Fix: Godot MeshInstance3D Uses Too Much VRAM by Pre-Loading All Meshes

Mobile build crashes after the first level. VRAM dump shows 800MB of mesh data loaded.

Load on demand

Reference meshes by UID string; load when needed. VRAM drops dramatically.

Or chunk levels

Load only the chunk near the player. Stream as they explore.

Set Resource > Discardable

Meshes can be reloaded from disk; mark as discardable. Engine reclaims under VRAM pressure.

“Pre-loading everything is the simplest approach. Mobile budgets don't allow it.”

If you ship mobile, plan VRAM budgets from project start. Retrofitting streaming is days of work; designing for it is hours.

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