ReShade is a customizable plugin that allows you to add post-processing graphical effects (like ambient occlusion and color correction) to games that don’t support those options by default, and can be used with most PC games. Many players have used this software with great success, but those who are done with the program might have trouble figuring out how to uninstall ReShade.
In this short guide, we’re going to go over what this third-party software can add to your games, and how you can uninstall it if you decide that it simply isn’t right for you.
What Does ReShade Do?
You can use ReShade to achieve some pretty stunning visuals in your games, and the software gives you total control over a number of settings that will let you tweak the graphics of your favorite games to your precise specifications.
Below is a comparison image that shows what a different ReShade can make in a game like Grand Theft Auto V:
However, using ReShade does have a few drawbacks. The biggest issue is the performance hit your PC will take, as ReShade can add quite a bit of strain to your GPU.
If you decide that ReShade simply isn’t sustainable with your rig or is causing too many problems with your games, you can uninstall it. But the process for doing so isn’t very obvious like it is with other programs.
How to Uninstall Reshade
ReShade may seem pretty intimidating to uninstall, especially if you installed it manually. But doing so is as simple as removing the files it added to your game directory — specifically, the .dll file and the associated .ini file.
To access these files, you’ll need to go to each game’s directory until you see something that looks like this:
Once you’ve navigated to the right folder, the filenames you’ll see depend on which graphics API you selected when you installed ReShade.
Look for the following files in your game folder and delete them:
- d3d8.dll
- d3d8.ini
- d3d9.dll
- d3d9.ini
- d3d10.dll
- d3d10.ini
- d3d11.dll
- d3d11.ini
- dxgi.dll
- dxgi.ini
Lastly, delete the folder named reshade-shaders and if you have it, reshade-presets.
If you follow these steps for a Steam game, make sure you verify the game files afterwards so that you can restore anything that was lost upon installing this program in the first place.
After that, your game should be ReShade free!
—
If you don’t want to uninstall Reshade entirely, but do want to improve how it performs with your game, check out our guide to using ReShade with all your favorite games for any tips and tricks you might need.
