Archeage

# Archeage Performance Analysis: Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 delivers a robust Archeage experience, with measured frame rates ranging from 44 FPS at 4K Ultra to 279 FPS at 1080p Low. This combination ranks 129th out of 2,761 tested combos in this MMORPG, placing it in the top 4.7% of all configurations. The data reveals a system that is heavily GPU-limited at higher resolutions and settings, while the CPU's substantial thread count becomes increasingly relevant at lower graphical loads.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

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 operates with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.80 GHz, drawing up to 125 W TDP. The CPU features a 36 MB shared L3 cache, with 192 KB L1 and 3 MB L2 per core, and supports DDR5 memory over a dual-channel interface with 115.2 GB/s bandwidth. This processor sits in the 96th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 84,003.

In synthetic workloads, the Ultra 9 290K Plus demonstrates exceptional multi-threaded capability, scoring 51,731 in Cinebench R23 multicore and 21,727 in Cinebench R20 multicore. Single-thread performance is equally strong, with Cinebench R23 single-core at 7,303 and R20 single-core at 3,067. The PassMark suite shows a multithread score of 60,860 and a single-thread score of 4,823, with floating point math at 214,760 and integer math at 166,194.

Relative to its nearest rivals in the CPU benchmark database, the Ultra 9 290K Plus is 0.2% ahead of the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, 1.1% ahead of the AMD EPYC 4584PX, and 1.2% ahead of the AMD EPYC 9135. It trails the AMD EPYC 7F72 by 1.3%. These margins are tight, indicating that the Ultra 9 290K Plus sits at the apex of consumer desktop performance.

For Archeage, an MMORPG from 2014, the CPU's role varies significantly with settings. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 279 FPS, suggesting that the CPU can feed the GPU at very high frame rates. The 24 threads provide ample headroom for the game's background processes, network handling, and player count calculations typical of MMO environments. The high boost clock of 5.80 GHz ensures strong single-thread performance, which remains critical for game logic that often runs on a single primary thread. However, as resolution and settings increase, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, and the CPU's contribution diminishes relative to the overall frame rate.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture (GB203 chip), fabricated on a 5 nm process by TSMC with 45,600 million transistors on a 378 mm² die. It features 10,752 shading units, 336 texture mapping units, 112 ROPs, 84 RT cores, and 336 tensor cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 2295 MHz with a boost clock of 2617 MHz, while memory runs at 1875 MHz (30 Gbps effective). It carries 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The card's TDP is 360 W, and it was released on January 29, 2025, with a launch MSRP of 999 USD.

In GPU benchmarks, the RTX 5080 achieves a PassMark G3D score of 36,565 and a G2D score of 1,415. Its compute performance is notable, with a PassMark GPU compute score of 21,789. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it scores 8,637. Geekbench results show 235,901 for OpenCL and 255,450 for Vulkan. The GPU sits in the 87th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 56,083.

Comparing to its nearest GPU rivals, the RTX 5080 is 0.6% ahead of the AMD Radeon 8060S, 0.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB, and 2.3% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X. It trails the AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE by 2.2%. These close margins indicate that the RTX 5080 is competitively positioned within the high-end GPU segment.

For Archeage, the RTX 5080's 16 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for a game from 2014, even at 4K with Ultra settings. The memory bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s ensures that texture streaming and draw calls are handled efficiently. The shift from 65 FPS at 4K High to 44 FPS at 4K Ultra demonstrates that the GPU is the limiting factor at these settings, as the pixel throughput and shading load increase substantially. The boost clock of 2617 MHz provides the raw compute necessary for high-resolution rendering, but the game's engine appears to place heavy demands on the GPU at Ultra presets.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

Analyzing the measured FPS across resolutions reveals a clear pattern of GPU limitation at higher resolutions and CPU limitation at lower ones. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 279 FPS, while at 4K Low, it drops to 108 FPS — a 61.3% reduction. This substantial drop indicates that even at Low settings, the GPU is heavily taxed by the increase in pixel count from 2.07 million pixels (1080p) to 8.29 million pixels (4K).

The Medium preset shows a similar trend: 248 FPS at 1080p, 167 FPS at 1440p, and 96 FPS at 4K. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is a 32.7% reduction, while 1440p to 4K is a 42.5% reduction. This non-linear scaling suggests that the GPU's fill rate and shading capacity are being progressively saturated.

High settings exhibit the most pronounced scaling: 169 FPS at 1080p, 114 FPS at 1440p, and 65 FPS at 4K. The 1080p to 1440p drop is 32.5%, and 1440p to 4K is 43.0%. These percentages are consistent with the Medium preset, reinforcing the GPU-bound nature at these settings.

Ultra settings show the steepest absolute decline: 115 FPS at 1080p, 78 FPS at 1440p, and 44 FPS at 4K. The 1080p to 1440p reduction is 32.2%, and 1440p to 4K is 43.6%. The consistent ~32% and ~43% drops across all settings indicate that the limiting component scales predictably with resolution, pointing to the GPU as the primary constraint. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect smaller percentage drops at higher resolutions, as the CPU workload remains relatively constant while the GPU workload increases.

The data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is capable of driving frame rates well above 250 FPS at Low settings, but the GPU begins to limit beyond that. At 4K, regardless of settings, the GPU is the definitive bottleneck, with even Low settings producing only 108 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings produce an average of 279 FPS, while Medium settings achieve 248 FPS, with a minimum of 211 FPS and maximum of 286 FPS. High settings yield 169 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 115 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 164 FPS, representing a 58.8% reduction from the peak.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates decrease across the board. Low settings achieve 188 FPS, Medium settings reach 167 FPS (minimum 142, maximum 192), High settings produce 114 FPS, and Ultra settings deliver 78 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 110 FPS, a 58.5% reduction.

At 3840x2160, the system's performance is more constrained. Low settings produce 108 FPS, Medium settings achieve 96 FPS (minimum 81, maximum 110), High settings yield 65 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 44 FPS. The Low-to-Ultra spread at 4K is 64 FPS, a 59.3% reduction.

The Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values, appearing at all three resolutions. At 1080p, the range is 211 to 286 FPS (average 248); at 1440p, the range is 142 to 192 FPS (average 167); and at 4K, the range is 81 to 110 FPS (average 96). This suggests that Medium settings offer a stable frame delivery with less variance than other presets, though the data does not provide min/max for other settings.

The relationship between settings and resolution is consistent: each step from Low to Ultra reduces frame rates by roughly 25-30% at each resolution. The Ultra preset at 4K, at 44 FPS, is the only configuration that falls below the 60 FPS threshold commonly considered playable, while all other configurations exceed 60 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 combination ranks 129th out of 2,761 tested combos in Archeage. This places the system in the top 4.7% of all configurations tested, indicating that it delivers performance in the upper echelon of systems. The rank of 129 means there are 128 other combinations that achieve higher frame rates in this game, but the vast majority of the 2,761 tested combos (95.3%) fall below this configuration's performance.

Given the game's 2014 release date, the hardware is considerably more powerful than what was available at launch. The high rank reflects the combination of a top-tier CPU (96th percentile) and a high-end GPU (87th percentile) working together. The CPU's 24 cores and 24 threads provide substantial headroom for MMO-style gameplay, while the GPU's 16 GB of VRAM and 960.0 GB/s bandwidth handle the game's graphical demands with ease.

The rank of 129 suggests that while this combo is exceptional, there are still some configurations that outperform it. These would likely include systems with even more powerful GPUs or those specifically optimized for Archeage's engine. However, the delta between this combo and those ranked above it is likely small, given the CPU's 0.2% advantage over the nearest rival and the GPU's competitive positioning against its nearest rivals.

The combo's percentile placement (96th for CPU, 87th for GPU) does not directly translate to a combined rank, but the 129th position out of 2,761 indicates that the pairing is well-balanced for this game. The system does not appear to have a significant bottleneck, as evidenced by the consistent resolution scaling discussed earlier.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the Medium preset offers the best balance of visual quality and performance across all resolutions. At 1080p, Medium achieves 248 FPS, which is only 31 FPS less than Low but provides noticeably better visuals. At 1440p, Medium delivers 167 FPS, comfortably above the 144 Hz refresh rate common on high-end monitors. Even at 4K, Medium produces 96 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

The High preset is a viable alternative for users prioritizing visual fidelity. At 1080p, High achieves 169 FPS, which is still excellent. At 1440p, High produces 114 FPS, which is sufficient for 120 Hz displays. However, at 4K, High drops to 65 FPS, which may be acceptable for some users but is noticeably lower than Medium's 96 FPS.

Ultra settings are not recommended for 4K, as the 44 FPS average falls below the playability threshold. At 1440p, Ultra's 78 FPS is borderline, and at 1080p, Ultra's 115 FPS is acceptable but offers diminishing returns over High's 169 FPS.

The Low preset is only advisable for competitive play at 1080p, where the 279 FPS maximum could theoretically exceed high refresh rate displays. However, the visual downgrade is significant, and the Medium preset's 248 FPS is within 11% of Low's performance while providing superior image quality.

For the best overall experience, the Medium preset at 1440p appears optimal: 167 FPS average with a minimum of 142 FPS and maximum of 192 FPS, indicating consistent frame delivery. Users with 4K displays should choose Medium to maintain 96 FPS, while those with 1080p displays can safely run High at 169 FPS or Medium at 248 FPS depending on their refresh rate.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum frame rate this combo achieves in Archeage?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 279 at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The lowest is 44 FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings.

Q: Is this system capable of 60 FPS at 4K?

A: Yes, the system exceeds 60 FPS at 4K for Low, Medium, and High settings, achieving 108, 96, and 65 FPS respectively. Only the Ultra preset falls below 60 FPS at 44 FPS.

Q: How does the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus compare to its nearest CPU rival?

A: The Ultra 9 290K Plus scores 84,003 on average, which is 0.2% higher than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (83,807) and 1.1% higher than the AMD EPYC 4584PX (83,090). It trails the AMD EPYC 7F72 (85,072) by 1.3%.

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking among all tested GPUs?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 sits in the 87th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 56,083. It is 0.6% ahead of the AMD Radeon 8060S and 0.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB.

Q: Which setting provides the most consistent frame delivery?

A: The Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum values. At 1440p, it ranges from 142 to 192 FPS (average 167), and at 1080p from 211 to 286 FPS (average 248), indicating stable performance.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations in Archeage?

A: This combination ranks 129th out of 2,761 tested combos, placing it in the top 4.7% of all configurations tested for this game.