Evolve

# Evolve Performance Analysis: Intel Core i5-14600KF + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER

This combination of the Intel Core i5-14600KF and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER places in the 58th percentile of all tested processor/graphics card pairings for Evolve, ranking 2151st out of 3700 combos. That mid-pack standing is telling: the pair produces playable frame rates at most resolutions, but it is not a top-tier configuration for this 2015 title. The data suggests a system that leans heavily on the CPU's strong single-thread performance to compensate for a GPU that, while competent, sits below the upper echelon of modern graphics cards.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's rank of 2151 out of 3700 tested configurations places it squarely in the middle of the distribution for Evolve. This is not a surprising outcome when examining the components' individual standings. The Intel Core i5-14600KF sits at the 90th percentile among all CPUs, a very strong position that reflects its modern architecture and high core count. In contrast, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER rests at the 65th percentile among all GPUs, a respectable but not exceptional placement. The delta between these two percentiles hints at a potential imbalance: the CPU has more headroom than the GPU can utilize in this specific workload.

Benchmark data supports the CPU's strength. In Cinebench R23, the i5-14600KF scores 32,544 in multi-core and 4,594 in single-core tests. Its Geekbench multicore score of 17,085 further underscores its capability. The GPU's Passmark G3D score of 18,169, while solid, places it within 1.5% of rivals like the Intel Arc A750 (20,582) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (20,534), showing that the RTX 2070 SUPER is competitive but not dominant in its class. The measured FPS results in Evolve reflect this dynamic: the combo achieves 107 FPS at 1080p High, but that number drops by 33% to 72 FPS at 1440p, and further by 43% to 41 FPS at 4K. The rank indicates that many other combinations deliver higher averages, likely due to newer GPUs with more memory bandwidth.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14600KF brings 14 cores and 20 threads to the table, with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. This Raptor Lake-R architecture CPU, built on Intel's 10 nm process, features a 24 MB shared L3 cache and 2 MB per-core L2 cache. For a game released in 2015 like Evolve, which was designed for the 4-core/8-thread era, this processor provides substantial surplus compute capability. The high boost clock of 5.30 GHz is particularly relevant for gaming, as most titles from that period rely heavily on single-thread performance.

The CPU's benchmark scores confirm its dominance. In Cinebench R15, it scores 462 in single-core and 3,280 in multi-core tests. Passmark's single-thread score of 4,273 and multithread score of 38,697 both indicate a processor that handles both lightly-threaded and heavily-parallel workloads with ease. The data suggests that Evolve's engine, which likely uses only a few threads for game logic and physics, would be bottlenecked by the GPU rather than the CPU in most scenarios. The CPU's percentile rank of 90 versus the GPU's 65 implies that the i5-14600KF is not the limiting factor here; it is waiting on the RTX 2070 SUPER to deliver frames.

This is evident in the FPS scaling. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 177 FPS, which is likely near the engine's practical limit. Dropping to 4K Low yields 67 FPS, a 62% reduction. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect less dramatic scaling with resolution changes. Instead, the performance drop tracks closely with the GPU's workload, indicating that the processor has ample headroom to feed the graphics card. The i5-14600KF's nearest rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 (0.3% higher average score) and the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 388 (0.8% higher), all perform within a narrow band, confirming that this CPU tier is more than sufficient for Evolve.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER is built on the Turing architecture with a TU104 chip, fabricated on TSMC's 12 nm process. It features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock is 1605 MHz with a boost clock of 1770 MHz, and the memory runs at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). The GPU has 2,560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, along with 40 RT cores and 320 tensor cores. This configuration provides 9.062 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and a pixel rate of 113.3 GPixel/s.

For Evolve, the GPU's 8 GB VRAM is more than adequate, as the game's textures and geometry from 2015 are unlikely to exceed even 4 GB at 4K Ultra. The memory bandwidth of 448 GB/s is a more critical factor, as it directly impacts resolution scaling. The measured data shows this limitation clearly: at 1080p Ultra, the combo achieves 74 FPS, but at 4K Ultra, it drops to 28 FPS—a 62% reduction. This steep decline is consistent with a GPU that is constrained by its memory subsystem at higher resolutions.

The RTX 2070 SUPER's Passmark G3D score of 18,169 places it in the 65th percentile, with rivals like the Intel Arc B570 (20,556) and the Intel Arc A750 (20,582) performing slightly better. In DirectX 11 tests, the GPU scores 151 in Passmark, while DirectX 12 yields 67, suggesting that Evolve's older API might not fully utilize the card's modern feature set. The GPU's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1,651 is modest, reinforcing that this card is not built for extreme 4K gaming in modern titles, though Evolve's age makes it more manageable.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of how this combo performs across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the results are strong: Low settings produce 177 FPS average, Medium yields 137 FPS (with a minimum of 116 and maximum of 157), High delivers 107 FPS, and Ultra drops to 74 FPS. These numbers indicate that 1080p gaming is smooth even at maximum settings, with the Ultra preset still maintaining a comfortable 74 FPS average.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance scales down proportionally. Low settings still achieve 118 FPS, which is excellent for high-refresh-rate monitors. Medium produces 92 FPS (minimum 78, maximum 106), High delivers 72 FPS, and Ultra falls to 50 FPS. The 1440p Ultra result is borderline for competitive play but acceptable for casual gaming, as the average remains above 60 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the GPU's limitations become apparent. Low settings manage 67 FPS, which is playable, but Medium drops to 52 FPS (minimum 44, maximum 60), High falls to 41 FPS, and Ultra reaches just 28 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is below the threshold for smooth gameplay, and even 4K High is marginal. The data shows that 4K gaming with this combo requires sacrificing settings, with Low being the only preset that consistently stays above 60 FPS.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo capable of running Evolve at 1080p with maximum settings?

A: Yes. The measured data shows 74 FPS average at 1080p Ultra, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. Higher refresh rates are attainable by dropping to High settings, which yields 107 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU's performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Intel Core i5-14600KF has an average benchmark score of 49,394, which is 0.3% higher than the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 (49,228) and 0.4% higher than the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G (49,196). It trails the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 388 (49,796) by 0.8%.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain 60+ FPS?

A: At 1080p, all settings from Low to Ultra exceed 60 FPS. At 1440p, Low (118 FPS), Medium (92 FPS), and High (72 FPS) all stay above 60 FPS, but Ultra drops to 50 FPS. At 4K, only Low settings (67 FPS) manage to stay above 60 FPS.

Q: Does the GPU's VRAM capacity affect performance in Evolve?

A: The GPU has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory, which is more than sufficient for Evolve's 2015-era textures. The data shows no indication of VRAM-related stuttering, as even the 4K Medium preset maintains a minimum of 44 FPS.

Q: How does the combo's overall rank compare to its component percentiles?

A: The combo ranks 2151st out of 3700 configurations, placing it at the 58th percentile. This is lower than the CPU's 90th percentile but closer to the GPU's 65th percentile, suggesting the GPU limits the overall performance.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the primary bottleneck in this system?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the bottleneck, especially at higher resolutions. The CPU's 90th percentile rank and high boost clock suggest it can handle more workload, while the GPU's 65th percentile and the steep FPS drops at 4K point to the graphics card as the limiting factor.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience, the optimal settings depend on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1080p, the Ultra preset delivers 74 FPS, which is ideal for immersive single-player play, but competitive players might prefer High at 107 FPS for reduced input lag. The Medium preset at 137 FPS offers a good balance for high-refresh-rate monitors, though the visual fidelity drop from Ultra is noticeable.

At 1440p, High settings at 72 FPS provide the best combination of visual quality and smoothness, as Ultra drops to 50 FPS, which can feel less responsive. Players with 144Hz displays should consider Medium at 92 FPS, which maintains a high frame rate while still offering decent visuals. Low settings at 118 FPS are an option for esports-style play, but the graphical compromise is significant.

For 4K gaming, Low settings at 67 FPS are the only viable option for consistent 60+ FPS gameplay. Medium at 52 FPS is playable for less demanding scenarios, but the minimum of 44 FPS may cause noticeable stutters in action-heavy scenes. High (41 FPS) and Ultra (28 FPS) are not recommended for 4K, as the frame rates fall below the threshold for responsive gameplay. The data suggests that 1440p is the sweet spot for this combo, offering 72 FPS at High settings without major compromises.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the GPU's role as the primary bottleneck. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 177 at 1080p to 118 at 1440p (a 33% reduction) and then to 67 at 4K (a 43% reduction from 1440p). This pattern shows that the GPU's rendering workload increases disproportionately with resolution, as expected for a card with 448 GB/s of memory bandwidth.

At Ultra settings, the scaling is even steeper: 74 FPS at 1080p falls to 50 FPS at 1440p (32% drop) and then to 28 FPS at 4K (44% drop). The consistent 30-45% reductions across all settings indicate that the RTX 2070 SUPER is well-matched to 1080p and 1440p, but struggles to maintain playable frame rates at 4K with higher presets.

This scaling behavior suggests that the CPU is not the limiting factor, as the i5-14600KF's strong single-thread performance would maintain consistent frame rates across resolutions if it were the bottleneck. Instead, the GPU's fixed memory bandwidth and shader throughput cause the FPS to scale inversely with pixel count. The 4K results, particularly the 28 FPS Ultra average, highlight that this combo is not designed for 4K gaming in Evolve, though it handles 1080p and 1440p admirably. The data implies that upgrading the GPU would yield significant gains at higher resolutions, while the CPU has ample headroom for future graphics card upgrades.