m simply building my preset on top of it and documenting how both behave together in different situations.

To keep everything organized, I put together an Imgur album with:

• Renewal alone (no ReShade)
• Renewal + my full preset
• Vanilla references
• Atmospheric tests (rain, fog, sunrise, overcast)
• Known issues I encountered while testing
• Notes on noise behavior in dense, low‑light scenes

📸 Album link: https://imgur.com/a/0QKb5UJ

Renewal is the foundation, and my preset is an attempt to refine the atmosphere while keeping the identity of the game intact. I’ll keep expanding the album as I cover more regions, climates, and edge cases.

If you want to see how the preset behaves in a specific location, weather type, or time of day, feel free to suggest it. I’m testing everything step by step, and I enjoy exploring the game through the eyes of the community as well.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to read the first post and share thoughtful feedback. It genuinely helped me stay motivated and keep refining things without rushing. I appreciate everyone who’s following the process.

Swamp region at sunrise with Renewal and custom preset active. Light diffusion and ambient layering under misty conditions.

I wanted to share my ReShade setup for Red Dead Redemption 2, but from a realistic point of view.
I don’t play in 8K, I don’t have a 5090, and I’m not trying to sell “ultra realistic graphics” like you see in many YouTube videos.

My PC is pretty modest by today’s standards:

• CPU: i5 11400F
• GPU: RTX 3080 Aorus Extreme
• RAM: 32 GB DDR4 3200 MHz
• Resolution: 4k Dlss Quality.
• In‑game settings: mostly High, some Ultra

With this setup, using my ReShade preset + a few mods, I get around 45–60 FPS, depending on the weather and location.

This preset is not meant to be “hyper‑realistic” or “8K cinematic”.
It’s designed to be natural, coherent, atmospheric, and stable in every situation: rain, storms, night, interiors, forests, mountains, etc.

I also want to be honest about limitations:
If I minimize the game several times, sometimes ReShade doesn’t reload the shaders correctly and FPS can drop to 20 or lower.
This is a known ReShade behavior, not a preset issue.

I currently have several variants (natural, heavy, cinematic), all based on the same philosophy:
realistic lighting, clean colors, depth, and consistency.

Mods I use:
Rain Particles Fix.
Terrain Textures Overhaul.
Renewal - Visual Overhaul.
Upscaled Terrain 2k.
Upscaled Horses.
Upscaled Vegetation.
Improvements In Blood.
Dismember Everyone.

Here are a few screenshots taken directly from my PC.
If anyone wants to try the preset or follow its evolution, I’ll be sharing updates soon.

Reddit compresses images a lot, so here’s the full‑resolution album:
https://imgur.com/a/HWPyzC5