NVIDIA just pushed GeForce Game Ready Driver 596.49 for Windows 10 and 11, primarily targeting the frame pacing stutter that breaks DLSS Frame Generation when V-Sync is turned on. The update also adds official DLSS and RTX optimizations for Forza Horizon 6, Directive 8020, and Subnautica 2, so those titles will load faster and apply the correct rendering paths automatically. Creative professionals will benefit from a quiet patch that finally stops the viewport flickering issue in Foundry Mari 7.0v2. Installing the driver through the standard express setup handles everything cleanly without forcing manual component selection or registry tweaks.
GeForce Game Ready Driver 596.49 Fixes DLSS Frame Generation Stutter and Adds New Game Support
NVIDIA just pushed out GeForce Game Ready Driver 596.49 for Windows 10 and Windows 11, and the main reason to care is the fix for DLSS Frame Generation stutter when V-Sync is turned on. The update also adds official support for DLSS and RTX in Forza Horizon 6, Directive 8020, and Subnautica 2. It is a straightforward release that targets actual performance pain points instead of packing in unnecessary telemetry or bloat.
GeForce Game Ready Driver 596.49 DLSS and V-Sync Smoothness Fix
The stutter that happens when combining DLSS Frame Generation with V-Sync has been a known annoyance for months. NVIDIA tracked this under issue 5999586 and finally cleaned up the frame pacing logic. Users who rely on G-Sync or FreeSync but still want to cap frame rates to reduce input lag will notice a more consistent frame delivery. The fix works by aligning the frame generation pipeline with the monitor refresh cycle instead of fighting it. It is common to see frame pacing break after a bad driver update, and this release finally closes that gap. The improvement does not show up in synthetic benchmarks but makes daily gaming feel noticeably better.
New Game Support and RTX Features
This release officially recognizes Forza Horizon 6, Directive 8020, and Subnautica 2 in the Game Ready Driver profile. The driver now ships with optimized shader caches and preset configurations for DLSS and RTX features in those titles. Installing the update means games launch faster and apply the correct rendering path without manual config edits. The driver profile updates are essentially just a way to tell the GPU driver which optimization bundles to load on first launch. NVIDIA usually forces users to manually tweak settings for new releases, but this one handles the heavy lifting automatically.
Foundry Mari Viewport Flickering Fix
The update also patches a viewport flickering issue in Foundry Mari 7.0v2. This one matters more for artists and technical users than average gamers. The flicker usually happens when the application tries to redraw UI elements over a hardware-accelerated viewport. NVIDIA cleaned up the OpenGL and DirectX interop layer to stop the driver from fighting the render loop. Creative professionals who rely on Mari for texture work will appreciate the quieter background fix. It is rare to see NVIDIA address niche creative software bugs, but this one shows the team is actually reading developer reports.
How to Install Without Breaking Things
Download the installer directly from NVIDIA and run it with the standard express setup. The driver will quietly replace the old files and reboot the system. It is worth checking the display adapter properties in Device Manager after the reboot to confirm the driver version matches 596.49. Skipping the express setup and trying to manually pick components usually just adds registry clutter without any real benefit. The update installs cleanly on both Windows 10 and Windows 11 without requiring third-party cleanup tools.
GeForce Game Ready Driver 596.49
Driver Version: 596.49 | WHQL Release Date: Tue May 12, 2026 Operating System: Windows 10 64-bit,
Windows 11Language: English (US) File Size: 958.81 MB
The update is ready to roll out. Let the background tasks finish and jump back into the games that actually matter.
