Thief

Can the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F and Intel Arc B570 combination deliver a playable experience in Thief? The measured data indicates that this pairing is fully capable at 1080p and 1440p, but falls short of the 60 FPS threshold at 4K. The benchmark results show a clear scaling pattern: performance degrades predictably as resolution increases, while the gap between Low and Ultra settings widens at higher resolutions, confirming that the GPU becomes the dominant constraint beyond 1920x1080.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this configuration covers three resolutions and four quality presets. At 1920x1080, the system delivers its strongest results. Low settings produce an average of 133 FPS, while Medium averages 101 FPS with a minimum of 86 FPS and a maximum of 116 FPS. High settings average 77 FPS, and Ultra averages 73 FPS. This is the only resolution where every preset exceeds the 60 FPS playable threshold, with even the most demanding Ultra preset maintaining a comfortable margin above 60 FPS.

At 2560x1440, performance drops notably. Low settings average 91 FPS, which remains well above playable. Medium averages 69 FPS with a minimum of 59 FPS and a maximum of 79 FPS, placing the average above the threshold but the minimum slightly below it. High settings average 53 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target, and Ultra averages 50 FPS. The step from 1080p to 1440p costs roughly 30-40% of the average frame rate across presets, a substantial reduction that pushes High and Ultra out of the playable range.

At 3840x2160, the configuration struggles. Low settings average 54 FPS, which is just under the 60 FPS threshold. Medium averages 41 FPS with a minimum of 35 FPS and a maximum of 47 FPS. High averages 31 FPS, and Ultra averages 29 FPS. No preset at 4K clears the playable bar, and even the lowest settings fall short by 6 FPS on average. The data shows that 4K is not a viable target for this hardware combination in Thief.

The min/max data is only available for Medium presets at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K. At 1080p Medium, the range spans from 86 FPS to 116 FPS, indicating consistent frame pacing. At 1440p Medium, the range narrows to 59-79 FPS, which shows that the minimum dips to just below the 60 FPS target during demanding scenes. At 4K Medium, the range is 35-47 FPS, a tight band that reflects sustained GPU-bound performance rather than transient spikes.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which averages 73 FPS. This is the highest quality setting available, and the data shows it maintains a 13 FPS cushion over the playable threshold. Players can run the game at maximum visual fidelity while staying comfortably above 60 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the best playable preset is Medium, averaging 69 FPS. While the average clears the threshold, the recorded minimum of 59 FPS indicates that some scenes will dip slightly below 60 FPS. High settings average 53 FPS and Ultra average 50 FPS, both of which fail to meet the playable bar. Medium is the highest quality option that keeps the average frame rate above 60 FPS.

At 3840x2160, there are no playable settings. The highest average frame rate at 4K is 54 FPS on Low, which still falls short of the 60 FPS threshold by 6 FPS. Medium, High, and Ultra all average below 45 FPS, making 4K unplayable across the entire settings range. The data indicates that users targeting 4K must lower resolution or accept sub-60 FPS performance.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark results reveal how the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F and Intel Arc B570 divide responsibilities across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the CPU has more influence because the GPU is not fully saturated at lower pixel counts. The 133 FPS result on Low settings at 1080p suggests headroom in the GPU, while the drop to 73 FPS on Ultra indicates that increased shading and texture work begins to engage the graphics card more heavily. The Ryzen 7 9700F, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, provides ample processing power to feed the Arc B570 at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the GPU becomes the primary limiter. The average frame rates across presets drop by roughly 30% compared to 1080p, even though the CPU workload remains similar. The gap between Low (91 FPS) and Ultra (50 FPS) at 1440p is 41 FPS, compared to a 60 FPS gap at 1080p. This narrowing suggests that the GPU is struggling to maintain throughput as pixel count increases, and the CPU is no longer the bottleneck. The Ryzen 7 9700F's high single-thread score of 4691 in Passmark supports the notion that it can keep up with the GPU's demands at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is overwhelmingly the limiting factor. The average frame rates range from 54 FPS on Low to 29 FPS on Ultra, and the difference between Low and Ultra shrinks to just 25 FPS. This compression indicates that the Arc B570 is saturated even at the lowest settings, and the CPU has negligible influence on performance. The Ryzen 7 9700F's multi-thread score of 36470 and physics score of 2122 are far beyond what Thief requires, confirming that the GPU's 10 GB of GDDR6 memory and 380.0 GB/s bandwidth are the binding constraints at 4K.

The scaling between presets also shows that the game's Ultra settings impose a significant cost. At 1080p, Ultra is 45% slower than Low (73 FPS vs 133 FPS). At 1440p, Ultra is 45% slower than Low (50 FPS vs 91 FPS). At 4K, Ultra is 46% slower than Low (29 FPS vs 54 FPS). This consistent penalty suggests that the Ultra preset adds similar relative overhead across resolutions, but the absolute frame rates drop as resolution increases, making the overhead more impactful at higher pixel counts.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the nearest rivals for the CPU, the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F sits in a tight performance cluster. The AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX scores 69875, which is just 0.2% below the 9700F's average benchmark score of 69996. The Intel Core i7-14700KF scores 70163, putting it 0.2% above. The AMD Ryzen 9 7950X scores 69515, 0.7% lower, and the Intel Core i7-14700K scores 69355, 0.9% lower. In practice, any of these CPUs would deliver nearly identical frame rates in Thief, since the game is not CPU-bound at higher resolutions. The 9700F's 94th percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates it is a strong performer, but the rivals are all within 1% of its score.

For the GPU, the Intel Arc B570's average benchmark score of 20556 places it alongside several comparable options. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile scores 20534, just 0.1% lower. The Intel Arc A750 scores 20582, 0.1% higher. The NVIDIA Quadro M4000M scores 20480, 0.4% lower, and the AMD Radeon R9 M390X scores 20662, 0.5% higher. The 65th percentile ranking for the B570 shows it is a mid-range GPU, and users with any of these rivals would see similar Thief performance. The Arc A750 is particularly relevant as a direct competitor from the same manufacturer's previous generation.

The Verdict

The data clearly answers whether this PC can run Thief. At 1920x1080, the answer is yes across all presets. The Ultra setting averages 73 FPS, and even the lowest preset reaches 133 FPS. This configuration provides a fully playable experience at maximum quality settings. At 2560x1440, the answer is yes for Low and Medium presets, with Medium averaging 69 FPS. High and Ultra fall below 60 FPS, so users must compromise on quality to maintain smooth gameplay. At 3840x2160, the answer is no. The best result is 54 FPS on Low, which still misses the 60 FPS threshold, and all other presets average below 45 FPS.

The verdict by resolution confirms this analysis: the system has no playable settings at 4K, two playable settings at 1440p (Low and Medium), and four playable settings at 1080p (High, Low, Medium, and Ultra). The best settings per resolution are Medium at 1440p (69 FPS) and Ultra at 1080p (73 FPS). Users targeting 4K must look to lower resolutions or accept sub-60 FPS performance, while 1080p and 1440p users can enjoy a smooth experience with appropriate settings.

FAQ

*Q: Can this PC run Thief at 1080p with maximum settings?*

A: Yes. At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the system averages 73 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold. Low, Medium, and High settings also clear 60 FPS, with averages of 133, 101, and 77 FPS respectively.

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

A: Medium is the highest preset that stays at or above 60 FPS at 2560x1440, averaging 69 FPS. However, the recorded minimum of 59 FPS means some scenes will dip just below the threshold. Low also averages 91 FPS, while High (53 FPS) and Ultra (50 FPS) are not playable.

Q: Is 4K gaming possible with the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F and Intel Arc B570?

A: No. At 3840x2160, the best average frame rate is 54 FPS on Low settings, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. Medium averages 41 FPS, High averages 31 FPS, and Ultra averages 29 FPS, so no preset is playable at 4K.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B570 compare to the Intel Arc A750?

A: The two GPUs are essentially tied in performance. The Arc B570 has an average benchmark score of 20556, while the Arc A750 scores 20582, a difference of just 0.1%. Users would see nearly identical frame rates in Thief with either card.

*Q: Which component is the bottleneck at 4K in Thief?*

A: The GPU is the clear bottleneck at 3840x2160. The frame rates compress to a range of 29-54 FPS across all settings, indicating the Intel Arc B570 is saturated even on Low. The CPU's strong benchmark scores (4691 single-thread, 36470 multi-thread) far exceed the game's demands at this resolution.

Q: Does the CPU affect performance more at 1080p or 1440p?

A: The CPU has more influence at 1080p, where the GPU is less saturated and frame rates reach 133 FPS on Low. At 1440p, the GPU becomes the primary limiter, as evidenced by the smaller gap between Low and Ultra presets (41 FPS at 1440p versus 60 FPS at 1080p). The Ryzen 7 9700F is sufficient at both resolutions, but the Arc B570's performance ceiling drives the overall results.