GameOverlay vs ReShade

GameOverlay is a free Windows utility that places performance statistics over games. It can display FPS, 1% and 0.1% low FPS, ping, packet loss, and CPU and GPU usage and temperatures. FPS capture uses bundled Intel PresentMon, and low-FPS figures are calculated from frame times. In Auto mode, network monitoring identifies a game server from traffic and pings the address exchanging the most packets with the game. Each metric has its own visibility control and color picker; users can also adjust position, font, size, opacity, and background box. The overlay stays on top, allows clicks to pass through, and saves changes to a configuration file. Downloads include a standalone executable and a folder ZIP, and the project documents running from source with Python 3.10 or later on Windows. Administrator access is required for CPU temperature readings, FPS capture, and ping detection; declining it can leave those readings unavailable. The overlay cannot draw over exclusive-fullscreen games, so the maker recommends borderless or windowed fullscreen mode. The project is MIT licensed, and the bundled sensor library is under MPL 2.0.

ReShade is free post-processing software for games and video applications on Linux and Windows. It adds effects such as SMAA antialiasing, screen space ambient occlusion, depth of field, chromatic aberration, film grain, color correction, and multi-pass blurring. Supported graphics APIs are Direct3D 9, 10, 11, and 12, OpenGL, and Vulkan. ReShade FX is the project’s shading language and compiler, based on HLSL, with support for textures, render states, color and depth data, timers, and key states. Shaders can be authored once for the supported APIs and compiled into HLSL, GLSL, or SPIR-V as appropriate. An add-on API supports ReShade and the games using it; full add-on support is available in an unsigned build. Multiplayer sessions automatically disable depth access to prevent exploitation. ReShade has been open source under the BSD 3-clause license since January 1, 2017. The site states version 6.8.0 was released on August 2, 2026. Windows requirements include Windows 7 SP1, 8.1, 10, or 11 and .NET Framework 4.8.