Thief

FAQ

Q: Can the Intel Core i7-13700K and Intel Arc B390 combination run Thief at 60 FPS?

A: Yes, but only at 1920x1080 resolution. The recorded data shows playable frame rates at Low (86 FPS) and Medium (66 FPS) presets, while High (50 FPS) and Ultra (48 FPS) fall below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: What is the best settings preset at 2560x1440 for this combo?

A: No preset at 2560x1440 reaches 60 FPS. The closest is Low at 59 FPS, followed by Medium at 45 FPS, High at 34 FPS, and Ultra at 33 FPS. The verdict database lists no playable settings at this resolution.

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

A: The Arc B390 has an average benchmark score of 1482, placing it 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463), 1.5% ahead of the GeForce 800M (1460), 2.5% ahead of the GT 625 OEM (1446), and 2.7% ahead of the GT 710 (1443). It sits in the 9th percentile among all GPUs.

Q: What is the CPU's performance ranking relative to all tested processors?

A: The Intel Core i7-13700K ranks in the 89th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 46881. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 5900, scores 46971, which is 0.2% higher.

Q: What frame rates can be expected at 3840x2160 with this hardware?

A: All presets at 4K fall well below playable levels. Low averages 35 FPS, Medium averages 26 FPS (with a minimum of 22 FPS and maximum of 30 FPS), High averages 20 FPS, and Ultra averages 19 FPS. The database records no playable settings at this resolution.

Q: Where does this combo rank among all tested system combinations in Thief?

A: The combination of the Intel Core i7-13700K and Intel Arc B390 ranks 3307 out of 3720 tested combos in Thief, placing it in the lower portion of the database results.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, no preset achieves the 60 FPS threshold. The most demanding preset tested, Ultra, averages 19 FPS, while Low averages 35 FPS, Medium averages 26 FPS, and High averages 20 FPS. Every setting at this resolution is far from playable, so the database records no recommended configuration.

At 2560x1440, the situation is nearly identical. No preset clears 60 FPS. Low comes closest with 59 FPS, but the verdict database still marks no playable settings. Medium averages 45 FPS, High averages 34 FPS, and Ultra averages 33 FPS. The 1 FPS gap between Low at 1440p and the playable threshold is the closest this hardware gets at that resolution.

At 1920x1080, the picture changes. Low averages 86 FPS, and Medium averages 66 FPS, making both presets playable. Medium is the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS, so it is the best settings choice at 1080p. High averages 50 FPS and Ultra averages 48 FPS, both below the threshold.

The pattern across resolutions shows a steep performance penalty as resolution climbs. From 1080p Medium at 66 FPS to 1440p Medium at 45 FPS, the drop is 21 FPS. From 1440p Medium to 4K Medium at 26 FPS, the drop is another 19 FPS. This indicates the GPU hits its limits quickly when pixel count increases.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The CPU and GPU have separate nearest rivals in the database, and both are worth examining for users seeking comparable hardware.

For the Intel Core i7-13700K, the nearest alternatives are tightly clustered. The AMD Ryzen 9 5900 scores 46971, which is 0.2% higher than the i7-13700K's 46881 average. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 scores 47022, 0.3% higher. The AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX scores 46654, 0.5% lower, and the Intel Xeon w3-2535 also scores 46653, 0.5% lower. These four processors are effectively interchangeable in average benchmark performance, with deltas under one percentage point. Any of them would likely produce nearly identical frame rates in Thief when paired with the same GPU.

For the Intel Arc B390, the nearest rivals are all older NVIDIA discrete GPUs. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX scores 1463, which is 1.3% lower than the Arc B390's 1482. The GeForce 800M scores 1460, 1.5% lower. The GT 625 OEM scores 1446, 2.5% lower, and the GT 710 scores 1443, 2.7% lower. These deltas are small, meaning the Arc B390 is only marginally faster than these legacy parts in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test. Users coming from any of these GPUs would see a modest improvement, not a transformative one.

The pairing of a top-tier CPU with a very low-tier GPU creates an unusual comparison set. The CPU rivals are modern high-end processors, while the GPU rivals are entry-level parts from previous generations. In Thief specifically, the measured frame rates align far more closely with the GPU's standing than the CPU's.

The Verdict

This system can run Thief, but only under specific conditions. The verdict by resolution is clear: at 3840x2160 there are no playable settings, at 2560x1440 there are no playable settings, and at 1920x1080 the playable settings are Low and Medium.

At 1080p, Medium is the best playable preset, averaging 66 FPS with a minimum of 56 FPS and maximum of 75 FPS. Low averages 86 FPS. High drops to 50 FPS and Ultra to 48 FPS. Users who want a stable 60 FPS experience should stick with Medium at 1080p.

At 1440p, Low averages 59 FPS, which is technically below the 60 FPS threshold. This is a frustrating edge case. The database does not classify it as playable, but the margin is only 1 FPS. Medium averages 45 FPS, High averages 34 FPS, and Ultra averages 33 FPS.

At 4K, the results are uniformly poor. Low averages 35 FPS, Medium averages 26 FPS, High averages 20 FPS, and Ultra averages 19 FPS. None of these come close to the playable threshold.

The overall assessment is that this is a 1080p medium-settings machine for Thief. It cannot handle higher resolutions at playable frame rates, and even at 1080p, the high and ultra presets are out of reach.

CPU and GPU Roles

The division of labor between the Intel Core i7-13700K and Intel Arc B390 in Thief is heavily skewed toward the GPU. The CPU is an extremely capable part, ranking in the 89th percentile among all processors with a multi-threaded PassMark score of 45887 and a single-thread score of 4333. It is not the limiting factor here.

The GPU tells a different story. The Intel Arc B390 ranks in the 9th percentile among all GPUs, and its nearest rivals are all low-end parts from years past. The scaling between resolutions confirms that the GPU is the bottleneck. At 1080p Medium, the system averages 66 FPS. At 1440p Medium, it drops to 45 FPS. At 4K Medium, it falls to 26 FPS. This steep decline with increasing resolution is the signature of a GPU-bound scenario.

The preset scaling at each resolution tells the same story. At 1080p, moving from Low to Medium drops the average from 86 FPS to 66 FPS, a 20 FPS cost. Moving from Medium to High drops it from 66 FPS to 50 FPS, another 16 FPS. Moving from High to Ultra drops it from 50 FPS to 48 FPS, a smaller 2 FPS cost. At 1440p, Low runs at 59 FPS, Medium at 45 FPS, High at 34 FPS, and Ultra at 33 FPS. At 4K, Low runs at 35 FPS, Medium at 26 FPS, High at 20 FPS, and Ultra at 19 FPS.

The CPU's influence is most visible in the fact that even at the lowest settings and lowest resolution, the system does not achieve exceptionally high frame rates. At 1080p Low, the 86 FPS average is respectable but not extraordinary for a 16-core, 24-thread processor. A stronger GPU would likely push this much higher. The data indicates that the Arc B390 is the component that determines whether this system can play Thief at acceptable frame rates, and it is the component that holds the system back at 1440p and 4K.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested system combinations for Thief, the Intel Core i7-13700K paired with the Intel Arc B390 ranks 3307 out of 3720 combos. That places it in the bottom 11% of all tested configurations.

This low rank is entirely consistent with the GPU's performance profile. The Arc B390 sits in the 9th percentile among all GPUs, and its average benchmark score of 1482 places it just above the GeForce GT 520MX and GeForce 800M. In a game like Thief, which is a 2014 stealth title with moderate demands by modern standards, this GPU still cannot deliver playable performance above 1080p.

The CPU's high percentile rank, 89th among all processors, does not rescue the overall combo ranking. The system is only as strong as its weakest link, and the Arc B390 is a very weak link relative to the rest of the tested field. The combination of one of the strongest CPUs in the database with one of the weakest GPUs produces a system that can manage medium settings at 1080p but nothing more demanding.

For context, the combo sits near the bottom of the 3720 tested configurations. This means a large majority of other CPU and GPU pairings in the database achieve higher frame rates in Thief. The 1080p Medium result of 66 FPS is the system's ceiling, and it is a modest one. Users considering this combination for Thief should expect a playable but visually limited experience at 1080p, with no headroom for higher resolutions or more demanding presets.