The Medium

FAQ

Q: What is the best average frame rate this combo can achieve in The Medium?

A: The highest recorded average frame rate is 51 FPS, which occurs at 1920x1080 with Low settings. No tested configuration reaches the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: Does the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X or the Intel Arc B390 hold this system back more?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor. The Arc B390 sits at the 9th percentile among all GPUs in the database, while the Ryzen 7 7700X ranks at the 85th percentile among all CPUs. The GPU's benchmark scores are dramatically lower relative to its peers.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B390 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B390 scores 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. It is 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, 1.5% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce 800M, 2.5% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM, and 2.7% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710.

Q: What is the best preset at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, Low settings deliver 34 FPS on average. This is the highest frame rate at that resolution, but it remains far below the 60 FPS target.

Q: Are there any settings at any resolution that reach 60 FPS?

A: No. The verdict data shows no playable settings at 3840x2160, 2560x1440, or 1920x1080. The closest result is 51 FPS at 1080p Low.

Q: Where does this CPU+GPU combination rank among all tested combos for this game?

A: The combo ranks 3314 out of 3724 tested combinations, placing it in the lower portion of the database for The Medium.

CPU and GPU Roles

The frame rate data in The Medium reveals that the Intel Arc B390 is the dominant constraint across every resolution and preset. The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X, with its 85th percentile standing among all CPUs, provides ample processing headroom. The GPU, however, ranks at the 9th percentile, and this imbalance shows clearly in the measured results.

At 1920x1080, dropping from Ultra to Low raises the average frame rate from 18 FPS to 51 FPS, a gain of 33 FPS. This large swing indicates that rendering load, not CPU throughput, governs performance. The CPU would need to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic, but the recorded data shows the GPU struggling even at the lowest settings.

Moving from 1080p to 1440p, the Low preset drops from 51 FPS to 43 FPS, an 8 FPS reduction. At Medium settings, the drop is from 32 FPS to 27 FPS. At 4K, Low falls further to 34 FPS. These scaling patterns are consistent with a GPU that is saturated: each resolution increase directly reduces frame output because the pixel pipeline cannot keep pace.

The preset scaling within each resolution tells the same story. At 1440p, Low delivers 43 FPS, Medium drops to 27 FPS, High falls to 19 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 15 FPS. At 1080p the sequence is 51, 32, 23, and 18 FPS respectively. The step from Low to Medium costs roughly 11 to 14 FPS at every resolution, while the step from High to Ultra costs only 4 to 5 FPS. This suggests that the higher presets add effects that the GPU cannot process efficiently, but even the lightest settings leave no room for CPU-bound behavior.

The database shows no scenario where the Ryzen 7 7700X becomes the bottleneck. If the CPU were limiting, frame rates would plateau across presets or resolutions. Instead, every measured configuration shows the GPU's rendering capacity as the binding factor. The CPU's multi-threaded score of 19088 in Cinebench R23 and its 35686 PassMark multi-thread score are far beyond what a horror game with fixed camera angles would require.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X and the Intel Arc B390 ranks 3314 out of 3724 tested combos in The Medium. This places it in the bottom 11% of all recorded configurations. The ranking reflects the GPU's position far more than the CPU's: the Arc B390 sits at the 9th percentile among all GPUs, while the Ryzen 7 7700X sits at the 85th percentile among all CPUs.

The database's combo rank aggregates both components, but the measured frame rates show that the GPU dominates the outcome. A system with a stronger CPU and a weaker GPU would land in a similar rank band, because the GPU cannot translate extra CPU performance into higher frame rates. Conversely, pairing this CPU with a mid-range GPU would likely move the combo substantially higher in the rankings, since the CPU has significant headroom.

The rank of 3314 out of 3724 means that over 3000 tested combos deliver better results in this game. Given that the game targets a 60 FPS threshold and this combo falls below that at every setting and resolution, the low rank is expected. The data shows a system that is heavily skewed: a modern desktop CPU paired with an integrated-class GPU that cannot sustain playable frame rates.

The Verdict

The recorded data answers the question directly: this PC cannot run The Medium at 60 FPS on any tested configuration. The verdict by resolution lists no playable settings at 3840x2160, 2560x1440, or 1920x1080. The playable threshold is 60 FPS, and the highest measured average is 51 FPS at 1080p Low.

At 4K, the best result is 34 FPS on Low settings. Medium delivers 21 FPS, High delivers 15 FPS, and Ultra delivers 12 FPS. None of these approach the threshold. At 1440p, Low reaches 43 FPS, Medium reaches 27 FPS, High reaches 19 FPS, and Ultra reaches 15 FPS. The 1080p results are the closest to playable: Low at 51 FPS, Medium at 32 FPS, High at 23 FPS, and Ultra at 18 FPS.

The system is therefore not viable for this game under the database's 60 FPS standard. It can render the game, and the visuals are recognizable at lower settings, but every configuration falls short. Users seeking smooth gameplay would need to either lower the resolution below 1080p, which the database does not measure, or accept frame rates well below the target. The verdict is unambiguous: no resolution and preset combination meets the threshold.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the Intel Arc B390, based on average benchmark scores, are all NVIDIA parts from the GeForce 500M, 800M, and 700 series families. The Arc B390 scores 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX scores 1463, a 1.3% deficit. The NVIDIA GeForce 800M scores 1460, a 1.5% deficit. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM scores 1446, a 2.5% deficit. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 scores 1443, a 2.7% deficit.

These deltas are small, all under 3%, meaning the Arc B390 and these four rivals would produce nearly identical frame rates in The Medium. A system with any of these GPUs paired with a similarly strong CPU would land in the same performance band, with average frame rates in the 30 to 50 range at 1080p Low and progressively lower results at higher resolutions.

On the CPU side, the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X has an average benchmark score of 35909. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 at 35802 (0.3% lower), the Intel Core 7 250H at 35728 (0.5% lower), the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350 at 35719 (0.5% lower), and the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H at 35670 (0.7% lower). These CPUs are effectively equivalent in processing power for this game, and swapping among them would not change the measured frame rates because the GPU is the limiting component.

For a user considering alternatives, the data suggests that any CPU in this performance class would behave identically. The GPU, however, would need to be several tiers higher to reach playable frame rates. The nearest GPU rivals all fall short of the Arc B390's already low score, so none of them would improve the outcome.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS does not exist. The highest average frame rate at this resolution is 34 FPS on Low settings. No preset clears the threshold, so the best setting is Low, but it still falls 26 FPS short of the target.

At 2560x1440, the same situation applies. Low settings deliver 43 FPS, which is the maximum at this resolution. No preset reaches 60 FPS, so Low is the best option, though it remains 17 FPS below the threshold.

At 1920x1080, Low settings deliver 51 FPS. This is the highest average across all resolutions and presets in the database. It is also the closest any configuration comes to the 60 FPS target, but it still falls 9 FPS short. No preset at any resolution achieves the target.

The verdict data confirms this: the best settings field is null for every resolution because no preset reaches 60 FPS. Users must accept that this system cannot meet the playable standard, regardless of settings choices.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The database records average frame rates for each resolution and preset combination, with minimum and maximum values available for Medium settings only.

At 3840x2160, the results are as follows. Low settings produce an average of 34 FPS. Medium settings produce an average of 21 FPS, with a minimum of 18 FPS and a maximum of 24 FPS. High settings produce an average of 15 FPS. Ultra settings produce an average of 12 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 22 FPS, showing that the GPU cannot handle the added visual effects at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, Low settings deliver 43 FPS on average. Medium settings deliver 27 FPS, with a minimum of 23 FPS and a maximum of 31 FPS. High settings deliver 19 FPS. Ultra settings deliver 15 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 28 FPS, slightly wider than at 4K because the lower resolution gives the GPU more headroom to show preset differences.

At 1920x1080, the best results appear. Low settings deliver 51 FPS on average. Medium settings deliver 32 FPS, with a minimum of 27 FPS and a maximum of 37 FPS. High settings deliver 23 FPS. Ultra settings deliver 18 FPS. The Low to Ultra spread is 33 FPS, the largest of any resolution, indicating that at 1080p the GPU has enough capacity to render low settings reasonably but quickly saturates as effects increase.

The minimum and maximum values for Medium settings show tight ranges at each resolution: 18 to 24 at 4K, 23 to 31 at 1440p, and 27 to 37 at 1080p. These narrow bands indicate consistent frame pacing rather than spikes or drops, but the overall levels are too low for smooth gameplay. The data shows a system that is stable but underpowered: frame times are uniform, but the GPU simply cannot produce enough frames per second to meet the threshold.