Greedfall

Greedfall, an Action RPG released in 2019, presents a demanding workload that scales significantly with both resolution and graphical presets. This analysis examines the performance of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER, based on measured FPS data. The benchmark results show a configuration that is well-balanced at 1440p but becomes increasingly GPU-bound at higher resolutions and settings, revealing distinct bottlenecks depending on the workload.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a pronounced impact from resolution changes, with the most dramatic shift occurring between 1440p and 4K. At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 76.3 FPS at 2560x1440 to 42.3 FPS at 3840x2160, a reduction of 34 FPS. This steep decline indicates that the rendering pipeline becomes heavily constrained by the GPU as the pixel count increases. The RTX 2060 SUPER, with its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, must work considerably harder to fill the additional pixels at 4K, and the data confirms that this is where the system's performance ceiling lies.

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is less severe but still substantial. At High settings, the transition from 1920x1080 (108.4 FPS) to 2560x1440 (76.3 FPS) represents a 30% reduction in frame rate. This pattern suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is able to feed the GPU adequately, but the GPU's fill rate and shader throughput begin to become limiting factors as resolution increases. The data indicates that at 4K, the GPU is the dominant limiting component; the gap between Low and Ultra settings at this resolution (59.8 FPS vs 29.2 FPS) further emphasizes that the graphics card is struggling to maintain high frame rates regardless of the CPU's capabilities.

Notably, the 1080p results show a wide spread across settings, from 154.8 FPS at Low to 68.5 FPS at Ultra. This range suggests that at lower resolutions, the CPU has more headroom, but the GPU still dictates performance at higher presets. The data supports a conclusion that this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where frame rates remain playable across most settings, while 4K gaming is only viable at Low or Medium settings (59.8 and 50 FPS respectively).

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, codenamed Vermeer. It operates with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. For a game like Greedfall, which is not heavily threaded, the CPU's single-thread performance is critical. The 3DMark single-thread score of 917 and the Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2622 indicate strong per-core performance that should prevent the CPU from becoming a bottleneck in most scenarios.

The CPU's multi-threaded capabilities are also robust, as evidenced by a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 18578 and a Passmark multithread score of 21858. However, the benchmark data suggests that Greedfall does not fully utilize these resources, as the frame rates at 1080p Low (154.8 FPS) are substantially higher than at 1080p Ultra (68.5 FPS), implying that the GPU is the primary constraint even at lower resolutions. The CPU has a 32 MB L3 cache and supports dual-channel DDR4 memory with a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s, which provides ample data throughput for gaming workloads.

In comparison to its nearest rivals, the 5600X performs nearly identically. It trails the AMD Ryzen 5 5600GT by a mere 0.3% and the Intel Core i7-10700 by 0.3% in average benchmark score, while it leads the Intel Xeon 6325P by 0.7%. This indicates that the CPU is well-positioned within its performance class and is unlikely to be the limiting factor in this configuration. The data shows that the CPU's role is to provide consistent, high-frequency frames, which it does effectively, but the GPU dictates the final output in Greedfall.

How This Combo Ranks

In the comprehensive database of tested hardware combinations, this pairing of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER ranks 1192nd out of 1705 combos for Greedfall. This places it in the lower third of all tested systems, which is a direct reflection of the GPU's performance tier rather than the CPU's. The RTX 2060 SUPER is an older Turing architecture card, and its benchmark results show it performing at the 63rd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19774.

The ranking indicates that while this combo is capable of running the game, it does not compete with higher-end systems that feature more modern or powerful graphics cards. The data shows that the combo's position is primarily determined by the GPU, as the CPU's performance is strong for its class. For context, the CPU alone ranks at the 78th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 20680. This disparity between the CPU's high percentile and the combo's lower rank underscores that the GPU is the performance limiter in this pairing.

The measured FPS data aligns with this ranking. At 1440p High, the combo achieves 76.3 FPS, which is playable but not exceptional. At 4K Ultra, the frame rate drops to 29.2 FPS, which is below the threshold for smooth gameplay. These results suggest that users seeking higher frame rates or higher resolutions would need to upgrade the GPU, as the CPU has sufficient headroom to support a more powerful graphics card.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a detailed look at performance across three resolutions and four quality settings. At 1920x1080, the combo achieves its highest frame rates: 154.8 FPS at Low, 122.4 FPS at Medium, 108.4 FPS at High, and 68.5 FPS at Ultra. The significant drop from High to Ultra (approximately 37%) suggests that the Ultra preset introduces effects that heavily tax the GPU, such as advanced shadows and post-processing. At this resolution, the CPU is able to keep pace, and the GPU is the clear limiting factor at higher settings.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates decrease across all settings. The combo averages 107.6 FPS at Low, 82.4 FPS at Medium, 76.3 FPS at High, and 49.8 FPS at Ultra. The 1440p results show that the GPU begins to struggle more noticeably, particularly at Ultra, where the frame rate dips below 50 FPS. This resolution represents a good balance for the combo, as High settings remain playable at 76.3 FPS, but pushing to Ultra requires a compromise.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops significantly. The combo averages 59.8 FPS at Low, 50 FPS at Medium, 42.3 FPS at High, and 29.2 FPS at Ultra. The 4K results clearly demonstrate that the GPU is overburdened at this resolution. Even at Low settings, the frame rate is barely above 60 FPS, and at Ultra, it falls to an unplayable 29.2 FPS. The data indicates that 4K gaming is only feasible with reduced settings, and even then, the experience may not be smooth. Overall, the measured FPS breakdown shows a system that is best utilized at 1080p or 1440p, with the GPU serving as the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER is based on the Turing architecture and features the TU106 chip. It has 2176 shading units, 136 texture mapping units, and 64 raster operation pipelines. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1470 MHz and a boost clock of 1650 MHz, with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus providing a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. These specifications place it as a mid-range card from the GeForce 20-series, and its benchmark scores reflect this positioning.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 19774 places it at the 63rd percentile among all GPUs. It performs nearly identically to its nearest rivals, trailing the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN by 0.3% and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 by 0.5%, while leading the NVIDIA Quadro K5200 by 0.8% and the NVIDIA Tesla K40m by 1.3%. This indicates that the RTX 2060 SUPER is a capable card for 1080p and 1440p gaming but is not designed for high-refresh-rate 4K gaming. The Passmark G3D score of 16462 and the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2011 provide additional evidence of its mid-range performance.

In Greedfall, the GPU's role is to handle the rendering workload, which becomes particularly demanding at higher resolutions and settings. The data shows that at 1080p, the GPU is the limiting factor at Ultra settings, where the frame rate drops to 68.5 FPS. At 1440p, the GPU's limitations become more apparent, and at 4K, it is clearly overmatched. The 8 GB of VRAM is sufficient for this game at most settings, but the GPU's raw compute power and memory bandwidth are not enough to sustain high frame rates at 4K. The benchmark results indicate that this GPU is best paired with a 1080p or 1440p monitor, where it can deliver a smooth gaming experience.