Dave The Diver

Dave the Diver is an adventure game that, on the surface, does not appear demanding. However, the benchmark data for the Intel Core i7-14700KF paired with the Intel Arc B370 tells a more nuanced story. This combination produces playable frame rates at 1080p, but the experience degrades significantly as resolution increases. The data reveals a system where the CPU has ample headroom, but the integrated graphics solution of the Arc B370 becomes the definitive bottleneck, capping performance well below what the processor is capable of delivering.

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

The Intel Core i7-14700KF is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture. It features a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. This is a high-end desktop part designed for heavy multi-threaded workloads, as evidenced by its substantial benchmark scores. In Cinebench R23, it achieves a multi-core score of 44167 and a single-core score of 6235, placing it in the 94th percentile among all CPUs. This processor is not the limiting factor in this configuration.

In the context of Dave the Diver, the CPU’s role is primarily to handle game logic, physics, and draw calls. The game is not known for stressing high-core-count processors, and the i7-14700KF's performance is more than sufficient. The data confirms this; at 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves an average of 98 FPS. However, the fact that the frame rate does not scale dramatically with CPU performance suggests that the game’s engine is not heavily multi-threaded, or that the GPU is already saturated even at the lowest settings. The processor's 33 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel memory support for DDR4 and DDR5 provide a solid foundation, but the measured FPS figures are consistently capped by the graphics subsystem.

The benchmark results indicate that the CPU is effectively idle in this scenario. When compared to its nearest rivals, the i7-14700KF posts an average benchmark score of 70163, which is 0.2% higher than the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F and 0.9% higher than the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X. It trails the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K by 1%. These differences are negligible in a game like Dave the Diver. The takeaway is that the CPU has immense computational headroom, and any performance issues in this game are not attributable to the processor. The bottleneck is unequivocally elsewhere.

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

Analyzing the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution. At 1080p, the system is capable of delivering a smooth experience across all presets. The Low preset yields an average of 98 FPS, while Medium and High produce 82 FPS and 73 FPS, respectively. The Ultra preset drops to 65 FPS. For a 60 Hz display, the Ultra preset is the best choice at 1080p, as it maintains an average above the refresh rate and provides the highest visual quality. If the user has a 144 Hz display, the High preset at 73 FPS is a reasonable compromise, but the Low preset at 98 FPS is the only option that approaches high-refresh-rate territory.

At 1440p, the situation changes. The Low preset delivers 74 FPS, which is generally playable. The Medium preset drops to 62 FPS, which is still acceptable for a slower-paced adventure game. The High preset falls to 55 FPS, and the Ultra preset to 49 FPS. At this resolution, the Medium preset appears to be the sweet spot, offering a balance between visual fidelity and a frame rate that stays above 60 FPS on average. The data shows that the step from Medium to High incurs a 7 FPS penalty, while the step from High to Ultra incurs a 6 FPS penalty. The visual improvement from Medium to Ultra may not justify the 13 FPS loss in average performance.

At 4K (3840x2160), the system struggles. The Low preset is the only one that achieves a playable average of 49 FPS. The Medium preset averages 41 FPS, with a minimum of 35 FPS and a maximum of 47 FPS, indicating noticeable frame time variance. The High preset averages 37 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 33 FPS. None of these are ideal for a smooth experience. The recommendation for 4K is to use the Low preset if playability is the priority, but the data strongly suggests that this combo is not suited for 4K gaming in this title. The best experience, considering the measured rows, is either 1080p Ultra for visual quality or 1080p Low for maximum smoothness.

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

The resolution scaling data clearly identifies the Intel Arc B370 as the limiting component. Moving from 1080p Low (98 FPS) to 1440p Low (74 FPS) results in a 24 FPS drop, which is a 24.5% reduction in performance. Moving further to 4K Low (49 FPS) results in another 25 FPS drop, a 33.8% reduction from the 1440p figure. This pattern is consistent across all settings. For example, on High settings, the progression is 73 FPS at 1080p, 55 FPS at 1440p, and 37 FPS at 4K. The frame rate drops almost linearly with the increase in pixel count.

This behavior is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the frame rate would remain relatively constant across resolutions, as the CPU's workload (draw calls, game logic) does not change significantly with resolution. Instead, the frame rate plummets as the number of pixels increases, indicating that the graphics processor is struggling to fill the additional pixels. The Intel Arc B370, with its 1280 shading units and 6.144 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, is simply not powerful enough to handle the rendering load at higher resolutions. The data points to the GPU being saturated at 1080p already, and the situation worsens exponentially as resolution scales.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Intel Core i7-14700KF and Intel Arc B370 ranks 2642 out of 2867 tested combos in Dave the Diver. This places it in the bottom 8% of all systems tested, a poor showing that underscores the severe imbalance of this pairing. In percentile terms, this is only in the 8th percentile, meaning that 92% of other tested combinations performed better in this game. This ranking is not a reflection of the CPU, which is a top-tier performer, but rather a direct consequence of the GPU's limitations.

The combo rank is a holistic measure of gaming performance, and the data indicates that the Arc B370 drags the i7-14700KF down to a level comparable to much older, lower-end hardware. The GPU's nearest rivals in benchmark scores include the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 and the ATI Radeon HD 5770, which are over a decade old. This puts the performance of the Arc B370 into perspective. While the CPU is in the 94th percentile, the GPU is in the 5th percentile. The massive gap between the two components creates a system that is wildly unbalanced for gaming, and this specific title highlights the problem perfectly. The high rank number is a warning to users that this combo is not suitable for modern gaming at standard resolutions.

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

The Intel Arc B370 is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) based on the Xe3-LPG architecture. It has no dedicated VRAM; instead, it uses "System Shared" memory, which means it relies on the system's main RAM. This is a critical limitation. The GPU's base clock is 300 MHz, with a boost clock of 2400 MHz. It features 1280 shading units, 40 TMUs, and 20 ROPs. Its performance is rated at 6.144 TFLOPS for FP32 operations. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 benchmark score for this GPU is 1184, which places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs, indicating entry-level performance.

In Dave the Diver, the GPU's role is to render the 2D and 3D graphics. The game's art style is not graphically intensive, but it still requires a certain level of pixel throughput. The Arc B370's lack of dedicated VRAM is a major hindrance, as it must compete with the CPU for memory bandwidth. The "System Dependent" bandwidth means that performance can vary wildly based on the system's RAM speed and configuration. The measured FPS data shows that this GPU is the primary constraint. The low score in the 5th percentile, combined with the 4K average of 33 FPS on Ultra, shows that the GPU is severely underpowered for this task. The GPU's 25 W TDP and "IGP" slot width confirm its intended role as a low-power, basic graphics solution, not a gaming powerhouse.

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

At 1920x1080, the system shows its best performance. The Low preset achieves an average of 98 FPS. The Medium preset averages 82 FPS, with a minimum of 70 FPS and a maximum of 94 FPS. The High preset averages 73 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 65 FPS. These numbers show that the system can handle 1080p gaming, but the relatively small gap between Low and Ultra (33 FPS difference) indicates that the GPU is already near its limit even at the lowest settings.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance drops noticeably. The Low preset averages 74 FPS. The Medium preset averages 62 FPS, with a minimum of 52 FPS and a maximum of 71 FPS. The High preset averages 55 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 49 FPS. The data shows a clear step-down from the 1080p results, with the Ultra preset at 1440p (49 FPS) performing worse than the Ultra preset at 1080p (65 FPS).

At 3840x2160, the system is clearly out of its depth. The Low preset is the only one that stays above 45 FPS, averaging 49 FPS. The Medium preset averages 41 FPS, with a minimum of 35 FPS and a maximum of 47 FPS. The High preset averages 37 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 33 FPS. These numbers are all below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, and the 4K Medium preset's minimum of 35 FPS indicates significant stuttering. The data conclusively shows that this combo is not viable for 4K gaming in Dave the Diver, and even at 1440p, users must compromise on settings to achieve a consistent experience.