Evolve

The Intel Core i7-13700K paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6600 presents a mixed performance profile in Evolve, heavily dependent on resolution and quality settings. The benchmark data shows this combo is capable of delivering smooth frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, but it struggles to maintain playability at 4K. The measured FPS figures reveal a system that is firmly mid-range in this specific title, with the CPU’s strong multi-threaded performance often being held back by the GPU’s limits at higher resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the combo produces its lowest performance envelope. With Low settings, the average frame rate is 56 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS playability threshold. Moving to Medium settings drops the average to 43 FPS, with minimum and maximum readings of 37 and 50 FPS respectively. High settings yield an average of 34 FPS, and Ultra settings bottom out at an average of 24 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a steep performance cliff, with the average frame rate nearly halving from the lowest to the highest preset.

At 2560x1440, the situation improves significantly. Low settings deliver an average of 98 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold. Medium settings average 76 FPS, with a minimum of 65 FPS and a maximum of 88 FPS. High settings land exactly at the 60 FPS mark, making it the most demanding preset that remains playable at this resolution. Ultra settings, however, fall to an average of 41 FPS, which is not playable. The data indicates that the jump from Low to Medium costs 22 FPS on average, while the jump from Medium to High costs another 16 FPS.

The 1920x1080 results are the strongest for this combo. Low settings produce an average of 147 FPS, which is nearly two and a half times the playability threshold. Medium settings average 114 FPS, with a minimum of 97 FPS and a maximum of 131 FPS. High settings average 89 FPS, and even Ultra settings manage to stay above the 60 FPS line with an average of 62 FPS. The scaling from 1440p to 1080p is substantial; for instance, High settings see an increase from 60 to 89 FPS, a 48% improvement in average frame rate.

Best Settings per Resolution

For 3840x2160, no settings preset achieves the 60 FPS playability threshold. The highest average frame rate recorded is 56 FPS at Low settings, which falls short. Consequently, the best settings at this resolution are none, as the combo cannot maintain a playable experience.

At 2560x1440, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is High, which achieves an exact average of 60 FPS. This is the highest quality setting that remains playable, though it offers no headroom above the threshold. Low and Medium settings also clear the bar, with averages of 98 and 76 FPS respectively, but High represents the optimal balance of visual quality and performance.

For 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which averages 62 FPS. This is the only resolution where the combo can run the game at maximum quality settings while still meeting the playability requirement. The margin is slim, as the average is only 2 FPS above the threshold, but it is sufficient.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranks 2877th out of 3700 tested combinations for Evolve. This places it in the 22nd percentile of all tested systems, meaning roughly 78% of tested combos perform better in this game. The rank suggests that while this hardware is not entry-level, it is also not positioned for high-refresh-rate or high-resolution play in Evolve. The ranking reflects a system that is balanced for 1080p gaming but quickly becomes inadequate as resolution increases.

The CPU’s percentile ranking against all CPUs is 89, indicating it is in the top 11% of processors. The GPU’s percentile ranking against all GPUs is 63, placing it in the top 37%. The discrepancy between these percentiles shows a system where the CPU is significantly stronger than the GPU, which is a common pairing for budget-conscious builds. In Evolve, this imbalance manifests as GPU-bound performance at higher resolutions, where the RX 6600 becomes the limiting factor.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the CPU’s nearest rivals, the AMD Ryzen 9 5900 has an average score that is 0.2% higher, making it virtually identical in performance. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 is 0.3% higher, and the AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX is 0.5% lower. The Intel Xeon w3-2535 is also 0.5% lower. These deltas are all within a fraction of a percent, meaning that swapping the i7-13700K for any of these CPUs would result in nearly indistinguishable frame rates in Evolve, assuming the same GPU.

For the GPU, the nearest rival is the NVIDIA Quadro K6000, which has a delta of 0% from the RX 6600’s average score. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile is 0.1% lower, the NVIDIA Tesla K20m is 0.3% lower, and the NVIDIA RTX 2000 Ada Generation is 0.4% higher. These GPU alternatives would produce very similar frame rates in Evolve, with the RTX 2000 Ada Generation being marginally faster. A user with any of these GPUs paired with a similarly performing CPU would expect nearly identical measured FPS to the i7-13700K + RX 6600 combo.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data shows a clear shift in bottleneck behavior across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the CPU’s strength is more evident, as the high frame rates (147 FPS on Low) indicate that the GPU is capable of pushing many frames, and the CPU is able to feed it adequately. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p shows a 58% reduction in average FPS (from 147 to 62), which is primarily driven by GPU load.

At 2560x1440, the GPU becomes more of a limiting factor. The average FPS at Low settings drops from 147 to 98, a 33% reduction, while the CPU’s workload remains relatively constant. This indicates that the RX 6600’s rendering capabilities are the primary constraint at this resolution. The gap between Medium and High settings (76 to 60 FPS) further confirms that the GPU is struggling to keep up with increased pixel count.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is almost entirely the bottleneck. Even at Low settings, the average FPS is 56, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. The CPU’s high multi-threaded performance (as evidenced by its 89th percentile ranking) is irrelevant when the GPU cannot render frames fast enough. The scaling from 1080p to 4K at Low settings shows a 62% drop in average FPS (from 147 to 56), which is almost entirely attributable to the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth limitations. The conclusion is that for Evolve, the CPU matters most at 1080p, while the GPU dominates performance at 1440p and 4K.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Evolve at 1080p with maximum settings?

A: Yes, at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the combo achieves an average of 62 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playability threshold.

Q: What is the highest playable settings preset at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset averages exactly 60 FPS, making it the most demanding playable option. Ultra settings drop to 41 FPS and are not playable.

Q: Is 4K gaming possible with this hardware?

A: No, at 3840x2160, the highest average frame rate is 56 FPS on Low settings, which falls below the 60 FPS threshold. No preset is playable at this resolution.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to all tested systems?

A: It ranks 2877th out of 3700 tested combos for Evolve, placing it in the 22nd percentile of all tested systems.

Q: What is the performance difference between the CPU and its nearest rival?

A: The AMD Ryzen 9 5900 has an average score only 0.2% higher than the i7-13700K, indicating that performance in Evolve would be nearly identical.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU have more influence on performance at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the GPU is the primary driver of frame rate differences between presets, but the CPU’s strong single-thread performance allows for high frame rates at Low settings (147 FPS).

The Verdict

The Intel Core i7-13700K + AMD Radeon RX 6600 can run Evolve, but with significant caveats. At 1920x1080, the system clears the 60 FPS threshold on all presets, including Ultra, which averages 62 FPS. This is the resolution where the combo is fully playable and offers the best experience. At 2560x1440, the system is playable on High, Low, and Medium settings, with High exactly hitting 60 FPS, but Ultra is not playable at 41 FPS. At 3840x2160, the system cannot achieve playable frame rates on any preset, with the best average being 56 FPS on Low. For users targeting 1080p gaming, this combo is sufficient, even for maximum quality settings. For 1440p, it is acceptable with reduced quality settings, but for 4K, it falls short of the 60 FPS requirement across the board.