RAM speed matters more for AMD in these games.

Yes, but not equally. In CPU-heavy games like Cyberpunk 2077 and Starfield, AMD Ryzen systems see bigger gains from faster RAM than Intel systems do.

The reason is architecture. AMD’s current chips (Zen 3 and Zen 4) use multiple chiplets connected by Infinity Fabric, which scales with memory clock speed. Faster RAM directly improves that fabric speed, reducing latency between cores. Intel’s monolithic dies are less reliant on that link, so you hit diminishing returns earlier. A jump from DDR5-4800 to DDR5-6000 might give you 10-15% more frames on a Ryzen 7800X3D in Starfield, but maybe 3-5% on a Core i7-14700K.

That said, both platforms benefit from decent RAM—you still want 6000 MT/s CL30 or better for modern CPUs. But if you’re budget-constrained and playing these games, prioritize RAM speed on AMD; on Intel, spend the extra $30 on a better GPU instead.

Future You won’t notice the difference between 6000 and 6400 on Intel, but they will on AMD.