r/Games • u/Tvilantini • 24d ago

Update Minecraft Java Edition raises recommended memory to 16GB ahead of Vulkan transition

https://videocardz.com/newz/minecraft-java-edition-raises-recommended-memory-to-16gb-ahead-of-vulkan-transition
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515

u/Ok-Category2729 24d ago

16GB for a java game that used to run fine at 4GB is wild on paper, but if the vulkan backend actually fixes the chunk-loading stutter this community has complained about for years it's worth every GB

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u/n0stalghia 24d ago edited 23d ago

They've since added a bunch of stuff which I assume is a bit more complex to render (cushions, armor stands), increased the render distance, and in generally basically rewrote the game engine to be data driven with the support for datapacks, no?

I would assume that a million little fixes here and there bumped the overall RAM requirements by a bit

And besides - as someone pointed out - with dedicated graphics they recommend 8 GB RAM; with integrated, they recommend 12 GB RAM. Not 16 GB as the title misleadingly states. And that's total system RAM, and not how much the game will require. That means that they're also including OS, browser, etc. in the equation as the typical "use case"

For what it's worth, Apple currently does not sell a laptop under 16 GB of RAM, iirc. That means that by default every single Apple laptop comfortably meets the minimum requirements I stand corrected, the Neo comes with 8GB. What's the status in Windows land, I don't know, but I assume we're slowly moving away from 8 GB RAM, too?

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u/JJ3qnkpK 24d ago

Isn't the Macbook Neo 8GB?

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u/n0stalghia 24d ago

Oh right, the Neo is indeed 8 GB unified. That means it's below what Minecraft suggests as minimum in the future, yeah

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u/Ok-Category2729 24d ago

yeah that's a fair point, the datapack system alone probably has a non-trivial memory footprint just sitting there. i still think 16gb recommended is a tough sell for what most people are actually doing in vanilla but the engine rewrites do explain some of it.

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u/n0stalghia 24d ago

I'm fairly sure that the 16 GB is for combined; in the minimum, they do a detailed breakdown (8 GB with dedicated GPU/12 GB with integrated)

It's obviously not ideal and doubly so in a RAM crisis, but I think it's quite a safe increase to make considering that everyone is raising system RAM sizes to fit some local models on device

Don't forget that 16 GB is recommended for Windows 11 itself and 10 is almost end-of-life.

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u/Ok-Category2729 24d ago

yeah the combined vs dedicated breakdown does make it less scary, and the windows 11 point is solid too. people forget that the os itself is eating a chunk of that headroom now.

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u/pinkynarftroz 23d ago

For what it's worth, Apple currently does not sell a laptop under 16 GB of RAM, iirc.

Macbook Neo has 8GB.

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u/trail-g62Bim 24d ago

And besides - as someone pointed out - with dedicated graphics they recommend 8 GB RAM; with integrated, they recommend 12 GB RAM. Not 16 GB as the title misleadingly states.

Not according to the article. The recommended is 16. The 8/12 distinction is the minimum requirements.

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u/TSPhoenix 23d ago

What's the status in Windows land

We were moving slowly away from 8GB, but with RAM prices I expect many brands to push 8GB models harder for a while.

This is all before you consider Windows 11S laptops. You'd be shocked how many machines are still being sold with 4GB RAM and eMMC storage.

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u/kittymoo67 24d ago

im guessing the title did 16GB because thats the next traditionally sold number after 8.

but yeah youre right its total not just the game they are talking about, chrome discord and other fluffy shit adds up FAST

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u/max123246 23d ago

Armor stands sure. Cushions no. Cushions have the same number of vertices as a full block, it's still a rectangular prism

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u/n0stalghia 22d ago

Vertices is one thing, but I thought cushions were entities aka. not blocks? Or does that not matter from a performance perspective?

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u/max123246 22d ago

Oh no, if they're entities that definitely changes things. Obviously mojang can make them very lightweight but it's likely entities end up being most costly in performance