Archeage

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9060 delivers a playable but uneven Archeage experience, with the data showing a clear ceiling at 1440p and below. Across all measured resolutions, the combo ranks 1603rd out of 2761 tested combinations, placing it in the lower-middle tier for this specific MMORPG. The benchmark results indicate that the RX 9060’s 8 GB VRAM and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth become the limiting factor at 4K, while the Ultra 9 290K’s 24-core, 24-thread configuration provides ample headroom for the game’s CPU-bound moments. The sweet spot is 1080p Medium, where the measured 126 FPS average (with a 107 FPS minimum and 145 FPS maximum) offers a smooth experience without the steep performance penalty seen at Ultra settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the overall ranking of this CPU and GPU combo in Archeage?

A: The combo ranks 1603rd out of 2761 tested combinations in Archeage, which places it in the 58th percentile of tested systems. This indicates a mid-tier standing: capable of smooth gameplay at lower resolutions and settings, but far from the top performers in this title.

Q: How does the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus compare to its closest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Ultra 9 290K Plus has an average benchmark score of 84003, which is 0.2% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K’s 83807 score. It also leads the AMD EPYC 9135 by 1.2% (82980) and the AMD EPYC 4584PX by 1.1% (83090), but trails the AMD EPYC 7F72 by 1.3% (85072). These are marginal differences, showing the CPU is competitive with its direct peers.

Q: What is the GPU’s standing relative to its nearest rivals?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9060 has an average benchmark score of 16014, which is 0.7% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti’s 16129. It outperforms the AMD Radeon R9 370X by 1.0% (15862) and the AMD Radeon RX 7700 by 1.0% (15852), and leads the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 by 2.1% (15679). The RX 9060 sits in a tight performance band around the RTX 3060 Ti.

Q: Which resolution and settings combination yields the highest average FPS in Archeage?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 142, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This is followed by 126 FPS at 1920x1080 Medium, and 95 FPS at 2560x1440 Low. The data shows that lower settings and resolutions consistently produce higher frame rates, with 4K Ultra being the slowest at 23 FPS average.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM on the RX 9060 impact performance at 4K?

A: Yes, the 8 GB GDDR6 memory with a 128-bit bus and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth appears to constrain performance at 3840x2160. The measured average FPS drops to 33 at High, 49 at Medium, and just 23 at Ultra, while Low settings yield 55 FPS. This suggests the GPU’s memory capacity and bandwidth are insufficient for the higher texture and geometry loads at 4K.

Q: What is the CPU’s multithreaded performance relative to its single-thread score?

A: The Ultra 9 290K Plus delivers a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 51731 versus a singlecore score of 7303, indicating strong scaling across its 24 cores. In Passmark, the multithread score is 60860, while the single-thread score is 4823. This high multithread capability is relevant for Archeage’s large-scale battles, though the game’s engine often relies more on single-core speed.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 1603 out of 2761 tested combinations places it in the 42nd percentile of all systems in Archeage, meaning roughly 42% of tested combos perform worse. This is a modest position, reflecting the RX 9060’s mid-range standing (59th percentile among all GPUs) rather than the CPU’s high-end performance (96th percentile among all CPUs). The data suggests the GPU is the primary bottleneck, as the Ultra 9 290K Plus far exceeds what this game typically requires. In synthetic tests, the CPU’s average benchmark score of 84003 is within 1.3% of its nearest rivals, while the GPU’s 16014 average is within 2.1% of its peers. This means the combo’s in-game ranking is more dependent on the GPU’s ability to handle Archeage’s rendering demands than on raw CPU power.

The rank of 1603 out of 2761 indicates that this system is not optimized for Archeage at high settings, especially at 4K. However, at 1080p Medium, the measured 126 FPS average would likely place it in a much higher percentile for that specific configuration. The data reveals that the combo’s overall rank is dragged down by the 4K Ultra result of 23 FPS, which is below the threshold for smooth gameplay. In contrast, the 1080p Low result of 142 FPS shows the system can deliver competitive frame rates when the GPU load is reduced. The 58th percentile GPU ranking and 96th percentile CPU ranking create a mismatch: the CPU is overqualified while the GPU holds back overall performance in this title.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 is built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture with the Navi 44 chip, featuring 1792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 64 render output units. Its boost clock reaches 2990 MHz, with a game clock of 2400 MHz and a base clock of 1700 MHz. The 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is a critical factor in Archeage’s performance at higher resolutions. The GPU’s pixel rate is 191.4 GPixel/s and its texture rate is 334.9 GTexel/s, while FP32 compute is 21.43 TFLOPS. These specifications place the RX 9060 in the 59th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 16014.

In Archeage, the GPU’s role becomes increasingly dominant as resolution rises. At 1920x1080, the measured FPS ranges from 142 at Low to 58 at Ultra, showing a 59% drop from lowest to highest settings. At 2560x1440, the range is 95 FPS at Low to 39 FPS at Ultra, a 59% drop as well. At 3840x2160, the range narrows to 55 FPS at Low and 23 FPS at Ultra, a 58% drop, but the absolute numbers are much lower. The 8 GB VRAM is likely exhausted at 4K Ultra, as the game’s textures and shadow maps require more memory than available, causing the average FPS to fall to 23. The 288.0 GB/s bandwidth also becomes a limiting factor, as the 128-bit bus struggles to feed the GPU at higher resolutions.

The RX 9060’s nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, scores 16129 on average, just 0.7% higher. This means the RX 9060 is essentially on par with a previous-generation mid-range card, which explains why it cannot maintain high frame rates at 4K in Archeage. The GPU’s Vulkan score of 39476 and OpenCL score of 88183 from Geekbench indicate decent compute performance, but the DirectX 12 score of 44 in Passmark suggests weaker API-specific optimization. For Archeage, which relies on DirectX 11-era rendering, the RX 9060’s Passmark DirectX 11 score of 182 is more relevant, yet the in-game data shows that even this isn’t enough for smooth 4K Ultra play.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, Medium settings provide the best balance, with an average of 126 FPS, a minimum of 107 FPS, and a maximum of 145 FPS. This is a 12% reduction from Low’s 142 FPS but offers significantly better visual quality. High settings at 1080p yield 86 FPS, which is still smooth but a 32% drop from Medium. Ultra at 1080p drops to 58 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for competitive scenarios. The data suggests that Medium is the sweet spot for 1080p, as it stays well above the 60 FPS threshold while providing a richer visual experience.

At 2560x1440, Medium settings deliver 85 FPS average, with a minimum of 72 FPS and maximum of 98 FPS. This is the only 1440p setting that maintains a consistently playable frame rate, as High drops to 58 FPS and Ultra falls to 39 FPS. Low at 1440p produces 95 FPS, but the visual compromise is significant. For users with 1440p monitors, Medium is the recommended preset, as it keeps the minimum above 70 FPS, which is crucial for large-scale battles where frame drops occur. The data shows that High at 1440p is borderline, with the 58 FPS average risking dips below 60 during intense moments.

At 3840x2160, no setting provides a fully smooth experience. Low settings yield 55 FPS average, which is playable but not ideal, while Medium drops to 49 FPS with a minimum of 41 FPS. High falls to 33 FPS, and Ultra is unplayable at 23 FPS. Given the 8 GB VRAM limitation, 4K gaming with this combo is not recommended for Archeage. The best experience at 4K is Low settings, which achieves 55 FPS, but this comes with reduced visual fidelity. For most users, 1080p Medium or 1440p Medium offers the best combination of frame rate and visual quality. The measured data clearly shows that Ultra settings are not viable at any resolution, as the GPU lacks the memory bandwidth and capacity to sustain high frame rates.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a detailed picture of how this combo performs across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the lowest resolution tested, the combo delivers its best results. Low settings produce an average of 142 FPS, with no minimum or maximum recorded. Medium settings yield 126 FPS average, with a tight range of 107 FPS minimum and 145 FPS maximum, indicating stable performance. High settings drop to 86 FPS average, and Ultra falls to 58 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 59% reduction in frame rate, highlighting the GPU’s sensitivity to settings changes.

At 2560x1440, the performance scales down as expected. Low settings achieve 95 FPS average, which is still smooth for most displays. Medium settings deliver 85 FPS average, with a minimum of 72 FPS and maximum of 98 FPS, showing good consistency. High settings drop to 58 FPS average, which is borderline for fast-paced gameplay. Ultra falls to 39 FPS average, which is below the smooth threshold. The 1440p results show a 59% drop from Low to Ultra, identical to the 1080p scaling, but the absolute numbers are lower due to the increased pixel count.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles significantly. Low settings produce 55 FPS average, which is the only 4K result above 50 FPS. Medium settings yield 49 FPS average, with a minimum of 41 FPS and maximum of 56 FPS, indicating noticeable frame dips. High settings drop to 33 FPS average, and Ultra falls to 23 FPS, which is unplayable. The 4K results show a 58% drop from Low to Ultra, but the absolute numbers are too low for a smooth experience at any setting. The data shows that the RX 9060’s 8 GB VRAM and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for 4K rendering in Archeage, as even Low settings struggle to maintain 60 FPS.

The measured FPS data also reveals the impact of resolution on frame rates. Moving from 1920x1080 Low (142 FPS) to 2560x1440 Low (95 FPS) results in a 33% reduction. Moving from 1920x1080 Medium (126 FPS) to 2560x1440 Medium (85 FPS) results in a 33% reduction. From 2560x1440 Medium (85 FPS) to 3840x2160 Medium (49 FPS) results in a 42% reduction. This indicates that the GPU’s memory bandwidth becomes more of a bottleneck at higher resolutions, as the percentage drop increases from 33% to 42% when scaling from 1440p to 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is a 24-core, 24-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake Refresh architecture, manufactured on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It has a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.80 GHz, with a TDP of 125 W. The CPU features 192 KB of L1 cache per core, 3 MB of L2 cache per core, and 36 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR5 memory on a dual-channel bus with 115.2 GB/s of bandwidth. In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU scores 51731 in Cinebench R23 multicore and 7303 in singlecore, placing it in the 96th percentile of all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 84003.

In Archeage, the CPU’s role is less critical than the GPU, as the game is primarily GPU-bound at higher resolutions. However, the Ultra 9 290K Plus’s single-core performance is relevant for the game’s engine, which often relies on a few threads for game logic and physics. The Cinebench R23 singlecore score of 7303 is strong, and the Passmark single-thread score of 4823 confirms this capability. The CPU’s boost clock of 5.80 GHz provides high peak performance, which helps maintain frame rates in CPU-intensive moments like large player gatherings or complex scripting. The 24 cores and 24 threads ensure that background tasks and game threads do not compete for resources, but Archeage is unlikely to utilize all 24 cores effectively.

Compared to its nearest rivals, the Ultra 9 290K Plus performs nearly identically. It is 0.2% faster than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, 1.1% faster than the AMD EPYC 4584PX, and 1.2% faster than the AMD EPYC 9135, but 1.3% slower than the AMD EPYC 7F72. These differences are negligible in gaming, where the CPU is not the bottleneck. The Passmark multithread score of 60860 and the Cinebench R20 multicore score of 21727 demonstrate that the CPU has ample headroom for any workload Archeage presents. The data shows that the CPU’s performance is more than sufficient for this game, and the measured FPS at 1080p Low (142 FPS) is likely limited by the GPU, not the CPU. At 1080p Ultra (58 FPS), the CPU is definitely not the limiting factor, as the GPU’s memory bandwidth and shading units are overwhelmed by the higher settings.

The CPU’s 36 MB of shared L3 cache and 3 MB L2 per core provide fast access to frequently used data, which can help in MMORPG environments where many objects and characters are present. The memory bandwidth of 115.2 GB/s is also adequate for feeding the GPU at 1080p and 1440p. The data suggests that upgrading the GPU would yield larger performance gains in Archeage than upgrading the CPU, as the Ultra 9 290K Plus already ranks in the 96th percentile. For users considering this combo, the CPU will not hold back the GPU at 1080p or 1440p, but the GPU’s limitations become apparent at 4K. The combination of a high-end CPU and mid-range GPU creates a balanced system for most gaming scenarios, but Archeage’s demanding settings at 4K expose the GPU’s weaknesses.