Nvidia ensure unboxing a ludicrously expensive new graphics card isn't limited to real life in these RAM crisis times by releasing a GeForce 8800 GTX unpacking sim

Hey at least the card in this bit of 2006 nostalgia bait has only cost you a virtual arm and leg

In what feels a fairly cheeky move during a time when memory shortages have infamously made it pretty much impossible to buy a decently powerful new graphics card without spending approximately a gazillion pounds/dollars/dollarpounds, Nvidia have decided to put out a Steam demo that allows folks to re-live the feeling of unboxing a ludicrously expensive graphics card in 2006.

The demo, dubbed GeForce 8800 GTX - 20 Years of a Legend, has been developed by Dylan Browne. He previously made Through The Ages, a "real-time high end graphical cinematic that takes us on a nostalgic journey through three of NVIDIA's iconic GPUs" which is also on Steam for reasons.

The GeForce 8800 GTX demo, as you might've guessed, is a tribute to that specific card in the form of a tech demo simulating what it was like to unbox one in a mid-2000s bedroom. Seriously, there's a copy of Crysis on the desk so you know this is the domain of a true devotee to the best graphics available in around 2007.

"Step into a 2006-era PC gaming room, unbox the GeForce 8800 GTX, inspect it up close, and install it in an era-accurate PC tower," the demo's description declares. "Explore nods to GeForce history and hidden easter eggs as DLSS 4.5 with Dynamic Multi Frame Generation, Ray Reconstruction, path tracing, and Mega Geometry bring the nostalgic setting to life. From holding the card to the glow of the monitor, rediscover a moment in PC gaming history - or experience it for the first time!"

As the GeForce 8800 GTX was a top-line card that cost $599 on release in 2006 - about $1,000 in today's money if the online inflation calculator I've just used is on the money - this isn't really a 'we know cards are ludicrously expensive right now, but here's a reminder of when you used to be able to actually afford to unbox one' sort of demo. It is at least a free way to virtually experience having blown a chunk of your savings on something that can render really sexy textures without the existential dread of doing so in real life.

Well, I say that, I've just noticed the minimum requirements for the demo note that you'll need an RTX 4070 card. So, depending on your current setup, this might well be a case of Nvidia offering the chance to render unboxing a card you couldn't afford in 2006 via a card you can't afford in 2026.

Is that about the best we can all hope for in 2026? Probably.