I'm using a KTC M27T6 that I believe is calibrated reasonably well for HDR. I usually leave Windows HDR enabled and set local dimming to Auto. However, HDR looks disappointing in many games: Red Dead Redemption 2 has weak colors except in dark scenes, the latest Gears title has a washed-out or yellowish filter, and Pragmata looks similarly dull. Even gameplay videos recorded with an iPhone seem to show HDR looking worse than SDR. Is there something wrong with my display or settings, or is HDR simply poorly implemented in many PC games?
5 Answers
My conclusion was that HDR gaming can look excellent in a few games but is too inconsistent to leave enabled blindly. Cyberpunk 2077 is a good example of a title where the whole pipeline works together, while other games need patches, mods, or extensive tweaking. If you switch games frequently, using SDR may simply be the less frustrating option.
A lot of PC games have mediocre HDR implementations, and Windows adds another layer that can make things inconsistent. It’s worth running the Windows HDR Calibration app and checking the game’s peak brightness, paper white, and black level settings. Some titles may still look bad because their HDR output is simply poorly designed.
Tools such as RenoDX or SpecialK can improve HDR in games with broken or weak implementations by replacing the game’s tone mapping. They can make a big difference in certain titles, but the downside is that you may need to configure things separately for each game.
The display matters too. Many monitors advertise HDR but lack enough sustained brightness, contrast, or effective local dimming to show it properly. OLED tends to make the benefits much more obvious, although even OLED can’t fix a game with poor HDR support. HDR generally looks more reliable in movies and on consoles because the formats and calibration path are more standardized.
HDR isn’t supposed to mean unnaturally vivid colors everywhere. Its main benefit is a wider brightness range, especially for highlights and dark scenes. If you’re used to SDR being pushed with high saturation and contrast, properly toned HDR can initially look gray or muted. That said, a good HDR display and a well-mastered game should still produce noticeably brighter highlights and more detail in difficult lighting.
That’s pretty much my experience too. I like HDR when it works, but having to adjust Windows and in-game settings every time is enough to make SDR more appealing.