Fragmentary Order Could Use DLSS 5, but Nikita Buyanov Says the Technology Still Needs More Work
Nikita Buyanov, the creator of Escape From Tarkov and now the driving force behind Fragmentary Order, says his new extraction shooter could adopt NVIDIA’s DLSS 5, but only if the technology is ready and proves useful in practice. In a recent interview with GamesBeat, Buyanov said the team would “bring it in” if it is available, while also making clear that he is not ready to embrace it blindly and believes the technology still needs “many additional changes.”
That response is important because it reflects a more measured attitude than the usual all in or all out debate that often surrounds new AI related graphics features. Buyanov did not reject DLSS 5, but he also did not present it as an automatic win for development. Instead, his comments suggest a wait and see approach, where the studio is open to using the feature if it matures into something practical and controllable for real game production.
The timing also matters. NVIDIA officially unveiled DLSS 5 in March 2026 and said it is planned for launch in fall 2026. According to NVIDIA, DLSS 5 introduces a real time neural rendering model designed to improve lighting and material realism, which puts it in a different category from the more familiar upscaling and frame generation features players already know. That means developers looking at the technology today are still evaluating something early in its public lifecycle rather than a fully settled standard.
Buyanov’s wording lines up with that reality. In the GamesBeat interview, he said he is interested in additions through DLSS beyond what he described as a total overhaul of the picture, and stressed that the technology has only just been shown publicly. That is a notable distinction because it suggests his team is not simply chasing the headline value of DLSS 5, but trying to understand which parts of the stack could actually support the kind of experience Fragmentary Order wants to deliver.
From an industry point of view, this may be one of the more realistic reactions developers can have right now. NVIDIA is clearly positioning DLSS 5 as a major graphics leap, but studios still need to judge how it fits their pipelines, art direction, and gameplay priorities. In Buyanov’s case, that caution feels especially relevant because Fragmentary Order is being framed as a demanding, high tension extraction shooter from a new studio, Rant Gaming Studios, rather than a safer mainstream project built around broad accessibility. GamesBeat reported that around 130 developers are working on the game under that new banner, with publisher Cor3 attached to the project.
The interview also reinforces that Buyanov wants Fragmentary Order to occupy a very specific part of the shooter space. When asked about comparisons to ARC Raiders, he drew a clear line between the 2 games and said his team is aiming for “the most painful, most challenging, and most rewarding experience.” That philosophy makes his stance on DLSS 5 even more interesting, because it implies any new visual or AI driven feature will have to serve the core tone and gameplay identity of the project, not just act as a marketing checkbox.
For now, the takeaway is straightforward. Fragmentary Order is open to DLSS 5, but not committed to it. Buyanov’s comments do not read like a full endorsement of NVIDIA’s newest push. They read like a developer’s practical response to an emerging technology that still has to prove itself in real world production. That may not be the loudest reaction in the current AI debate, but it is probably one of the most useful.
Do you want upcoming shooters like Fragmentary Order to adopt DLSS 5 early, or would you rather studios wait until the technology is more mature?
