- Inadequate VRAM can cause frame drops and blurry textures, especially when gaming at higher resolutions or using effects like ray-tracing.
- Even at 1080p resolutions, 8GB of VRAM is no longer sufficient for many modern games.
- A high-end GPU should have a minimum of 12GB of VRAM to play games at 1440p or 4K high refresh rates.
While there are many specs and factors to balance across your PC, VRAM is one of the most important ones. Over the years, the gaming landscape has changed quickly, with game developers now emphasizing graphically stunning games at higher resolution.
While it’s still up for debate, many gamers think that 8GB of VRAM on a GPU is sufficient to run recent games. In my opinion, this is no longer the case.
Why it matters: Both Nvidia and AMD continue to sell 8GB graphics cards, marketing them for 1080p gameplay. However, these GPUs are often bottlenecked by their limited VRAM.
What Does VRAM Mean?
A graphics card’s built-in memory is known as video RAM or VRAM.
It stores the textures and picture data seen on your screen. If your graphics card has more VRAM, it will be able to run more demanding games and handle textures with higher resolutions.
8GB VRAM Is Quickly Becoming Obsolete
What matters most in this situation is the kind of games you want to play and the graphics settings you want to use.
The need for VRAM rises along with the popularity of graphically demanding games. Although 8GB of VRAM was considered sufficient not too long ago, this is no longer the case with current-generation video games.
More than 8GB of VRAM is needed for games like The Last of Us Part 1, Ratchet & Clank, Star Wars Jedi Survivor, Resident Evil 4 Remake, etc., to run smoothly at all resolutions.
Developers are pushing the boundaries of graphical fidelity with Unreal Engine 5, ray tracing, and detailed textures today. All of this requires more than 8GB of VRAM, and modern cards that come with this amount of memory are often cutting it too close, offering a barely playable experience.
12GB of VRAM Is The New Minimum
Consider carefully before buying a new graphics card.
Any brand-new gaming setup should avoid a card with just 8GB of VRAM, but using a 10GB VRAM card also makes no sense. 2024 is not the year to invest in GPUs like the RTX 3080 10GB or the RX 6700, even though they may be excellent individually.
When playing games at 1440p, modern titles already use more VRAM than 8GB or even 10GB in many cases. Furthermore, you won’t be able to maximize the settings without enough VRAM if you intend to upgrade to 4K eventually.
Any modern card, even for 1080p, is best equipped with 12GB of VRAM today. This is especially true at 1440p or 4K, two resolutions that have become quite popular in recent years.
It’s always best to invest in a card with at least 16GB of VRAM if you intend to play at 4K resolution. This segment of GPUs would set you back a minimum of $700-800 but would ensure that you are not limited when handling games at higher resolution.
Final Thoughts
While 8GB memory might get you by in many games today, graphics cards with this much VRAM have no hope of being viable options for longevity.
Consider a highly anticipated title like GTA 6 that is seemingly aiming to do things never done before. I doubt 8GB of VRAM will be enough for those looking to experience this game in all its glory on PC eventually.
By then, I hope to see the industry moving beyond 8GB of memory. This amount of VRAM should be reserved for the cheapest graphics cards, with 12GB being the minimum moving forward.
Graphic card manufacturers are also somewhat to blame here. Both AMD and Nvidia have been stingy with VRAM, especially on the lower end. However, the former is known to offer a good amount of memory for mid-range and higher-tier GPUs.
In my opinion, 12GB is the new minimum for 1080p and 1440p gameplay. For 1440p and 4K gaming, on the other hand, 16GB of memory seems like the sweet spot for games coming out today and in the near future.
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