Control

Control, the 2019 action-adventure title from Remedy Entertainment, is a demanding game that stresses both the CPU and GPU heavily depending on the resolution and settings preset. The pairing of the Intel Core i7-14700F with the AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT provides a balanced platform for this title, though the data reveals a clear shift in bottleneck behavior as resolution increases. The benchmark results, measured across three resolutions and four quality presets, show a system that is capable of delivering smooth gameplay at 1080p and 1440p, but which begins to struggle at 4K, particularly with higher graphical fidelity settings. The following analysis breaks down the measured FPS data to understand the role each component plays and how this specific combination ranks against other tested configurations.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for this combo shows a pronounced and predictable drop in performance as resolution scales from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At the "Low" settings preset, the average frame rate falls from 142 FPS at 1080p to 104.7 FPS at 1440p, and then further to 74.9 FPS at 4K. This represents a 47.3% reduction in performance from 1080p to 4K, which is a substantial hit. This scaling pattern indicates that even at the lowest graphical settings, the GPU is still the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the sheer number of pixels being rendered increases significantly.

The drop is even more pronounced when examining the "Ultra" preset. The average FPS goes from 79.9 at 1080p to 58.3 at 1440p, and finally to 42 at 4K. This is a 47.4% decrease from 1080p to 4K, showing that the relative performance penalty of moving to 4K is nearly identical regardless of the quality preset. However, the absolute frame rates are much lower at Ultra, meaning the experience at 4K with maxed-out settings is marginal. The data suggests that while the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU at lower resolutions, the AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT's rendering throughput becomes the defining constraint as resolution increases, with the gap between the "Low" and "Ultra" presets narrowing proportionally at 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. In the context of Control, the data shows that this CPU is more than sufficient to keep up with the GPU at lower resolutions. The jump from 98.4 FPS at 1080p "Medium" to 142 FPS at 1080p "Low" suggests that the CPU has headroom to process the game's physics and logic, as the frame rate is heavily influenced by the GPU's workload. The processor's high boost clock is likely a key factor in maintaining high minimum frame rates in this action-adventure title, which often involves complex scenes with multiple dynamic objects.

The CPU's benchmark scores support its strong performance. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35443 and single-core score of 5003 place it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. When compared to its nearest rivals, it is only 0.6% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X in average benchmark score, and 1.1% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D. This indicates that the i7-14700F is a top-tier performer for gaming workloads, providing ample computational power. The fact that it is 1.2% ahead of the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 and 1.7% ahead of the AMD EPYC 7313P in average score further cements its position as a high-end desktop part that is unlikely to be the bottleneck in this game, except perhaps in extreme CPU-bound scenarios which are not evident in the measured data.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT is the clear focal point for performance scaling in this game. With 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 384.0 GB/s of bandwidth, it has the resources to handle Control's textures and effects at 1080p and 1440p. Its boost clock of 2581 MHz and game clock of 2424 MHz are relatively high for the RDNA 2.0 architecture, contributing to its strong rasterization performance. The GPU's 40 ray tracing cores are present but are not directly tested in these standard preset benchmarks, which focus on traditional rendering.

The GPU's benchmark scores show it sits at the 77th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6800, is only 0.7% faster in average score, while the NVIDIA RTX A5000 is 1.3% slower. This places the RX 6700 XT in a competitive mid-to-high range segment. However, the measured FPS data shows that the GPU is the limiting component at 4K, particularly on the "High" and "Ultra" presets. The drop from 69.4 FPS at 1440p "High" to 48.1 FPS at 4K "High" demonstrates that the GPU's pixel throughput is insufficient to maintain a smooth 60 FPS experience at that resolution with high fidelity settings. The performance is much better at 1080p, where even the "Ultra" preset averages 79.9 FPS, indicating that the GPU is well-suited for that resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

In the comprehensive database of tested combinations, the Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT holds a combo rank of 869 out of 1636 total combinations for Control. This places it in the 47th percentile of all tested combos, which is a solid mid-pack position. This ranking reflects the fact that while the CPU is exceptionally powerful, the GPU, while capable, is not a top-tier 4K solution. The combination is balanced for mainstream gaming but does not reach the higher echelons of the ranking list that would be occupied by combos featuring flagship CPUs and GPUs.

This rank is consistent with the measured FPS data. The combo excels at 1080p, where the GPU has enough power to deliver high frame rates, and it is also strong at 1440p, where the "High" preset averages 69.4 FPS. The ranking is dragged down by the 4K results, where average FPS falls below the 60 FPS threshold on all presets except "Low". The data suggests that this combo is optimized for 1440p gaming, where it sits comfortably in the upper half of the performance range, but it is not designed to be a 4K powerhouse, which is reflected in its overall rank of 869.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings preset for this combo depends heavily on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1920x1080, the "Ultra" preset is entirely viable, delivering an average of 79.9 FPS. This provides the best visual experience without sacrificing smoothness. If a higher refresh rate is the priority, dropping to "Medium" yields 98.4 FPS, or "Low" for 142 FPS, but these compromises in visual quality are likely unnecessary given the strong "Ultra" performance.

At 2560x1440, the "High" preset is the best choice for a balanced experience, averaging 69.4 FPS, which is above the standard 60 FPS target. The "Ultra" preset drops to 58.3 FPS, which is close to 60 but may be noticeable to some users. For a flawless 60+ FPS experience, "Medium" at 75.8 FPS is the safer bet, but "High" offers a significant visual upgrade for a modest performance cost. At 3840x2160, the situation is more constrained. The "Low" preset is the only one that averages above 60 FPS, hitting 74.9 FPS. The "Medium" preset at 53.6 FPS is playable, but the "High" and "Ultra" presets, at 48.1 and 42 FPS respectively, are not ideal for a smooth experience. For 4K, the recommendation is to use "Low" settings to maintain frame rates, or to lower the resolution to 1440p and use "High" settings for a superior visual experience.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table details the exact measured average frame rates for this combination across all tested scenarios.

At 1920x1080, the performance is strong across the board. The "Low" preset averages 142 FPS, while "Medium" drops to 98.4 FPS. The "High" preset yields 91.9 FPS, and "Ultra" produces 79.9 FPS. The scaling from "Low" to "Ultra" shows a total performance cost of 43.7% for the maximum visual fidelity.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates decrease accordingly. The "Low" preset averages 104.7 FPS, providing a high-refresh-rate experience. The "Medium" preset averages 75.8 FPS, and "High" follows closely behind at 69.4 FPS. The "Ultra" preset averages 58.3 FPS, dipping below the 60 FPS threshold.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the definitive bottleneck. The "Low" preset averages 74.9 FPS, which is the only preset to maintain a smooth 60+ FPS experience. The "Medium" preset averages 53.6 FPS, while "High" drops to 48.1 FPS. The "Ultra" preset averages 42 FPS, which is the lowest measured score and indicates a challenging scenario for this graphics card. The data across all resolutions shows a consistent pattern: the AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT is the limiting factor, with the Intel Core i7-14700F providing enough headroom to ensure that the GPU is always the primary determinant of performance.