This is the new Frontier of Gaming Performance. Graphics Cards within this tier can comfortably run most AAA games in 4K at 240 FPS, 5K at 144 FPS, and even 8K should be doable with little to no drops below 60 FPS. One of the latest CPUs with fast RAM is required to not bottleneck these cards heavily in 4K.
To put it simply - "4K is the new 1080p" for modern enthusiast Graphics Cards! GPUs within this tier should be able to runs games in 4K well above 144Hz, or even in 5K above 60Hz! Generally speaking, 1440p is wasted on GPUs in this tier, and 1080p is only useful for hearing coil whine.
While technically not the most powerful Graphics Cards on the market, the GPUs in this tier still go well beyond what's required for a truly High End experience in the overwhelming majority of AAA Games. Buy these GPUs if you want to easily run games in 4K at 120Hz or higher, or in 1440p at absurd framerates. Life is short! :)
Welcome to High End Gaming! Archaic resolutions like 1080p legitimately hold back GPUs in this tier no matter the framerate you're aiming for! From here on out you'll need at least a 1440p display to utilize your GPU, and you can expect to game at high framerates even in 4K as long as you use reasonable (but still High!) settings.
GPUs in this tier offer more than enough performance to game well at any resolution below 5K, but you will often need to turn down multiple settings to play in 4K above 60 FPS. However features like FSR & DLSS should ensure that even a 4K120Hz display can be well utilized by these GPUs as long as you're willing to make compromises.
This is the tier where things start getting fun if you like Eye Candy. At this tier you can easily game in 1080p above 144 FPS, game in 1440p at High Refresh Rates, and even manage to game in 4K at reasonable framerates if you are ok making a couple of sacrifices in the graphics menu of AAA Titles.
GPUs in this tier aren't fancy, but they do almost always offer enough performance to avoid compromising the "experience" of AAA Titles. Lower resolutions like 1440p should be easily playable at 60 FPS with most settings turned up, and 1080p is doable at 120 FPS. Heck, you should even be able to run your old titles in 4K. You've got a real GPU!
The GPUs in this tier are nothing to brag about, but we suspect many people would actually be quite happy with this level of performance if they stay off the epeen reddits. These GPUs can play many games in 1440p with ok settings, and almost no game should be hard to run in 1080p.
If you want to play modern games, the GPUs in this tier are the lowest we recommend. Don't worry, you'll often be able to game in 1080p well above 30 FPS! However, many of the latest AAA games will require Low settings and 720p to maintain 60 FPS. GPUs in this tier are fine for very casual gaming and older AAA, but you should consider upgrading.
Entry Level Gaming GPUs are just a step above what we consider the "minimum", but they are an important step above that dreaded "Peasant" tier. Be prepared to regularly turn down many graphical settings, but if you do, most games should hit 60 FPS in 1080p, and you can usually game well above 60 FPS in 720p. These GPUs are "enough".
This is the minimum level of performance we can even consider recommending for enjoyable PC Gaming. This tier of cards should allow you to play in 1080p at acceptable framerates in older titles, and it should be hard to find a game you can't play at 60 FPS in 720p.
