Emissive surfaces (like neon signs or glowing fires) cast actual light onto the environment. What Makes Version 0.36.1 Special?
If you want, I can provide a short per-game preset recommendation (pick a game and your GPU).
Unlike native ray tracing solutions embedded by developers via DirectX Raytracing (DXR) or Vulkan, ReShade RTGI is a post-processing injector. It works by intercepting the game's and rendering calls.
: It calculates how light from a source (like the sun) reflects off surfaces to illuminate nearby shadowed areas. Ambient Occlusion
: Brightly colored surfaces will "bleed" their hue onto nearby objects, just as they would in real life. Key Improvements in 0.36.1 Reshade Rtgi 0.36.1
RTGI 0.36.1 introduced substantial improvements over earlier versions like 0.17 or 0.33, focusing on both visual fidelity and performance optimization.
| Setting | What it does | Recommended start | |--------|--------------|------------------| | | Ray sample count (Low = noisy, High = slower) | Medium or High | | Radius | How far light bounces (small = local, large = room-scale) | 0.4 – 0.8 | | Bounce Intensity | Brightness of indirect light | 0.6 – 1.2 | | Bounce Saturation | Color bleed strength (red brick reflecting red onto wall) | 0.3 – 0.6 | | Ambient Occlusion Mix | Blends SSAO-style darkening with GI | 0.4 – 0.7 | | Temporal Amount | Reduces flicker using previous frames | 0.65 – 0.85 (higher = less noise, more ghosting) |
The paid RTGI (v0.37+) is objectively better – less noise, faster, motion vectors. But:
: Replaces standard AO with ray-traced micro-shadows, adding depth to grass, corners, and character details that traditional shaders miss. Performance Optimization Emissive surfaces (like neon signs or glowing fires)
This paper provides an in-depth analysis of the "RTGI" (Ray Traced Global Illumination) shader developed by Pascal Gilcher, specifically focusing on version 0.36.1 within the ReShade post-processing framework. As the gaming industry moves toward hardware-accelerated ray tracing, a significant portion of the user base relies on older hardware (GPUs lacking dedicated RT cores). The RTGI shader addresses this gap by implementing a screen-space path tracer that approximates global illumination and ambient occlusion in real-time. This document explores the technical architecture of the shader, its implementation of temporal accumulation, user configuration parameters in version 0.36.1, and the inherent limitations of screen-space rendering techniques.
By applying this to older titles (e.g., The Witcher 3 , Skyrim ), it brings them closer to the visual quality of modern path-traced games. Performance and Setup: 0.36.1 Requirements
Navigate to your game’s installation directory where the game .exe resides. Open the reshade-shaders folder.
The shader analyzes the 3D depth map of your current screen view. It casts virtual light rays from light sources, calculates how they hit objects, and simulates realistic light bounces, color bleeding, and ambient occlusion. What’s New in 0.36.1? Unlike native ray tracing solutions embedded by developers
Before installing RTGI 0.36.1, ensure your system and game meet the following criteria:
Download the latest version of ReShade from the official website ( reshade.me ).
Note: While it uses ray-tracing principles, RTGI runs via software shaders. You do not strictly need dedicated hardware RTX tensor cores to run it, though modern architecture greatly improves performance. Step-by-Step Installation Guide