I analyzed Intel's new XeSS 2 technology to assess its performance against DLSS 3.

Intel quickly disabled its new XeSS 2 feature after its introduction alongside the Arc B580 graphics card, but it has now been reactivated through a driver update that also addresses significant issues. With the Arc B580, which has rapidly climbed among the best graphics cards, I conducted tests to see if XeSS 2 lives up to its promises.

XeSS 2 represents Intel's effort to compete with Nvidia's very popular DLSS 3. While the scaling foundation is similar, XeSS 2 incorporates a latency-reducing feature known as XeLL, which is enabled by default alongside frame generation. Intel has promised that frame generation will be available in games like Marvel Rivals and upcoming releases like Assassin’s Creed Shadows, although it can currently only be utilized in F1 2024.

Starting with the positives, XeSS 2 proves to be effective in enhancing performance. In my tests, I found that the scaling can match the quality of DLSS depending on the game. F1 2024 turns out to be an excellent example of both scaling and frame generation. At 4K with Ultra High settings, the Arc B580 achieves 29 fps, and with XeSS 2 enabled in performance mode, it reaches an impressive 95 fps, tripling performance. While you can't achieve over 60 fps with scaling or frame generation alone, lower resolutions can yield triple-digit frame rates, a significant accomplishment for a $250 graphics card.

The performance overhead when using frame generation is surprisingly small. For instance, at 1440p, a native performance of 49 fps is obtained, and by enabling frame generation, it theoretically doubles to 98 fps. However, the actual result was 86 fps, showing a loss of only 12 fps. It's relevant to note that frame generation works better at lower resolutions, where scaling is limited by a possible CPU bottleneck, whereas frame generation is not affected by this.

The image quality is surprisingly good, especially compared to the early versions of DLSS 3. However, I found minor issues, such as glitches in the names appearing above the cars, suggesting that Intel needs to fine-tune the masking of XeSS 2 to smooth out the image.

Despite the positives, issues remain. Activating XeSS often causes the game to freeze for five to ten seconds, a problem not present with DLSS or AMD's FSR. In my tests, disabling XeSS-FG resulted in a complete crash of F1 2024. Additionally, performance drops became noticeable, leading to inputs taking up to 30 seconds to reflect, necessitating multiple game restarts.

Another drawback is the limited number of games that currently support XeSS 2. While future additions are anticipated, the restricted availability and present technical issues suggest that Intel is conducting tests before a broader release. I hope these issues are resolved before XeSS 2 is implemented in more titles, as its initial performance is quite promising.