Evolve

The Intel Core i5-11400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 produces a wide spread of frame rates in Evolve, ranging from a highly playable 201 FPS at 1080p Low to a borderline 32 FPS at 4K Ultra. The performance curve across resolutions and settings reveals a system where the GPU’s workload scales dramatically with pixel count, while the CPU provides a stable foundation that rarely becomes the primary constraint. This analysis breaks down the measured data to explain where this combo excels, where it struggles, and which settings deliver the best experience.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep, indicating that the Radeon RX 7700 is the dominant factor at higher resolutions. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 122 FPS at 1920x1080 to 82 FPS at 2560x1440, then to 47 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 33% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, followed by a further 43% drop when moving to 4K. The pattern is consistent across all settings, with the gap between 1440p and 4K always being larger than the gap between 1080p and 1440p.

At Low settings, the scaling is even more pronounced in absolute terms. The 1080p Low result of 201 FPS drops to 135 FPS at 1440p and then to 77 FPS at 4K. The 4K Low result is less than half of the 1080p Low figure, which strongly suggests the GPU is hitting its rendering limits as the pixel count quadruples. The CPU, with its 6 cores and 12 threads based on the Rocket Lake architecture, is unlikely to be the bottleneck at 4K, given that even the 1080p Low frame rate of 201 FPS does not appear to be artificially capped by processor performance.

The Medium settings row provides the only min/max data in the entire dataset, and it illustrates the frame time consistency at each resolution. At 1080p Medium, the average is 156 FPS with a minimum of 133 FPS and maximum of 179 FPS, showing a relatively tight band. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 105 FPS, with minimum and maximum values of 89 and 120 FPS. At 4K Medium, the average falls to 60 FPS, with a minimum of 51 and maximum of 68 FPS. The variance remains proportionally similar across resolutions, meaning the frame pacing issue is not exacerbated by higher pixel counts.

The data suggests that 1080p and 1440p are both viable for smooth gameplay, while 4K requires significant settings reductions to approach playable frame rates. The 4K Ultra result of 32 FPS is the worst-case scenario, and even 4K High at 47 FPS is below the 60 FPS threshold that most fast-paced FPS titles demand. The scaling pattern indicates that the RX 7700’s 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and 256-bit bus are not the limiting factors; rather, the raw shader throughput and fill rate are being overwhelmed by the 8.3 million pixels at 4K.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with a Navi 32 chip, fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It features 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 96 render output units, with 40 ray tracing cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1900 MHz and a boost clock of 2459 MHz, with a game clock rated at 2041 MHz. The memory subsystem consists of 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s.

In Evolve, the GPU’s performance at 4K Ultra yields 32 FPS, which is the lowest measured result in the entire dataset. This is a demanding workload, and the GPU’s 25.18 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is clearly insufficient for maxed-out settings at that resolution. The 4K High setting improves the situation to 47 FPS, while 4K Medium reaches 60 FPS, and 4K Low achieves 77 FPS. The progression from 32 to 77 FPS across the settings spectrum shows that the GPU responds well to reduced shading and texture work.

The 16 GB VRAM capacity is noteworthy, but the measured data does not indicate a capacity constraint. Even at 4K Ultra, the frame rate of 32 FPS is more likely a reflection of compute and bandwidth limits rather than memory exhaustion. The 624.1 GB/s bandwidth is substantial, yet the game’s demands at 4K Ultra are higher than what the GPU can deliver. The boost clock of 2459 MHz is the maximum achievable under load, but sustained performance may vary based on power limits and thermals, which are not captured in this data.

Compared to its nearest rivals, the RX 7700 shows a modest performance envelope. Its average benchmark score of 15852 places it within 1.7% of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (16129) and 1% below the AMD Radeon RX 9060 (16014). The data for Evolve shows the GPU delivering 122 FPS at 1080p High, which is a strong result for a title from 2015, but the 4K numbers highlight that the card is not designed for extreme resolutions in this game.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-11400F and AMD Radeon RX 7700 achieves a rank of 1291 out of 2872 tested combos in Evolve. This places the pairing in the 55th percentile of all systems tested, meaning roughly 45% of combos perform better. The rank reflects a balanced system that is above average but not exceptional, consistent with the mid-range positioning of both components.

The CPU’s performance relative to other processors is solid. The i5-11400F has an average benchmark score of 17177, which puts it in the 71st percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD EPYC 7H12 (0.3% faster), the Intel Core i5-12450H (0.4% slower), and the AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G (0.6% slower). This tight grouping around the 17100-17280 score range indicates that the i5-11400F is competitively placed among its peers, though it does not stand out as a leader.

The GPU ranks in the 58th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 15852. Its nearest rivals are clustered closely, with the AMD Radeon R9 370X being 0.1% faster, the AMD Radeon RX 9060 being 1% slower, and the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 being 1.1% slower. The RX 7700’s performance in Evolve is consistent with its general benchmark standing, neither overperforming nor underperforming relative to expectations.

The combo rank of 1291 suggests that the CPU and GPU work well together, without one component severely bottlenecking the other. In a game like Evolve, which is primarily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, the i5-11400F’s 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient to feed the RX 7700 at 1080p and 1440p. The rank is not higher because the GPU lacks the headroom to excel at 4K, as evidenced by the sub-60 FPS results at High and Ultra settings.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Evolve?*

A: Based on the measured FPS, 2560x1440 offers the best balance of visual quality and performance. At High settings, the combo achieves 82 FPS, which is smooth for an FPS title, while 1080p High reaches 122 FPS for those prioritizing frame rate.

*Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Evolve?*

A: Yes, but only with reduced settings. The 4K Medium setting yields 60 FPS, while 4K Low reaches 77 FPS. However, 4K High (47 FPS) and 4K Ultra (32 FPS) fall below the smoothness threshold typically desired for competitive play.

Q: How does the CPU affect performance in this game?

A: The Intel Core i5-11400F has 6 cores and 12 threads, with a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. Its benchmark results show it is capable of high single-thread performance (2024 in Cinebench R23 single-core), which is sufficient to avoid bottlenecking the GPU at 1080p, where the combo achieves 201 FPS at Low settings.

*Q: Is the 16 GB VRAM necessary for Evolve?*

A: The data does not indicate a VRAM limitation. The GPU’s 16 GB capacity is more than adequate for this title, as the performance drop at 4K is consistent with compute and bandwidth limits rather than memory capacity.

Q: What is the difference between the settings presets in terms of FPS?

A: At 1080p, the difference between Low (201 FPS) and Ultra (85 FPS) is 116 FPS. At 1440p, the range is from 135 FPS (Low) to 57 FPS (Ultra). At 4K, the range narrows to 77 FPS (Low) down to 32 FPS (Ultra).

Q: How does this combo compare to other systems?

A: It ranks 1291 out of 2872 combos, placing it in the upper half of all tested systems. The CPU is in the 71st percentile, while the GPU is in the 58th percentile, showing a slight CPU advantage in overall capability.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance for optimal settings based on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For 1080p displays, the Ultra preset delivers 85 FPS, which is perfectly playable for most users, but the High preset at 122 FPS offers a significant improvement in smoothness with only a modest reduction in visual fidelity. The Low preset at 201 FPS is excessive for most monitors, as the difference between 122 and 201 FPS is imperceptible on a 144Hz display, so High is the recommended choice at this resolution.

At 1440p, the High preset at 82 FPS is the sweet spot. The Medium preset at 105 FPS provides an even smoother experience, but the visual quality trade-off may not be worth the 23 FPS gain. The Ultra preset at 57 FPS is below the 60 FPS threshold and should be avoided for competitive play. The Low preset at 135 FPS is viable for esports-focused players, but the graphical downgrade is noticeable.

For 4K, the Medium preset at 60 FPS is the only option that meets the standard smoothness requirement. The High preset at 47 FPS is borderline, and the Ultra preset at 32 FPS is not recommended for any serious gameplay session. The Low preset at 77 FPS is the best choice if frame rate is the absolute priority, but the visual concessions are severe. Given that the game is from 2015, the Medium preset at 4K likely still looks acceptable, making it the recommended choice for 4K displays.

The data also shows that the min/max frame rates at Medium settings are stable, with a spread of 17 FPS at 1080p and 4K, and 31 FPS at 1440p. This consistency suggests that the Medium preset provides a stable experience without major frame time spikes, further reinforcing its suitability as a fallback option.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-11400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Rocket Lake architecture, manufactured on Intel’s 14 nm process. It has a base clock of 2.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, with a 12 MB shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR4 memory with a dual-channel bus, providing a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s. Its benchmark results are strong for its class, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 14340 and a single-core score of 2024.

In Evolve, the CPU’s role is primarily to maintain high frame rates at lower resolutions where the GPU is not fully saturated. The 1080p Low result of 201 FPS demonstrates that the i5-11400F can feed the RX 7700 sufficiently to reach very high frame rates. The 3DMark single-thread score of 868 and the Cinebench R15 single-core score of 204 indicate that the processor’s per-core performance is adequate for older game engines like the one used in Evolve, which may not scale perfectly across many threads.

The CPU’s multi-threaded capabilities are evidenced by its 3DMark max-threads score of 5652 and its Passmark multithread score of 16908. These results suggest that even if the game uses more than a few cores, the i5-11400F has the headroom to handle the load without becoming a bottleneck. The fact that the FPS scales consistently from 1080p to 4K, with the GPU becoming the limiting factor at higher resolutions, confirms that the CPU is not holding back the system in this title.

The processor’s 65 W TDP and 14 nm process node mean it runs relatively cool and efficiently, which is beneficial for sustained gaming sessions. The 71st percentile ranking versus all CPUs shows that it is a capable processor, though not at the top tier. In the context of Evolve, the CPU’s performance is more than sufficient, as even the most demanding settings at 1080p do not appear to be CPU-limited.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1920x1080

• Low: 201 FPS average
• Medium: 156 FPS average, with a minimum of 133 FPS and maximum of 179 FPS
• High: 122 FPS average
• Ultra: 85 FPS average

At 1080p, the system delivers excellent performance across all settings. The Low preset achieves the highest frame rate in the entire dataset at 201 FPS, while the Ultra preset still provides a smooth 85 FPS. The Medium preset’s narrow frame time range (133-179 FPS) indicates stable performance. The drop from Low to Medium is 45 FPS, from Medium to High is 34 FPS, and from High to Ultra is 37 FPS, showing a consistent scaling pattern as visual quality increases.

2560x1440

• Low: 135 FPS average
• Medium: 105 FPS average, with a minimum of 89 FPS and maximum of 120 FPS
• High: 82 FPS average
• Ultra: 57 FPS average

At 1440p, the system remains highly playable. The Low preset at 135 FPS is excellent for high-refresh-rate monitors, while the High preset at 82 FPS is suitable for standard 60Hz displays. The Ultra preset at 57 FPS is slightly below the 60 FPS target, making High the recommended setting for a balanced experience. The Medium preset shows a larger frame time spread (89-120 FPS) compared to 1080p, suggesting more variability at this resolution.

3840x2160

• Low: 77 FPS average
• Medium: 60 FPS average, with a minimum of 51 FPS and maximum of 68 FPS
• High: 47 FPS average
• Ultra: 32 FPS average

At 4K, the system’s limitations become apparent. The Low preset at 77 FPS is the only setting that exceeds the 60 FPS threshold comfortably. The Medium preset hits exactly 60 FPS on average, but the minimum of 51 FPS indicates occasional drops below smoothness. The High preset at 47 FPS and Ultra at 32 FPS are not recommended for serious gameplay. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K shows a 45 FPS drop, which is the steepest of any resolution, highlighting the GPU’s struggle with the pixel count.