Minimum

The Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti delivers a wide performance envelope in Minimum, a third-person shooter released in 2014. Measured data shows the combo ranks 1328 out of 3712 tested configurations in this game, placing it in the top 36% of all tested combos. The CPU sits in the 91st percentile among all tested processors, while the GPU is in the 75th percentile among all tested graphics cards, suggesting a balanced pairing where the processor has more headroom than the graphics subsystem. The game’s age is evident: even at 4K, the system approaches playable frame rates, while at 1080p it delivers far more than the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160 (4K), the data reveals a clear progression across settings. With Low settings, the average FPS is 84, which comfortably exceeds the 60 FPS threshold. Medium settings drop the average to 64 FPS, with a recorded minimum of 54 and a maximum of 74 — here the minimum dips below the playable line, hinting at occasional stutter in busy scenes. High settings reduce the average further to 54 FPS, which is below the threshold, while Ultra settings bring the average down to 41 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 43 FPS, showing that settings scaling has a substantial impact at this resolution.

At 2560x1440 (QHD), the system performs much more strongly. Low settings produce an average of 155 FPS, while Medium delivers 119 FPS with a minimum of 101 and a maximum of 137 — the minimum stays well above the 60 FPS line. High settings average 100 FPS, and even Ultra maintains a solid 76 FPS average. The spread from Low to Ultra here is 79 FPS, indicating that the GPU has enough headroom at this resolution to handle the most demanding preset without falling below 60 FPS.

At 1920x1080 (FHD), the results are exceptional. Low settings hit an average of 240 FPS, Medium averages 184 FPS with a minimum of 156 and a maximum of 212, High averages 155 FPS, and Ultra still delivers 118 FPS. The minimum recorded at Medium (156 FPS) is more than double the playable threshold, suggesting that even the most demanding moments remain fluid. The delta between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 122 FPS, which shows both the game’s scalability and the hardware’s ability to exploit it.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 1328 out of 3712 tested combinations places this system in the upper third of all tested hardware pairings for Minimum. This is a strong position, but not a top-tier one — the rank reflects the GPU’s mid-range standing more than the CPU’s high percentile. The CPU’s 91st percentile ranking among all processors suggests that the i7-14700F is not the limiting factor in most scenarios. The GPU’s 75th percentile indicates that the RTX 3070 Ti is a solid mainstream performer, but it trails the top cards that would push this combo higher in the rankings.

Relative to its nearest rivals, the CPU’s average benchmark score of 53620 is nearly identical to the Intel Xeon 6505P (53701, deltaPct -0.2%), meaning the i7-14700F is effectively tied with that server chip. It is also within 0.3% of the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 (53469) and 0.6% of the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X (53288), showing that the 14700F’s computational output is in the same class as those alternatives. The GPU’s average score of 29945 is within 0.1% of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile (29928) and 0.5% of the RTX 2080 Ti (29783), while the AMD Radeon RX 6800 (30095) is 0.5% ahead and the RX 6700 (30433) is 1.6% ahead — all four rivals are within a 1.6% band, making them functionally interchangeable for this game.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data across resolutions and settings reveals a clear shift in workload distribution. At 1080p, the frame rates are so high (up to 240 FPS on Low) that the CPU’s role becomes more prominent, as the GPU can render frames faster than the game’s engine can feed it. The jump from 1440p to 1080p at Ultra settings is 42 FPS (from 76 to 118), which is a 55% increase — a sign that the GPU is not yet the sole bottleneck at 1440p. At 4K, the GPU takes over as the dominant constraint: the difference between 1440p Ultra (76 FPS) and 4K Ultra (41 FPS) is a 46% drop, consistent with a GPU-bound scenario.

The scaling between presets reinforces this. At 4K, moving from Low to Ultra cuts the average FPS by 51% (from 84 to 41), which is a massive hit that only a heavily GPU-limited scenario would show. At 1440p, the same settings change reduces FPS by 51% as well (from 155 to 76), but the absolute values are high enough that the CPU still has room to push. At 1080p, the Low-to-Ultra drop is 51% too (from 240 to 118), but the minimum at Medium (156 FPS) suggests the CPU is capable of sustaining very high frame rates without becoming a hard ceiling. The CPU’s multi-threaded strength, evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35122, means it is unlikely to bottleneck even in this older title, leaving the GPU as the primary determinant of performance at higher resolutions.

The Verdict

This PC can run Minimum at all tested resolutions, but with caveats at 4K. At 1920x1080, every preset — Low, Medium, High, and Ultra — clears the 60 FPS threshold, with Ultra averaging 118 FPS. The system is fully playable at this resolution without compromises. At 2560x1440, all four presets also stay above 60 FPS, with Ultra averaging 76 FPS, so users can max out the game and still enjoy smooth gameplay. At 3840x2160, the situation is more nuanced: Low (84 FPS) and Medium (64 FPS) are playable, but High (54 FPS) and Ultra (41 FPS) fall short of the 60 FPS line. The verdict data lists Low and Medium as the playable settings at 4K, with Medium being the best playable option at an average of 64 FPS — though the minimum of 54 FPS at Medium means there will be moments below the threshold.

Similar Performance Alternatives

For the CPU, the nearest rivals are all within a 0.8% performance band, meaning any of them would behave nearly identically in this game. The Intel Xeon 6505P (53701, deltaPct -0.2%) is the closest match, followed by the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 (53469, deltaPct 0.3%), the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X (53288, deltaPct 0.6%), and the AMD EPYC 7313P (53206, deltaPct 0.8%). A user swapping the i7-14700F for any of these would see virtually no change in Minimum’s frame rates, as the game is not CPU-bound at the resolutions tested. For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile (29928, deltaPct 0.1%) is the closest sibling, with the RTX 2080 Ti (29783, deltaPct 0.5%) slightly behind. The AMD Radeon RX 6800 (30095, deltaPct -0.5%) is 0.5% faster, and the RX 6700 (30433, deltaPct -1.6%) is 1.6% faster — all well within a 2% margin, so any of these cards would produce nearly identical FPS at every resolution and preset.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Medium, with an average of 64 FPS. Pushing to High drops the average to 54 FPS, which fails the threshold. At 2560x1440, Ultra is the best choice, averaging 76 FPS — this is the highest quality setting that remains playable. At 1920x1080, Ultra is again the best, with an average of 118 FPS, providing a comfortable margin over the 60 FPS line. For players who prioritize frame rate over visual fidelity, 1080p Low (240 FPS) and 1440p Low (155 FPS) are also options, but the data shows that Ultra at 1080p and 1440p offers the best balance of quality and performance.

FAQ

*Q: Can this system run Minimum at 4K with the highest settings?*

A: No. At 3840x2160, Ultra settings produce an average of 41 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS playable threshold. High settings also fail at 54 FPS, so 4K gaming is limited to Low (84 FPS) or Medium (64 FPS).

Q: What is the best settings preset at 1440p for this combo?

A: Ultra settings at 2560x1440 deliver an average of 76 FPS, making it the most demanding preset that still clears the 60 FPS threshold. All lower presets also remain playable, with Low at 155 FPS, Medium at 119 FPS, and High at 100 FPS.

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, a delta of 0.5%. In Minimum, this translates to nearly identical frame rates — within 0.5% at any given resolution and preset.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the GPU is still the primary constraint, but the CPU’s headroom is evident: the i7-14700F ranks in the 91st percentile among CPUs, and its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35122 suggests it can easily feed the GPU at frame rates up to 240 FPS (the Low preset average).

Q: What frame rates can I expect at 4K on Medium settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Medium settings, the average FPS is 64, with a minimum of 54 and a maximum of 74. This is playable on average, but the minimum dips below 60 FPS, so there may be brief slowdowns.

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

A: The combo ranks 1328 out of 3712 tested combinations, placing it in the top 36% of all tested hardware pairings. This is a solid mid-to-high ranking, driven by the CPU’s high percentile but tempered by the GPU’s mid-range standing.