Dave The Diver

Dave The Diver is not a demanding title, and the measured data for the AMD Ryzen 5 8400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 confirms this. This combination produces extremely high frame rates across all tested settings, with the lowest average being 87 FPS at 4K Ultra. The data indicates that players should prioritize visual quality over raw frame rate, as the hardware has ample headroom to spare. The most balanced experience is found at the High preset, which offers a substantial visual upgrade over Medium while maintaining frame rates above 99 FPS at every resolution tested. For players with high-refresh-rate 1080p monitors, the Ultra preset still delivers an average of 173 FPS, making it a viable option for those who want maximum visual fidelity without sacrificing smoothness.

Settings Recommendations

The benchmark results show that the High preset is the optimal choice for this hardware combination. At 1920x1080, High produces an average of 196 FPS, which is only a 12% drop from the Low preset's 262 FPS but provides significantly better visual quality. Moving to 2560x1440, High maintains a strong 147 FPS average, which is perfectly suitable for most high-refresh-rate displays. Even at 3840x2160, the High preset holds 99 FPS, meaning the game remains playable on 4K displays without needing to compromise on settings.

The Ultra preset, while visually superior, shows a noticeable performance cost. At 1080p, Ultra averages 173 FPS, which is still excellent, but it represents a 12% reduction compared to High. The gap widens at higher resolutions: at 1440p, Ultra drops to 130 FPS (an 11% decrease from High), and at 4K, it falls to 87 FPS (a 12% decrease). For players with 4K displays, this means the choice between High and Ultra is a trade-off between a guaranteed 99 FPS and a slightly less stable 87 FPS. Given that the game is not a fast-paced competitive title, the visual improvements from Ultra may justify the frame rate dip for some players, but High is the safer recommendation for consistent performance.

The Medium preset offers a middle ground, with averages of 220 FPS at 1080p, 165 FPS at 1440p, and 111 FPS at 4K. The minimum FPS readings for Medium are also solid: 187 at 1080p, 140 at 1440p, and 94 at 4K. These numbers suggest that Medium is the best choice for players who want to ensure no frame drops below 90 FPS on 4K displays. However, since High only shows a 12% performance penalty over Medium at 4K (99 vs 111 FPS), the visual upgrade is generally worth the small cost. The Low preset, while delivering the highest frame rates (262 FPS at 1080p, 197 at 1440p, and 132 at 4K), sacrifices too much visual detail for a game that is already running at playable speeds on higher settings.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 8400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, with a base clock of 4.20 GHz and a boost clock of 4.70 GHz. In the context of Dave The Diver, which is not a heavily threaded title, the CPU's single-thread performance is the primary factor. The 3DMark single-thread score of 951 and the Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2943 indicate strong per-core performance, which translates directly to the high frame rates observed in the measured data.

The CPU's multi-threaded capabilities, while not critical for this game, are still respectable. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 20851 places the 8400F in a competitive position, with its average benchmark score of 25005 putting it just 0.2% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F and 0.3% ahead of the Intel Core i7-11850H. This means the 8400F will not bottleneck the RTX 3070 in Dave The Diver, even at lower resolutions where the CPU's role is more pronounced.

The data suggests that the CPU is not the limiting factor in this game. At 1080p Low, the average frame rate reaches 262 FPS, which is a strong indicator that the CPU can feed the GPU faster than the GPU can render. Even at 4K Ultra, where the GPU is under maximum load, the average frame rate of 87 FPS is still well above playable thresholds, indicating that the CPU's 4.70 GHz boost clock provides sufficient single-thread performance for this game's demands. The 16 MB of shared L3 cache also helps with memory latency, though the game's modest requirements mean this is not a critical factor.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070, based on the Ampere architecture, features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its boost clock of 1725 MHz and 5888 shading units provide substantial raw compute power, as reflected in its PassMark G3D score of 22214. This places the GPU in the 61st percentile of all GPUs, with its average benchmark score of 17208 positioning it just 0.7% behind the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT and 1% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690.

In Dave The Diver, the GPU's role becomes more apparent as resolution increases. At 1080p, the frame rates are so high (ranging from 173 to 262 FPS) that the GPU is likely not fully utilized, with the CPU handling the bulk of the workload. However, at 4K, the GPU's rendering capabilities are tested more thoroughly. The 8 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for this game, as evidenced by the 132 FPS average at 4K Low, which shows no signs of memory bandwidth limitations.

The RTX 3070's 448.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is a key asset at higher resolutions. The transition from 1080p to 1440p results in a 25% frame rate drop at High settings (from 196 to 147 FPS), while the jump from 1440p to 4K causes a further 33% drop (from 147 to 99 FPS). This scaling pattern is consistent with a GPU that is starting to become the bottleneck at 4K, but it still maintains playable frame rates. The GPU's 220 W TDP and dual-slot design are reasonable for its performance class, and the 12-pin power connector is the standard for this generation.

FAQ

Q: What is the best preset for 4K gaming with this hardware?

A: The High preset provides the best balance, averaging 99 FPS at 3840x2160. This is a 12% improvement over Ultra (87 FPS) while offering better visuals than Medium (111 FPS), making it the recommended choice for 4K displays.

Q: Can this setup handle 1440p at high refresh rates?

A: Yes, the data shows 147 FPS average at High settings on 2560x1440. Even the Ultra preset maintains 130 FPS, which is above the 120 Hz threshold, ensuring smooth gameplay on high-refresh-rate monitors.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals?

A: The Ryzen 5 8400F has an average benchmark score of 25005, which is 0.2% higher than the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F (24964) and 0.3% higher than the Intel Core i7-11850H (24935). It trails the AMD EPYC 9474F by 0.4% (25103).

Q: Is 8 GB of VRAM enough for Dave The Diver?

A: Yes, the 8 GB GDDR6 memory on the RTX 3070 is more than sufficient. The game runs at 132 FPS on 4K Low and 87 FPS on 4K Ultra, showing no signs of VRAM capacity issues at any tested setting.

Q: What frame rate can I expect at 1080p with maximum settings?

A: The Ultra preset at 1920x1080 averages 173 FPS. This is still well above the typical 144 Hz refresh rate, allowing for a fully maxed-out visual experience without sacrificing smoothness.

Q: How does the GPU compare to its nearest competitor?

A: The RTX 3070's average benchmark score of 17208 is 0.7% lower than the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT (17083) and 1% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690 (17037). It outperforms the AMD Radeon HD 7970M by 1.1% (17019).

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of performance scaling across the three tested resolutions. At the High preset, the average frame rates are 196 FPS at 1080p, 147 FPS at 1440p, and 99 FPS at 4K. This represents a 25% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a further 33% drop from 1440p to 4K. The total reduction from 1080p to 4K is 49.5%, which is slightly less than the 75% pixel count increase (1920x1080 = 2.07 million pixels, 3840x2160 = 8.29 million pixels), indicating that the GPU is not purely pixel-bound.

The Low preset shows a similar scaling pattern: 262 FPS at 1080p, 197 FPS at 1440p, and 132 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 24.8% and 33% respectively, nearly identical to the High preset. This consistency suggests that the scaling is primarily driven by resolution rather than settings, with the GPU becoming progressively more important as pixel count increases.

At the Medium preset, the minimum FPS readings provide additional insight. The minimums are 187 FPS at 1080p, 140 FPS at 1440p, and 94 FPS at 4K. The gap between average and minimum FPS is relatively consistent (33, 25, and 17 FPS respectively), indicating that frame time variance decreases at higher resolutions. This suggests that at 4K, the GPU is working more consistently, reducing the likelihood of sudden frame drops. The scaling data points to the GPU being the primary limiting factor at 4K, while the CPU has more influence at 1080p.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS data for this hardware configuration is as follows:

1920x1080:

• Low: 262 FPS average
• Medium: 220 FPS average, 187 FPS minimum, 252 FPS maximum
• High: 196 FPS average
• Ultra: 173 FPS average

2560x1440:

• Low: 197 FPS average
• Medium: 165 FPS average, 140 FPS minimum, 190 FPS maximum
• High: 147 FPS average
• Ultra: 130 FPS average

3840x2160:

• Low: 132 FPS average
• Medium: 111 FPS average, 94 FPS minimum, 127 FPS maximum
• High: 99 FPS average
• Ultra: 87 FPS average

The data shows that the Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values. At 1080p Medium, the range is 187 to 252 FPS, which is a 65 FPS spread. At 1440p Medium, the range narrows to 140 to 190 FPS (a 50 FPS spread), and at 4K Medium, it narrows further to 94 to 127 FPS (a 33 FPS spread). This trend indicates that frame consistency improves at higher resolutions, likely because the GPU workload becomes more uniform.

The combination's overall rank in Dave The Diver is 1588 out of 3710 tested combinations, placing it in the top 42.8% of all hardware pairings. This rank reflects the strong performance of both the CPU and GPU, with the 8400F's 77th percentile standing (among all CPUs) and the RTX 3070's 61st percentile (among all GPUs) contributing to a system that handles this game with ease. The measured data confirms that this is a well-balanced setup for Dave The Diver, delivering playable frame rates at every resolution and settings combination tested.