Greedfall

Greedfall, the 2019 Action RPG, presents an interesting case for the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 pairing. This combination ranks in the 97th percentile of all tested combos, placing it at rank 97 out of 2938. This is a top-tier result, indicating that this hardware pairing is exceptionally well-suited for this title, delivering performance that surpasses the vast majority of other configurations tested. The data confirms that this system is overkill for most scenarios in Greedfall, but the headroom it provides ensures a consistently smooth experience, even under the most demanding settings.

The benchmark results clearly show a system that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions, but the sheer power of the RTX 5090 means that even at 4K, frame rates remain high. The Ryzen 5 5500X3D, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, provides a solid foundation, but it is the graphics card that dictates the final performance envelope. This analysis will break down the specific performance metrics, exploring how the GPU's capabilities and the CPU's characteristics interact across different resolutions and settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 combination achieves a rank of 97 out of 2938 tested combos in Greedfall. This places it in the 97th percentile, which is an outstanding result. This ranking signifies that the pairing is not just capable, but among the very best for this specific game. The data suggests that this system will deliver a premium experience, with the hardware working in concert to overcome any potential bottlenecks. This is a verdict-driven conclusion: this is a top-tier combo.

While the combo rank is exceptional, it is important to contextualize the individual components. The CPU's average benchmark score is 37018, which places it in the 85th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals are extremely close in performance, with the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F scoring 36945 (a 0.2% delta) and the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 scoring 36938 (also a 0.2% delta). This indicates the 5500X3D is a very capable mid-range processor, but its performance is not what sets this combo apart. The GPU, on the other hand, is a different story.

The RTX 5090's average benchmark score is 79842, placing it in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are a mix of professional and mobile parts, such as the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB (scoring 79605, a 0.3% delta) and the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (scoring 78940, a 1.1% delta). This shows the RTX 5090 is a monstrously powerful card, and it is this GPU power that drives the combo's high rank in Greedfall. The combination of a strong CPU and an elite GPU results in a system that sits comfortably at the top of the performance charts for this game.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the undisputed performance driver in this configuration. Its role in Greedfall is defined by its immense memory bandwidth and processing power. The card features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s. This immense bandwidth is critical for feeding the Blackwell 2.0 architecture's 21,760 shading units at high resolutions. In a game like Greedfall, which can have detailed environments and textures, this memory subsystem ensures that data is never starved, allowing for consistent frame pacing.

The GPU's clock speeds further enhance its capabilities. It has a base clock of 2017 MHz and a boost clock of 2407 MHz. These high frequencies, combined with the massive core count, result in a raw compute throughput of 104.8 TFLOPS for FP32 operations. This raw power is what allows the card to maintain high frame rates even when the game's settings are pushed to "Ultra". The data supports this, as the 4K Ultra preset yields an average of 68 FPS, while the 4K Low preset jumps to 149 FPS. This shows that the GPU has the headroom to handle the most demanding visual effects, but also that those effects have a significant cost.

In the context of Greedfall, the GPU is the primary determinant of performance at higher resolutions. The benchmark data shows that the FPS scales directly with the GPU's workload. For example, at 2560x1440, the difference between Low (249 FPS) and Ultra (113 FPS) settings is a 136 FPS drop. This is a clear indication that the game's rendering pipeline is heavily reliant on the GPU's ability to process geometry, shaders, and textures. The RTX 5090 is more than capable of handling this, but the data shows that even this flagship GPU is challenged by the "Ultra" preset, particularly at 4K resolution.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of how the system scales across the three primary resolutions: 1920x1080, 2560x1440, and 3840x2160. The most telling observation is the drop in performance as resolution increases, which is a classic sign of a GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p, the system is likely hitting CPU or engine limits, but as resolution climbs, the GPU's workload increases proportionally, becoming the limiting factor. This is evident in the "High" settings results, where the average FPS drops from 256 at 1080p to 178 at 1440p, and finally to 106 at 4K.

This scaling pattern is consistent across all settings. For the "Medium" preset, the average FPS goes from 282 at 1080p to 196 at 1440p and 117 at 4K. The "Low" preset shows a similar trend, with FPS dropping from 325 at 1080p to 249 at 1440p and 149 at 4K. The "Ultra" preset, while having the lowest absolute frame rates, follows the same trajectory: 164 at 1080p, 113 at 1440p, and 68 at 4K. This consistent behavior confirms that the RTX 5090 is the primary performance driver, and its capabilities scale predictably with resolution.

The data also reveals the point at which the system transitions from being less GPU-bound to fully GPU-bound. At 1080p, the frame rates are exceptionally high, suggesting that the CPU might be a limiting factor in some scenarios. However, the Ryzen 5 5500X3D, with its 96 MB of shared L3 cache, is a strong performer. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is significant (e.g., 256 to 178 FPS on High), which indicates that even at 1440p, the GPU is being pushed harder. The 1440p to 4K drop is also substantial, further cementing the idea that the RTX 5090 is the main bottleneck, but a very fast one. This system is designed for high-refresh-rate 1440p gaming and smooth 4K gaming.

Measured FPS Breakdown

This section details the exact benchmark results for this hardware combination in Greedfall.

1920x1080 (1080p)

• Low: The average FPS is 325. This is the highest frame rate achieved in the entire test suite, indicating the game is not heavily taxing the GPU at this resolution and settings.
• Medium: The average FPS is 282, with a minimum of 240 and a maximum of 325. This shows a solid performance level with a tight frame time distribution, suggesting a stable experience.
• High: The average FPS is 256. This is still an extremely high frame rate, more than enough for any high-refresh-rate monitor.
• Ultra: The average FPS is 164. This is a significant drop from the "High" preset, showing the performance cost of the highest visual quality settings.

2560x1440 (1440p)

• Low: The average FPS is 249. This is a substantial drop from the 1080p Low result, showing the impact of the increased pixel count on the GPU.
• Medium: The average FPS is 196, with a minimum of 166 and a maximum of 225. This is a very playable frame rate, ideal for smooth 1440p gaming.
• High: The average FPS is 178. This remains a high-performance result, well-suited for most gaming monitors.
• Ultra: The average FPS is 113. This is a very good result for the "Ultra" preset at 1440p, offering a great balance between visual fidelity and performance.

3840x2160 (4K)

• Low: The average FPS is 149. This is a remarkable result for 4K, showing that the RTX 5090 can easily handle less demanding settings at this resolution.
• Medium: The average FPS is 117, with a minimum of 99 and a maximum of 134. This is a solid 4K experience, with the minimum FPS still being very comfortable for gameplay.
• High: The average FPS is 106. This is an excellent result for 4K High, confirming that this is a capable 4K gaming system.
• Ultra: The average FPS is 68. This is the most demanding configuration tested. While playable, it is the only scenario where the frame rate drops below the 100 FPS mark, indicating that "Ultra" at 4K is a heavy load, even for this flagship GPU.

FAQ

Q: What is the overall performance ranking of this CPU and GPU combo in Greedfall?

A: The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 combination ranks 97th out of 2938 tested combos, placing it in the 97th percentile. This is a top-tier result, indicating exceptional performance for this game.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in general benchmarks?

A: The Ryzen 5 5500X3D has an average benchmark score of 37018. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, scores 36945, which is a 0.2% difference. The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 also scores 36938, a 0.2% difference. This shows they are all within a very tight performance window.

Q: What is the performance difference between the "High" and "Ultra" presets at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, the "High" preset achieves an average of 106 FPS, while the "Ultra" preset drops to an average of 68 FPS. This is a 38 FPS decrease, demonstrating the significant performance cost of the "Ultra" settings.

Q: Is this system more powerful than its closest GPU rivals?

A: The RTX 5090's average benchmark score is 79842. The closest rival is the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB with a score of 79605, which is a 0.3% difference. The AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78940, a 1.1% difference. The RTX 5090 is slightly faster than these parts in aggregate benchmarks.

Q: What is the most demanding configuration tested, and what FPS did it achieve?

A: The most demanding configuration is 3840x2160 with "Ultra" settings. This achieved an average FPS of 68. This is the only tested scenario where the average frame rate falls below 100 FPS.

Q: How does the FPS scale from 1080p to 4K on the "Medium" preset?

A: On the "Medium" preset, the average FPS drops from 282 at 1920x1080 to 196 at 2560x1440, and then to 117 at 3840x2160. This shows a clear and expected decline in performance as the resolution increases, highlighting the GPU's workload.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the user's display resolution and refresh rate target. The data shows that this system is powerful enough to deliver high frame rates in nearly all scenarios, but the "Ultra" preset has a significant performance cost.

For users with a 1920x1080 or 2560x1440 monitor with a high refresh rate (144Hz or higher), the "High" preset is the recommended choice. At 1440p, it delivers an average of 178 FPS, and at 1080p, it hits 256 FPS. These frame rates are ideal for competitive or fast-paced gameplay, and the visual difference between "High" and "Ultra" is often not worth the substantial performance hit. The "Medium" preset is also a strong contender for 1440p high-refresh-rate gaming, with an average of 196 FPS and a minimum of 166 FPS, ensuring a very stable experience.

For 4K (3840x2160) users, the "High" preset is the best balance of visual quality and performance, delivering an average of 106 FPS. This is a great result for 4K gaming. While the "Ultra" preset is playable at 68 FPS, the drop below the 100 FPS threshold is noticeable. The "Medium" preset at 4K also yields a solid 117 FPS, which could be preferred if a higher, more consistent frame rate is the priority. The data strongly suggests that "High" is the sweet spot for this combo, providing a premium experience without the steep performance penalty of "Ultra". For the absolute smoothest experience, particularly at 4K, the "Medium" preset is an excellent fallback.