[7.0 Graphics update] Upper lip is abnormally darkened under certain lighting

[7.0 Graphics update] Upper lip is abnormally darkened under certain lighting conditions Female Au Ra Face 4 Mouth 2

Date & Time: July 27 2024 6:49pm EDT
Frequency: Under directional/strong lighting in both cutscenes and open world
World name: Ultros
Character name: Lexi Vii
Retainer name: N/A
NPC name: N/A
Monster name: N/A
Class/Level: any
Party or solo: any
In-game time: any
Area and coordinates: Dawntrail 7.0
Housing: N/A

Description:
For female Au Ra face 4, mouth 2, the upper lip is abnormally darkened under directional/strong lighting conditions. this is most prominent in various cutscenes and also in the open world with directional lighting conditions where the light shines onto the character from the front or the sides.

Below I have listed steps and the example quests and cutscenes with screenshots to try and explain the issue.

I've also included additional screenshots for comparison purposes of lighting conditions where the light is softer, and this issue seems to be mostly absent under softer or diffused lighting.

Steps:
1. Launch the game with a female Au Ra, face 4, mouth type 2 character
2. from any Inn Room, access the Unending Journey
3. select any of the quests/cutscenes indicated below as examples of the issue:

MSQ "Dawntrail", cutscene 7
As seen in screenshot 1 and 2 below from this cutscene, there is lighting originating from the right side of the screen.
when looking at the face, the nose/chin/cheeks and lower lip are sufficiently illuminated, while the upper lip remains entirely darkened. if the character is wearing lip gloss, the upper lip has no gloss effect at all.

Additionally, in screenshot 2, the lighting around the lower lip seems to be angled too much toward the right side, but it is not entirely darkened like the upper lip:

screenshot 1:
https://ibb.co/qmFRdHC

screenshot 2:
https://ibb.co/RPRHFCB

MSQ "Dawntrail", cutscene 6
As seen in screenshot 3 below, there is a strong lighting originating from the right side of the screen.
when looking at the face, the nose/chin/cheeks and lower lip are sufficiently illuminated, while the upper lip remains entirely darkened. if the character is wearing lip gloss, the upper lip has no gloss effect at all.

Screenshot 3:
https://ibb.co/y0Vznj5

MSQ "The Resilient Son", cutscene 6
As seen in screenshot 4 below, there is a soft lighting all around.
However looking at the face, the nose/chin/cheeks and lower lip are have soft illumination, but the upper lip remains entirely darkened. if the character is wearing lip gloss, the upper lip has no gloss effect at all.

Screenshot 4:
https://ibb.co/nC6X8Hg

Additional information:
Here i am providing some comparison screenshots where the upper lip does not look abnormally darkened:

MSQ "A Comforting Hand", cutscene 1
In screenshot 5, the lighting here is very dim inside the backroom in solution 9
when we look closely around the face, and also look closer at the lips, both the upper lip and lower lip have similar shading. neither the upper lip, nor lower lip, is excessively darker than the other.

screenshot 5
https://ibb.co/XX5kzgc

MSQ "Memories of a Knight", cutscene 1
In screenshot 6, the lighting here is soft and coming from the bonfire from the bottom right of the screen
when we look closely around the face, and also look closer at the lips, both the upper lip and lower lip have similar shading. neither the upper lip, nor lower lip, is excessively darker than the other.

screenshot 6
https://ibb.co/1MzJYBR

MSQ "The Queen's Tour" cutscene (this one is not available in the Undending Journey):
In screenshot 7, the lighting here is soft and ambient inside solution 9.
when we look closely around the face, and also look closer at the lips, both the upper lip and lower lip have similar shading. neither the upper lip, nor lower lip, is excessively darker than the other.

screenshot 7
https://ibb.co/N2yMJ2W

Additional side by side comparisons:
side by side 1
https://ibb.co/q13dX1d

side by side 2
https://ibb.co/6PjvJRv

side by side 3
https://ibb.co/2v2cJLj

-=-=-=-=-=-=- System Information -=-=-=-=-=-=-

SYSTEM_OS Windows 11 Pro 64-bit (6.2, Build 9200) (22621.ni_release.220506-1250)
SYSTEM_CPU AMD Ryzen 5 7600 6-Core Processor (12 CPUs), ~3.8GHz
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