Skip to main content
Newsletter IconGoogle IconFacebook IconX IconInstagram IconYouTube Icon
Giveaway: MONTECH Heritage PRO case, 240mm AIO, and 850W PSU Bundle

Modders get NVIDIA Smooth Motion running on RTX 30 GPUs without official support

Two unofficial projects experimentally bring NVIDIA Smooth Motion to RTX 30 GPUs, extending driver-level frame generation to older Ampere cards.

Modders get NVIDIA Smooth Motion running on RTX 30 GPUs without official support
Facebook IconX IconReddit Icon
Comments
Senior Tech Reporter
Published
1 minute & 45 seconds read time
TL;DR: Unofficial community projects have made NVIDIA Smooth Motion work on RTX 30 GPUs, despite official support being limited to RTX 40- and RTX 50-series cards. The experimental mods use different methods, work in some games and emulators, but still face crashes, visual artifacts, and compatibility issues.
Voice: Hassam Nasir
0:00 / 3:14
Use left and right arrow keys to seek audio.

Two community projects have unofficially brought NVIDIA's Smooth Motion frame-generation technology to GeForce RTX 30 GPUs. While NVIDIA officially supports Smooth Motion only on RTX 40- and RTX 50-series graphics cards, modders have shown that the driver-level technology can also run on RTX 30-series hardware.

NVIDIA Smooth Motion is a driver-level AI frame-interpolation technology that creates an additional frame between two rendered frames, making gameplay appear smoother.

Modders get NVIDIA Smooth Motion running on RTX 30 GPUs without official support 2

Unlike DLSS Frame Generation, Smooth Motion can be applied to games without native frame-generation support. This is because it does not rely on game-engine-supplied motion vector data, making it work across a wider range of titles, including emulators.

The first project, dlssg_for_sm86-MFG-version, builds on an existing community-made compatibility layer that brought DLSS Frame Generation to RTX 30-series GPUs. Its latest version expands that work by adding support for NVIDIA Smooth Motion, which can be enabled through NVIDIA Profile Inspector on Ampere hardware.

Modders get NVIDIA Smooth Motion running on RTX 30 GPUs without official support 3

The project uses a proxy DLL placed alongside the game's rendering executable and also adds Vulkan support to the existing DLSS-G compatibility layer. Testing has confirmed Smooth Motion on an RTX 3070, with additional RTX 3080 testing showing the feature working in several games and emulators. However, users have also reported compatibility issues and visual artifacts.

The second project, NVSmooth30 by ItsAdeline, takes a different approach with a clean-room compatibility layer designed to run NVIDIA's existing NvPresent64.dll Smooth Motion path on Ampere hardware.

Rather than extending the existing DLSS-G mod, it patches GPU capability checks, intercepts the CUDA loading path, and retargets compatible SM89 kernels for SM86 hardware used by RTX 30-series GPUs. It also includes an experimental DirectX 11-to-DirectX 12 presentation bridge.

Modders get NVIDIA Smooth Motion running on RTX 30 GPUs without official support 4

NVSmooth30 was first demonstrated on an RTX 3050 Laptop GPU, while another user has reported getting it working on an RTX 3070. The developer describes the project as experimental, with compatibility still being tested across different GPUs, games, and driver versions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Open a question for an answer from TweakTown's coverage of this news, or ask your own below.

Question #1

How do dlssg_for_sm86-MFG-version and NVSmooth30 differ in how they enable Smooth Motion on RTX 30 GPUs?

dlssg_for_sm86-MFG-version extends an existing community DLSS Frame Generation compatibility layer, then adds Smooth Motion support so it can be turned on through NVIDIA Profile Inspector on Ampere hardware. It works by using a proxy DLL alongside the game and adding Vulkan support to that mod. NVSmooth30 takes a different route with a clean-room compatibility layer that runs NVIDIA's NvPresent64.dll Smooth Motion path on Ampere by patching GPU checks, intercepting CUDA loading, and retargeting SM89 kernels for SM86 hardware.
Question #2

Which RTX 30-series cards have actually been tested with Smooth Motion so far?

So far, Smooth Motion has been tested on an RTX 3050 Laptop GPU, an RTX 3070, and an RTX 3080. The RTX 3070 appears in both projects, while the 3080 was reported working in several games and emulators.
Question #3

Can NVIDIA Smooth Motion be enabled in games that only use DirectX 11, or does it need DirectX 12?

Question #4

Does Smooth Motion work in emulators as well as native PC games on Ampere hardware?

Have a question that isn't listed here? Ask below, and TweakBot will answer it.

Despite the successful demonstrations, both projects remain unofficial and experimental, with compatibility varying across games and hardware. Crashes, visual artifacts, and potential anti-cheat conflicts show that the implementations still need refinement. For now, it's more reasonable to try these mods with single-player games.

Photo of the MSI Gaming GeForce RTX 3060 Ventus 2X 12G OC V1 Graphics Card

Best Deals: MSI Gaming GeForce RTX 3060 Ventus 2X 12G OC V1 Graphics Card

Prices last scanned 54 minutes ago

* Prices may be inaccurate. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. We earn affiliate commissions from Newegg and PCCG sales.

Join Our Newsletter

Join the TweakTown Newsletter for daily tech updates delivered to your inbox.

See previous giveaways.

News Source:videocardz.com

Comments

About the author

Senior Tech Reporter

Hassam is a veteran tech journalist and editor with over eight years of experience embedded in the consumer electronics industry. His obsession with hardware began with childhood experiments involving semiconductors, a curiosity that evolved into a career dedicated to deconstructing the complex silicon that powers our world. From benchmarking PC internals to stress-testing flagship CPUs and GPUs, Hassam specializes in translating high-level engineering into deep, unbiased insights for the enthusiast community.

Stay Updated

Follow TweakTown for breaking tech news, reviews, and daily updates.

Follow TweakTown on GoogleAdd TweakTown as a preferred source on Google
Newsletter Subscription