Rock Paper Shotgun tested whether 8GB of VRAM remains adequate for a graphics card in 2026, given that most low-end and mid-range GPUs still ship with this amount despite complaints from enthusiasts that it's insufficient. The author swapped their 24GB Radeon 7900 XTX for a borrowed 8GB RTX 4060 Ti and played a range of typical titles, concluding that 8GB is generally fine for most players, though the responsibility for improving VRAM allocation ultimately rests with manufacturers rather than consumers.

Across games including Crusader Kings III, Kerbal Space Program and Cyberpunk 2077, the drop to 8GB made surprisingly little difference once upscaling tools like DLSS were enabled, with Kerbal Space Program the only title to show real strain. The piece also notes that the majority of Steam users already play on 8GB or less, and that none of the world's most popular competitive multiplayer games or MMOs demand more VRAM than that, meaning most players can comfortably stick with cheaper 8GB cards.