Archeage

Archeage, a 2014 MMORPG, presents a demanding workload that varies significantly across resolutions and presets. Using the Intel Core i5-14400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT, the measured data reveals a complex interplay between CPU and GPU limits. The results show that this combination is capable of excellent performance at mainstream resolutions, but struggles at the highest settings, indicating a clear hierarchy of bottlenecks depending on the graphics configuration.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is dramatic and tells a clear story about what limits this system. At Low settings, the transition from 1920x1080 (157.9 FPS) to 3840x2160 (59.1 FPS) represents a 62.6% reduction in frame rate. This massive decline at lower graphical presets points directly to the GPU as the primary constraint; the CPU provides ample headroom, but the Radeon RX 6700 XT cannot sustain high frame rates when pixel count quadruples.

The scaling pattern shifts noticeably at higher presets. Moving from 1080p Ultra (64.1 FPS) to 1440p Ultra (42.7 FPS) shows a 33.4% drop, and further down to 4K Ultra (26.9 FPS) reveals another 37.0% loss. While still significant, these percentages are smaller than the drop seen at Low settings. This suggests that at Ultra, the workload becomes more balanced, with both CPU and GPU contributing to the frame time. The 1080p Ultra result of 64.1 FPS, compared to 157.9 FPS at Low, indicates that the graphical settings themselves impose a heavy cost on the GPU, independent of resolution.

At Medium settings, the trend continues. The 1080p result (137.5 FPS) drops to 91.5 FPS at 1440p (a 33.5% decrease) and then to 52.8 FPS at 4K (a 42.3% decrease from 1440p). The data implies that Archeage's engine scales resolution in a predictable, linear fashion, with the GPU being the limiting factor in almost all scenarios. The only exception appears to be at 1080p Low, where the 157.9 FPS figure suggests the CPU might be nearing its limit, preventing even higher scores.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide a clear hierarchy of performance, but the best "experience" depends on the target resolution. At 1920x1080, the High preset yields 96.5 FPS, which is a substantial 50.6% improvement over Ultra (64.1 FPS) while likely offering a visually similar experience. The data shows that High is the sweet spot here, delivering a smooth frame rate that fully utilizes the monitor's potential without the steep performance penalty of the Ultra preset.

At 2560x1440, the Medium setting stands out as the optimal choice. It delivers 91.5 FPS, which is 43.9% faster than High (63.6 FPS) and more than double the frame rate of Ultra (42.7 FPS). This suggests that Medium offers the best balance of visual fidelity and performance, keeping the game comfortably playable. The High preset dips below 60 FPS, which is often considered a threshold for smooth gameplay in an MMORPG.

For 3840x2160, the options are more constrained. The Low preset achieves 59.1 FPS, barely crossing the 60 FPS line, while Medium drops to 52.8 FPS and High falls to 37.7 FPS. The Ultra preset is virtually unplayable at 26.9 FPS. At 4K, the data indicates that Low or Medium are the only viable settings, and even then, users should expect frame rates in the 50-60 FPS range. The High preset at 4K is a significant downgrade from 1440p Medium, highlighting the GPU's limitations at this resolution.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT, with its 12 GB of GDDR6 memory and 192-bit bus, provides a 384.0 GB/s bandwidth. This memory subsystem is a key factor in the GPU's performance. The card's boost clock of 2581 MHz and base clock of 2321 MHz are relatively high, yet the data shows that the GPU still becomes the bottleneck at 4K and at higher presets. The 13.21 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power is not sufficient to maintain high frame rates with Ultra settings in Archeage, which appears to be a graphically intensive title for its age.

The GPU's role is most evident in the resolution scaling. From 1080p to 4K at the same settings, the performance drops are consistent with a card that is primarily limited by its shading and rasterization throughput. The 7 nm process and RDNA 2.0 architecture are efficient, but the raw power is simply not enough for 4K Ultra. The GPU's percentile rank of 77 versus all other GPUs confirms its position as a mid-range to upper-mid-range part, and the measured data aligns with that expectation. The 12 GB VRAM is likely sufficient for this game at these settings, as the performance drops are more consistent with compute limitations than memory capacity issues.

How This Combo Ranks

In the context of all 1727 tested combinations for Archeage, the Intel Core i5-14400F and AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT combination ranks at position 940. This places it in the 54.4th percentile of all combos. This is a middle-of-the-pack ranking, which is somewhat surprising given the individual components' performance. The CPU has an 88th percentile ranking among all CPUs, and the GPU has a 77th percentile ranking, yet their combined performance in this specific game falls short of what those individual scores might suggest.

This rank implies that Archeage is sensitive to a specific mix of hardware that this combo does not perfectly match. The data shows that the GPU is the main limiting factor at higher resolutions, but at 1080p Low, the CPU might be holding back the system. The combo rank of 940 out of 1727 indicates that many other pairings, likely with stronger GPUs, achieve higher frame rates. The deltaPct values for the GPU's nearest rivals (e.g., 0.7% slower than the AMD Radeon RX 6800) suggest that small GPU improvements could meaningfully change the ranking in this game.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14400F features 10 cores (6 performance and 4 efficiency) and 16 threads, with a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 21914 and single-core score of 3093 highlight a strong processor for gaming. However, the measured FPS data reveals that the CPU is rarely the primary bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the 157.9 FPS result is high, but it's unclear if the CPU is capping performance. The CPU's percentile rank of 88 versus all CPUs suggests it can handle most gaming scenarios, but Archeage might not be fully optimized to use all 10 cores.

The CPU's role becomes more apparent when comparing the 1080p Low and Medium results. The jump from 137.5 FPS at Medium to 157.9 FPS at Low is a 14.8% improvement, which is relatively modest compared to the GPU's scaling at higher resolutions. This indicates that the CPU is providing a stable base, but the game's frame rate is still largely dictated by the GPU. The L3 cache of 20 MB (shared) is generous, and the 16 threads help with background tasks, but the data suggests that a faster single-core CPU would not yield significant gains in this title, as the GPU is the clear limiting factor in most presets and resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve over 100 FPS?

A: Based on the measured data, only 1920x1080 at Low settings achieves over 100 FPS, reaching 157.9 FPS. At 1440p, the highest result is 101.6 FPS at Low settings, which also crosses that threshold.

Q: How does the Ultra preset at 1440p compare to High at 1080p?

A: The 1440p Ultra setting yields 42.7 FPS, which is significantly lower than the 1080p High result of 96.5 FPS. The data shows that the resolution increase has a more substantial impact on performance than the preset change.

Q: Is the 12 GB VRAM of the RX 6700 XT sufficient for Archeage at 4K?

A: The data does not indicate any VRAM-related stuttering or crashes. The main issue at 4K is the GPU's compute performance, as the frame rates are low (e.g., 37.7 FPS at High), suggesting the card's processing power, not memory capacity, is the limiting factor.

Q: How much faster is the High preset compared to Ultra at 1080p?

A: The High preset at 1080p achieves 96.5 FPS, which is 50.6% faster than the Ultra preset's 64.1 FPS. This makes High the recommended preset for smooth gameplay at this resolution.

Q: What is the performance difference between Medium and Low at 1440p?

A: At 1440p, the Medium preset achieves 91.5 FPS, which is 10.0% slower than the Low preset's 101.6 FPS. This is a relatively small difference, making Medium a sensible choice for improved visuals.

Q: Does this combo rank in the top half of all tested systems for Archeage?

A: Yes, the combo ranks 940 out of 1727 systems, placing it in the 54.4th percentile. This indicates it performs better than a majority of tested combinations, but is not a top-tier setup for this specific game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table lists the exact average FPS values from the measurement data for the Intel Core i5-14400F and AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT combination in Archeage.

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS |

|------------|----------|---------|

| 1920x1080 | Low | 157.9 |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 137.5 |

| 1920x1080 | High | 96.5 |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 64.1 |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 101.6 |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 91.5 |

| 2560x1440 | High | 63.6 |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 42.7 |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 59.1 |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 52.8 |

| 3840x2160 | High | 37.7 |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 26.9 |

The data shows a consistent pattern of performance degradation as both resolution and settings increase. The most significant single drop occurs when moving from 1080p Low to 4K Low, representing a 62.6% reduction in FPS. This confirms that the GPU is the dominant factor in determining frame rates across the board.