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WillItRun

Can I run Alan Wake 2 with a GeForce GTX 1080?

Alan Wake 2 needs something on the order of a GeForce RTX 2060 6GB before it will start, and the GeForce GTX 1080 does not reach it: index 11 against 12.

The GeForce GTX 1080 is the fastest card we track that still stops here in Alan Wake 2: everything above it on our index reaches further, and 9 slower cards land in the same place.

estimated index 11 · 8 GB · 2016
Ceiling with a Ryzen 7 9800X3D and 32 GB

Will not run

This rig does not clear the minimum requirement.

Headroom
8% short on GPU
Bottleneck
GPU
Confidence
estimated

Tier ladder

  1. minimum blocked by GPU
  2. recommended blocked by GPU
  3. high blocked by GPU + VRAM
  4. ultra blocked by GPU + VRAM

The weakest link is graphics card: this rig brings 11 against the 12 that Alan Wake 2 asks for at the minimum tier. Everything else in the rig is already past that line.

That readout is the best this card can do in Alan Wake 2: it assumes nothing else in the machine holds it back. Your own processor and memory can only lower it, never raise it.

The same card with three different processors

In Alan Wake 2 all three processors land the GeForce GTX 1080 on the same tier - this pairing is decided by the card, not by what sits next to it. Each row assumes 16 GB of system memory.

Processor Index Verdict Bottleneck
Ryzen 5 1600 30 Will not run processor
Ryzen 9 5900X 70 Will not run graphics card
Ryzen 7 9800X3D 95 Will not run graphics card

Cheapest way up one tier

graphics card: GeForce RTX 3060 12GB

The GeForce GTX 1080 sits at index 11 and the minimum tier starts at 12.

That is the smallest part in our catalogue that clears the minimum tier - not the fastest one, and not a price claim: we hold no price data, so "cheapest" here means "least upgrade that does the job".

Where to look: GeForce RTX 3060 12GB (no store links yet)

Thresholds, against this card

Green means the GeForce GTX 1080 clears that number, red means it does not. The processor and memory columns are yours to fill in with the checker below.

System requirement thresholds for Alan Wake 2, by tier
Requirement minimum recommended high ultra your rig
GPU index 12 22 38 63 11
CPU index 42 55 78 90 0
Video memory 6 GB 8 GB 12 GB 16 GB 8 GB
System memory 16 GB 16 GB 32 GB 32 GB 0 GB
Storage 90 GB 90 GB 90 GB 90 GB -

The CPU and system memory rows show zero because this page knows the card and nothing else.

Check your whole rig

Add your processor and memory for a verdict about your machine rather than about this card.

GeForce GTX 1080

Shorthand works: we match on the names people actually type.

If several parts match, we show them rather than guess.

Standing by

Pick a graphics card and a processor. The verdict appears here, with the exact part that limits it.

Nothing you type leaves your browser. There is no account, no upload, and no hardware scan - the comparison runs on this page.

Questions

Will a GeForce GTX 1080 run Alan Wake 2?
Alan Wake 2 needs something on the order of a GeForce RTX 2060 6GB before it will start, and the GeForce GTX 1080 does not reach it: index 11 against 12. Above that the graphics card is what stops it.
Is 8 GB of video memory enough for Alan Wake 2?
Yes for the tiers this card can reach anyway - its core speed runs out before its 8 GB of video memory does in Alan Wake 2.

More on this card: what the GeForce GTX 1080 runs across every game we track.