Nvidia, AMD, and Intel have all embraced AI-powered techniques to improve their graphics capabilities. Now, Arm has stepped into the competition with its newly introduced Arm Accuracy Super Resolution (Arm ASR) technology, which builds upon a concept initially developed by AMD.
Originally designed for mobile GPUs rather than PCs, Arm ASR was demonstrated by Arm in Unreal Engine 5, running its desktop renderer on a mobile platform.
During the showcase, Arm ASR enhanced the rendering engine’s performance by 30 percent. This suggests that Arm’s partners—such as Qualcomm with its Snapdragon PCs—could potentially leverage the technology to accelerate PC graphics in the future.
First announced a year ago, Arm ASR is officially launching today as a plugin for Unreal Engine. A Unity plugin is also in the works and is set to become available later this year. Arm has expressed its intention to bring Arm ASR to additional platforms, though it has not specified which ones or provided a timeline for the expansion.
Arm ASR is based on AMD’s FidelityFX Super Resolution 2 (FSR 2), an earlier and more straightforward version of AMD’s upscaling technology.
FSR 2 enhances frame rates by processing lower-resolution images and upscaling them. While later versions—such as FSR 3 and FSR 4—have incorporated frame generation, Arm ASR employs temporal upscaling, which is considered a more advanced approach.
Arm showcased Arm ASR in a newly released demonstration video:
According to Arm, integrating Arm ASR into a game is straightforward. Developers need only enable the ASR plugin, adjust project settings to utilize Temporal Anti-Aliasing, and confirm the integration.
Snapdragon PC Chips“Prominent game studios, including Enduring Games, Infold Games, and Sumo Digital, have integrated Arm ASR into their development processes, leading to improved game performance at the same visual quality,” Arm stated.
However, it remains uncertain whether licensees such as Qualcomm will have access to Arm ASR, especially in light of the ongoing legal dispute between the two companies.
Last week, Qualcomm revealed that it had submitted two additional briefs in its legal battle against Arm. Although the case was largely resolved in Qualcomm’s favor after Arm unexpectedly attempted to revoke Qualcomm’s IP license, some claims remain unresolved.
One of the new motions seeks a ruling against Arm in the ongoing IP trial, while the other supports Qualcomm’s separate lawsuit against Arm for breach of contract.
In response to inquiries regarding Qualcomm’s access to ASR technology, Geraint North, vice president of developer platforms at Arm, declined to comment.
“We don’t comment on specific partners, however Arm Accuracy Super Resolution (Arm ASR) is now open-source and available to all developers to experience the benefits of Arm ASR in their mobile games and graphics projects,” he stated in an email.
“To best support this community, we want to make Arm ASR as performant and portable as possible, maximizing the number of upscaling options that developers can choose from,” North added. “Arm ASR is not tied to any particular GPU implementation, and we test across a range of devices to ensure a good experience.”
Despite these advancements, the Windows on Arm platform has historically faced challenges with gaming due to compatibility issues. As Qualcomm and the broader Arm ecosystem work to address these concerns, Arm ASR has the potential to make gaming on Arm more appealing to both developers and consumers.
