Nvidia Uses Deep Learning To Improve Zelda: Twilight Princess Textures For Shield TV

This week, Nvidia in a press release revealed that they have released an update for The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess on the Nvidia Shield TV in China which improves over 4,400 textures using their deep learning technology. [Thanks, Chinese Nintendo!]

They released the above comparison picture, with the top representing the original 1080p upscaling done for the original release, compared to the improved textures shown in the second picture.

Since then, Weibo users have compared the textures to those in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD, which released for the Wii U. It seems that Link’s model is from that release, while the textures are massively upgraded but do not reach the level of detail remade for the Wii U version.

Check out comparison pics below (order: Original, upgraded, TPHD):

Finally, we have comparisons of the title screen:

This graphical upgrade is free to those who bought the Shield version in China, but ups the filesize from around 1.3GB to 4.07GB. While Nvidia hasn’t announced whether this deep learning method will be used to improve the other Nintendo titles available on the Chinese Nvidia Shield, it’s a neat showcase of their technology.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess was originally released on Nintendo Gamecube and Nintendo Wii, and is also available on Wii U as Twilight Princess HD. The game is available on the Nvidia Shield TV in China.