Crimson Desert RTX 5090 Benchmark Shows DLSS 5 Drops 4K Performance by Up to 26%

Crimson Desert has been tested with an unofficial early implementation of NVIDIA’s DLSS 5 neural rendering technology, revealing a noticeable performance trade-off on the GeForce RTX 5090. According to GameGPU, the game produced between 39 and 43 FPS at native 4K with DLAA before the technology was enabled.

With the early DLSS 5 implementation active, performance dropped to around 30 to 32 FPS, representing a 23% to 26% reduction. The RTX 5090 remained at 100% GPU utilization during both tests, while the neural rendering process worked directly on the native-resolution image rather than relying on conventional upscaling.

The benchmark also reported visual improvements, particularly in fine foliage, grass, stone surfaces, character faces, and clothing textures. NVIDIA describes DLSS 5 as a real-time neural rendering technology designed to add more realistic lighting and materials to games.

Crimson Desert is developed by Pearl Abyss and is available on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.