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NVIDIA Highlights automatically captures selected gameplay events in supported games; it does not record every match or every game. To use it, enable the NVIDIA in-game overlay, check for Highlights controls in the installed NVIDIA App and the game itself, then review clips in the overlay Gallery or the game’s post-match screen. The exact controls depend on the app version and the game.
What NVIDIA Highlights captures
NVIDIA describes Highlights as a feature that “automatically saves videos of key moments in compatible games.” The game determines which events can trigger a clip: NVIDIA’s older examples include boss fights and killing sprees. Support is not universal, and the official materials cited here do not provide a current, exhaustive list of compatible games. Check the current NVIDIA App and the specific game for support.
Highlights is different from manual recording. NVIDIA describes manual recording as a separate ShadowPlay function: you start and stop a recording yourself, rather than relying on a game event to trigger a Highlights clip. See NVIDIA App’s feature page for its description of capture features.
Set up Highlights in NVIDIA App
- Check the game. Confirm that the title supports NVIDIA Highlights. A game-specific option or enable prompt may also be required; NVIDIA’s historical examples for PUBG and Fortnite used in-game settings.
- Enable the in-game overlay. Open NVIDIA App and check its settings for the in-game overlay. NVIDIA’s 2024 release guide documents opening the overlay with Alt+Z. The current labels and layout may vary with the installed version.
- Find the capture controls. Open the overlay and look for Highlights or related capture settings. Enable Highlights for the game if that control is available. Options such as capture quality, storage limits, and save location may also be available in the overlay.
- Check the game’s own controls. If the game asks to enable Highlights or provides its own replay/highlight setting, follow that instruction as well. NVIDIA’s older GeForce Experience tutorial describes the feature’s earlier controls, but its menu paths are historical and may not match NVIDIA App.
- Play through a supported event, then review the result. Open the overlay Gallery to inspect captures; NVIDIA says the Gallery sorts captures by game. Some titles may instead show highlights in a post-match view.
- Keep the clips you want. Save or manage the clips in the available interface, and check the configured file location and storage limit so you know where captures are kept.
NVIDIA’s release article covers the current app context and overlay features: NVIDIA App: official release and features. Older GeForce Experience instructions, including per-game controls and notifications, are documented in NVIDIA’s Highlights tutorial; treat those directions as version-specific rather than current NVIDIA App menu names.
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Highlights versus manual recording
| Capture method | How a clip starts | Game support | What you need to do |
|---|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA Highlights | A supported in-game event triggers capture. | Only compatible games, with events determined by the game. | Enable the feature and any game-specific setting, then review and save generated clips. |
| Manual recording (ShadowPlay) | You start and stop recording yourself. | Not dependent on a Highlights event trigger; NVIDIA lists it separately from Highlights. | Start recording when you want footage and stop when finished. |
If Highlights does not create a clip
- Check both app and game settings: confirm the in-game overlay is enabled and look for a Highlights or replay option in the game.
- Verify the title and event: the game must support Highlights, and the event must be one it marks for capture. Ordinary gameplay may not trigger a clip.
- Look in both review locations: check the overlay Gallery and, where applicable, the game’s post-match Highlights view. NVIDIA’s older tutorial notes that a missing post-match Highlights button can mean no highlight was generated.
- Check storage and destination: inspect the configured file location and any disk-space limit in the installed app’s overlay settings.
- Use the controls for your version: GeForce Experience’s older Settings > Highlights path is not a guarantee of the equivalent NVIDIA App location. NVIDIA advises remaining GeForce Experience users to upgrade to NVIDIA App to retain access to features including ShadowPlay and the NVIDIA Overlay; this does not establish that every old Highlights control has an identical new location. See NVIDIA’s upgrade notice.
What the Highlights SDK status means
NVIDIA labels the Highlights SDK a legacy developer SDK that developers may still download and use, but which is no longer supported. That statement concerns the SDK for developers; it does not establish that NVIDIA’s end-user Highlights capture feature has been discontinued. See NVIDIA’s Highlights SDK page.
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