Evolve

Evolve, a 2015 FPS built on the CryEngine, presents an interesting stress test for the AMD Ryzen 5 2600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER combination. The measured data reveals a system where the GPU is the dominant force at lower resolutions, but the CPU's architectural limits become increasingly apparent as the graphical load increases. This analysis walks through the benchmark results step by step, examining how this pairing behaves across resolutions and settings.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K clearly illustrates the shifting bottleneck. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo delivers 195 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 171 FPS, a reduction of 24 FPS. At 4K Low, the average falls to 111 FPS, which is 84 FPS below the 1080p result. This pattern indicates that even at Low settings, the resolution scaling heavily taxes the GPU, while the CPU maintains enough headroom to keep feeding frames.

The scaling curve steepens with higher presets. With High settings, the transition from 1080p (163 FPS) to 1440p (119 FPS) represents a 44 FPS loss, and then to 4K (68 FPS) another 51 FPS loss. The 4K High result is less than half of the 1080p High figure. This suggests that the RTX 4070 SUPER's raw throughput is the limiting factor at 4K, as the gap between resolutions grows faster than the pixel count alone would predict.

Ultra settings reinforce this interpretation. The 1080p Ultra average is 123 FPS, which drops to 82 FPS at 1440p and then to 47 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra score is only 38% of the 1080p Ultra score. Such a dramatic falloff points to the GPU being saturated at 4K Ultra, with the Ryzen 5 2600's six cores and twelve threads providing sufficient instruction throughput to avoid becoming the primary constraint. The data shows a classic GPU-bound scenario at 4K, where the RTX 4070 SUPER's 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are being fully utilized.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 2600 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the 2000 series, built on the Zen architecture and fabricated on a 12 nm process. Its base clock of 3.40 GHz and boost clock of 3.90 GHz are modest by modern standards, but the benchmark results show they are adequate for Evolve. The CPU's PassMark multithread score of 13160 places it at the 75th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 21484.

Comparing to its nearest rivals, the Ryzen 5 2600 sits within 1.2% of the AMD EPYC 9454 and within 0.7% of the Intel Xeon D-1746TER, while leading the Intel Core i9-11900H by 0.5% and the Intel Core Ultra 5 228V by 0.2%. These narrow deltas indicate that the Ryzen 5 2600's computational performance is competitive with a wide range of server and mobile parts, despite its older architecture.

In Evolve, the CPU's role becomes more pronounced at 1080p. At 1080p Low, the 195 FPS average suggests the CPU is still capable of driving the game engine efficiently. However, the gap between 1080p High (163 FPS) and 1080p Medium (178 FPS) is only 15 FPS, which is smaller than the 24 FPS difference between 1440p Low and 4K Low. This compression at lower resolutions hints that the Ryzen 5 2600's single-thread performance, reflected in its Geekbench single-core score of 1154, may be approaching its limits when the GPU is not the limiting factor.

How This Combo Ranks

In the global database of tested combinations, the Ryzen 5 2600 paired with the RTX 4070 SUPER achieves a combo rank of 994 out of 3700 tested combos. This places the pairing in the top 27% of all systems evaluated for Evolve. The rank reflects the overall balance of the two components, where the GPU's high percentile (83rd among all GPUs) compensates for the CPU's lower standing.

The RTX 4070 SUPER's average benchmark score of 43223 places it just 0.1% behind the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 24 GB and 0.2% behind the Quadro M6000, while leading the RTX 5050 Mobile by 0.1% and the RTX 4090 Mobile by 1%. These margins are negligible in real-world gaming, but they confirm that the GPU is performing at the expected level for its class.

The combo rank of 994 suggests that while the GPU is a top-tier part, the CPU prevents the pairing from reaching the upper echelons of the rankings. Systems with more modern CPUs would likely score higher, as the Ryzen 5 2600's 75th percentile CPU score is the weaker link in this combination. The data indicates that the combo is well-suited for high-refresh-rate 1440p gaming, but it is not optimized for the absolute highest frame rates at 1080p or for pushing 4K Ultra beyond playable levels.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the results show a predictable progression. Low settings deliver 195 FPS, Medium reduces this to 178 FPS, High drops to 163 FPS, and Ultra settles at 123 FPS. The Medium preset has a recorded minimum of 151 FPS and maximum of 205 FPS, indicating a stable frame time distribution. The 72 FPS spread between Low and Ultra at 1080p demonstrates that the RTX 4070 SUPER has ample headroom to handle the game's graphical options.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages shift downward. Low produces 171 FPS, Medium yields 152 FPS, High reaches 119 FPS, and Ultra falls to 82 FPS. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 129 FPS and maximum of 174 FPS, which is a narrower range than the 1080p Medium result. This tighter variance at 1440p suggests the system is becoming more consistent as the GPU load increases, reducing CPU-induced frame pacing fluctuations.

At 3840x2160, the results drop significantly. Low averages 111 FPS, Medium achieves 86 FPS with a minimum of 73 FPS and maximum of 99 FPS, High manages 68 FPS, and Ultra falls to 47 FPS. The 4K Medium frame range of 26 FPS (73 to 99) is the widest of any Medium preset, indicating that at this resolution the system is under significant stress. The 4K Ultra result of 47 FPS is borderline playable, while the 4K High score of 68 FPS provides a smoother experience.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture using a 5 nm process at TSMC. It features 7168 shading units, 224 texture mapping units, and 80 render output units, along with 56 ray tracing cores and 224 tensor cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1980 MHz and a boost clock of 2475 MHz, with memory running at 1313 MHz for an effective 21 Gbps across a 192-bit bus.

The 12 GB of GDDR6X memory provides 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth, which is crucial for Evolve's texture-heavy environments. The GPU's PassMark G3D score of 29995 and DirectX 12 score of 110 reflect its strong compute capabilities. In the measured results, the GPU demonstrates its dominance at 4K, where the 47 FPS Ultra average is still playable, and the 111 FPS Low average shows the card's ability to handle even the most demanding resolution at reduced settings.

The RTX 4070 SUPER's 83rd percentile ranking among all GPUs confirms its position as a high-end part. Its FP32 performance of 35.48 TFLOPS and texture rate of 554.4 GTexel/s ensure that it can process the CryEngine's geometry and shading workloads efficiently. The GPU's pixel rate of 198.0 GPixel/s directly supports the resolution scaling observed, where each step from 1080p to 4K increases the pixel count by approximately 2.25 times, and the measured frame rates decline accordingly.

Settings Recommendations

For 4K displays, the data suggests using High settings as the optimal balance. The 68 FPS average is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, while the 47 FPS Ultra result is too low for consistent responsiveness. The 86 FPS Medium result is also viable, but High provides better visual fidelity without a significant performance penalty compared to the 47 FPS Ultra drop.

At 1440p, the High preset with 119 FPS offers an excellent experience for high-refresh-rate monitors. The 152 FPS Medium result is also strong, but the visual improvement from Medium to High justifies the 33 FPS cost. The 171 FPS Low result is unnecessary for most players, as the Medium and High presets already exceed typical display refresh rates.

For 1080p, the Ultra preset at 123 FPS is the best choice. The 40 FPS difference between Ultra (123 FPS) and High (163 FPS) is noticeable, but the Ultra visuals are worth the trade-off for players with 120 Hz or 144 Hz displays. The 195 FPS Low result and 178 FPS Medium result are only relevant for competitive players seeking maximum frame rates, but the CPU's 75th percentile score suggests diminishing returns beyond the Ultra preset.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming?

A: Yes, but with limitations. The measured data shows 68 FPS at 4K High and 47 FPS at 4K Ultra. For smooth 4K gameplay, High settings are recommended, as the 47 FPS Ultra result falls below the 60 FPS standard for fluid motion.

Q: What is the best resolution for this pairing?

A: The data indicates 1440p is the sweet spot. At 2560x1440, the High preset delivers 119 FPS, providing a high frame rate while maintaining visual quality. The 4K results are playable but require lower settings, while 1080p results are excessive for most displays.

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 2600 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The CPU's average benchmark score of 21484 is within 0.2% of the Intel Core Ultra 5 228V, 0.5% of the Intel Core i9-11900H, 0.7% of the Intel Xeon D-1746TER, and 1.2% of the AMD EPYC 9454. These narrow margins indicate competitive performance across a range of workloads.

Q: Is the RTX 4070 SUPER the limiting factor in this system?

A: At 4K, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck. The 47 FPS Ultra result and 68 FPS High result show the GPU being saturated. At 1080p, the CPU becomes more relevant, with the 72 FPS spread between Low and Ultra settings indicating the GPU still has headroom.

Q: What settings should be used for a 144 Hz monitor?

A: At 1440p, the High preset at 119 FPS is close to the 144 Hz target, while Medium at 152 FPS exceeds it. At 1080p, Ultra at 123 FPS is slightly below 144 Hz, but High at 163 FPS easily surpasses it. The choice depends on resolution preference.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested systems?

A: The combination ranks 994 out of 3700 tested combos, placing it in the top 27% of all systems evaluated for Evolve. This rank reflects the strong GPU performance paired with a mid-range CPU, which together deliver solid but not top-tier results.