Thief

The Intel Core i7-14700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 combination delivers a remarkably consistent experience in Thief, clearing the 60 FPS playability threshold at every tested resolution and preset. The data shows a system that scales predictably from 1080p to 4K, with the most demanding settings still maintaining fluid frame rates. This analysis examines the measured performance across all three resolutions, identifies the CPU and GPU roles in the results, and contextualizes the hardware's standing against nearby alternatives.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that remains at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which posts an average of exactly 60.0 FPS. This is a razor-thin margin, but it clears the playability threshold precisely. The High preset at 4K delivers 60.4 FPS, a negligible difference from Ultra, while Medium reaches 77.3 FPS and Low jumps to 102.9 FPS. The fact that Ultra and High are virtually identical in frame rate at 4K suggests the GPU is hitting a performance ceiling that preset tweaks barely influence.

For 2560x1440, the best settings that stay above 60 FPS are again Ultra, but with much more headroom: 94.3 FPS average. This represents a significant comfort margin over the 60 FPS floor, allowing for potential frame rate dips without dropping below playability. The gap between Ultra and High at 1440p is 9.4 FPS (103.7 vs 94.3), indicating that the Ultra preset imposes a measurable cost but remains entirely manageable.

At 1920x1080, the answer is also Ultra, delivering a robust 138.1 FPS average. This is more than double the 60 FPS threshold, leaving substantial room for high refresh rate displays. The progression from Ultra to High at 1080p shows only an 8.4 FPS difference (146.5 vs 138.1), which is proportionally smaller than at 1440p. Across all resolutions, Ultra is the recommended setting, but the margin of safety grows dramatically as resolution decreases—from a precarious 60.0 FPS at 4K to a comfortable 138.1 FPS at 1080p.

CPU and GPU Roles

The scaling data reveals distinct roles for the CPU and GPU across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the RTX 4070 is likely not the primary constraint, as frame rates reach 219.4 FPS on Low settings. This high ceiling suggests the CPU can feed the GPU adequately, but the GPU still dictates the upper bounds—dropping from Low to Ultra reduces performance by 81.3 FPS (219.4 to 138.1), a 37% reduction that indicates graphics load remains significant even at 1080p.

As resolution increases to 2560x1440, the GPU's workload grows substantially. The Low preset falls from 176.5 FPS at 1440p to 102.9 FPS at 4K, a 73.6 FPS drop. Meanwhile, the Ultra preset falls from 94.3 FPS at 1440p to 60.0 FPS at 4K, a 34.3 FPS decrease. The ratio of performance loss between resolutions is not uniform—the Low preset loses 41.7% of its 1440p performance at 4K, while Ultra loses 36.4%. This suggests that at lower settings, the GPU becomes more resolution-bound, while at higher settings, other bottlenecks (likely memory bandwidth or shading) mitigate the resolution penalty.

The CPU's role is most evident at 1080p Low, where 219.4 FPS represents near the practical limit for many games. The i7-14700KF, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, provides ample headroom. However, the data shows that even at 1080p, the GPU still matters—the difference between Low and Ultra is 81.3 FPS, demonstrating that graphics settings have a larger impact than resolution alone. At 4K, the CPU becomes almost irrelevant, as the GPU limits performance across all presets, with the spread between Low and Ultra narrowing to 42.9 FPS (102.9 to 60.0), compared to 81.3 FPS at 1080p.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1920x1080: The full range of settings shows strong performance throughout. Low delivers 219.4 FPS average, Medium drops to 193.6 FPS, High reaches 146.5 FPS, and Ultra settles at 138.1 FPS. The step from Medium to High is the largest single drop at 47.1 FPS, while the High-to-Ultra gap is smaller at 8.4 FPS. This suggests the Medium-to-High transition includes a significant visual quality increase that carries a heavy computational cost.

2560x1440: Performance remains high but shows expected scaling. Low posts 176.5 FPS, Medium is 132.9 FPS, High hits 103.7 FPS, and Ultra lands at 94.3 FPS. The Medium-to-High drop is 29.2 FPS, again the largest step, while High-to-Ultra costs 9.4 FPS. Compared to 1080p, the 1440p results show a uniform reduction of roughly 20-25% across presets, consistent with the increased pixel count.

3840x2160: This is where the RTX 4070 begins to work harder. Low produces 102.9 FPS, Medium is 77.3 FPS, High reaches 60.4 FPS, and Ultra hits exactly 60.0 FPS. The Low-to-Medium drop is 25.6 FPS, Medium-to-High is 16.9 FPS, and High-to-Ultra is a minimal 0.4 FPS. The tiny difference between High and Ultra at 4K indicates the GPU is saturated—the extra settings in Ultra do not measurably affect performance because the hardware is already at its limit.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The CPU's nearest rivals, based on average benchmark scores, include the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F, which scores 69,996 (0.2% higher than the i7-14700KF's 70,163 average), and the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX at 69,875 (0.4% lower). These three processors should deliver nearly identical frame rates in Thief at all resolutions, as their benchmark differences are within noise. The AMD Ryzen 9 7950X scores 69,515, 0.9% lower, while the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K scores 70,879, 1.0% higher—all four rivals would behave essentially the same as the i7-14700KF in game testing.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA Tesla P4 scores 37,628 (0.1% above the RTX 4070's 37,648 average), making it a statistical twin for gaming performance. The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 scores 37,507, 0.4% lower, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile is 1.3% higher at 38,135. The AMD Radeon PRO W6400 trails by 1.3% at 37,157. In practice, the RTX 4070's measured Thief performance would be mirrored almost exactly by any of these alternatives, meaning users with a Tesla P4 or RX Vega 56 could expect the same 60 FPS at 4K Ultra, while the RTX 4080 Mobile might offer a marginal 1-2 FPS improvement at most settings.

The Verdict

Can this PC run Thief? The data answers affirmatively at every resolution. At 3840x2160, all four presets—Low, Medium, High, and Ultra—clear the 60 FPS threshold, with Ultra achieving exactly 60.0 FPS. This is a pass, but with zero headroom; any scene complexity beyond the benchmark's average could cause dips below 60. The 2560x1440 result is much safer, with Ultra at 94.3 FPS, providing a 34.3 FPS buffer above the playability floor. At 1920x1080, Ultra's 138.1 FPS is so far above the threshold that the game would run flawlessly even on high refresh rate monitors.

The verdict is clear: this system is fully playable at all tested settings, but 4K Ultra is a borderline case. For a guaranteed smooth experience, 1440p Ultra is the sweet spot, offering near-maximum visual quality with substantial performance cushion. At 1080p, the hardware is almost overkill, as even Ultra settings leave enough headroom for streaming, recording, or background tasks without impacting frame rate.

How This Combo Ranks

Among all tested combinations in the benchmark database, this CPU-GPU pairing ranks 535th out of 3,720 combinations for Thief. This places it in the top 14.4% of all tested systems, indicating that it outperforms the vast majority of configurations. The rank reflects the balanced nature of the i7-14700KF and RTX 4070—neither component is the absolute fastest available, but their combination produces strong results in this game. The 4K Ultra score of 60.0 FPS likely contributes to this ranking, as many systems in the database would fail to reach that threshold.

The percentile data supports this positioning: the CPU ranks in the 94th percentile among all CPUs tested, while the GPU sits in the 81st percentile among all GPUs. The gap between these percentiles suggests the GPU is the more limiting factor in this pairing, which aligns with the measured FPS data showing GPU-bound behavior at higher resolutions. A stronger GPU would likely push this combo higher in the rankings, while a weaker CPU would have minimal impact.

FAQ

*Q: Can this PC run Thief at 4K on the highest settings?*

A: Yes. At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the measured average FPS is exactly 60.0, which meets the playable threshold of 60 FPS. However, this is a borderline result with no margin for dips.

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

A: Ultra is the best settings at 2560x1440, delivering an average of 94.3 FPS. This is well above the 60 FPS threshold and offers the highest visual quality tested.

Q: How much faster is 1080p compared to 4K on this system?

A: At Low settings, 1080p achieves 219.4 FPS versus 102.9 FPS at 4K, a difference of 116.5 FPS. At Ultra settings, the gap narrows to 78.1 FPS (138.1 vs 60.0).

Q: Which component is the bottleneck at 4K resolution?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor at 3840x2160. The GPU's percentile rank (81st) is lower than the CPU's (94th), and the performance difference between High and Ultra at 4K is negligible (0.4 FPS), indicating GPU saturation.

Q: Are there any settings below 60 FPS?

A: No. Every tested resolution and preset combination—Low, Medium, High, and Ultra at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K—maintains an average FPS at or above 60.

Q: How does this combo compare to the 535th rank out of 3,720?

A: The combo ranks in the 85.6th percentile of all tested combinations, meaning it outperforms approximately 3,185 other systems in the database for Thief. This is a strong result, though not top-tier, as the 4K Ultra score of exactly 60 FPS leaves no headroom.