Archeage

Archeage, the 2014 MMORPG, remains a demanding title for modern hardware, particularly when paired with an unusual combination like the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X and the Intel Arc B370. The measured frame rates from this specific configuration reveal a system heavily constrained by its graphics processor, especially at higher resolutions and settings. The data shows a platform where the CPU’s substantial multi-threaded capabilities are largely held back by the integrated GPU’s limited throughput, resulting in a playable experience only at the lowest settings and resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the best average frame rate this combination achieves at 1080p?

A: The highest average FPS recorded for this configuration at 1920x1080 is 65 FPS, but it is only achieved with the Low preset. The Medium preset delivers 57 FPS, while High and Ultra drop to 39 FPS and 27 FPS, respectively.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B370 compare to its nearest rivals in GPU benchmarks?

A: The Intel Arc B370 has a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184. Its closest competitor, the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570, scores 1186, which represents a 0.2% performance delta. The Arc B370 is also 0.5% behind the ATI Radeon HD 5770 and 0.7% behind the AMD Radeon HD 7650M, but it is 1.4% ahead of the AMD FirePro M2000.

Q: What is the performance percentile of the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X against all other CPUs?

A: The Ryzen 7 9700X sits in the 86th percentile when compared to all CPUs in the database. Its average benchmark score is 37943, which places it in the upper tier of processors, with its nearest rival, the Intel Core i9-14901E, scoring 37911 (a 0.1% delta).

Q: Does the game run better at 1440p with Medium settings or at 4K with Low settings?

A: The data shows that the 2560x1440 Medium preset achieves an average of 39 FPS, while the 3840x2160 Low preset only manages 25 FPS. The 1440p Medium configuration is clearly the more performant and visually superior option of the two.

Q: What is the lowest average frame rate reported for this game and hardware combo?

A: The lowest average frame rate recorded is 10 FPS, which occurs at 3840x2160 resolution with the Ultra settings preset. This is the only configuration in the measured data that falls into single-digit territory for average performance.

Q: Is the Arc B370’s performance closer to modern discrete GPUs or older integrated solutions?

A: The benchmark data indicates the Arc B370 is in the 5th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are all legacy parts, such as the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 and the ATI Radeon HD 5770, suggesting its performance level is more aligned with older, low-end hardware than with any modern discrete graphics card.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is the decisive factor in this system's Archeage performance, and not in a favorable way. The GPU’s benchmark results place it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs, with a single 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184. This puts it in direct competition with decade-old parts like the ATI Radeon HD 5770, which scores 1190, and the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570, which scores 1186. The data is clear: this is an integrated-class GPU with a 25 W TDP, designed for basic graphics tasks, not for running a demanding MMORPG at high fidelity.

The technical specifications of the Arc B370 reinforce its position as a low-power, integrated solution. It is built on Intel's 3 nm process and features 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster output pipelines. Its base clock is 300 MHz, which can boost up to 2400 MHz. The pixel rate is 48.00 GPixel/s and the texture rate is 96.00 GTexel/s, leading to a FP32 performance of 6.144 TFLOPS. However, the most critical limitation is its memory configuration: the VRAM is "System Shared," meaning it has no dedicated video memory and must borrow from the system's DDR5 RAM. The bandwidth is listed as "System Dependent," which is a bottleneck in a game like Archeage that requires constant data streaming for textures and world geometry.

In the measured FPS data, the GPU's weakness is the primary constraint. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 65 FPS, but this falls rapidly as graphical demands increase. Moving to Medium drops the average to 57 FPS, High to 39 FPS, and Ultra to 27 FPS. This scaling pattern indicates that every increase in shader and texture complexity directly impacts the Arc B370's ability to keep up. The 4K results are even more telling, with the GPU struggling to maintain 25 FPS even at Low settings. The benchmark results confirm that the Arc B370 is the limiting component in this configuration; the Ryzen 7 9700X has more than enough power to feed it, but the GPU simply cannot process the frames fast enough.

CPU Role

In stark contrast to the GPU, the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X is a high-performance desktop processor that is vastly underutilized in this pairing. The CPU's benchmarks show it is a formidable part, with an average benchmark score of 37943 and a percentile ranking of 86 among all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i9-14901E (37911, 0.1% delta) and the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 (37904, 0.1% delta), placing it at the top of the performance heap. This is a far cry from the Arc B370's 5th percentile ranking.

The Ryzen 7 9700X is an 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge) and manufactured on a 4 nm process by TSMC. It has a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. Its cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and a shared 32 MB of L3 cache. The CPU supports dual-channel DDR5 memory with a bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s. In multi-threaded workloads, it scores an impressive 20485 in Cinebench R23 and 17906 in Geekbench multicore. Even its single-thread performance is strong, with scores of 2211 in Cinebench R23 and 3023 in Geekbench.

In Archeage, a game that can be heavily dependent on single-core performance for game logic and network processing, the 9700X is more than capable. The data shows that the CPU is not the bottleneck. For instance, at 1080p Low, the system hits 65 FPS, but at 4K Low, it drops to 25 FPS. If the CPU were the limiting factor, the frame rates would be similar regardless of resolution, as the CPU workload would remain constant. Instead, the drastic drop with resolution scaling points directly to the GPU. The Ryzen 7 9700X has the raw compute power to handle Archeage's demands with ease, but the Arc B370 prevents it from ever being fully utilized.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of this system's performance across resolutions and settings. The results are consistently low, making it clear that this is not a configuration built for high-refresh-rate gaming in Archeage.

At 1920x1080 (1080p), the system achieves its best results. With the Low preset, the average frame rate is 65 FPS, which is the only playable result in the entire dataset. The Medium preset averages 57 FPS, with a minimum of 49 FPS and a maximum of 66 FPS. This is a playable, albeit not smooth, experience. The High preset drops the average to 39 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages just 27 FPS. These latter two are less playable and show noticeable stutter in busy areas.

Moving to 2560x1440 (1440p) shows a significant performance hit. The Low preset averages 43 FPS, which is a 33.8% drop from the 1080p Low result. The Medium preset averages 39 FPS (min 33, max 44), which is only slightly better than the 1080p High preset. The High preset falls to 26 FPS, making it difficult to play, and the Ultra preset averages just 18 FPS, which is nearly unplayable. The data shows that 1440p is not a viable resolution for this GPU unless the user is willing to stick to Low or Medium settings.

At 3840x2160 (4K), the system is completely out of its depth. The Low preset averages 25 FPS, which is a 61.5% drop from the 1080p Low result. The Medium preset averages 22 FPS (min 19, max 25), and the High preset averages just 15 FPS. The Ultra preset is the worst, with an average of only 10 FPS. These results are all below the threshold for a playable experience, indicating that 4K is simply not a viable option for this hardware combination in Archeage.

Resolution Scaling

The resolution scaling behavior of this system is a textbook example of a GPU-bound scenario. As resolution increases from 1080p to 1440p to 4K, the frame rates plummet, confirming that the Intel Arc B370's rendering capabilities are the primary constraint.

At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 65 at 1080p to 43 at 1440p, a reduction of 22 FPS (33.8%). Moving from 1440p to 4K Low, the average drops another 18 FPS to 25, a 41.9% reduction. The cumulative drop from 1080p Low to 4K Low is 40 FPS, a 61.5% decrease. This steep curve indicates that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth are being overwhelmed by the increasing pixel count.

The scaling is even more dramatic at higher settings. At Medium settings, the average FPS goes from 57 at 1080p to 39 at 1440p (a 31.6% drop) and then to 22 at 4K (a 43.6% drop from 1440p). At High settings, the averages are 39 FPS, 26 FPS, and 15 FPS, respectively. The percentage drops are consistent, but the absolute frame rates are so low that the game becomes unplayable much sooner. At Ultra, the system averages 27 FPS at 1080p, 18 FPS at 1440p, and 10 FPS at 4K.

This scaling pattern is significant because it rules out the CPU as a bottleneck. If the Ryzen 7 9700X were the limiting factor, we would expect to see similar frame rates across all resolutions, as the CPU's workload (AI, game logic, draw calls) does not increase with resolution. Instead, the sharp decline in FPS with higher resolutions proves that the Arc B370 is the limiting component. The CPU is waiting for the GPU to finish rendering each frame, and that time increases dramatically as the resolution grows.

Settings Recommendations

Given the measured frame rates, the optimal settings for this hardware combination are clear. The primary goal is to achieve a playable frame rate, and the data shows that this is only possible at 1080p with the lowest settings.

For a playable experience at a consistent frame rate, the 1920x1080 Low preset is the only sensible choice. This configuration achieves an average of 65 FPS, which is smooth enough for an MMORPG. The 1920x1080 Medium preset is a secondary option, averaging 57 FPS. While this is 8 FPS lower, it offers better visual fidelity. However, the minimum FPS of 49 in the Medium preset could lead to noticeable hitches in crowded areas. For players who prioritize visuals over a locked frame rate, Medium at 1080p is the maximum acceptable setting.

All other settings and resolutions are not recommended for gameplay. The 1080p High preset at 39 FPS and the Ultra preset at 27 FPS are too choppy for a game that requires constant movement and reaction. At 1440p, even the Low preset (43 FPS) is marginal, and the Medium preset (39 FPS) is borderline unplayable. The High (26 FPS) and Ultra (18 FPS) presets at 1440p are not viable. At 4K, all presets are effectively a slideshow, with the Low preset at 25 FPS and the Ultra preset at 10 FPS.

In summary, the data suggests that users should run Archeage at 1920x1080 with the Low preset to get the best balance of performance and playability. If a player has a strong tolerance for lower frame rates, the Medium preset at 1080p can be considered, but the risk of frame drops in busy scenarios is high. This configuration, with its powerful Ryzen 7 9700X CPU and weak Arc B370 GPU, is severely unbalanced for this game; the CPU has ample headroom, but the GPU is the undeniable performance ceiling.