The Division: PC graphics performance benchmark review - Graphics memory (VRAM) usage

Graphics memory (VRAM) usage

How much graphics memory does the game utilize versus your monitor resolution with different graphics cards and respective VRAM sizes ? Well, lets have a look at the chart below.
  

Tom Clancy's The Division is a cache what you can type of title. During game-play the game is constantly swapping and loading stuff it wants to cache. As such in the most scenarios you'll notice your VRAM is filled, then memory gets emptied chunk by chunk bit and then filled again. As such the VRAM numbers we monitored continuously jump up and down. We measured in-game, not the benchmark.

What I can conclude is that the titles is graphics memory hungry in high quality settings modes. Really up-to 1920x1080 2GB is minimal but better yet 3GB card is sufficient. At 2560x1440 HD a 3GB to 4GB card is recommended. If you are lacking graphics memory and feel that in your perf, simply flick down in complex AA levels (if you have them enabled) and watch your graphics card memory rise.  

I highlighted the GeForce GTX Titan X in the above chart, it has 12GB of graphics memory and as such is not VRAM limited. As you can see we are hovering in the 3.5 GB domain at Full HD, but in Ultra HD VRAM really starts to get filled and even passes 4GB, we reach roughly 5GB of VRAM usage before the game reaches its equilibrium. Again, most of the VRAM behaviour we see is a caching effect, e.g. the VRAM is filled as much as it can regardless of whether that is required.

That's it for this update you guys.

H.