Archeage

Archeage, a 2014 MMORPG, presents a demanding workload that stresses both processor and graphics card. In this analysis, we examine the Intel Core i7-14700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER. The data shows this combination produces a wide range of frame rates depending on resolution and quality settings, from a highly playable 131.9 FPS at 1080p Low to a slideshow-like 19.5 FPS at 4K Ultra. This performance profile reveals a system that is well-balanced at lower resolutions but quickly becomes GPU-bound as pixel count increases.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700K is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. In Archeage, an MMORPG known for complex player interactions and world simulations, this high core count and strong single-thread performance are critical. The CPU's benchmark scores reflect its capability; it achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44534 and a single-core score of 6287, placing it in the 96th percentile of all CPUs. This processing power ensures that at lower resolutions, the system is not limited by the CPU's ability to feed the graphics card with draw calls and game logic.

At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 131.9 FPS, which is the highest frame rate recorded in the dataset. This suggests that at this setting, the CPU is adequately keeping pace with the GPU. However, the performance scaling is not linear. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is stark, with frame rates dropping from 131.9 FPS to 54.2 FPS. This indicates that while the CPU is powerful, the game's engine and the GPU's workload become the limiting factors as visual fidelity increases. The i7-14700K's performance is closely matched by its direct rival, the Intel Core i7-14700KF, which has a nearly identical average benchmark score, with a negligible deltaPct of 0. This means that in CPU-bound scenarios, the two processors would perform almost indistinguishably. The processor's large 33 MB of shared L3 cache likely helps maintain stable frame pacing in busy MMORPG environments where asset streaming is constant.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average frame rate this combo can achieve in Archeage?

A: The highest recorded average frame rate is 131.9 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the combo perform at 1440p with High settings?

A: At 2560x1440 with High settings, the combo delivers an average of 49.3 FPS, which is a playable frame rate for most users.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, frame rates drop significantly (30 FPS on High), indicating that the GPU is the primary limiting component at this resolution. The CPU's role diminishes as the GPU struggles to render the increased pixel count.

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

A: The data shows a substantial drop from 131.9 FPS on Low to 54.2 FPS on Ultra, a reduction of 77.7 FPS. This demonstrates the significant impact of graphical settings on overall performance.

Q: How does this combo rank compared to other tested combinations?

A: The combo ranks 1290 out of 1727 tested combinations in Archeage, placing it in the lower third of all tested systems.

Q: Does the RTX 2060 SUPER support modern graphics APIs that could help performance?

A: The GPU supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, which are modern APIs that can improve rendering efficiency in supported games.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling across resolutions is a clear indicator of where the system's bottleneck lies. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at High settings, the average frame rate drops from 77.2 FPS to 49.3 FPS, a 27.9 FPS decrease. This significant drop suggests that the RTX 2060 SUPER is starting to feel the pressure of the increased pixel workload. The trend continues, but the drop from 1440p to 4K is even more pronounced. At High settings, the frame rate falls from 49.3 FPS at 1440p to 30 FPS at 4K. This 39% reduction in performance from a 77% increase in pixel count (from 3.7 million to 8.3 million) indicates that the system is heavily GPU-bound at 4K.

The data indicates that the CPU is not the primary constraint in this scenario. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect frame rates to remain more consistent across resolutions. Instead, the frame rates scale inversely with resolution, a classic sign of a graphics card that is saturated. At 1080p Low, the 131.9 FPS result shows the CPU's headroom, but as settings and resolution increase, the GPU's limits are exposed. At 4K Ultra, the average frame rate plummets to 19.5 FPS, which is unplayable. This shows that for 4K gaming in Archeage, this GPU is insufficient, and users would need to significantly lower settings or reduce resolution to achieve a playable experience. The performance difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is also notable, with a gap of 29.1 FPS, further confirming that the GPU's fill rate and shading power are the limiting factors.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of the benchmark database, this combination of the Intel Core i7-14700K and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER holds a rank of 1290 out of 1727 tested combos in Archeage. This places it in the 25th percentile of all tested systems, meaning that three-quarters of the tested combinations perform better. This relatively low ranking is primarily due to the GPU, which sits in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs. The CPU, by contrast, is a high-end part, but the pairing with a mid-range older GPU limits the overall gaming performance.

The data suggests that the i7-14700K has significant untapped potential in this configuration. In CPU-centric benchmarks, it competes closely with the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X, which has a deltaPct of -0.5, meaning the i7-14700K is slightly ahead. However, in gaming, this CPU power is not fully utilized. The RTX 2060 SUPER's performance is comparable to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070, with a deltaPct of 0.5, making them near-identical in raw compute. This means the combo's rank is a direct reflection of the GPU's capabilities. For a system aiming to play Archeage at high refresh rates on a 1080p monitor, this combo is adequate, but it will not provide a high-refresh experience at higher resolutions. The combo rank reveals that while the CPU is a top-tier part, the overall system is held back by the GPU, a common pairing mismatch that results in a mid-tier gaming experience.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is a Turing-architecture GPU with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. It has a base clock of 1470 MHz and a boost clock of 1650 MHz. In Archeage, the GPU's role becomes the dominant factor in determining performance at higher resolutions and settings. The 8 GB of VRAM is a key specification; while it may be sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, it can become a limitation at 4K with high-resolution textures, potentially causing texture swapping and stuttering if the game's assets exceed the VRAM capacity.

The GPU's performance is best illustrated by its frame rates in the benchmark data. At 1080p, it manages a solid 77.2 FPS on High settings and can reach 131.9 FPS on Low. However, its performance degrades rapidly. At 1440p, it can still hold 49.3 FPS on High, but at 4K, it struggles, achieving only 30 FPS on High and a mere 19.5 FPS on Ultra. These numbers show that the RTX 2060 SUPER is a capable 1080p and entry-level 1440p card, but it is not designed for 4K gaming. The GPU's Passmark G3D score of 16462 places it in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs, and its performance is closely matched by the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN (deltaPct 0.3) and the RTX 2070 (deltaPct 0.5). This indicates that while it was a strong card at its release, it has been surpassed by newer generations. In this specific pairing, the GPU is the clear bottleneck, preventing the powerful CPU from delivering higher frame rates in most scenarios. The 175 W TDP and dual-slot design are typical for this class, but the 8 GB VRAM and 12 nm process node are dated, which limits its ability to handle the most demanding modern workloads.