Don't Starve Together

The Intel Core i5-13400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 delivers a remarkably fluid experience in Don't Starve Together, with measured frame rates that consistently exceed display refresh rate targets across most settings and resolutions. The data shows this combination ranks 407th out of 1667 tested combos, placing it in the top quarter of all systems. The benchmark results indicate that players have significant headroom to prioritize visual fidelity without sacrificing playability.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows reveal a clear hierarchy in performance scaling. At 4K, the Ultra preset delivers 62.8 FPS average, which is playable but leaves little margin for demanding scenes. High at 4K jumps to 78.1 FPS, a 24% improvement over Ultra that suggests the preset is the sweet spot for maximum fidelity at that resolution. Medium at 4K reaches 91.4 FPS, while Low at 4K produces 131.8 FPS, showing that even at maximum resolution, the hardware can comfortably exceed 60 FPS with adjusted settings.

For 1440p, the picture improves dramatically. High delivers 125.4 FPS, which is sufficient for high-refresh-rate displays. Medium hits 151.5 FPS, and Low reaches 218.4 FPS. Ultra at 1440p still produces 102.5 FPS, meaning even the most demanding preset remains smooth. At 1080p, the combination is nearly overkill: High runs at 185.1 FPS, Medium at 219.8 FPS, and Low reaches 296.7 FPS. Even Ultra at 1080p maintains 144.8 FPS, which aligns with common 144Hz monitor refresh rates.

Given the data, the optimal experience balances fidelity and headroom. At 4K, High is recommended for those prioritizing image quality with a 78.1 FPS average that stays above 60 FPS. At 1440p, Ultra at 102.5 FPS is viable, but High at 125.4 FPS provides additional margin for complex scenarios. At 1080p, High at 185.1 FPS is the best choice for high-refresh displays, while Ultra at 144.8 FPS is acceptable if maximum settings are desired. The data consistently shows that High is the most balanced preset across all three resolutions.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 serves as the primary driver of frame rate in Don't Starve Together, and its specifications clarify why the measured results scale the way they do. The GPU features 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, yielding 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration proves ample for the game’s demands, as even at 4K Ultra the frame rate does not collapse, indicating no memory capacity bottleneck.

Clock speeds are equally relevant. The GPU’s base clock is 1920 MHz with a boost clock of 2475 MHz. The boost behavior directly influences sustained performance in long sessions, and the measured averages suggest the card maintains high clocks under load. The Ada Lovelace architecture, built on a 5 nm process at TSMC, includes 5888 shading units and 184 tensor cores, which contribute to the card’s 29.15 TFLOPS FP32 throughput.

The benchmark scores place the RTX 4070 at the 81st percentile among all GPUs, with an average score of 37283. Its nearest rivals show tight competition: the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 trails by 0.6%, the NVIDIA GeForce MX570 A is 1.9% behind, and the RTX 4080 Mobile is 2.2% behind. The AMD Radeon RX 5300M is 2.5% ahead. These deltas are small, indicating that the RTX 4070 sits in a densely packed performance tier. In practice, this means the GPU delivers consistent frame rates that are not limited by memory size or bandwidth, as evidenced by the smooth scaling from Low to Ultra settings.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable drop as resolution increases, which reveals the limiting component in this pairing. At 1080p, the average frame rates across all settings range from 144.8 FPS (Ultra) to 296.7 FPS (Low). Moving to 1440p, those figures fall to between 102.5 FPS (Ultra) and 218.4 FPS (Low). At 4K, the range narrows to 62.8 FPS (Ultra) through 131.8 FPS (Low).

The relative drops are substantial. For High settings, the transition from 1080p (185.1 FPS) to 1440p (125.4 FPS) represents a 32% reduction, and further to 4K (78.1 FPS) is another 38% drop. For Low settings, the drop from 296.7 FPS at 1080p to 218.4 FPS at 1440p is 26%, and to 131.8 FPS at 4K is another 40%. These steep declines indicate that the GPU is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions, as the CPU’s role becomes less significant when pixel count rises.

The data also shows that the gap between Low and Ultra widens at higher resolutions. At 1080p, Low is 105% faster than Ultra (296.7 vs 144.8 FPS). At 1440p, Low is 113% faster (218.4 vs 102.5 FPS). At 4K, Low is 110% faster (131.8 vs 62.8 FPS). This pattern suggests that the GPU’s compute and memory bandwidth are exercised more heavily at 4K, making preset choices more impactful. The consistent frame rates at 1080p, even at Ultra, imply that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU without becoming a bottleneck at lower resolutions.

FAQ

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

A: High is recommended, as it delivers 78.1 FPS average at 3840x2160, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. Ultra drops to 62.8 FPS, which is playable but leaves less headroom, while Medium achieves 91.4 FPS and Low reaches 131.8 FPS.

Q: Can this system handle 1440p at maximum settings?

A: Yes, Ultra at 2560x1440 produces 102.5 FPS average, which is smooth for most displays. High reaches 125.4 FPS, Medium hits 151.5 FPS, and Low tops out at 218.4 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 4070 compare to its closest competitors in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 4070 scores 37283 on average, ranking at the 81st percentile. It is 0.6% ahead of the RX Vega 56, 1.9% ahead of the MX570 A, and 2.2% ahead of the RTX 4080 Mobile, while the RX 5300M is 2.5% ahead.

Q: Is the 12 GB VRAM sufficient for this game?

A: The measured data indicates yes. At 4K Ultra, the frame rate remains at 62.8 FPS, showing no signs of memory capacity limiting performance. The 504.2 GB/s bandwidth is more than adequate for the game’s requirements.

Q: What frame rate can players expect at 1080p with High settings?

A: The average is 185.1 FPS, which is well above the refresh rate of most gaming monitors. Even Ultra at 1080p maintains 144.8 FPS, and Low reaches 296.7 FPS.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU limit performance at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, the high frame rates across all settings (144.8 to 296.7 FPS) suggest the CPU is not a bottleneck. The Intel Core i5-13400F, with its 10 cores and 16 threads, provides sufficient throughput, as evidenced by its 82nd percentile ranking among all CPUs.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-13400F plays a supporting but critical role in this configuration, ensuring that frame rates remain high even at low resolutions where CPU load is proportionally larger. The processor features 10 cores (with 16 threads via hyper-threading) based on the Raptor Lake architecture, built on Intel’s 10 nm process. Its base clock is 2.50 GHz with a boost clock of 4.60 GHz, and it carries 20 MB of shared L3 cache. This combination delivers strong single-threaded and multi-threaded performance, which is essential for a game that relies on logic and simulation.

Benchmark results place the i5-13400F at the 82nd percentile among all CPUs, with an average score of 25236. Its nearest rivals show minimal differences: the Intel Core i7-13620H is 0.1% ahead, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D is 0.5% behind, the AMD EPYC 9474F is 0.5% ahead, and the AMD Ryzen AI 5 PRO 340 is 0.5% ahead. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 21279 and single-core score of 3004 illustrate the processor’s capability. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 7314 and max-thread score of 7307 indicate consistent scaling across threads.

In the context of Don't Starve Together, the CPU’s role is most evident at 1080p. The difference between Low (296.7 FPS) and Ultra (144.8 FPS) is large, but even the lowest frame rate exceeds 144 FPS, suggesting the CPU can feed the GPU without restriction. At 1440p and 4K, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, as shown by the steeper frame rate drops. The CPU’s 16 threads ensure that background tasks and game logic do not create stutter, while the boost clock of 4.60 GHz provides the single-thread responsiveness the game likely needs. The 65 W TDP indicates efficiency, allowing this CPU to sustain performance without thermal throttling, which is crucial for maintaining the measured averages.