Even with the price cut, it still isn’t a great value for what it offers.
The clearest examples were seen when firstreviewingthe 16GB model.
What Does Running Out of VRAM Look Like?
Games that run into performance-related issues are easy to point to.
PlayingCall of Dutywith basic options orFortnitein performance mode uses very little VRAM, making VRAM usage irrelevant for you.
Many games manage memory usage differently, automatically dialing down quality options or removing textures altogether.
Examples of this include Halo Infinite, which removes textures and decreases the level of detail for certain objects.
Forspoken had a similar issue where the game looked washed out and muddy with insufficient VRAM.
Today, the game manages textures better, but the result is still similar.
Upon release, Forspoken would miss all textures without enough VRAM, resulting in a horrible-looking game.
While games tend to allocate more memory when more is available, we focused on memory usage.
The numbers should be close to what is required for a given resolution and quality controls.
It can also suffer from performance-related issues, making it difficult to identify insufficient VRAM in this game.
Enabling ray tracing with the very high preset won’t end well, as this uses 11.2GB of VRAM.
If you enable frame generation, it will push you over 12GB.
Finally, there is an 8-10% increase in memory usage when jumping to 4K resolution.
For a high-end GPU, you really want 16GB of VRAM.
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Libertyis well-optimized for 8GB graphics cards.
This game uses FSR frame generation, which doesn’t seem to increase VRAM usage significantly.
The main issue you’ll see is less consistent frame time performance.
While that’s not ideal, it’s not as jarring as in most other titles.
For those gaming at 4K, you will want at least 16GB of VRAM to ensure optimal performance.
We knowHogwarts Legacyis a heavy user of VRAM, and without enough, all kinds of undesirable things happen.
Enabling the ‘ultra’ preset will result in either missing textures or poor frame time performance.
12GB graphics cards should be fine at 1080p and 1440p, regardless of the quality tweaks used.
However, this won’t be the case at 4K, where we recommend having at least 16GB.
Starfieldis probably the least visually impressive triple-A title released last year.
As a result, 8GB of VRAM is plenty here.
It’s not until you get up to 4K with ultra prefs that you might need 12GB.
In fact, VRAM usage at 1080p and 1440p is almost identical.
Dialing down to the ‘high’ preset will work, so at least there’s that.
For this title, 12GB is ample, even for those gaming at 4K.
The situation worsens for 8GB graphics cards at 1440p, where you will want at least 12GB.
Alan Wake II is a visually impressive game that requires a good amount of VRAM.
At 1080p, an 8GB GPU will suffice for the medium and high presets.
With the exception of entry-level options, you shouldn’t be buying 8GB graphics cards anymore.
12GB is now the bare minimum, and 16GB is the ideal target.
For that kind of money, the compromise on VRAM is somewhat justifiable.
12GB is now the bare minimum, and 16GB is the ideal target.
