Archeage

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 570 delivers a severely constrained experience in Archeage, ranking in the bottom 5% of all tested combinations. The data indicates this pairing is fundamentally mismatched for modern expectations, with the GPU acting as the primary bottleneck across all resolutions, resulting in frame rates that are only playable at 1080p with Low settings.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is dramatic and reveals a system that is overwhelmingly limited by the graphics card. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 62 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops this to 42 FPS, a reduction of 32%. At 4K Low, the average plunges to 24 FPS, which is a 61% decrease from the 1080p baseline. This steep scaling curve is a classic indicator of a GPU-bound scenario—as the pixel count increases, the RX 570's compute units and memory bandwidth are saturated, causing performance to collapse.

The pattern repeats at Medium settings. The 1080p Medium average is 55 FPS, which falls to 37 FPS at 1440p (a 33% drop) and further to 21 FPS at 4K (a 62% drop from 1080p). The consistency of this ~60% reduction from 1080p to 4K across both Low and Medium settings strongly suggests that the CPU, the Ryzen 7 9700F, is not the limiting factor at higher resolutions. If the CPU were the constraint, we would expect the frame rate to remain relatively flat as resolution increases, since the CPU workload per frame stays roughly constant. Instead, the linear relationship between pixel count and frame rate indicates the GPU is working at its maximum capacity.

At High settings, the scaling is slightly less severe in absolute terms but still devastating. 1080p High yields 37 FPS, 1440p High yields 25 FPS, and 4K High yields only 14 FPS. The transition from 1440p to 4K at High settings represents a 44% reduction, while the 1080p to 4K drop is 62%. The Ultra settings are essentially unplayable at any resolution, with 1080p Ultra at 26 FPS, 1440p Ultra at 17 FPS, and 4K Ultra at a mere 10 FPS. The data shows that the RX 570’s 4 GB of VRAM and 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth are insufficient for the texture and shading demands of Ultra presets, causing the rendering pipeline to stall.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F is a modern, high-end processor based on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge). It features 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU achieves a strong Passmark single-thread score of 4691 and a multithread score of 36470, placing it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. This raw computational power is far beyond what Archeage, a 2014 MMORPG, requires for its game logic and AI.

In this specific combination, the CPU’s role is to feed frames to the GPU. Given the low frame rates observed, the CPU is never the bottleneck. At 1080p Low, where the GPU has the least work to do, the CPU is likely capable of generating far more than 62 FPS, but the RX 570 cannot keep up. The CPU’s performance headroom is evident when looking at its nearest rivals. The Ryzen 7 9700F scores 0.2% higher than the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX and 0.7% higher than the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X in average benchmark scores. It also trails the Intel Core i7-14700KF by only 0.2%. These are all top-tier processors, and the 9700F sits comfortably among them, meaning its processing power is not a limiting factor in this test.

The CPU’s 32 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support with 89.6 GB/s bandwidth are more than adequate for Archeage’s threading model. The game, which is not known for heavy multi-threading, will primarily rely on the single-thread performance of the 9700F, which is exceptional. The data from the measured FPS shows that even at the lowest resolution and settings, the frame rate is capped by the GPU, not the CPU. There is no scenario in the measured FPS table where the CPU’s 8 cores and 16 threads would be saturated, as the GPU fails to reach frame rates that would stress the CPU’s frame delivery pipeline.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Ryzen 7 9700F and RX 570 ranks 3544 out of 3708 tested combos in Archeage. This places it in the bottom 4.4% of all systems, which is a poor result for a CPU that itself ranks in the top 6% of all processors. The massive discrepancy between the CPU’s high percentile (94th) and the combo’s low rank (3544th) highlights a severe imbalance. The pairing sabotages the CPU’s potential, as the GPU is a relic from the Polaris generation.

This rank is not a reflection of the CPU’s capability but rather the GPU’s inability to translate that capability into playable frame rates. The RX 570’s average benchmark score is 28766, placing it in the 74th percentile of all GPUs. However, the GPU's nearest rivals are telling. The RX 570 scores 0.4% lower than the AMD Radeon RX 6800M, which is a laptop GPU, and 0.8% lower than the AMD Radeon RX 470. It scores 0.7% higher than the AMD Radeon R9 M295X and 1.2% higher than the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000. This indicates the RX 570 is a mid-range performer from its era, and when paired with a modern flagship CPU, the overall combo rank suffers because the GPU cannot deliver the frames required to make the CPU's power relevant.

The data shows that in Archeage, a game that is not visually demanding by modern standards, the combo rank is dragged down entirely by the GPU. A user with this CPU would need a significantly more powerful GPU to move the combo rank into a respectable position. The 3544th rank out of 3708 is a clear verdict: this specific combination is a poor choice for Archeage, regardless of the CPU's strengths.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of the system's performance across all settings and resolutions. At 1080p, the only playable configuration is Low, with an average of 62 FPS. Medium is borderline, averaging 55 FPS with a minimum of 47 FPS and a maximum of 63 FPS. High settings drop to 37 FPS, which is playable but not smooth for an MMORPG with frequent combat. Ultra is not viable, averaging only 26 FPS.

At 1440p, the system struggles significantly. Low settings produce an average of 42 FPS, which is acceptable for casual play but below the 60 FPS target for competitive scenarios. Medium settings yield 37 FPS, with a minimum of 32 FPS and a maximum of 43 FPS. High settings drop to 25 FPS, and Ultra is unplayable at 17 FPS. The data indicates that 1440p is only viable at Low or Medium settings, and even then, the frame rate is inconsistent.

At 4K, the system is overwhelmed. Low settings produce a 24 FPS average, which is a slideshow for an MMORPG. Medium settings yield 21 FPS, with a minimum of 18 FPS and a maximum of 24 FPS. High settings drop to 14 FPS, and Ultra is a cinematic 10 FPS. These numbers confirm that 4K is not a realistic option for this combo, as the GPU lacks the raw throughput and memory bandwidth to handle the pixel load.

The progression from Low to Ultra at each resolution shows a consistent penalty. At 1080p, moving from Low to Medium costs 7 FPS (from 62 to 55), from Medium to High costs 18 FPS (from 55 to 37), and from High to Ultra costs 11 FPS (from 37 to 26). At 1440p, the penalties are 5 FPS (Low to Medium), 12 FPS (Medium to High), and 8 FPS (High to Ultra). At 4K, the penalties are 3 FPS (Low to Medium), 7 FPS (Medium to High), and 4 FPS (High to Ultra). The pattern shows that the High preset is the most demanding step up from Medium, likely due to the increase in texture quality and shadow complexity, which requires more VRAM and fill rate.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is the definitive bottleneck in this system. Based on the Polaris 20 chip using the GCN 4.0 architecture on a 14 nm process, this GPU is from a bygone era. It has 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, which are modest numbers by today's standards. Its clock speeds are a base of 1168 MHz and a boost of 1244 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective). The 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

In Archeage, the GPU’s performance is directly tied to its memory subsystem and shader throughput. The 4 GB VRAM is insufficient for High and Ultra settings at 1440p and above, as evidenced by the drastic frame rate drops. At 4K, even Low settings (24 FPS) struggle, indicating the GPU is also limited by its raw fill rate. The pixel rate of 39.81 GPixel/s and texture rate of 159.2 GTexel/s are simply too low to handle the pixel count of 4K.

The GPU’s synthetic benchmark scores are consistent with its measured FPS. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 880, which is a low score. The Geekbench scores are 39349 (Metal), 32084 (OpenCL), and 42752 (Vulkan). These numbers indicate that the GPU is a low-end performer in modern benchmarks. Its nearest rival, the RX 6800M, scores only 0.4% higher, which suggests that the RX 570 is not even close to the performance level of a mid-range modern GPU. The GPU’s TDP of 150 W and suggested PSU of 450 W are modest, but its end-of-life production status and 2017 release date confirm its age.

The data shows that the GPU’s 224.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is a critical limiting factor. At 4K with Ultra settings, the frame rate drops to 10 FPS, which is likely due to the GPU thrashing its VRAM and constantly swapping textures. The 1x 6-pin power connector and dual-slot design are typical for this class, but they do not compensate for the lack of raw compute power. The RX 570 simply cannot deliver the frame rates needed to make the Ryzen 7 9700F a viable partner for Archeage beyond 1080p Low/Medium.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings to play Archeage with this combo?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 with Low settings is the only configuration that achieves a consistently playable frame rate, with an average of 62 FPS. Medium settings at 1080p average 55 FPS, which is also viable, but any higher resolution or settings preset results in average frame rates below 42 FPS.

Q: Why is the 4K performance so poor?

A: The 4K performance is poor because the AMD Radeon RX 570 lacks the memory bandwidth (224.0 GB/s) and pixel fill rate (39.81 GPixel/s) to handle the pixel load. At 4K Low, the average FPS is 24, and at Ultra it drops to 10 FPS, indicating a severe GPU bottleneck.

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F causing any frame rate issues?

A: No. The benchmark data indicates the CPU is not a limiting factor. The Ryzen 7 9700F has a Passmark single-thread score of 4691 and a multithread score of 36470, placing it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. The frame rates are consistently low across all resolutions, which points exclusively to the GPU as the bottleneck.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other systems tested in Archeage?

A: This combo ranks 3544 out of 3708 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom 4.4%. This is a poor rank, primarily due to the GPU’s age and performance level.

Q: Is the GPU's 4 GB of VRAM enough for this game?

A: The data suggests it is not sufficient for higher settings. At 1440p Ultra and 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 17 and 10, respectively. The VRAM capacity is likely exhausted, causing severe performance degradation compared to the 1080p results.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, the average frame rate drops from 62 FPS on Low to 26 FPS on Ultra. This is a 58% reduction in performance, highlighting the significant cost of enabling the highest visual quality presets on this GPU.