Dave The Diver

Dave The Diver presents an interesting case study in system balance when paired with the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K and Intel Arc B570. The measured frame rates reveal a configuration that scales predictably across resolutions, with the data indicating a shift in bottleneck behavior as pixel count increases. At 1080p, the system delivers high frame rates that suggest strong CPU headroom, while the transition to 4K shows the GPU becoming the primary limiting factor, though average performance remains playable at most settings.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate deltas between 1080p and 4K are substantial, illustrating how Dave The Diver responds to pixel count. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 124 at 1920x1080 to 94 at 2560x1440, a 24.2% reduction, and then to 63 at 3840x2160, which represents a 49.2% decline from the 1080p baseline. This scaling pattern is typical of a game where the GPU workload increases significantly with resolution, but the magnitude of the drop suggests the Arc B570 is not fully saturated at lower resolutions.

The Low preset shows the most dramatic scaling. At 1080p, the system averages 167 FPS, which decreases to 125 at 1440p and 84 at 4K. The 4K result is still 67.9% higher than the 4K High preset, indicating that the Low preset substantially reduces GPU load, allowing the hardware to maintain a smoother experience. The Medium preset exhibits a similar trend, with 139 FPS at 1080p, 105 at 1440p, and 70 at 4K, with the 1440p and 4K results showing a 24.5% and 49.6% drop respectively from the 1080p figure.

Ultra settings provide the lowest averages across all resolutions, with 110 FPS at 1080p, 83 at 1440p, and 55 at 4K. The scaling from 1080p to 4K here is a 50.0% reduction, nearly identical to the High preset. The fact that both High and Ultra lose roughly half their performance when moving from 1080p to 4K suggests that the GPU is hitting a compute or bandwidth ceiling at higher resolutions, rather than the CPU becoming a constraint. The data indicates that at 1080p, the CPU is capable of pushing frame rates well above what the GPU can deliver at 4K, making the Arc B570 the limiting component in 4K scenarios.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K is a 20-core, 20-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. Its 30 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR5 memory with a 102.4 GB/s bandwidth contribute to its ability to feed the GPU in Dave The Diver. The benchmark data shows a strong single-threaded performance, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2020 and a multi-core score of 35850, placing it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs.

In Dave The Diver, the CPU's role is most evident in the 1080p results, where frame rates exceed 160 FPS on the Low preset. This indicates that the game is not heavily CPU-threaded, as the 265K's 20 cores are more than sufficient for the workload. The Passmark multithread score of 58594 and the Geekbench multi-core score of 23085 further support the notion that this CPU has ample headroom for this game. However, the data reveals that in this title, the CPU is not the bottleneck even at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS of 55 is likely GPU-limited.

The comparison to nearest rivals shows the 265K's position. It is 1.0% ahead of the Intel Core i7-14700KF in average benchmark score, and 1.3% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F. This places the 265K in a competitive position for gaming, though Dave The Diver's modest CPU demands mean that the differences between these processors would likely not manifest in significant frame rate variations. The 265K's boost clock of 5.50 GHz is particularly relevant for games like this that favor single-thread performance, as evidenced by the Cinebench R15 single-core score of 708.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 4K, the High preset averages 63 FPS, which is suitable for a smooth experience on a standard 60 Hz display. The Medium preset at 4K averages 70 FPS, a 11.1% improvement over High, with a minimum of 60 FPS and a maximum of 81 FPS, providing a more consistent frame pacing. The Low preset at 4K delivers 84 FPS, which is 33.3% higher than High, but the visual quality reduction may not be justified for the gain.

At 1440p, the High preset averages 94 FPS, while the Medium preset averages 105 FPS, a 11.7% increase. The Low preset reaches 125 FPS, which is 33.0% higher than High. For users with 144 Hz displays, the Low preset at 1440p is the only setting that comes close to fully utilizing the refresh rate, though the Medium preset's 105 FPS average with a minimum of 89 FPS is a viable alternative for those prioritizing visual quality.

The 1080p results show that the system can handle all presets with high frame rates. The Ultra preset averages 110 FPS, while High averages 124 FPS, a 12.7% difference. The Medium preset at 139 FPS and Low at 167 FPS offer progressively higher performance. Given the data, the Medium preset at 1080p provides a balanced experience, with an average of 139 FPS and a minimum of 118 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay without the visual sacrifices of Low. For 4K, the Medium preset is recommended, as it offers a 11.1% performance increase over High with a minimum FPS that never dips below 60.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K and Intel Arc B570 in Dave The Diver ranks 2282 out of 2867 tested combinations. This places the combo in the 79.6th percentile of all tested systems, indicating that it performs better than the majority of configurations but is not among the top performers. The rank suggests that while the system is capable of running the game smoothly at most settings, other combinations with more powerful GPUs would achieve higher frame rates, particularly at 4K.

The CPU's ranking relative to other processors is strong, with a 94th percentile score, but the GPU's 65th percentile score pulls the overall combo rank down. This is expected, as the Arc B570 is positioned as a mid-range graphics card, while the 265K is a high-end processor. The data implies that the system is somewhat CPU-heavy for this game, meaning that a less powerful CPU paired with a stronger GPU might yield a similar or better average FPS in Dave The Diver. The combo rank reflects the GPU's limitation in this title rather than a deficiency in the CPU.

The nearest rivals for the GPU provide context for its performance. The Arc B570 is 0.1% behind the Intel Arc A750 and 0.1% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile in average benchmark score. This places it in the same performance tier as these GPUs, which are all capable of running Dave The Diver at the measured frame rates. The combo's rank of 2282 suggests that it outperforms roughly 80% of all tested configurations, which is a respectable result for a mid-range GPU paired with a high-end CPU.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Dave The Diver?

A: The 1920x1080 resolution yields the highest frame rates, with the Medium preset averaging 139 FPS and a minimum of 118 FPS. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset averages 105 FPS, while at 3840x2160, the Medium preset averages 70 FPS.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at 4K?

A: No, the data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor at 3840x2160. The Ultra preset averages 55 FPS at 4K, while the same preset at 1080p averages 110 FPS, showing a 50.0% drop that is consistent with GPU-bound scaling.

Q: How does the Arc B570 compare to its nearest rival, the Arc A750?

A: The Arc B570 has an average benchmark score of 20556, which is 0.1% lower than the Intel Arc A750's score of 20582. This indicates nearly identical performance in synthetic benchmarks.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for this combo?

A: The lowest minimum FPS recorded is 60 at 3840x2160 with Medium settings. At 2560x1440 Medium, the minimum is 89 FPS, and at 1920x1080 Medium, the minimum is 118 FPS.

Q: Is the Core Ultra 7 265K a high-performance CPU for gaming?

A: The CPU's percentile rank is 94th among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 70879. It is 1.0% faster than the Intel Core i7-14700KF and 1.3% faster than the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F in average scores.

Q: Can this system achieve 60 FPS at 4K with all settings maxed?

A: No, the Ultra preset at 3840x2160 averages 55 FPS. The High preset averages 63 FPS, and the Medium preset averages 70 FPS, which does achieve the 60 FPS threshold.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the measured average FPS values are as follows: Low presets yield 84 FPS, Medium presets yield 70 FPS with a minimum of 60 and maximum of 81, High presets yield 63 FPS, and Ultra presets yield 55 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a consistent decline, with Ultra being 34.5% slower than Low.

At 2560x1440, the average FPS values are 125 for Low, 105 for Medium with a minimum of 89 and maximum of 121, 94 for High, and 83 for Ultra. The delta between Low and Ultra is 33.6%, slightly less than at 4K, indicating that the GPU still has significant workload at this resolution.

At 1920x1080, the average FPS values are 167 for Low, 139 for Medium with a minimum of 118 and maximum of 160, 124 for High, and 110 for Ultra. The difference between Low and Ultra is 34.1%, which is consistent with the other resolutions. The 1080p Medium result of 139 FPS is notable, as it provides a 25.9% improvement over the High preset while maintaining a minimum FPS above 115.

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at each preset shows a consistent reduction. High drops from 124 to 94 FPS, a 24.2% decrease; Low drops from 167 to 125 FPS, a 25.1% decrease; Medium drops from 139 to 105 FPS, a 24.5% decrease; and Ultra drops from 110 to 83 FPS, a 24.5% decrease. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is more severe: High drops from 94 to 63 FPS, a 33.0% decrease; Low drops from 125 to 84 FPS, a 32.8% decrease; Medium drops from 105 to 70 FPS, a 33.3% decrease; and Ultra drops from 83 to 55 FPS, a 33.7% decrease.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B570 is built on the Xe2-HPG architecture with a 5 nm process node, featuring 2304 shading units and 144 texture mapping units. Its 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus provides 380.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is a key factor in its 4K performance. The GPU's clock speeds are fixed at 2500 MHz for both base and boost, with memory running at 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective). The 150 W TDP and dual-slot design are typical for this performance class.

The GPU's benchmark scores place it in the 65th percentile of all GPUs, with an average score of 20556. Its nearest rival, the Intel Arc A750, has a score of 20582, indicating a 0.1% difference, making them effectively equivalent in performance. The Arc B570 is also 0.1% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile, which has a score of 20534. This positioning suggests that the GPU is a solid mid-range option for Dave The Diver.

In Dave The Diver, the GPU's role becomes more pronounced at higher resolutions. At 4K, the frame rates across all presets are below 84 FPS, indicating that the GPU's rendering capabilities are the limiting factor. The 380.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is likely sufficient for the game's textures, but the 11.52 TFLOPS of FP32 compute may be the constraint at Ultra settings, where the average FPS drops to 55. The GPU's pixel rate of 200.0 GPixel/s and texture rate of 360.0 GTexel/s provide the raw throughput needed for the game's 2D-style visuals, but the data suggests that 4K Ultra is beyond the card's comfortable envelope.

The GPU's performance relative to its rivals is consistent, with the Arc B570 matching the A750 within 0.1%. This means that in Dave The Diver, users can expect similar frame rates from either card, with the measured data showing that the B570 is capable of delivering playable performance at 4K Medium and 1440p High, and excellent performance at 1080p Ultra. The GPU's 10 GB memory capacity is also a consideration, as the game's asset requirements at 4K may benefit from the available VRAM, though the measured FPS indicates that memory size is not a bottleneck in this title.