Both good cards, 290X will be better on the VRAM side since all 4GB are running full speed as opposed to only 3.5GB on the 970, but if you're gaming at 1080p that won't matter in too many games. If you're staying at 1080p I'd go with the 970; if you're going for higher resolution I'd go with the 290X. Marginally higher FPS on the 970 side mean nothing if VRAM gets breached at 3.5GB because then you'd have stuttering. It's going to depend on how much VRAM you'll use basically.