diff --git a/src/core/CMakeLists.txt b/src/core/CMakeLists.txt
index 23582ad21..02c661d31 100644
--- a/src/core/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/src/core/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -79,8 +79,6 @@ add_library(core
   mdec.h
   memory_card.cpp
   memory_card.h
-  memory_card_icon_cache.cpp
-  memory_card_icon_cache.h
   memory_card_image.cpp
   memory_card_image.h
   multitap.cpp
diff --git a/src/core/core.vcxproj b/src/core/core.vcxproj
index 19a94e244..ee74c8b36 100644
--- a/src/core/core.vcxproj
+++ b/src/core/core.vcxproj
@@ -62,7 +62,6 @@
     <ClCompile Include="justifier.cpp" />
     <ClCompile Include="mdec.cpp" />
     <ClCompile Include="memory_card.cpp" />
-    <ClCompile Include="memory_card_icon_cache.cpp" />
     <ClCompile Include="memory_card_image.cpp" />
     <ClCompile Include="multitap.cpp" />
     <ClCompile Include="guncon.cpp" />
@@ -144,7 +143,6 @@
     <ClInclude Include="justifier.h" />
     <ClInclude Include="mdec.h" />
     <ClInclude Include="memory_card.h" />
-    <ClInclude Include="memory_card_icon_cache.h" />
     <ClInclude Include="memory_card_image.h" />
     <ClInclude Include="multitap.h" />
     <ClInclude Include="guncon.h" />
diff --git a/src/core/core.vcxproj.filters b/src/core/core.vcxproj.filters
index 72810d421..b02bcfd85 100644
--- a/src/core/core.vcxproj.filters
+++ b/src/core/core.vcxproj.filters
@@ -68,7 +68,6 @@
     <ClCompile Include="justifier.cpp" />
     <ClCompile Include="pine_server.cpp" />
     <ClCompile Include="gdb_server.cpp" />
-    <ClCompile Include="memory_card_icon_cache.cpp" />
   </ItemGroup>
   <ItemGroup>
     <ClInclude Include="types.h" />
@@ -143,6 +142,5 @@
     <ClInclude Include="justifier.h" />
     <ClInclude Include="pine_server.h" />
     <ClInclude Include="gdb_server.h" />
-    <ClInclude Include="memory_card_icon_cache.h" />
   </ItemGroup>
 </Project>
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/core/game_list.cpp b/src/core/game_list.cpp
index d9e3145d8..16f27ca55 100644
--- a/src/core/game_list.cpp
+++ b/src/core/game_list.cpp
@@ -5,12 +5,14 @@
 #include "bios.h"
 #include "fullscreen_ui.h"
 #include "host.h"
+#include "memory_card_image.h"
 #include "psf_loader.h"
 #include "settings.h"
 #include "system.h"
 
 #include "util/cd_image.h"
 #include "util/http_downloader.h"
+#include "util/image.h"
 #include "util/ini_settings_interface.h"
 
 #include "common/assert.h"
@@ -59,6 +61,19 @@ struct PlayedTimeEntry
   std::time_t total_played_time;
 };
 
+#pragma pack(push, 1)
+struct MemcardTimestampCacheEntry
+{
+  enum : u32
+  {
+    MAX_SERIAL_LENGTH = 32,
+  };
+
+  char serial[MAX_SERIAL_LENGTH];
+  s64 memcard_timestamp;
+};
+#pragma pack(pop)
+
 } // namespace
 
 using CacheMap = PreferUnorderedStringMap<Entry>;
@@ -101,12 +116,17 @@ static PlayedTimeEntry UpdatePlayedTimeFile(const std::string& path, const std::
                                             std::time_t add_time);
 
 static std::string GetCustomPropertiesFile();
+
+static FileSystem::ManagedCFilePtr OpenMemoryCardTimestampCache(bool for_write);
+static bool UpdateMemcardTimestampCache(const MemcardTimestampCacheEntry& entry);
+
 } // namespace GameList
 
 static std::vector<GameList::Entry> s_entries;
 static std::recursive_mutex s_mutex;
 static GameList::CacheMap s_cache_map;
 static std::unique_ptr<ByteStream> s_cache_write_stream;
+static std::vector<GameList::MemcardTimestampCacheEntry> s_memcard_timestamp_cache_entries;
 
 static bool s_game_list_loaded = false;
 
@@ -1629,3 +1649,222 @@ std::optional<DiscRegion> GameList::GetCustomRegionForPath(const std::string_vie
   else
     return std::nullopt;
 }
+
+static constexpr const char MEMCARD_TIMESTAMP_CACHE_SIGNATURE[] = {'M', 'C', 'D', 'I', 'C', 'N', '0', '2'};
+
+FileSystem::ManagedCFilePtr GameList::OpenMemoryCardTimestampCache(bool for_write)
+{
+  const std::string filename = Path::Combine(EmuFolders::Cache, "memcard_icons.cache");
+  const char* mode = for_write ? "r+b" : "rb";
+  const FileSystem::FileShareMode share_mode =
+    for_write ? FileSystem::FileShareMode::DenyReadWrite : FileSystem::FileShareMode::DenyWrite;
+  FileSystem::ManagedCFilePtr fp = FileSystem::OpenManagedSharedCFile(filename.c_str(), mode, share_mode, nullptr);
+  if (fp)
+    return fp;
+
+  // Doesn't exist? Create it.
+  if (errno == ENOENT)
+  {
+    if (!for_write)
+      return nullptr;
+
+    mode = "w+b";
+    fp = FileSystem::OpenManagedSharedCFile(filename.c_str(), mode, share_mode, nullptr);
+    if (fp)
+      return fp;
+  }
+
+  // If there's a sharing violation, try again for 100ms.
+  if (errno != EACCES)
+    return nullptr;
+
+  Common::Timer timer;
+  while (timer.GetTimeMilliseconds() <= 100.0f)
+  {
+    fp = FileSystem::OpenManagedSharedCFile(filename.c_str(), mode, share_mode, nullptr);
+    if (fp)
+      return fp;
+
+    if (errno != EACCES)
+      return nullptr;
+  }
+
+  ERROR_LOG("Timed out while trying to open memory card cache file.");
+  return nullptr;
+}
+
+void GameList::ReloadMemcardTimestampCache()
+{
+  s_memcard_timestamp_cache_entries.clear();
+
+  FileSystem::ManagedCFilePtr fp = OpenMemoryCardTimestampCache(false);
+  if (!fp)
+    return;
+
+#ifndef _WIN32
+  FileSystem::POSIXLock lock(fp.get());
+#endif
+
+  const s64 file_size = FileSystem::FSize64(fp.get());
+  if (file_size < static_cast<s64>(sizeof(MEMCARD_TIMESTAMP_CACHE_SIGNATURE)))
+    return;
+
+  const size_t count =
+    (static_cast<size_t>(file_size) - sizeof(MEMCARD_TIMESTAMP_CACHE_SIGNATURE)) / sizeof(MemcardTimestampCacheEntry);
+  if (count <= 0)
+    return;
+
+  char signature[sizeof(MEMCARD_TIMESTAMP_CACHE_SIGNATURE)];
+  if (std::fread(signature, sizeof(signature), 1, fp.get()) != 1 ||
+      std::memcmp(signature, MEMCARD_TIMESTAMP_CACHE_SIGNATURE, sizeof(signature)) != 0)
+  {
+    return;
+  }
+
+  s_memcard_timestamp_cache_entries.resize(static_cast<size_t>(count));
+  if (std::fread(s_memcard_timestamp_cache_entries.data(), sizeof(MemcardTimestampCacheEntry),
+                 s_memcard_timestamp_cache_entries.size(), fp.get()) != s_memcard_timestamp_cache_entries.size())
+  {
+    s_memcard_timestamp_cache_entries = {};
+    return;
+  }
+
+  // Just in case.
+  for (MemcardTimestampCacheEntry& entry : s_memcard_timestamp_cache_entries)
+    entry.serial[sizeof(entry.serial) - 1] = 0;
+}
+
+std::string GameList::GetGameIconPath(std::string_view serial, std::string_view path)
+{
+  std::string ret;
+
+  if (serial.empty())
+    return ret;
+
+  // might exist already, or the user used a custom icon
+  ret = Path::Combine(EmuFolders::GameIcons, TinyString::from_format("{}.png", serial));
+  if (FileSystem::FileExists(ret.c_str()))
+    return ret;
+
+  MemoryCardType type;
+  std::string memcard_path = System::GetGameMemoryCardPath(serial, path, 0, &type);
+  FILESYSTEM_STAT_DATA memcard_sd;
+  if (memcard_path.empty() || type == MemoryCardType::Shared ||
+      !FileSystem::StatFile(memcard_path.c_str(), &memcard_sd))
+  {
+    ret = {};
+    return ret;
+  }
+
+  const s64 timestamp = memcard_sd.ModificationTime;
+  TinyString index_serial;
+  index_serial.assign(
+    serial.substr(0, std::min<size_t>(serial.length(), MemcardTimestampCacheEntry::MAX_SERIAL_LENGTH - 1)));
+
+  MemcardTimestampCacheEntry* serial_entry = nullptr;
+  for (MemcardTimestampCacheEntry& entry : s_memcard_timestamp_cache_entries)
+  {
+    if (StringUtil::EqualNoCase(index_serial, entry.serial))
+    {
+      if (entry.memcard_timestamp == timestamp)
+      {
+        // card hasn't changed, still no icon
+        ret = {};
+        return ret;
+      }
+
+      serial_entry = &entry;
+      break;
+    }
+  }
+
+  if (!serial_entry)
+  {
+    serial_entry = &s_memcard_timestamp_cache_entries.emplace_back();
+    std::memset(serial_entry, 0, sizeof(MemcardTimestampCacheEntry));
+  }
+
+  serial_entry->memcard_timestamp = timestamp;
+  StringUtil::Strlcpy(serial_entry->serial, index_serial.view(), sizeof(serial_entry->serial));
+
+  // Try extracting an icon.
+  MemoryCardImage::DataArray data;
+  if (MemoryCardImage::LoadFromFile(&data, memcard_path.c_str()))
+  {
+    std::vector<MemoryCardImage::FileInfo> files = MemoryCardImage::EnumerateFiles(data, false);
+    if (!files.empty())
+    {
+      const MemoryCardImage::FileInfo& fi = files.front();
+      if (!fi.icon_frames.empty())
+      {
+        INFO_LOG("Extracting memory card icon from {} ({}) to {}", fi.filename, Path::GetFileTitle(memcard_path),
+                 Path::GetFileTitle(ret));
+
+        RGBA8Image image(MemoryCardImage::ICON_WIDTH, MemoryCardImage::ICON_HEIGHT);
+        std::memcpy(image.GetPixels(), &fi.icon_frames.front().pixels,
+                    MemoryCardImage::ICON_WIDTH * MemoryCardImage::ICON_HEIGHT * sizeof(u32));
+        if (!image.SaveToFile(ret.c_str()))
+        {
+          ERROR_LOG("Failed to save memory card icon to {}.", ret);
+          ret = {};
+          return ret;
+        }
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  UpdateMemcardTimestampCache(*serial_entry);
+  return ret;
+}
+
+bool GameList::UpdateMemcardTimestampCache(const MemcardTimestampCacheEntry& entry)
+{
+  FileSystem::ManagedCFilePtr fp = OpenMemoryCardTimestampCache(true);
+  if (!fp)
+    return false;
+
+#ifndef _WIN32
+  FileSystem::POSIXLock lock(fp.get());
+#endif
+
+  // check signature, write it if it's non-existent or invalid
+  char signature[sizeof(MEMCARD_TIMESTAMP_CACHE_SIGNATURE)];
+  if (std::fread(signature, sizeof(signature), 1, fp.get()) != 1 ||
+      std::memcmp(signature, MEMCARD_TIMESTAMP_CACHE_SIGNATURE, sizeof(signature)) != 0)
+  {
+    if (!FileSystem::FTruncate64(fp.get(), 0) || FileSystem::FSeek64(fp.get(), 0, SEEK_SET) != 0 ||
+        std::fwrite(MEMCARD_TIMESTAMP_CACHE_SIGNATURE, sizeof(MEMCARD_TIMESTAMP_CACHE_SIGNATURE), 1, fp.get()) != 1)
+    {
+      return false;
+    }
+  }
+
+  // need to seek to switch from read->write?
+  s64 current_pos = sizeof(MEMCARD_TIMESTAMP_CACHE_SIGNATURE);
+  if (FileSystem::FSeek64(fp.get(), current_pos, SEEK_SET) != 0)
+    return false;
+
+  for (;;)
+  {
+    MemcardTimestampCacheEntry existing_entry;
+    if (std::fread(&existing_entry, sizeof(existing_entry), 1, fp.get()) != 1)
+      break;
+
+    existing_entry.serial[sizeof(existing_entry.serial) - 1] = 0;
+    if (!StringUtil::EqualNoCase(existing_entry.serial, entry.serial))
+    {
+      current_pos += sizeof(existing_entry);
+      continue;
+    }
+
+    // found it here, so overwrite
+    return (FileSystem::FSeek64(fp.get(), current_pos, SEEK_SET) == 0 &&
+            std::fwrite(&entry, sizeof(entry), 1, fp.get()) == 1);
+  }
+
+  if (FileSystem::FSeek64(fp.get(), current_pos, SEEK_SET) != 0)
+    return false;
+
+  // append it.
+  return (std::fwrite(&entry, sizeof(entry), 1, fp.get()) == 1);
+}
diff --git a/src/core/game_list.h b/src/core/game_list.h
index e74dce9b3..b2a393f19 100644
--- a/src/core/game_list.h
+++ b/src/core/game_list.h
@@ -130,6 +130,13 @@ void SaveCustomTitleForPath(const std::string& path, const std::string& custom_t
 void SaveCustomRegionForPath(const std::string& path, const std::optional<DiscRegion> custom_region);
 std::string GetCustomTitleForPath(const std::string_view path);
 std::optional<DiscRegion> GetCustomRegionForPath(const std::string_view path);
+
+/// The purpose of this cache is to stop us trying to constantly extract memory card icons, when we know a game
+/// doesn't have any saves yet. It caches the serial:memcard_timestamp pair, and only tries extraction when the
+/// timestamp of the memory card has changed.
+std::string GetGameIconPath(std::string_view serial, std::string_view path);
+void ReloadMemcardTimestampCache();
+
 }; // namespace GameList
 
 namespace Host {
diff --git a/src/core/memory_card_icon_cache.cpp b/src/core/memory_card_icon_cache.cpp
deleted file mode 100644
index 9745d7add..000000000
--- a/src/core/memory_card_icon_cache.cpp
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,215 +0,0 @@
-// SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2024 Connor McLaughlin <stenzek@gmail.com>
-// SPDX-License-Identifier: (GPL-3.0 OR CC-BY-NC-ND-4.0)
-
-#include "memory_card_icon_cache.h"
-#include "system.h"
-
-#include "common/assert.h"
-#include "common/error.h"
-#include "common/file_system.h"
-#include "common/log.h"
-#include "common/path.h"
-#include "common/string_util.h"
-#include "common/timer.h"
-
-Log_SetChannel(MemoryCardImage);
-
-static constexpr const char EXPECTED_SIGNATURE[] = {'M', 'C', 'D', 'I', 'C', 'N', '0', '1'};
-
-static FileSystem::ManagedCFilePtr OpenCache(const std::string& filename, bool for_write)
-{
-  const char* mode = for_write ? "r+b" : "rb";
-  const FileSystem::FileShareMode share_mode =
-    for_write ? FileSystem::FileShareMode::DenyReadWrite : FileSystem::FileShareMode::DenyWrite;
-  FileSystem::ManagedCFilePtr fp = FileSystem::OpenManagedSharedCFile(filename.c_str(), mode, share_mode, nullptr);
-  if (fp)
-    return fp;
-
-  // Doesn't exist? Create it.
-  if (errno == ENOENT)
-  {
-    if (!for_write)
-      return nullptr;
-
-    mode = "w+b";
-    fp = FileSystem::OpenManagedSharedCFile(filename.c_str(), mode, share_mode, nullptr);
-    if (fp)
-      return fp;
-  }
-
-  // If there's a sharing violation, try again for 100ms.
-  if (errno != EACCES)
-    return nullptr;
-
-  Common::Timer timer;
-  while (timer.GetTimeMilliseconds() <= 100.0f)
-  {
-    fp = FileSystem::OpenManagedSharedCFile(filename.c_str(), mode, share_mode, nullptr);
-    if (fp)
-      return fp;
-
-    if (errno != EACCES)
-      return nullptr;
-  }
-
-  ERROR_LOG("Timed out while trying to open memory card cache file.");
-  return nullptr;
-}
-
-MemoryCardIconCache::MemoryCardIconCache(std::string filename) : m_filename(std::move(filename))
-{
-}
-
-MemoryCardIconCache::~MemoryCardIconCache() = default;
-
-bool MemoryCardIconCache::Reload()
-{
-  m_entries.clear();
-
-  FileSystem::ManagedCFilePtr fp = OpenCache(m_filename, false);
-  if (!fp)
-    return false;
-
-#ifndef _WIN32
-  FileSystem::POSIXLock lock(fp.get());
-#endif
-
-  const s64 file_size = FileSystem::FSize64(fp.get());
-  if (file_size < static_cast<s64>(sizeof(EXPECTED_SIGNATURE)))
-    return false;
-
-  const size_t count = (static_cast<size_t>(file_size) - sizeof(EXPECTED_SIGNATURE)) / sizeof(Entry);
-  if (count <= 0)
-    return false;
-
-  char signature[sizeof(EXPECTED_SIGNATURE)];
-  if (std::fread(signature, sizeof(signature), 1, fp.get()) != 1 ||
-      std::memcmp(signature, EXPECTED_SIGNATURE, sizeof(signature)) != 0)
-  {
-    return false;
-  }
-
-  m_entries.resize(static_cast<size_t>(count));
-  if (std::fread(m_entries.data(), sizeof(Entry), m_entries.size(), fp.get()) != m_entries.size())
-  {
-    m_entries = {};
-    return false;
-  }
-
-  // Just in case.
-  for (Entry& entry : m_entries)
-    entry.serial[sizeof(entry.serial) - 1] = 0;
-
-  return true;
-}
-
-const MemoryCardImage::IconFrame* MemoryCardIconCache::Lookup(std::string_view serial, std::string_view path)
-{
-  MemoryCardType type;
-  std::string memcard_path = System::GetGameMemoryCardPath(serial, path, 0, &type);
-  if (memcard_path.empty() || type == MemoryCardType::Shared)
-    return nullptr;
-
-  FILESYSTEM_STAT_DATA sd;
-  if (!FileSystem::StatFile(memcard_path.c_str(), &sd))
-    return nullptr;
-
-  const s64 timestamp = sd.ModificationTime;
-  TinyString index_serial;
-  index_serial.assign(serial.substr(0, std::min<size_t>(serial.length(), MAX_SERIAL_LENGTH - 1)));
-
-  Entry* serial_entry = nullptr;
-  for (Entry& entry : m_entries)
-  {
-    if (StringUtil::EqualNoCase(index_serial, entry.serial))
-    {
-      if (entry.memcard_timestamp == timestamp)
-        return entry.is_valid ? &entry.icon : nullptr;
-
-      serial_entry = &entry;
-      break;
-    }
-  }
-
-  if (!serial_entry)
-  {
-    serial_entry = &m_entries.emplace_back();
-    std::memset(serial_entry, 0, sizeof(Entry));
-  }
-
-  serial_entry->is_valid = false;
-  serial_entry->memcard_timestamp = timestamp;
-  StringUtil::Strlcpy(serial_entry->serial, index_serial.view(), sizeof(serial_entry->serial));
-  std::memset(serial_entry->icon.pixels, 0, sizeof(serial_entry->icon.pixels));
-
-  MemoryCardImage::DataArray data;
-  if (MemoryCardImage::LoadFromFile(&data, memcard_path.c_str()))
-  {
-    std::vector<MemoryCardImage::FileInfo> files = MemoryCardImage::EnumerateFiles(data, false);
-    if (!files.empty())
-    {
-      const MemoryCardImage::FileInfo& fi = files.front();
-      if (!fi.icon_frames.empty())
-      {
-        INFO_LOG("Extracted memory card icon from {} ({})", fi.filename, Path::GetFileTitle(memcard_path));
-        std::memcpy(&serial_entry->icon, &fi.icon_frames.front(), sizeof(serial_entry->icon));
-        serial_entry->is_valid = true;
-      }
-    }
-  }
-
-  UpdateInFile(*serial_entry);
-  return serial_entry->is_valid ? &serial_entry->icon : nullptr;
-}
-
-bool MemoryCardIconCache::UpdateInFile(const Entry& entry)
-{
-  FileSystem::ManagedCFilePtr fp = OpenCache(m_filename, true);
-  if (!fp)
-    return false;
-
-#ifndef _WIN32
-  FileSystem::POSIXLock lock(fp.get());
-#endif
-
-  // check signature, write it if it's non-existent or invalid
-  char signature[sizeof(EXPECTED_SIGNATURE)];
-  if (std::fread(signature, sizeof(signature), 1, fp.get()) != 1 ||
-      std::memcmp(signature, EXPECTED_SIGNATURE, sizeof(signature)) != 0)
-  {
-    if (!FileSystem::FTruncate64(fp.get(), 0) || FileSystem::FSeek64(fp.get(), 0, SEEK_SET) != 0 ||
-        std::fwrite(EXPECTED_SIGNATURE, sizeof(EXPECTED_SIGNATURE), 1, fp.get()) != 1)
-    {
-      return false;
-    }
-  }
-
-  // need to seek to switch from read->write?
-  s64 current_pos = sizeof(EXPECTED_SIGNATURE);
-  if (FileSystem::FSeek64(fp.get(), current_pos, SEEK_SET) != 0)
-    return false;
-
-  for (;;)
-  {
-    Entry existing_entry;
-    if (std::fread(&existing_entry, sizeof(existing_entry), 1, fp.get()) != 1)
-      break;
-
-    existing_entry.serial[sizeof(existing_entry.serial) - 1] = 0;
-    if (!StringUtil::EqualNoCase(existing_entry.serial, entry.serial))
-    {
-      current_pos += sizeof(existing_entry);
-      continue;
-    }
-
-    // found it here, so overwrite
-    return (FileSystem::FSeek64(fp.get(), current_pos, SEEK_SET) == 0 &&
-            std::fwrite(&entry, sizeof(entry), 1, fp.get()) == 1);
-  }
-
-  if (FileSystem::FSeek64(fp.get(), current_pos, SEEK_SET) != 0)
-    return false;
-
-  // append it.
-  return (std::fwrite(&entry, sizeof(entry), 1, fp.get()) == 1);
-}
diff --git a/src/core/memory_card_icon_cache.h b/src/core/memory_card_icon_cache.h
deleted file mode 100644
index 885c73a87..000000000
--- a/src/core/memory_card_icon_cache.h
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,39 +0,0 @@
-// SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2024 Connor McLaughlin <stenzek@gmail.com>
-// SPDX-License-Identifier: (GPL-3.0 OR CC-BY-NC-ND-4.0)
-
-#pragma once
-
-#include "memory_card_image.h"
-
-class MemoryCardIconCache
-{
-public:
-  MemoryCardIconCache(std::string filename);
-  ~MemoryCardIconCache();
-
-  bool Reload();
-
-  // NOTE: Only valid within this call to lookup.
-  const MemoryCardImage::IconFrame* Lookup(std::string_view serial, std::string_view path);
-
-private:
-  enum : u32
-  {
-    MAX_SERIAL_LENGTH = 31,
-  };
-
-#pragma pack(push, 1)
-  struct Entry
-  {
-    char serial[MAX_SERIAL_LENGTH];
-    bool is_valid;
-    s64 memcard_timestamp;
-    MemoryCardImage::IconFrame icon;
-  };
-#pragma pack(pop)
-
-  bool UpdateInFile(const Entry& entry);
-
-  std::string m_filename;
-  std::vector<Entry> m_entries;
-};
diff --git a/src/core/settings.cpp b/src/core/settings.cpp
index fa9275092..f55ae230c 100644
--- a/src/core/settings.cpp
+++ b/src/core/settings.cpp
@@ -1726,6 +1726,7 @@ std::string EmuFolders::Cache;
 std::string EmuFolders::Cheats;
 std::string EmuFolders::Covers;
 std::string EmuFolders::Dumps;
+std::string EmuFolders::GameIcons;
 std::string EmuFolders::GameSettings;
 std::string EmuFolders::InputProfiles;
 std::string EmuFolders::MemoryCards;
@@ -1743,6 +1744,7 @@ void EmuFolders::SetDefaults()
   Cheats = Path::Combine(DataRoot, "cheats");
   Covers = Path::Combine(DataRoot, "covers");
   Dumps = Path::Combine(DataRoot, "dump");
+  GameIcons = Path::Combine(DataRoot, "gameicons");
   GameSettings = Path::Combine(DataRoot, "gamesettings");
   InputProfiles = Path::Combine(DataRoot, "inputprofiles");
   MemoryCards = Path::Combine(DataRoot, "memcards");
@@ -1772,6 +1774,7 @@ void EmuFolders::LoadConfig(SettingsInterface& si)
   Cheats = LoadPathFromSettings(si, DataRoot, "Folders", "Cheats", "cheats");
   Covers = LoadPathFromSettings(si, DataRoot, "Folders", "Covers", "covers");
   Dumps = LoadPathFromSettings(si, DataRoot, "Folders", "Dumps", "dump");
+  GameIcons = LoadPathFromSettings(si, DataRoot, "Folders", "GameIcons", "gameicons");
   GameSettings = LoadPathFromSettings(si, DataRoot, "Folders", "GameSettings", "gamesettings");
   InputProfiles = LoadPathFromSettings(si, DataRoot, "Folders", "InputProfiles", "inputprofiles");
   MemoryCards = LoadPathFromSettings(si, DataRoot, "MemoryCards", "Directory", "memcards");
@@ -1786,6 +1789,7 @@ void EmuFolders::LoadConfig(SettingsInterface& si)
   DEV_LOG("Cheats Directory: {}", Cheats);
   DEV_LOG("Covers Directory: {}", Covers);
   DEV_LOG("Dumps Directory: {}", Dumps);
+  DEV_LOG("Game Icons Directory: {}", GameIcons);
   DEV_LOG("Game Settings Directory: {}", GameSettings);
   DEV_LOG("Input Profile Directory: {}", InputProfiles);
   DEV_LOG("MemoryCards Directory: {}", MemoryCards);
@@ -1805,6 +1809,7 @@ void EmuFolders::Save(SettingsInterface& si)
   si.SetStringValue("Folders", "Cheats", Path::MakeRelative(Cheats, DataRoot).c_str());
   si.SetStringValue("Folders", "Covers", Path::MakeRelative(Covers, DataRoot).c_str());
   si.SetStringValue("Folders", "Dumps", Path::MakeRelative(Dumps, DataRoot).c_str());
+  si.SetStringValue("Folders", "GameIcons", Path::MakeRelative(GameIcons, DataRoot).c_str());
   si.SetStringValue("Folders", "GameSettings", Path::MakeRelative(GameSettings, DataRoot).c_str());
   si.SetStringValue("Folders", "InputProfiles", Path::MakeRelative(InputProfiles, DataRoot).c_str());
   si.SetStringValue("MemoryCards", "Directory", Path::MakeRelative(MemoryCards, DataRoot).c_str());
@@ -1846,6 +1851,7 @@ bool EmuFolders::EnsureFoldersExist()
   result = FileSystem::EnsureDirectoryExists(Dumps.c_str(), false) && result;
   result = FileSystem::EnsureDirectoryExists(Path::Combine(Dumps, "audio").c_str(), false) && result;
   result = FileSystem::EnsureDirectoryExists(Path::Combine(Dumps, "textures").c_str(), false) && result;
+  result = FileSystem::EnsureDirectoryExists(GameIcons.c_str(), false) && result;
   result = FileSystem::EnsureDirectoryExists(GameSettings.c_str(), false) && result;
   result = FileSystem::EnsureDirectoryExists(InputProfiles.c_str(), false) && result;
   result = FileSystem::EnsureDirectoryExists(MemoryCards.c_str(), false) && result;
diff --git a/src/core/settings.h b/src/core/settings.h
index 401e968aa..b2a4b4884 100644
--- a/src/core/settings.h
+++ b/src/core/settings.h
@@ -536,6 +536,7 @@ extern std::string Cache;
 extern std::string Cheats;
 extern std::string Covers;
 extern std::string Dumps;
+extern std::string GameIcons;
 extern std::string GameSettings;
 extern std::string InputProfiles;
 extern std::string MemoryCards;
diff --git a/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistmodel.cpp b/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistmodel.cpp
index 403dc5aa3..b2267a6fb 100644
--- a/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistmodel.cpp
+++ b/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistmodel.cpp
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@
 #include "core/system.h"
 
 #include "common/file_system.h"
+#include "common/log.h"
 #include "common/path.h"
 #include "common/string_util.h"
 
@@ -20,8 +21,10 @@
 #include <QtGui/QIcon>
 #include <QtGui/QPainter>
 
+Log_SetChannel(GameList);
+
 static constexpr std::array<const char*, GameListModel::Column_Count> s_column_names = {
-  {"Type", "Serial", "Title", "File Title", "Developer", "Publisher", "Genre", "Year", "Players", "Time Played",
+  {"Icon", "Serial", "Title", "File Title", "Developer", "Publisher", "Genre", "Year", "Players", "Time Played",
    "Last Played", "Size", "File Size", "Region", "Compatibility", "Cover"}};
 
 static constexpr int COVER_ART_WIDTH = 512;
@@ -29,11 +32,6 @@ static constexpr int COVER_ART_HEIGHT = 512;
 static constexpr int COVER_ART_SPACING = 32;
 static constexpr int MIN_COVER_CACHE_SIZE = 256;
 
-static std::string getMemoryCardIconCachePath()
-{
-  return Path::Combine(EmuFolders::Cache, "memcard_icons.cache");
-}
-
 static int DPRScale(int size, float dpr)
 {
   return static_cast<int>(static_cast<float>(size) * dpr);
@@ -125,14 +123,14 @@ const char* GameListModel::getColumnName(Column col)
 GameListModel::GameListModel(float cover_scale, bool show_cover_titles, bool show_game_icons,
                              QObject* parent /* = nullptr */)
   : QAbstractTableModel(parent), m_show_titles_for_covers(show_cover_titles), m_show_game_icons(show_game_icons),
-    m_memcard_icon_cache(getMemoryCardIconCachePath()), m_memcard_pixmap_cache(128)
+    m_memcard_pixmap_cache(128)
 {
   loadCommonImages();
   setCoverScale(cover_scale);
   setColumnDisplayNames();
 
   if (m_show_game_icons)
-    m_memcard_icon_cache.Reload();
+    GameList::ReloadMemcardTimestampCache();
 }
 
 GameListModel::~GameListModel() = default;
@@ -144,7 +142,7 @@ void GameListModel::setShowGameIcons(bool enabled)
   beginResetModel();
   m_memcard_pixmap_cache.Clear();
   if (enabled)
-    m_memcard_icon_cache.Reload();
+    GameList::ReloadMemcardTimestampCache();
   endResetModel();
 }
 
@@ -249,7 +247,7 @@ QString GameListModel::formatTimespan(time_t timespan)
     return qApp->translate("GameList", "%n minutes", "", minutes);
 }
 
-const QPixmap& GameListModel::getPixmapForEntry(const GameList::Entry* ge) const
+const QPixmap& GameListModel::getIconPixmapForEntry(const GameList::Entry* ge) const
 {
   // We only do this for discs/disc sets for now.
   if (m_show_game_icons && (!ge->serial.empty() && (ge->IsDisc() || ge->IsDiscSet())))
@@ -258,17 +256,13 @@ const QPixmap& GameListModel::getPixmapForEntry(const GameList::Entry* ge) const
     if (item)
       return *item;
 
-    const MemoryCardImage::IconFrame* icon = m_memcard_icon_cache.Lookup(ge->serial, ge->path);
-    if (icon)
-    {
-      const QImage image(reinterpret_cast<const uchar*>(icon->pixels), MemoryCardImage::ICON_WIDTH,
-                         MemoryCardImage::ICON_HEIGHT, QImage::Format_RGBA8888);
-      return *m_memcard_pixmap_cache.Insert(ge->serial, QPixmap::fromImage(image));
-    }
+    // Assumes game list lock is held.
+    const std::string path = GameList::GetGameIconPath(ge->serial, ge->path);
+    QPixmap pm;
+    if (!path.empty() && pm.load(QString::fromStdString(path)))
+      return *m_memcard_pixmap_cache.Insert(ge->serial, std::move(pm));
     else
-    {
       return *m_memcard_pixmap_cache.Insert(ge->serial, m_type_pixmaps[static_cast<u32>(ge->type)]);
-    }
   }
 
   return m_type_pixmaps[static_cast<u32>(ge->type)];
@@ -286,11 +280,12 @@ QIcon GameListModel::getIconForGame(const QString& path)
     // See above.
     if (entry && !entry->serial.empty() && (entry->IsDisc() || entry->IsDiscSet()))
     {
-      const MemoryCardImage::IconFrame* icon = m_memcard_icon_cache.Lookup(entry->serial, entry->path);
-      if (icon)
+      const std::string icon_path = GameList::GetGameIconPath(entry->serial, entry->path);
+      if (!icon_path.empty())
       {
-        ret = QIcon(QPixmap::fromImage(QImage(reinterpret_cast<const uchar*>(icon->pixels), MemoryCardImage::ICON_WIDTH,
-                                              MemoryCardImage::ICON_HEIGHT, QImage::Format_RGBA8888)));
+        QPixmap newpm;
+        if (!icon_path.empty() && newpm.load(QString::fromStdString(icon_path)))
+          ret = QIcon(*m_memcard_pixmap_cache.Insert(entry->serial, std::move(newpm)));
       }
     }
   }
@@ -424,7 +419,7 @@ QVariant GameListModel::data(const QModelIndex& index, int role) const
     {
       switch (index.column())
       {
-        case Column_Type:
+        case Column_Icon:
           return static_cast<int>(ge->GetSortType());
 
         case Column_Serial:
@@ -479,9 +474,9 @@ QVariant GameListModel::data(const QModelIndex& index, int role) const
     {
       switch (index.column())
       {
-        case Column_Type:
+        case Column_Icon:
         {
-          return getPixmapForEntry(ge);
+          return getIconPixmapForEntry(ge);
         }
 
         case Column_Region:
@@ -569,7 +564,7 @@ bool GameListModel::lessThan(const QModelIndex& left_index, const QModelIndex& r
 
   switch (column)
   {
-    case Column_Type:
+    case Column_Icon:
     {
       const GameList::EntryType lst = left->GetSortType();
       const GameList::EntryType rst = right->GetSortType();
@@ -717,7 +712,7 @@ void GameListModel::loadCommonImages()
 
 void GameListModel::setColumnDisplayNames()
 {
-  m_column_display_names[Column_Type] = tr("Type");
+  m_column_display_names[Column_Icon] = tr("Icon");
   m_column_display_names[Column_Serial] = tr("Serial");
   m_column_display_names[Column_Title] = tr("Title");
   m_column_display_names[Column_FileTitle] = tr("File Title");
diff --git a/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistmodel.h b/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistmodel.h
index b550596f7..f059c158e 100644
--- a/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistmodel.h
+++ b/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistmodel.h
@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@
 
 #include "core/game_database.h"
 #include "core/game_list.h"
-#include "core/memory_card_icon_cache.h"
 #include "core/types.h"
 
 #include "common/heterogeneous_containers.h"
@@ -24,7 +23,7 @@ class GameListModel final : public QAbstractTableModel
 public:
   enum Column : int
   {
-    Column_Type,
+    Column_Icon,
     Column_Serial,
     Column_Title,
     Column_FileTitle,
@@ -83,13 +82,29 @@ Q_SIGNALS:
   void coverScaleChanged();
 
 private:
+  /// The purpose of this cache is to stop us trying to constantly extract memory card icons, when we know a game
+  /// doesn't have any saves yet. It caches the serial:memcard_timestamp pair, and only tries extraction when the
+  /// timestamp of the memory card has changed.
+#pragma pack(push, 1)
+  struct MemcardTimestampCacheEntry
+  {
+    enum : u32
+    {
+      MAX_SERIAL_LENGTH = 32,
+    };
+
+    char serial[MAX_SERIAL_LENGTH];
+    s64 memcard_timestamp;
+  };
+#pragma pack(pop)
+
   void loadCommonImages();
   void loadThemeSpecificImages();
   void setColumnDisplayNames();
   void loadOrGenerateCover(const GameList::Entry* ge);
   void invalidateCoverForPath(const std::string& path);
 
-  const QPixmap& getPixmapForEntry(const GameList::Entry* ge) const;
+  const QPixmap& getIconPixmapForEntry(const GameList::Entry* ge) const;
 
   static QString formatTimespan(time_t timespan);
 
@@ -107,6 +122,5 @@ private:
 
   mutable LRUCache<std::string, QPixmap> m_cover_pixmap_cache;
 
-  mutable MemoryCardIconCache m_memcard_icon_cache;
   mutable LRUCache<std::string, QPixmap> m_memcard_pixmap_cache;
 };
diff --git a/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistwidget.cpp b/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistwidget.cpp
index da44b2e1f..c03227fd8 100644
--- a/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistwidget.cpp
+++ b/src/duckstation-qt/gamelistwidget.cpp
@@ -632,7 +632,7 @@ void GameListWidget::saveTableViewColumnVisibilitySettings(int column)
 
 void GameListWidget::loadTableViewColumnSortSettings()
 {
-  const GameListModel::Column DEFAULT_SORT_COLUMN = GameListModel::Column_Type;
+  const GameListModel::Column DEFAULT_SORT_COLUMN = GameListModel::Column_Icon;
   const bool DEFAULT_SORT_DESCENDING = false;
 
   const GameListModel::Column sort_column =