A leaked build of NVIDIA's DLSS 5, extracted from an early PC version of NBA 2K27, has been grafted onto various games with mixed results. The unfinished software aims to take upscaling in a new direction by infusing pixels with photorealistic lighting and materials. However, in practice, it often produces an uncanny valley effect, making characters look simultaneously more real and more fake.

For example, Jesse Faden from Control appears middle-aged despite being 28, and Skyrim's low-poly characters look like 3D scans pasted onto outdated models. The underlying animations remain stiff, heightening the disconnect. Performance also suffers, with Control dropping from 71 fps to 35 fps on an RTX 5070 with Neural Rendering enabled.

Despite the rough state, this is an early, unofficial build. The final version, scheduled to launch this fall, may address these issues. Once developers properly integrate the technology, it could deliver more natural results. For now, the leak serves as a cautionary tale about the challenges of AI-driven graphics.