Version 0.9 is up on Nexus. If you face issues please revert to use 0.8.10
Important Information.
The game will always now start in fullscreen borderless windowed mode. Resolution changes no longer effect it. This is due to upgrading to a flipmodel swapchain to support HDR rendering and frame pacing.
If you want to have the old swapchain model back with windowed mode and ability to change resolution. Follow instructions below
FAQ : 1 . How do I update the Mod? When updating to a new version of the lighting engine. Always make sure to delete "shader" folder and "dxgi.dll" file from your Game folder. Then paste the new contents of the rar into your game folder. If you are having a custom lighting setup. Make sure not to copy the ds2le_atmosphere_presets dir from the rar file.
2. I am facing Flickering on the screen. Especially in bright spots. How do I fix it? This is caused by having overlays enabled like Steam or Geforce experience. Disabling that should help fix the issue, The mod is compatible with OBS only currently.
3. How do I turn on HDR Monitor Support ?
Enable HDR in Windows 10/11. But ensure "Auto HDR" is not enabled.
Enable HDR Monitor support in LE. F1 menu. Restart your game.
4. How do I set the HDR Monitor Brightness value setting ?
You can set it to your rated monitor output. Or to a value lower than that . There are youtube videos to help you calibrate your monitor.
5. My UI is too bright/dark. How do I fix it
There is a UI slider which is used when HDR Monitor output is enabled.
6. How do I recover a game crashing on launch? Or Allow enable use of DSR? or Use the existing swapchain ? or are facing stuttering issues after upgrade to 0.9xx ? or use a resolution other than my monitor native resolution ?
If the mod UI is available using F1. Disable flip model swapchain. or Use these settings in "ds2le_user_settings.ini". [UserSwapChainSettingsV2] enable_flip_model_swapchain=0 (0 - old model, 1 - flip model) enable_variable_refresh_rate=0 (1 - if you have gsync/freesync monitor) framerate=60.000000 (Ignored if "frame_limiter_policy " is set to "0") frame_limiter_policy=0 (0 - Game frame limiter, 1 - Before render , 2 - after render)
Note : - On Steam deck. Enabling Flipmodel swapchain seems to cause an FPS drop. Please disable it for Steam deck
7. How do I manually set texture override settings (Applicable only for DSTexoverride.rar) Manual Texoverride Settings - under [User Settings] (No UI for this if you are only using DSTexoverride.rar. Manually edit ds2le_user_settings.ini) texture_cache_allocate_staging_buffer=1 texture_cache_gpu_optimization=1 texture_cache_mode=2 (1 - dump mode, 2 - override mode, 3 - Editor mode - invalid as there is no UI) texture_cache_override_quality=0 (0 is 2k, 1 is 4k)
8. My game appears blurry and is not picking the right resolution. Check the following log in the DirectXHook.log. It should match your monitor resolution. If not please set the DPI aware setting at DarkSoulsII.exe manually. Reported monitor size " Right: xx Left:0 Bottom:x Top:0" Right click DarkSoulsII.exe - > Properties -> Compatibility->Change DPI Settings->Check the "Override High DPI Scaling Behaviour"
9. [Linux] Game does not start or crashes to desktop -Disable "Force the use of a specific steam play compatibility tool"
10. The Image feels a bit washed out on my screen compared to videos shown of the Mod. How do I fix it? All monitors differ from pc to pc and manufacturer to manufacturer. The lighting setup made by a preset maker would be done on their monitor. Hence it may not look the same. To get around this issue, with the release of 0.9.0.9. There are 2 sliders added under monitor controls in user settings. Saturation and Contrast. The settings are applied to all areas automatically and work irrespective if you have and HDR or LDR monitor. These values are added/subtracted on top of what the preset adds per area hence are done before any UI passes or rendering. So adjust these per your taste.
11. Shadows from the Torch/Point/Spotlights seem to be bugged or get an error message (rt_found or has_rt_entry). How do I fix it ? This is usually caused by edits in ModEngine.ini which change shadow resolution. Make sure the following default values are set in modengine.ini Lighting engine will upscale the below values to 2x if shadow quality is set to high in ModUI.
12. On steam deck/other touchpad devices. I can't use F1 menu and don't know how to change user settings. How do I solve it? Latest build of LE (0.9.3.4) has 2 user settings file which come with the rar. 1. Flip model disabled, 100% UI Size and AMD FSR Enabled. 2. Flip model disabled, 80% UI Size and AMD FSR Enabled. Rename one file of choice to ds2le_user_settings.ini and paste it in your game folder.
*NOTE: - I am too lazy to upload a standalone mod so I posted here. Hope LE's OP would include this to make the CUTSCENEs better for everyone who loves DS2!
I have an issue where my characters have weird shadow reflections if they have a full beard. This only happens in bright areas like Majula where the light reflects my beard.
I'm sorry if this has been asked before but would it be possible to only have the FSR + 16:10 features? I'm currently on my first run on steam deck and want to maintain the original look as much as possible. I tried turning everything off/low but the mod is still adding a lot of performance overhead.
Hi, how do I rename the old textures to work with DS2Lightingine? I am trying to convert some older textures from IGP11. Textures with this 65536_7687968109768115494 are successful in conversion. The older ones, such as: 00ac8A3E I can't convert because of how they are named.
Looks underwhelming overall. LODs for shadows suck and the game's frame pacing is constantly hitching like I am playing BB on the PS4. Even if unlocking the fps and manually capping could fix the frame time issues (I didn't test that), the shadows popping in and out only like 10 meters in front of you sucks.
As this black screen bug kept happening to me on a legal version of the game on steam (with over 200hours played, no prior mods installed) as well, i decided to simply verify the game files, then, instead of only dropping the within the installation instruction mentioned files (Copy the "shader" folder, "ds2le_atmosphere_presets" folder , "dxgi.dll" and "nvngx_dlss.dll" to your game directory), i dropped everything from the zip file into my game folder, and now it's working flawlessly. Maybe the installation instruction needs a update on the mods description page? In ether way, hope this helps.
Hello, great mod, everything is top notch. I want you to pay attention to the lighting in the Frigid Outskirts location. Visibility is worse than the original and greatly complicates the passage for players who have never been to this location or have not played DS2, and in the arena with the boss you can't see anything. I think the lighting in this location requires improvement.
The files "dxgi.dll" and "nvngx_dlss.dll" that are supposed to be included in the current .rar file are nowhere to be found, so I can't install the mod.
1997 comments
Important Information.
FAQ :
1 . How do I update the Mod?
When updating to a new version of the lighting engine. Always make sure to delete "shader" folder and "dxgi.dll" file from your Game folder. Then paste the new contents of the rar into your game folder. If you are having a custom lighting setup. Make sure not to copy the ds2le_atmosphere_presets dir from the rar file.
2. I am facing Flickering on the screen. Especially in bright spots. How do I fix it?
This is caused by having overlays enabled like Steam or Geforce experience. Disabling that should help fix the issue, The mod is compatible with OBS only currently.
3. How do I turn on HDR Monitor Support ?
- Enable HDR in Windows 10/11. But ensure "Auto HDR" is not enabled.
- Enable HDR Monitor support in LE. F1 menu. Restart your game.
4. How do I set the HDR Monitor Brightness value setting ?
- You can set it to your rated monitor output. Or to a value lower than that . There are youtube videos to help you calibrate your monitor.
5. My UI is too bright/dark. How do I fix it6. How do I recover a game crashing on launch? Or Allow enable use of DSR? or Use the existing swapchain ? or are facing stuttering issues after upgrade to 0.9xx ? or use a resolution other than my monitor native resolution ?
If the mod UI is available using F1. Disable flip model swapchain.
or
Use these settings in "ds2le_user_settings.ini".
[UserSwapChainSettingsV2]
enable_flip_model_swapchain=0 (0 - old model, 1 - flip model)
enable_variable_refresh_rate=0 (1 - if you have gsync/freesync monitor)
framerate=60.000000 (Ignored if "frame_limiter_policy " is set to "0")
frame_limiter_policy=0 (0 - Game frame limiter, 1 - Before render , 2 - after render)
Note :
- On Steam deck. Enabling Flipmodel swapchain seems to cause an FPS drop. Please disable it for Steam deck
7. How do I manually set texture override settings (Applicable only for DSTexoverride.rar)
Manual Texoverride Settings - under [User Settings] (No UI for this if you are only using DSTexoverride.rar. Manually edit ds2le_user_settings.ini)
texture_cache_allocate_staging_buffer=1
texture_cache_gpu_optimization=1
texture_cache_mode=2 (1 - dump mode, 2 - override mode, 3 - Editor mode - invalid as there is no UI)
texture_cache_override_quality=0 (0 is 2k, 1 is 4k)
8. My game appears blurry and is not picking the right resolution.
Check the following log in the DirectXHook.log. It should match your monitor resolution. If not please set the DPI aware setting at DarkSoulsII.exe manually. Reported monitor size " Right: xx Left:0 Bottom:x Top:0"
Right click DarkSoulsII.exe - > Properties -> Compatibility->Change DPI Settings->Check the "Override High DPI Scaling Behaviour"
9. [Linux] Game does not start or crashes to desktop
-Disable "Force the use of a specific steam play compatibility tool"
10. The Image feels a bit washed out on my screen compared to videos shown of the Mod. How do I fix it?
All monitors differ from pc to pc and manufacturer to manufacturer. The lighting setup made by a preset maker would be done on their monitor. Hence it may not look the same.
To get around this issue, with the release of 0.9.0.9. There are 2 sliders added under monitor controls in user settings. Saturation and Contrast. The settings are applied to all areas automatically and work irrespective if you have and HDR or LDR monitor.
These values are added/subtracted on top of what the preset adds per area hence are done before any UI passes or rendering. So adjust these per your taste.
11. Shadows from the Torch/Point/Spotlights seem to be bugged or get an error message (rt_found or has_rt_entry). How do I fix it ?
This is usually caused by edits in ModEngine.ini which change shadow resolution. Make sure the following default values are set in modengine.ini
Lighting engine will upscale the below values to 2x if shadow quality is set to high in ModUI.
dynamicAtlasShadowResolution=2048
dynamicPointShadowResolution=512
dynamicSpotShadowResolution=1024
12. On steam deck/other touchpad devices. I can't use F1 menu and don't know how to change user settings. How do I solve it?
Latest build of LE (0.9.3.4) has 2 user settings file which come with the rar.
1. Flip model disabled, 100% UI Size and AMD FSR Enabled.
2. Flip model disabled, 80% UI Size and AMD FSR Enabled.
Rename one file of choice to ds2le_user_settings.ini and paste it in your game folder.
FYI I did extract all files to Steam Game folder.
Game utterly unplayable now, as is.
and have you unpacked the game with UXM?
Game started fine...only when loaded existing char.....was unplayable after extracting this mod into game folder.
For those who wish to get rid of the bloodshot and black borders in CUTSCENES
*NOTE:
- I am too lazy to upload a standalone mod so I posted here. Hope LE's OP would include this to make the CUTSCENEs better for everyone who loves DS2!