The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 and Intel Arc B580 combination delivers a highly variable experience in The Medium, heavily dependent on the resolution and preset chosen. At 1920x1080, the data shows a clear split: Low settings achieve an average of 86.6 FPS, Medium drops to 55.3 FPS, High falls to 37.7 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 31.2 FPS. The pattern repeats at 2560x1440, where Low averages 73.4 FPS, Medium reaches 44.0 FPS, High drops to 34.5 FPS, and Ultra manages just 25.1 FPS. At 3840x2160, the situation becomes more demanding: Low averages 58.2 FPS, Medium 35.5 FPS, High 25.2 FPS, and Ultra 22.9 FPS. Notably, the dataset provides no minimum or maximum FPS values, only averages, so frame-time consistency cannot be assessed directly. The playable threshold is defined as 60 FPS, and the verdict data indicates that only Low settings at 1440p and 1080p clear this bar, with no playable settings at 4K. The combo ranks 2859 out of 3724 tested combinations for this game, placing it in the lower-middle tier of the benchmark database.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data, taken across three resolutions and four presets, reveals a steep performance cliff as settings increase. At 1920x1080, the progression from Low to Ultra is as follows: Low averages 86.6 FPS, Medium 55.3 FPS, High 37.7 FPS, and Ultra 31.2 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is 31.3 FPS, indicating a substantial cost for the first step up in quality. Moving from Medium to High costs another 17.6 FPS, while High to Ultra only costs 6.5 FPS, suggesting diminishing returns at the top end.

At 2560x1440, the same preset ladder shows: Low 73.4 FPS, Medium 44.0 FPS, High 34.5 FPS, and Ultra 25.1 FPS. The delta between Low and Medium expands to 29.4 FPS, nearly identical to the 1080p gap. However, the Medium-to-High drop is 9.5 FPS, and High-to-Ultra costs 9.4 FPS, showing a more even degradation across the higher presets. Compared to 1080p, the 1440p Low setting loses 13.2 FPS, while Ultra loses 6.1 FPS, indicating that resolution scaling is not uniform across presets.

At 3840x2160, the data shows Low at 58.2 FPS, Medium at 35.5 FPS, High at 25.2 FPS, and Ultra at 22.9 FPS. The Low-to-Medium drop is 22.7 FPS, the Medium-to-High drop is 10.3 FPS, and High-to-Ultra is only 2.3 FPS. This 4K data also reveals that the gap between 1440p Low (73.4 FPS) and 4K Low (58.2 FPS) is 15.2 FPS, while the gap between 1440p Ultra (25.1 FPS) and 4K Ultra (22.9 FPS) is just 2.2 FPS. This pattern suggests that at higher presets, the game becomes heavily GPU-bound, and additional resolution only marginally worsens an already low frame rate.

The lack of min/max FPS values means the data cannot indicate stutter or frame pacing issues. For a horror game like The Medium, which relies on atmosphere and smooth camera movement, this is a notable omission. The averages imply that at 1080p Low, the experience should feel fluid, but the 55.3 FPS at Medium suggests occasional dips below 60 are likely, even if the average is close. Similarly, the 4K Low average of 58.2 FPS sits just under the playable threshold, so real-world performance would likely see frame rates fluctuating around that mark.

FAQ

*Q: Can this PC run The Medium at 60 FPS on any setting at 1920x1080?*

A: Yes. The measured data shows that at 1920x1080 with Low settings, the average FPS is 86.6. This is the only 1080p preset that clears the 60 FPS playable threshold. Medium averages 55.3 FPS, which falls short.

Q: What is the best playable setting at 2560x1440?

A: The only playable setting at 1440p is Low, which achieves an average of 73.4 FPS. Medium drops to 44.0 FPS, High to 34.5 FPS, and Ultra to 25.1 FPS, all below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with this combination?

A: No. The verdict data lists no playable settings at 3840x2160. The best average is 58.2 FPS at Low settings, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. Medium, High, and Ultra all average between 22.9 and 35.5 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 has an average benchmark score of 40081, placing it in the 87th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365, scores 40048, a delta of 0.1%. The Intel Core 5 221E scores 40144, a -0.2% delta, and the AMD Ryzen 9 270 scores 40246, a -0.4% delta. The Intel Core i9-13905H scores 40313, a -0.6% delta. These differences are all under 1%, indicating near-identical synthetic performance.

Q: How does the GPU compare to its nearest rivals in average benchmark scores?

A: The Intel Arc B580 has an average benchmark score of 23021, placing it in the 68th percentile of all GPUs. The AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP scores 23061 (a -0.2% delta), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 scores 22895 (a 0.6% delta), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 scores 23172 (a -0.7% delta), and the NVIDIA P106-100 scores 23249 (a -1% delta). All rivals fall within a 1% band of the Arc B580's average.

Q: What frame rate can be expected at 1080p Medium, and is it close to playable?

A: The average at 1080p Medium is 55.3 FPS. This is 4.7 FPS below the 60 FPS playable threshold. While it is close, the data does not support calling it playable, as average frame rates typically mask dips during intense scenes.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the AMD Ryzen 7 7700 in average benchmark score are all extremely close, with deltas under 1%. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 365, with a score of 40048, is effectively a statistical tie at 0.1% slower. The Intel Core 5 221E scores 40144, which is 0.2% faster, and the AMD Ryzen 9 270 scores 40246, 0.4% faster. The Intel Core i9-13905H completes the group at 40313, 0.6% faster. In practical terms, a system built with any of these CPUs would deliver near-identical CPU-bound performance in The Medium. Since the game's frame rates are primarily GPU-limited at most presets, swapping to any of these rivals would not meaningfully change the FPS numbers.

For the Intel Arc B580, the nearest rivals are similarly clustered. The AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP scores 23061, just 0.2% higher. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 scores 22895, 0.6% lower. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 scores 23172, 0.7% higher, and the NVIDIA P106-100 scores 23249, 1% higher. These deltas are all within the margin of synthetic benchmark noise. A builder considering an alternative GPU from this list should expect the same measured FPS values in The Medium at each resolution and preset. The RTX 3080's nominal score is the highest, but the difference of 151 points (0.7%) would not translate into a playable setting upgrade; the 1080p Medium average of 55.3 FPS would remain below 60 regardless of which rival GPU is installed.

The practical takeaway is that the entire group of comparable hardware sits in a narrow performance band. The combination's rank of 2859 out of 3724 combos reflects this mid-tier positioning. Upgrading to any of these rivals would not push the system into a higher playability category; the bottleneck is the GPU's overall throughput, not a specific deficiency in the Arc B580.

The Verdict

The verdict data is unambiguous: this PC can run The Medium at 60 FPS, but only under specific conditions. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 86.6 FPS, comfortably clearing the 60 FPS threshold. At 2560x1440, Low averages 73.4 FPS, also above the threshold. No other preset at any resolution reaches 60 FPS. At 3840x2160, even Low falls short at 58.2 FPS, and the verdict explicitly lists no playable settings at that resolution.

The practical advice is straightforward: if the goal is a smooth experience, run the game at 1080p or 1440p with Low settings. The 1080p Low average of 86.6 FPS provides headroom for demanding scenes, while 1440p Low at 73.4 FPS still leaves a buffer above the threshold. The 4K resolution is not viable for 60 FPS gameplay, as the best case scenario (Low) averages 58.2 FPS, just 1.8 FPS short. The data does not support any settings above Low for a locked 60 FPS experience, regardless of resolution. Medium at 1080p (55.3 FPS) and 1440p (44.0 FPS) are both below the threshold, and High and Ultra are far below at every resolution.

CPU and GPU Roles

The scaling between resolutions and presets reveals a clear division of labor. At Low settings, the frame rate drops by 13.2 FPS when moving from 1080p (86.6 FPS) to 1440p (73.4 FPS), and then by another 15.2 FPS when moving to 4K (58.2 FPS). This consistent decline of roughly 15% per resolution step indicates that at Low settings, the GPU is the primary limiter, but the CPU still has enough headroom to keep up. The Ryzen 7 7700, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, is not the bottleneck here.

At Ultra settings, the picture changes. The frame rates are already low at 1080p (31.2 FPS), and they barely degrade with resolution: 1440p Ultra is 25.1 FPS (a 6.1 FPS drop), and 4K Ultra is 22.9 FPS (a 2.2 FPS drop from 1440p). This small delta between resolutions at Ultra strongly suggests the GPU is completely saturated, and the workload is dominated by pixel shading and memory bandwidth. The Arc B580's 12 GB of GDDR6 memory and 456.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for Ultra settings at any resolution, and the frame rate is limited by the GPU's compute throughput rather than the CPU.

The Medium preset shows an intermediate pattern. At 1080p, it averages 55.3 FPS; at 1440p, 44.0 FPS (an 11.3 FPS drop); and at 4K, 35.5 FPS (an 8.5 FPS drop). The resolution scaling here is more uniform than Ultra, indicating that both CPU and GPU are contributing to the bottleneck. The Ryzen 7 7700's single-thread score of 1049 in 3DMark and multi-thread score of 8484 in 3DMark 16-thread tests are sufficient for the game's logic, but the GPU's raw throughput at Medium settings cannot sustain 60 FPS at any resolution. Overall, the CPU plays a supporting role; it is never the limiting factor, as evidenced by the fact that even at 1080p Low (86.6 FPS), the frame rate is still GPU-bound given the dramatic drop when moving to Medium.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Low, with an average of 86.6 FPS. This is the only 1080p preset that qualifies; Medium falls to 55.3 FPS, below the threshold.

At 2560x1440, the best playable setting is also Low, averaging 73.4 FPS. This provides a 13.4 FPS margin over the 60 FPS threshold, which is adequate for most gameplay, though the lack of min FPS data means transient dips cannot be ruled out.

At 3840x2160, no preset meets the 60 FPS requirement. The closest is Low at 58.2 FPS, which is 1.8 FPS short. The verdict data explicitly marks this resolution as having no playable settings, so there is no recommended preset here. For a 60 FPS target, the only viable options are 1080p Low and 1440p Low. Given the horror genre's reliance on smooth motion and atmospheric lighting, the 1080p Low setting's higher average of 86.6 FPS offers the most comfortable margin, while 1440p Low trades some FPS for additional resolution without dropping below the threshold.