Archeage

The Intel Core i7-13700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 presents a clear picture of performance scaling in Archeage, with data indicating a shift in bottleneck behavior as resolution increases. The measured frame rates show that at 1080p, the system delivers high average FPS across all settings, while the progression to 4K reveals a substantial performance cliff that points to the GPU becoming the primary limiting factor. This analysis walks through the resolution scaling, settings trade-offs, and the specific roles of the CPU and GPU based on the measured data.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate data across the three tested resolutions shows a predictable yet steep decline as pixel count increases, but the rate of decline varies significantly depending on the graphics preset. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 152.1 at 1920x1080 to 105.6 at 2560x1440, a reduction of roughly 31%, and then falls further to 57.2 at 3840x2160, representing another 46% drop from the 1440p figure. This pattern indicates that even at Low settings, the GPU is heavily taxed at 4K, as the scaling from 1440p to 4K is far more punishing than the jump from 1080p to 1440p.

For High settings, the trend is similar but with lower absolute numbers: 92.7 FPS at 1080p, 60.8 FPS at 1440p, and 35 FPS at 4K. The 1440p to 4K transition here shows a 42% loss, which is slightly less severe than at Low settings, suggesting that the CPU has enough headroom to keep up but the GPU is struggling with the increased resolution. Ultra settings exhibit the most dramatic scaling failure, with 65.3 FPS at 1080p dropping to 43.9 FPS at 1440p and then plummeting to 26.3 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is barely playable, and the data shows that the gap between 1080p and 4K at Ultra is a 60% reduction in average FPS.

The limiting component becomes evident when comparing the scaling across presets at each resolution. At 1080p, the difference between Low (152.1 FPS) and Ultra (65.3 FPS) is a 57% performance span, indicating that the GPU is the primary constraint even at this resolution, as the CPU’s 16 cores and 24 threads are not being saturated by the game’s workload. At 4K, the spread between Low (57.2 FPS) and Ultra (26.3 FPS) narrows to 54%, but the absolute values are all below the 60 FPS threshold, confirming that the RTX 4060’s 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 128-bit bus are insufficient for smooth 4K gameplay in this title.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows suggest that the optimal balance between visual fidelity and playability is found at Medium settings for most resolutions, with the data showing a consistent pattern of diminishing returns at higher presets. At 1920x1080, Medium delivers 135.2 FPS, which is only 11% slower than Low (152.1 FPS) but offers a substantial visual upgrade. High settings at 1080p yield 92.7 FPS, which is still smooth, but the jump from Medium to High costs 31% of the frame rate, making Medium the better choice for maintaining high refresh rates.

For 2560x1440, Medium is the clear winner, providing 94.2 FPS, which is comfortably above the 60 FPS target. High settings at 1440p drop to 60.8 FPS, which is borderline, and Ultra falls to 43.9 FPS, which is below the playable threshold for fast-paced gameplay. The data indicates that 1440p Medium is the sweet spot for this combo, as it retains the visual benefits of a higher resolution while keeping frame rates high. At 3840x2160, no setting achieves a fully smooth experience, with even Low settings only reaching 57.2 FPS. Medium at 4K offers 53.3 FPS, which might be acceptable for slower MMO segments, but High (35 FPS) and Ultra (26.3 FPS) are not recommended based on the measured frame rates.

The recommendation is to prioritize Medium settings at 1440p for the best experience, as it provides a 94.2 FPS average that leaves headroom for drops in crowded areas. At 1080p, Medium is also the best choice, but users could opt for High if they prefer visual quality over raw frame rate, given the 92.7 FPS result is still respectable. For 4K, users should stick to Low or Medium, as the 57.2 FPS at Low is the only setting that approaches playability.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-13700K is a 16-core, 24-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. Its benchmark results show strong multi-threaded performance, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 39000 and a Geekbench multicore score of 17731. The single-thread performance is also solid, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 5505 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2850, which is relevant for MMO titles that often rely on a few primary threads.

In Archeage, the CPU’s role appears to be secondary to the GPU, as evidenced by the frame rate scaling. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 152.1 FPS, and the fact that this number does not scale linearly with the CPU’s multi-threaded capabilities suggests the game is not heavily multithreaded. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 10717 and max-thread score of 12412 indicate the CPU can handle heavy workloads, but the measured FPS data shows that even at 4K Low (57.2 FPS), the CPU is not the limiting factor, as the GPU is clearly saturated.

The CPU’s 30 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB per-core L2 cache likely help with the game’s asset streaming, but the data does not show a scenario where the CPU becomes a bottleneck. The processor’s percentile ranking of 93 versus all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 47282, places it near the top of the stack, and its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i7-13700KF and AMD EPYC 4364P, which are within 0.3% of its score. For this game, the i7-13700K provides more than enough computational headroom, and the frame rates are dictated by the GPU’s limits rather than the CPU’s capabilities.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i7-13700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 ranks 964 out of 1727 tested combos in Archeage, placing it in the 56th percentile of all tested systems. This rank is modest, reflecting the GPU’s limitations at higher resolutions, as the CPU is more than capable of feeding the graphics card. The combo’s rank suggests that while the CPU is a top-tier part, the GPU holds the system back from the upper echelons of performance in this title.

The CPU’s benchmark scores are strong, but the GPU’s average benchmark score of 23181 places it in the 66th percentile of all GPUs, with a Passmark G3D score of 19545. The RTX 4060’s nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6600M and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti, which are within 0.7% of its score, indicating that the GPU is mid-range in the broader context. When combined, the CPU and GPU produce a system that is well-balanced for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but the 4K results drag down the overall ranking.

At 1080p, the combo performs admirably, with all settings except Ultra exceeding 90 FPS, which would rank it higher than the overall 964th position if only that resolution were considered. However, the 4K results, where the best average FPS is 57.2 at Low settings, significantly lower the combo’s standing. The data suggests that users with this combo should target 1080p or 1440p to get the most out of the hardware, as the 4K performance is not competitive with higher-ranked combinations.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with a 5 nm process node, featuring 3072 shading units, 96 texture mapping units, and 48 raster output pipelines. Its boost clock is 2460 MHz, and it has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s. The GPU’s FP32 performance is 15.11 TFLOPS, and its pixel rate is 118.1 GPixel/s, but the 128-bit memory bus is a clear limitation for higher resolutions.

In Archeage, the GPU’s role is dominant, as the frame rate scaling across resolutions shows that the graphics card is the primary bottleneck. The measured FPS at 4K Ultra is 26.3, which is only 40% of the 1080p Ultra result of 65.3 FPS. This indicates that the GPU’s memory bandwidth and 8 GB capacity are insufficient for 4K textures and effects, causing a severe performance drop. The GPU’s Passmark G3D score of 19545 and DirectX 12 score of 76 reflect its mid-range positioning, and the 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 2302 confirms that it is not designed for high-end 4K gaming.

The RTX 4060’s 24 RT cores and 96 tensor cores provide modern features, but the data shows that these do not compensate for the memory constraints in Archeage. At 1440p, the GPU performs better, with Medium settings achieving 94.2 FPS, but the 4K results are consistently below 60 FPS across all presets. The VRAM usage is not directly measured, but the pattern of results suggests that the 8 GB capacity is a limiting factor at 4K, as the game likely exceeds this allocation with high-resolution textures.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates provide a comprehensive view of the combo’s performance across all settings and resolutions. At 1920x1080, the results are as follows: Low achieves 152.1 FPS, Medium achieves 135.2 FPS, High achieves 92.7 FPS, and Ultra achieves 65.3 FPS. These numbers show a clear tiering, with Low and Medium providing high refresh rates, High being suitable for 60 Hz displays, and Ultra being playable but not ideal for competitive play.

At 2560x1440, the data shows: Low at 105.6 FPS, Medium at 94.2 FPS, High at 60.8 FPS, and Ultra at 43.9 FPS. The transition from 1080p to 1440p costs about 30% of the frame rate at Low settings, but the Medium setting remains above 90 FPS, making it the best option for this resolution. High settings at 1440p are right at the 60 FPS mark, which is acceptable, but Ultra is not recommended due to the sub-45 FPS average.

At 3840x2160, the results are: Low at 57.2 FPS, Medium at 53.3 FPS, High at 35 FPS, and Ultra at 26.3 FPS. Only Low settings approach a playable frame rate, and even then, it is below the 60 FPS target. The data shows a significant drop from 1440p to 4K, with the High setting losing 42% of its frame rate and Ultra losing 40%. This breakdown confirms that the RTX 4060 is not suitable for 4K gaming in Archeage, and users should stick to 1080p or 1440p for the best experience.