Barony

Barony is a roguelike title from 2015, and the measured frame rates for the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 reveal a configuration that scales predictably across resolutions and settings. The data shows a system that is overwhelmingly capable at standard high-refresh 1080p and 1440p gaming, but which begins to show its mobile-oriented limits at the demanding 4K Ultra preset. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS to identify where the bottleneck shifts between the CPU and GPU components.

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

The measured FPS data demonstrates a classic resolution scaling curve, where the frame rate drops as pixel count increases, but the magnitude of that drop varies significantly depending on the settings preset. At the Low settings preset, the transition from 1920x1080 to 2560x1440 sees the average frame rate fall from 340 FPS to 214 FPS, a reduction of 126 FPS. Moving further up to 3840x2160 at Low settings yields 112 FPS average, which is a 228 FPS drop from the 1080p result. This steep decline indicates that even at the lowest graphical load, the rendering pipeline is becoming more heavily taxed by the sheer number of pixels at 4K.

The High settings preset shows a similar pattern. The average FPS falls from 217 at 1920x1080 to 137 at 2560x1440, and then down to 72 at 3840x2160. The 4K High result represents a 66% reduction in frame rate compared to the 1080p High result. This consistent scaling across Low and High presets suggests that the GPU is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the workload for the RTX 4070 increases with pixel count.

The Medium preset provides the most granular data, as it includes minimum and maximum FPS values. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset averages 253 FPS with a minimum of 215 FPS and a maximum of 291 FPS. At 2560x1440, the average drops to 159 FPS with a minimum of 136 FPS and a maximum of 183 FPS. At 3840x2160, the average is 83 FPS with a minimum of 71 FPS and a maximum of 96 FPS. The scaling from 1440p to 4K at Medium settings shows a 76 FPS average drop, which is proportionally larger than the drop from 1080p to 1440p (94 FPS). This indicates that the GPU is being pushed harder as resolution increases.

The Ultra preset shows the most dramatic scaling. At 1920x1080, the average FPS is 156. This drops to 98 at 2560x1440 and then to 51 at 3840x2160. The 4K Ultra result of 51 FPS average is only 33% of the 1080p Ultra result. This sharp decline at 4K Ultra strongly suggests that the GPU is the limiting component, as the RTX 4070's compute and memory resources are saturated by the combination of the highest settings and the 8.3 million pixel count of 3840x2160. The data indicates that for 4K gaming, the user should stick to High or Medium settings to maintain a playable frame rate, as the Ultra preset will likely cause noticeable stuttering or a sub-60 FPS experience.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 is a mobile GPU with a 12 GB GDDR6X memory pool on a 192-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1920 MHz and a boost clock of 2475 MHz. With 5888 shading units and 64 ROPs, the RTX 4070 is a high-end mobile part, and its benchmark results reflect this, as it sits in the 81st percentile versus all GPUs in the database. Its average benchmark score is 37648, placing it near the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56, which has an average score of 37507 and a deltaPct of 0.4%, meaning the RTX 4070 is slightly ahead.

For a game like Barony, which is a roguelike with relatively simple geometry and textures compared to modern AAA titles, the 12 GB VRAM is more than sufficient. The memory bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s is also ample for the game's data throughput at any resolution. The data shows that the GPU is not VRAM-limited in any of the measured scenarios, as the frame rates scale consistently with resolution rather than hitting a wall due to memory capacity. The boost clock of 2475 MHz allows the GPU to achieve high core frequencies, which contributes to the strong performance seen at 1080p and 1440p.

However, the GPU's role as the limiter becomes clear at 4K Ultra. The FP32 performance of 29.15 TFLOPS is substantial, but the pixel rate of 158.4 GPixel/s and texture rate of 455.4 GTexel/s are the metrics that matter most at high resolutions. At 3840x2160, the RTX 4070 must fill over 8 million pixels per frame, and the 64 ROPs are tasked with the final output. The drop to 51 FPS average at 4K Ultra indicates that the GPU's pixel processing capability is the bottleneck, not the CPU. The GPU's closest rival in the database, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile, has an average score of 38135 with a deltaPct of -1.3%, showing that the RTX 4070 is only slightly behind a higher-tier mobile part, but the gap in real-world 4K gaming could be larger due to the 4080's additional cores and memory bandwidth.

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

The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H is a 16-core, 22-thread mobile processor based on the Meteor Lake architecture, built on a 7 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz. The CPU features a 24 MB shared L3 cache, and its memory bandwidth is rated at 89.6 GB/s via a dual-channel DDR5 interface. The processor is positioned in the 85th percentile versus all CPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 35670. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350, has an average score of 35719, a deltaPct of -0.1%, meaning the Intel chip is essentially tied with it.

For Barony, the CPU's role is likely less critical than the GPU at higher resolutions, but it still matters for maintaining high frame rates at 1080p. The data shows that at 1920x1080 Low settings, the average FPS reaches 340. This is a very high frame rate that requires a CPU capable of feeding the GPU with enough draw calls and physics calculations. The Core Ultra 9 185H's 22 threads and 5.10 GHz boost clock are well-suited for this task, as roguelike games often involve procedural generation and many simultaneous entities on screen.

The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 17984.5 and single-core score of 1810.5 indicate strong single-threaded and multi-threaded performance. The single-core performance is crucial for games that rely on a main simulation thread, while the multi-core performance helps with background tasks and any parallel processing in the game engine. The data suggests that the CPU is not the bottleneck at any resolution, as the frame rates drop when moving to higher resolutions, which is a sign of GPU limitation. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would see similar frame rates across all resolutions at a given settings preset.

At 1080p Ultra, the average FPS is 156. This is still a high frame rate, but it is lower than the 1080p Low result of 340 FPS. This difference is primarily due to the increased GPU workload at Ultra settings, not a CPU limitation. The CPU's PassMark single-thread score of 3697 and Geekbench single-core score of 1794 are robust numbers, indicating that it can handle the game's logic without becoming a constraint. The fact that the 4K Low result of 112 FPS is higher than the 4K Ultra result of 51 FPS further confirms that the GPU is the bottleneck at 4K, as the CPU is capable of delivering more frames when the GPU is not saturated.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1440p with High settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 2560x1440 with the High settings preset is 137 FPS.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 4K Ultra settings?

A: The data shows that at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS drops to 51, which is a significant reduction from the 1080p Ultra result of 156 FPS. This indicates the GPU is the limiting component at this resolution and settings combination.

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded in the test data?

A: The highest average FPS is 340, achieved at 1920x1080 with the Low settings preset.

Q: How does the RTX 4070 compare to its nearest rival in benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 4070 has an average benchmark score of 37648, which is slightly higher than the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56's score of 37507, representing a deltaPct of 0.4% in favor of the RTX 4070.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at 1080p with Medium settings?

A: The minimum FPS at 1920x1080 with the Medium settings preset is 215 FPS.

Q: Does the CPU's performance vary significantly from its nearest rival?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H has an average benchmark score of 35670, which is within 0.1% of the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350's score of 35719, indicating virtually identical overall CPU performance.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends on the user's resolution and target frame rate. For users with a 1080p display, the Ultra preset is the best choice, as it delivers an average FPS of 156, which is well above the 144 Hz refresh rate common on modern monitors. The High preset at 1080p yields 217 FPS average, which is also excellent, but the visual fidelity gain from Ultra may be worth the frame rate trade-off for some users. The Low preset at 340 FPS is unnecessary for most displays and would only be useful for competitive play where maximum frame rate is paramount.

For 1440p displays, the High preset is the recommended choice, as it provides an average of 137 FPS, which is suitable for high-refresh gaming. The Medium preset at 159 FPS is also a strong option, offering a slight frame rate boost at the cost of some visual quality. The Ultra preset at 98 FPS is still playable, but it drops below the 144 FPS threshold that many 1440p users prefer, so it is a trade-off between visual fidelity and smoothness. The Low preset at 214 FPS is overkill for most 1440p displays.

For 4K gaming, the Medium preset is the best balance of performance and quality, offering an average FPS of 83 with a minimum of 71 FPS. This ensures a consistent frame rate that is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The High preset at 72 FPS average is also viable, though it may dip below 60 FPS in demanding scenes. The Ultra preset at 51 FPS average is not recommended for 4K, as it will likely result in stuttering and a suboptimal experience. The Low preset at 112 FPS is playable, but the visual quality is significantly reduced, making it less desirable for a game where visual feedback is important.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete set of measured average FPS values is as follows:

• 1920x1080 Low: 340 FPS average
• 1920x1080 Medium: 253 FPS average (min 215, max 291)
• 1920x1080 High: 217 FPS average
• 1920x1080 Ultra: 156 FPS average
• 2560x1440 Low: 214 FPS average
• 2560x1440 Medium: 159 FPS average (min 136, max 183)
• 2560x1440 High: 137 FPS average
• 2560x1440 Ultra: 98 FPS average
• 3840x2160 Low: 112 FPS average
• 3840x2160 Medium: 83 FPS average (min 71, max 96)
• 3840x2160 High: 72 FPS average
• 3840x2160 Ultra: 51 FPS average

The data shows a monotonic decrease in FPS as both resolution and settings increase. The gap between the Low and Ultra presets widens as resolution increases. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 184 FPS (340 vs 156). At 1440p, this difference is 116 FPS (214 vs 98). At 4K, the difference is 61 FPS (112 vs 51). This narrowing gap indicates that at higher resolutions, the GPU becomes the dominant factor, and the CPU's ability to render more frames is constrained by the GPU's throughput.

The Medium preset data includes minimum and maximum FPS values, which are useful for understanding frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the range is 76 FPS (291-215), which is a relatively tight spread. At 1440p Medium, the range is 47 FPS (183-136). At 4K Medium, the range is 25 FPS (96-71). This shows that as resolution increases, the frame rate becomes more consistent, which is counterintuitive but likely due to the GPU being the bottleneck and maintaining a more stable output under load.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 ranks 1572 out of 2935 tested combos in the database for Barony. This places the combo in the 46th percentile of all tested systems, which is a mid-pack ranking. This ranking is somewhat surprising given the high individual percentile scores of the CPU (85th) and GPU (81st). The lower combo ranking suggests that other factors, such as memory configuration or driver optimization, may be affecting the game's performance, or that many other tested combos feature more powerful desktop-class components.

The data indicates that this mobile combo is capable of delivering high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, but the ranking reflects that it is not the top-tier performer in the database. The combo's rank of 1572 means that 1363 other combos performed better in Barony, while 1571 combos performed worse. This is a solid result for a mobile platform, but it is not exceptional when compared to the entire range of tested systems.

The individual component benchmarks show that the CPU is nearly identical in performance to its nearest rivals, with a deltaPct of -0.1% versus the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350, -0.2% versus the Intel Core 7 250H, -0.4% versus the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845, and -0.7% versus the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X. The GPU is also closely matched with its rivals, showing a deltaPct of 0.1% versus the NVIDIA Tesla P4, 0.4% versus the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56, -1.3% versus the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile, and 1.3% versus the AMD Radeon PRO W6400. This indicates that the combo's performance is typical for its class of hardware, and the rank of 1572 reflects the high number of desktop-class combos in the database that outperform a mobile platform.