Minimum

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti delivers a comprehensive range of performance in Minimum, a third-person shooter released in 2014. The measured data, collected at three resolutions and four quality presets, shows this combination is capable of high frame rates across most settings, with the primary constraint appearing at 4K with maximum quality. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS, optimal settings, and system behavior for this specific hardware pairing.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combination produces exceptional frame rates that far exceed the 60 FPS playability threshold. The Low preset achieves an average of 243.1 FPS, representing the highest performance ceiling for this resolution. Moving up the quality ladder, the Medium preset averages 183 FPS, while High delivers 155 FPS. The most demanding Ultra preset still maintains a robust 120.8 FPS average. The scaling between presets is consistent, with each step up in quality reducing performance by roughly 20-30 FPS, indicating the GPU handles the workload efficiently at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, performance remains strong but shows the expected impact of increased pixel count. The Low preset averages 154.8 FPS, which is a 36% reduction compared to the same preset at 1080p. Medium maintains 120.2 FPS, while High drops to 100.8 FPS. The Ultra preset at this resolution averages 76 FPS, still comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold. The gap between Medium and High at this resolution is 19.4 FPS, while the jump from High to Ultra is 24.8 FPS, showing that the Ultra preset imposes a significant but manageable load.

The 3840x2160 resolution reveals the most challenging conditions for this hardware. The Low preset averages 84.9 FPS, which is still playable but represents a substantial drop from lower resolutions. Medium achieves exactly 63 FPS on average, just clearing the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset falls below playability with an average of 54.4 FPS, while Ultra drops further to 43 FPS. The performance degradation from 1440p to 4K is steep: Low goes from 154.8 to 84.9 FPS (a 45% reduction), and Ultra goes from 76 to 43 FPS (a 43% reduction). This indicates the RTX 3070 Ti is the limiting factor at 4K, as the pixel throughput requirements outpace the GPU's capabilities at higher quality settings.

Best Settings per Resolution

For 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is the optimal choice, delivering an average of 120.8 FPS. This provides the highest visual fidelity while maintaining a frame rate more than double the 60 FPS threshold. There is no reason to compromise on settings at this resolution, as even the most demanding preset leaves substantial headroom.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset again stands as the best option, averaging 76 FPS. This clears the playability threshold by 16 FPS, offering a comfortable margin for demanding scenes. While not as high as the 1080p result, 76 FPS is sufficient for smooth gameplay, and the visual quality improvement over High (which averages 100.8 FPS) justifies the performance trade-off for most users.

For 3840x2160, the Medium preset is the highest quality setting that maintains 60 FPS, averaging exactly 63 FPS. This is a narrow margin, leaving only 3 FPS of headroom above the threshold. The Low preset offers more breathing room at 84.9 FPS, but for users who prioritize visual quality, Medium is the viable ceiling. The High preset at 54.4 FPS and Ultra at 43 FPS are not suitable for maintaining consistent playability at this resolution.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data reveals a clear division of labor between the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the frame rates are exceptionally high, with the Low preset reaching 243.1 FPS. These numbers suggest the CPU is keeping pace with the GPU's output, as the Ryzen 9 9900X's 12 cores and 24 threads provide ample processing headroom. The scaling from Low to Ultra at this resolution—from 243.1 to 120.8 FPS—is driven primarily by GPU load, as increased quality settings demand more pixel processing.

At 2560x1440, the influence shifts more toward the GPU. The frame rate drop from 1080p is consistent across all presets, with an average reduction of approximately 36% at Low and 37% at Ultra. This uniformity indicates the GPU is becoming the bottleneck, as the CPU has sufficient capacity to handle the increased resolution without additional strain. The Ryzen 9 9900X's high single-thread performance, evidenced by its 3DMark single-thread score of 1286 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2253, ensures it is not limiting frame delivery at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is unequivocally the limiting factor. The frame rates drop to 43 FPS at Ultra, and even Low only reaches 84.9 FPS. The CPU's role diminishes further, as the GPU is fully saturated with pixel rendering tasks. The Ryzen 9 9900X's multi-core capabilities, reflected in its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32172 and Geekbench multi-core score of 22174, are underutilized at this resolution, as the workload is heavily graphics-bound. The scaling between resolutions—from 120.8 FPS at 1080p Ultra to 76 FPS at 1440p Ultra to 43 FPS at 4K Ultra—shows a consistent GPU-driven performance curve.

The Verdict

This PC configuration can run Minimum, but the experience varies significantly by resolution and settings. At 1920x1080, the system clears the 60 FPS threshold with all presets, including Ultra at 120.8 FPS. This is the ideal resolution for this combination, offering high frame rates and full visual fidelity. At 2560x1440, all four presets also remain playable, with Ultra averaging 76 FPS. This provides a strong balance between image quality and performance.

At 3840x2160, the system is partially successful. The Low and Medium presets both clear 60 FPS, with Medium averaging exactly 63 FPS. However, the High and Ultra presets fall short, averaging 54.4 FPS and 43 FPS respectively. For 4K gaming, users would need to stick with Medium or lower settings to maintain playability. The RTX 3070 Ti's 8 GB of GDDR6X memory and 608.3 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for Medium settings at 4K, but the GPU's compute throughput (21.75 TFLOPS FP32) is insufficient for higher quality presets at this resolution.

The verdict is clear: this is a capable 1080p and 1440p gaming system for Minimum, with the ability to handle 4K only at reduced quality settings. The 60 FPS threshold is met in 10 of the 12 tested configurations, with the only failures occurring at 4K High and 4K Ultra.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X sits close to several other CPUs in benchmark performance. The AMD EPYC 9015 is the nearest rival, with an average score of 57555 compared to the 9900X's effective score, showing a negligible 0.1% difference. The AMD EPYC 7313 trails slightly at 57399, a 0.2% delta. The Intel Core i9-14900 leads by 1.1% with a score of 58115, while the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260M is 1.4% ahead at 58323. For gaming workloads, these differences are minimal, meaning users with any of these CPUs would see nearly identical frame rates in Minimum, with the 9900X's higher single-thread performance (3DMark single-thread score of 1286) potentially offering minor advantages in CPU-bound scenarios.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti has equally close performance neighbors. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile is nearly identical, with an average score of 29928 versus the 3070 Ti's 29945, a 0.1% delta. The AMD Radeon RX 6800 is 0.5% faster at 30095, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti is 0.5% slower at 29783. The AMD Radeon RX 6700 is 1.6% ahead at 30433. In practical terms, any of these GPUs would produce frame rates within a few FPS of the RTX 3070 Ti across all resolutions and settings in Minimum, making them suitable alternatives for users seeking similar performance. The RX 6800's slightly higher score might translate to 1-2 additional FPS at 4K Ultra, but the difference is unlikely to push the 43 FPS average above 60.

FAQ

*Q: Can this system run Minimum at 4K?*

A: Yes, but only at Low and Medium settings. At 3840x2160, the Medium preset averages exactly 63 FPS, while Low averages 84.9 FPS. The High and Ultra presets fall below the 60 FPS threshold at 54.4 FPS and 43 FPS respectively.

Q: What is the highest playable setting at 1440p?

A: The Ultra preset at 2560x1440 averages 76 FPS, making it the highest quality setting that maintains playability. All four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) at this resolution exceed the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1080p to 1440p?

A: At the Low preset, the average FPS drops from 243.1 at 1920x1080 to 154.8 at 2560x1440, a reduction of 88.3 FPS or approximately 36%. At Ultra, the drop is from 120.8 to 76 FPS, a reduction of 44.8 FPS or approximately 37%.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for this game?

A: At 1080p, the CPU matters more, as frame rates are high enough (up to 243.1 FPS) that the Ryzen 9 9900X's processing power is relevant. At 1440p and especially 4K, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, as evidenced by the consistent frame rate drops across presets when increasing resolution.

Q: What is the frame rate at 1080p with Medium settings?

A: The Medium preset at 1920x1080 averages 183 FPS. This is well above the 60 FPS threshold, providing smooth gameplay with room for high refresh rate displays.

Q: How does the RTX 3070 Ti compare to the RTX 2080 Ti in this system?

A: The RTX 3070 Ti has an average benchmark score of 29945, while the RTX 2080 Ti scores 29783, making the 3070 Ti 0.5% faster. This difference would translate to less than 1 FPS in Minimum at any resolution, so the two GPUs are effectively equivalent in this game.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti ranks 1308th out of 3712 tested combinations in Minimum. This places the system in the top 35% of all configurations tested, indicating a solid mid-to-high tier performance level. The rank reflects the strong 1080p and 1440p performance, where the system excels, while the 4K limitations at High and Ultra settings prevent a higher placement. The CPU's 92nd percentile ranking among all CPUs and the GPU's 75th percentile ranking among all GPUs contribute to this overall position, with the GPU being the more limiting component in the pairing. For perspective, the system outperforms the majority of combinations, but dedicated 4K gaming setups with higher-end GPUs would rank above it. The measured data confirms this is a well-balanced pairing for mainstream gaming resolutions, with the CPU providing ample headroom for future GPU upgrades.