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PayPalWe are truly entering a time in gaming where it feels like optimizations are a thing of the past, and the specifications needed to run 007 First Light are nuts. Thanks to the rise of DLSS, FSR and XeSS we're seeing more and more AAA-level developers use them as a crutch for performance, at times setting them as an actual requirement to get the games actually playable.
And now it's getting worse.
IO Interactive this week put up the required PC specifications for running 007 First Light, and you might want to be sitting down for this. To run it at just 60FPS with only a 1080p resolution they're saying you need at a minimum 32GB RAM. Really? 32GB in this economy? And 12GB VRAM too. At least on the GPU / CPU side it's reasonable.
Video games move on with various graphics enhancements, eventually more power will be required - we all know this and it wouldn't normally be news. But, we're living in the generative AI era with the cost of components everywhere increasing constantly so this is a bit nuts for 60FPS / 1080p gaming.
What about anything above 1080p? Don't get me started on 4K, the specifications needed to play 007 First Light at 4K are probably reaching levels of absurdity.
Grumbles aside, it really does look good though but is it going to be worth ensuring you have the system to run it?
They also have a fresh dev diary video to go over the fancy NVIDIA features that will be included:
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About the author - Liam Dawe
I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly checked on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly.
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Quoting: elmapulRam was cheap.That's the joke :)
Quoting: elmapulyou have a point, but there is also another thing to consider.Well, yeah, which is why I mentioned it. I guess if you really wanted to you could throw in up to 4x6GB if your motherboard is avant enough let you, so 18GB then is also possible. But, that's so far from common even IOI system requirements isn't the place for this level of needless confusion.
you can have 24GB of ram by having 16+8 or 8+8+8...
it makes a difference!
in theory 3 channels of 8GB is faster than 8+16GB but i think there is a trade off for having everything you want to access in the same chip vs spliting it into multiple chips, so im not sure if 3 channels is always better
Either way, I'd be quite surprised to see 007 chew through 32gb even at such eye-watering frame rates like 60fps in 1080p. You're not making back that licensing money if this is now you optimise your game, RAM crisis or not...
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Quoting: suchWell, yeah, which is why I mentioned it. I guess if you really wanted to you could throw in up to 4x6GB if your motherboard is avant enough let you, so 18GB then is also possible. But, that's so far from common even IOI system requirements isn't the place for this level of needless confusion.afaik they only sell components at multiples of 2 numbers (2,4,8) so you cant purchase an 6GB ram module.
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Quoting: elmapulYou're right. I Googled something that turns out to be a typo, apparently.Quoting: suchWell, yeah, which is why I mentioned it. I guess if you really wanted to you could throw in up to 4x6GB if your motherboard is avant enough let you, so 18GB then is also possible. But, that's so far from common even IOI system requirements isn't the place for this level of needless confusion.afaik they only sell components at multiples of 2 numbers (2,4,8) so you cant purchase an 6GB ram module.
Last edited by such on 7 Jan 2026 at 11:39 pm UTC
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Quoting: pageroundI, for one, thank the Devs for eliminating a game from the to-buy list. I think I'll limit myself to 'steamdeck compatible' titles (or equivalent) going forward as I am not confident I could replace that super-computer level of hardware if the PC dies and not break the bank. I can play Witcher 3, BG 3, New Vegas, etc ... Should last me a while.I am hanging onto my AM4 computer this time around and not selling it on or gutting it when my AM5 gets built this month.
Thanks Liam, spot on reporting.
I now have all the parts for the AM5 build. I bought the DDR5 first last November when the first real rumblings of DDR5 price increases were happening. I paid 150 pounds for a 21gb kit that at last looking was not even 80. The kit is now at 400 pounds. So now that 150 does not seem so bad anymore.
Since november i got a MSI B850 tomahawk board, new case, new 750 ATX 3.1 PSU modular - my first one. I saved my 3060 12gb when i bought my 9060xt 16 gb so can use the 3060 in the AM4 build and slap the 9060 in the AM5.
If the Am5 breaks at least i have the Am4 to rely on. Not selling it.
The Am4 5800x, a 5 year old chip, i bought 12 months ago in the run up to xmas 2024 for 130 pounds. That chip is right now selling on amazon for 200 pounds.
I dotn think i could affored to replace my hardware either as even the last platform Am4 stuff is rising to crazy levels considering it is now old and dead.
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Quoting: elmapulafaik they only sell components at multiples of 2 numbers (2,4,8) so you cant purchase an 6GB ram module.It has historically been n**2, but more recently they are making 3GB modules. So you'll see a lot of 24 and 48 and 96 GB kits these days. It still isn't common, but I suspect it will become the norm eventually.
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Quoting: SeegrasYeahyeah, it also says you need Microsoft Windows to play this; nobody needs Microsoft Windows to play games anymore in 2026. 😆Windows is the minimum; Linux with Proton is the upgrade. 😄
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Quoting: Shiz nitIt's a perfect storm. I was considering upgrading to the cheaper, but still good enough AM4 and sit out AM5 altogether, but then AMD stopped manufacturing the 5800x3D to push AM5 adoption... and it worked. My entire plan collapsed when the AM4 costs basically rose to meet a vastly superior AM5 build that would last me longer. I was still planning to buy everything slowly, but then the RAM crisis started, the SSDs began increasing and the time to buy a GPU shifted to Now Or Not For A While.Quoting: pageroundI, for one, thank the Devs for eliminating a game from the to-buy list. I think I'll limit myself to 'steamdeck compatible' titles (or equivalent) going forward as I am not confident I could replace that super-computer level of hardware if the PC dies and not break the bank. I can play Witcher 3, BG 3, New Vegas, etc ... Should last me a while.The Am4 5800x, a 5 year old chip, i bought 12 months ago in the run up to xmas 2024 for 130 pounds. That chip is right now selling on amazon for 200 pounds.
Thanks Liam, spot on reporting.
I dotn think i could affored to replace my hardware either as even the last platform Am4 stuff is rising to crazy levels considering it is now old and dead.
I'm not getting rid of my 2015 build, that's for sure. You're prying that DDR3 from my cold, dead hands.
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