Indiana Jones and the Great Circle hit the shelves for PC and Xbox Series X|S on December 9, catching everyone off guard with its overwhelmingly positive feedback. Turning a blockbuster film into a captivating game is no small feat, but MachineGames has managed to do just that. It’s a treat for fans and critics alike. If you loved the movies, diving into this game is an experience you won’t want to miss.
Gaming expert Samuel Tolbert from Windows Central gave it a glowing review, awarding it 4.5 stars and labeling it a “Must Play” title. Accessible on Xbox Series X|S and PC, subscribers of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass were able to jump in right from day one.
Initial concerns were swirling around about the PC system requirements before launch. Yet, the game pleasantly surprises by running quite smoothly on even some older hardware. While it does demand plenty of VRAM, there’s a noticeable payoff for systems that meet its needs.
Speaking of the game’s system requirements, they turned out to be a bit more forgiving than initially thought. Take Brendan Lowry from Windows Central, for example. He’d just upgraded his PC and still felt apprehensive about running the game. Days before its release, it was revealed that an Intel Core i7-10700K/Ryzen 5 3600 and NVIDIA RTX 2060 SUPER/AMD Radeon RX 6600 were required to play it at 1080p. For those looking to play in 1440p, they suggested a Core i7-12700K/Ryzen 7 7700 along with an NVIDIA RTX 3080 Ti/Radeon RX 7700 XT to maintain 60FPS. Ray tracing demands were even higher, recommending at least an RTX 4070.
In an interesting twist from recent trends, these system requirements were tougher than necessary, allowing more modest setups to run the game efficiently. It’s refreshing to see this shift.
But, there’s a catch: the game is a VRAM glutton. Those with an RTX 3060 equipped with 12GB of VRAM are likely to experience more fluid gameplay compared to the newer, costlier RTX 4060.
Karan Benchmarks on YouTube provides some excellent insights for those interested in solid performance data on current PC games. A recent video they shared dives into how the game performs across different NVIDIA RTX models like the 4060, 3060 Ti, 3060, and 3050. The results are pretty revealing, especially comparing the RTX 3060 with the RTX 4060. The RTX 4060, with its 8GB of VRAM, averaged 56 FPS at 1080p on Ultra settings, whereas the RTX 3060 with 12GB of VRAM managed 66 FPS.
With DLSS enabled, the 4060 climbed to an average of 72 FPS while the 3060 jumped to 86 FPS. Such performance boosts are significant, showcasing how a slightly less powerful card outperforms its newer counterpart—all thanks to that extra VRAM. At 1440p Ultra settings, the RTX 3060 averaged 47 FPS and rose to 62 FPS with DLSS Quality. The test PC featured a Zotac RTX 4060 Twin Edge 8GB, an Aorus RTX 3060 Elite 12GB, an Intel Core i5-13600K CPU, and 32GB of DDR4 RAM.
The game sheds light on an evolving issue in PC gaming today. Modern titles require ample VRAM for massive textures to run smoothly, and cards like NVIDIA’s RTX 4060 and 4060 Ti, both strapped with 8GB of VRAM, seem to lag behind the curve.
Notably, earlier models like the RTX 3060, which pack 12GB of VRAM, continue to hold their ground well. For budget-conscious individuals, this is great news—as you get more bang for your buck without splurging on newer models. The RTX 4060 Ti, according to Windows Central’s Harish Jonnalagadda, offers just minimal improvements over its predecessor and seems to rely heavily on DLSS 3 to make up for its shortcomings.
Owners of the 12GB RTX 3060 can rest easy knowing their investment remains solid, promising satisfying performance for the foreseeable future, all thanks to a little extra VRAM headroom.
