Hello ladies and gents,

I created this thread for some modifications of visual effects, by using ReShade v3.4.0 (a third-party-software).
For the Crax and Pro's, that's still nothing new, but for everyone else, here's my part.

Short Intro: ReShade is a Grafic-Tweak, to add and adjust some effects to (supported) games, who aren't included, like Depth-Of-Field or Fog f.e. and that's cool and impacting.
This software is very powerful and you can get the best high end graficcards down on their knies, with the correct settings and adjustments.
You can add graficeffects to a lot of games, like f.e. Tom Clancy's GHOST RECON: Wildlands, Final Fantasy XV, Jurassic World: Evolution and Endless Space 2 of cause, but there're many more to explore and improve.

I like and enjoy it the most, to improve also older games like Command & Conquer f.e., because it's an improved gameexperience.

Quick Install-Guide
1) Download ReShade
2) Install as admin
3) Choose Endless Space 2.exe
4) Choose DX10+
5) Install some libraries (at least you need:)
- AdaptiveSharpen
- Bloom
- HDR
- FilmGrain
- TiltShift (I use it only for photos, but feel free to experiment.)
6) Download and extract my profile.ini
7) Choose my profile.ini
8) Enjoy

Let me share some photos, from the adjustments I made, with you.

Here are some more, where you can see the effects the more better:

The fp/s-Impact on Endless Space 2 is not as hard as in other games.
I like the God-Streams and Lens-Flares the most, but for some shoots, it's the best to toggle TiltShift on.

Okay, that's it, I hope you enjoy it.

Greetz @ All.

Hello @ All,

yeah it's me again!

Today I will share a video with a short visual "Install-Guide" and after that few steps, I will show you how the game looks like "Ingame" with the options active and deactive.

The options and overlays explained

1) AdaptiveSharpen

This is the first adjustment I made, because in some scenes/cases, the game looks like a lil bit washed-out/blurred or too unsharp. I increased the sharpness lightly, without oversharpen oversampling. You can increase the sharpness a lil bit, I left space for increasement.


2) Bloom

There're 2 different types of Bloom used: 1'st Bloom, 2'nd MagicBloom.
- By Bloom, I added a Lensflare, Godstreams and specific Bloom to the game.
- By MagicBloom, I added some overall Bloom, like an overlay, with Display- or Windowdirt on it.


3) Filmgrain (1)

This adds some cinematic-look on the game, which is kind of epic.


4) HDR (FakeHDR)

This way I added some more contrast and compensated the unwanted sideeffects by Bloom, which make the complete image more brighter. This option adds more powerful colors too.


[5) Tiltshift

Like I wrote in my mainthread, this is used to add some blur to the image for the more impressive ingame-shots only. - The TiltShift or MagicDOF settings are the best options of ReShade, but also the most impacting! - MagicDOF, I use the most in other games, because this adds a great visual experience to "every" game, where this is not basically included, but it's extremely advanced demanding for the hardware.]


At least let me introduce some more interesting options and possibilities, as they are:
- SMAA an additional antialiasing option for oversampling with a lot of fine-adjustments
- FXAA an additional antialiasing option for oversampling with a lot of fine-adjustments
- MFAA an additional oversampling too - keep in mind, this impacts to the performance, but if you play older games and looking for a more antialiased edge-detection, there you go!

- Bloom - I have to introduce this option, because it's so powerful, you can't imagine! - Window with dirt like waterdrops on it, this option gives you the possibility for it - and you can exchange this overlaypicture (.png) for everything you want, like an iced-window or something like that, it's great.

ReShade is a kind of NextGen-Tweaker, because of options like GodStreams - you never experienced that like in Command & Conquer: Tiberium Wars, right? - It's looking so much better like it's a re-mastered version from last week, I would say!

It's just the way SweetFX is working, but you got the tool, to make it the way you want and the more you use it, the more experienced and advanced you get automatic with the possible options, because it's also fun to play with the options, to explore their effects.
It gives you the freedom and independence, to deactivate some ingame-gfc-settings, who may stress your hardware too hard or make it impossible for your rig, to keep playing at 30fp/s+. Then, you could use it, to add a specific and fine-adjusted degree of AntiAliasing to the game, to get the best perfomance in combination with the best possible gameexperience by your rig.

That's what ReShade is offering and beside of that - it's OpenSource and for free!

Let's get straight to the video...

...it's currently in production...

Edit:

Hello everybody, hope you had a good time so far!

I'm very sorry, but after a couple times of trying, I stoped working on a video for a visual demonstration, because of many problems which occured.
First of all - XSplit for recording, audiosource not found or bad interferences on microphone-source. Adjusted ingame-sound-volume after the first check - restarted the game and adjusted the output-volume, made the video and checked the videofile... the ingame-volume was too loud again, against my understanding.

But, I won't leave you, without compensation.
I've edited my favourite DirtOverlay, which I will share with you and I've created a complete new LenzflareOverlay, with some different styles.

DirtOverlay:

BEFORE:

Here are the new created LenzFlares:

BEFORE:

Don't forget to rename the files!
(EDITED)

brighter-sunflare.png into LensSprite.png

brighter-sunflare-without-dirt.png into LensSprite.png
dirt-template.png into LensDOV.png + MagicBloom_Dirt.png

lensflare-without-dirt.png into LensSprite.png

my-own-lensflare.png into LensSprite.png

That's how it looks like:

You can add this to other games, who are modded with ReShade as well:

I hope you like it and I'm sorry.

Greetz,

Reaper

UPDATE NEWS

Hello everybody,

I can report finally, and I'm really happy, that everything worked fine this time, that I'm uploading right Now, the promised videos on Youtube. I would release it here directly, but I guess the data is too much to do so, I'm sry for that complication, but it's limited here.

So.... the first part with the basic installation way and the advanced way for Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars is currently uploading right behind follows then, the second part, with additional exchanges of textures, for my own created LenzFlare(s) and Dirttexture.

Part 1: Watch me...

I hope you can understand my spelling, I'm not that good in english today, but I tried my very best, sry.

With best wishes,
Reaper

UPDATE NEWS

Hello everyone,

you might have been waiting for the second part on Youtube?

1) 1'st Upload ended with errors (>2,5mbit upstreams...)

2) Deleated the demaged video (who was never ending in conversion process)

3) Uploaded again

4) "Ooops something went wrong - this video is already on our servers!" (really?! - I didn't deleated the video - or did I... hello?!)

5) "You have to exchange at least one frame in the file, to be able to upload it again..."

6) - I resurrected my Adobe Premiere PRO and created a video with every standard included - Intro... and eveything else.

Table of Content

00:24:41 ReShade Ingame

Bonus Content

00:43:38 Compare Images

00:47:47 Windows 10 Dreamscenes

Part 2: Watch me...

I hope you like it, then enjoy it!

Greetz,

Reaper

The Story Continues...

Hello Ladies and Gents,

you might be one of the bitten in Germany, who is suffering under the heat (like me), then "Welcome in Hell".

Back to basic...

I was busy and on fire, to increase a lot of games, with ReShade too and I liked the idea, to increase a game more in a cinematic look, with a taste of Miniature Wonderland by DOF and so far so good.

I experience sometimes, that the options by ReShade are working completely different from game to game and you can't get the other games as looking good as the other. This is one thing I don't really understand, maybe because of Engine-Limitations or the shaders working different, who knows - it's sometimes a crack to get the games running like I want.

But this only as a sidenote, I don't want to flame around.

Now I got some more images for comparison:

Is someone in knowing of the game called "Dying Daylight"?

It's a Zombi-Apocalypse, like the series "The Walking Dead" and it has been released on January 2015 the 17'th - it's currently 3 years old, but ... it's overlays and shaders are astauning, because a 3 years old game, looks like NextGen and many actual games today, can't keep up to this!

At the release, my pityful old rig wasn't able to handle the game properly, but my rig today is perfect to handle it softly. I got between 90- and 120fps @1920x1080p with all options activated and settings at max. - I got also between 70- and 90fps with DSR-Factor at 2k/4k and that screamed me directly in my face "Do Some ReShade!!" and yeah, I did - watch:

Dying Daylight:

Vanilla: (without ingame film grain, because I used AdaptiveSharpen as well as FilmicAnamorphSharpen and this both options, are increasing the sharpness of the film grain too, but that strong, that it becomes unbearable coarse... I compared this deactivation by ReShade FilmGrain addaption.)

Vanilla/\ReShade(d)

Now let me show you really Cinematic Images of Jurassic World: Evolution...

Vanilla/\ReShade(d)

The gameplay is completely different to Vanilla, it's like a Minature Wonderland, you are playing with - strange but awesome!

"...hmmm... could you please share your presets?..."

-Yes I could, if someone asks for it, of cause.

Thanks ladies and gents, it was a pleasure (again),

c ya - till next time!