Greedfall

Greedfall, the 2019 Action RPG from Spiders, presents a demanding workload for the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D and Intel Arc B390 combination. The measured FPS data reveals a system where the graphics processor is the primary constraint across all tested resolutions and settings. The Intel Arc B390, an integrated GPU based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, delivers playable frame rates only at the lowest resolution and setting combinations, while the high-core-count CPU remains largely underutilized in this specific title.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 is steep and consistent, clearly indicating that the Intel Arc B390 is the limiting component in this pairing. At Low settings, the average frame rate falls from 84 FPS at 1080p to 58 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of 26 FPS. Moving to 4K at Low settings yields just 35 FPS, which is a 58% decrease from the 1080p result. This scaling pattern is typical of a GPU-bound scenario where the render resolution directly impacts the fill rate and shading workload.

The High settings preset shows a similar trend. At 1080p, the combo achieves 60 FPS, which drops to 42 FPS at 1440p and further to 25 FPS at 4K. The gap between Low and High at the same resolution also widens as resolution increases. At 1080p, the difference between Low and High is 24 FPS, while at 4K, the difference narrows to 10 FPS. This narrowing suggests that at higher resolutions, the GPU is so saturated that the additional workload from higher-quality textures and effects has less relative impact on the already low frame rate.

The Medium preset data includes minimum and maximum FPS values, providing insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the average is 66 FPS with a minimum of 56 and a maximum of 76 FPS, showing a relatively stable 20 FPS range. At 1440p Medium, the average falls to 46 FPS with a range of 39 to 53 FPS. At 4K Medium, the average is 27 FPS with a range of 23 to 32 FPS. The consistency of the frame rate range across resolutions indicates that the GPU's memory bandwidth, which is system-shared, is not causing erratic spikes but rather a steady decline in throughput as pixel count increases.

The Ultra preset is nearly unplayable at any resolution. The average frame rates are 38 FPS at 1080p, 27 FPS at 1440p, and 16 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result of 16 FPS represents a 79% drop from the 1080p Low result of 84 FPS. This severe degradation highlights the Arc B390's limited raw compute power, which is rated at 7.680 TFLOPS FP32, and its 24 ROPs, which are insufficient for high-resolution, high-detail rendering in Greedfall.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for playing Greedfall with this CPU and GPU combo?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the average frame rate exceeds 60 FPS, and only at Low settings (84 FPS). At Medium settings, 1080p yields an average of 66 FPS, which is also above the 60 FPS threshold. Higher resolutions at any setting do not achieve this level of performance.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to the High preset in terms of performance?

A: The Ultra preset is significantly more demanding. At 1080p, Ultra averages 38 FPS compared to High's 60 FPS, a 22 FPS difference. At 1440p, Ultra averages 27 FPS versus High's 42 FPS. At 4K, Ultra averages 16 FPS versus High's 25 FPS. The Ultra preset consistently costs roughly a third of the frame rate compared to High.

Q: Is the frame rate stable at Medium settings?

A: The measured data includes minimum and maximum FPS for Medium settings only. At 1080p, the average is 66 FPS with a minimum of 56 FPS and a maximum of 76 FPS, indicating a 20 FPS variance. At 1440p, the average is 46 FPS with a range from 39 to 53 FPS. At 4K, the average is 27 FPS with a range from 23 to 32 FPS. The frame rate range remains proportionally similar across resolutions.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B390 compare to its nearest rivals in benchmark scores?

A: The Arc B390 has an average benchmark score of 1482. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, scores 1463, which is 1.3% lower. The NVIDIA GeForce 800M scores 1460 (1.5% lower), the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM scores 1446 (2.5% lower), and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 scores 1443 (2.7% lower). The Arc B390 is the highest-scoring GPU in this immediate comparison group.

Q: What is the CPU's benchmark percentile ranking?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D has a percentile ranking of 77 among all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 7600X3D, has an average score of 24728, which is 0.1% higher. The AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX scores 24822 (0.5% higher), while the Intel Core i5-12450HX scores 24576 (0.5% lower) and the Intel Core i5-11600 scores 24563 (0.6% lower).

Q: Does the CPU or GPU limit performance in Greedfall?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. The Intel Arc B390's average benchmark score of 1482 places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, while the CPU is in the 77th percentile. The steep FPS drops with resolution scaling, coupled with the GPU's low relative performance, confirm that the Arc B390 is the bottleneck.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal balance between visual quality and performance for this combo is the Medium preset at 1920x1080 resolution. This configuration produces an average frame rate of 66 FPS, which is comfortably above the 30 FPS threshold for playable and approaches the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay. The minimum FPS of 56 at this setting ensures that most scenes will remain fluid, with only brief dips below the 60 FPS mark.

For users who prioritize frame rate over visual fidelity, the Low preset at 1080p provides the highest average performance at 84 FPS. This setting sacrifices texture quality and effects but guarantees the smoothest experience. The Low preset at 1440p also yields a respectable 58 FPS average, which may be preferable for users with higher-resolution displays who can tolerate the lower graphical detail.

The High preset at 1080p achieves exactly 60 FPS on average, making it a viable option for users who want improved visuals without dropping below the 60 FPS average. However, the lack of minimum FPS data for this setting means that frame dips could potentially be more noticeable than at Medium. At 1440p, High settings drop to 42 FPS, which is still playable but noticeably less smooth.

The Ultra preset is not recommended for any resolution. The highest average frame rate achieved with Ultra is 38 FPS at 1080p, which is below the 60 FPS target and likely to feel sluggish in action sequences. At 4K, the Ultra preset's 16 FPS average is effectively unplayable. The performance cost of Ultra settings over High is substantial, and the visual improvement does not justify the frame rate penalty given the GPU's limitations. The 4K resolution is not recommended for any setting, as even Low settings only achieve 35 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best results. The Low preset averages 84 FPS, which is the highest measured frame rate across all configurations. The Medium preset averages 66 FPS, with a minimum of 56 FPS and a maximum of 76 FPS. The High preset averages exactly 60 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to an average of 38 FPS. This progression shows a clear 46 FPS difference between the lowest and highest quality settings at 1080p.

At 2560x1440, performance decreases significantly across all presets. The Low preset averages 58 FPS, which is a 26 FPS drop from the 1080p Low result. The Medium preset averages 46 FPS, with a minimum of 39 FPS and a maximum of 53 FPS. The High preset averages 42 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 27 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 31 FPS, showing a similar relative spread to 1080p but at lower absolute values.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is heavily strained. The Low preset averages 35 FPS, which is exactly half of the 1080p Low result. The Medium preset averages 27 FPS, with a minimum of 23 FPS and a maximum of 32 FPS. The High preset averages 25 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 16 FPS. The 4K results show that even the lowest settings fail to maintain a consistent 30 FPS, with the Medium preset's minimum dipping to 23 FPS. The 4K Ultra result of 16 FPS is the lowest measured frame rate in the entire dataset.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D and Intel Arc B390 combination ranks 2595 out of 2938 tested combos in Greedfall. This places the pairing in the 12th percentile of all tested configurations, meaning roughly 88% of other CPU-GPU combinations deliver better performance in this game. The low ranking is primarily attributable to the GPU's weak absolute performance, as evidenced by its 9th percentile ranking among all GPUs.

The GPU's nearest rivals in benchmark scores are all several generations old. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, GeForce 800M, GT 625 OEM, and GT 710 all score within 2.7% of the Arc B390's average benchmark score of 1482. These are entry-level or legacy parts, which contextualizes the Arc B390's performance class. In Greedfall, this level of GPU performance translates to the sub-60 FPS results seen at most settings and resolutions.

The CPU, in contrast, is a high-performing part. The Ryzen 7 5700X3D's 77th percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates it is more than capable of feeding a more powerful discrete GPU. The combo's poor rank in Greedfall is therefore not a reflection of CPU inadequacy but rather the GPU's inability to keep up with the game's rendering demands. The 8-core, 16-thread processor with a 96 MB shared L3 cache is well-suited for modern gaming workloads, but it is held back by the integrated GPU.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D is a Zen 3 architecture processor based on the Vermeer codename, manufactured on TSMC's 7 nm process. It features 8 cores and 16 threads with a base clock of 3.00 GHz and a boost clock of 4.10 GHz. The CPU has a 105 W TDP and supports DDR4 memory in a dual-channel configuration with 51.2 GB/s of bandwidth. Its substantial 96 MB shared L3 cache is a key feature for gaming, as it reduces memory latency and improves performance in cache-sensitive workloads.

In Greedfall, the CPU's role appears to be secondary to the GPU. The measured frame rates at 1080p Low (84 FPS) and Medium (66 FPS) show that the CPU can support frame rates well above what the GPU delivers at higher resolutions. The 3DMark benchmarks for the CPU show strong multi-threaded performance, with a score of 6764 for 16 threads and 6755 for max threads. The single-thread score of 804 is modest, but the 8-core design provides ample parallel processing capability.

The CPU's nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 5 7600X3D, has an average score of 24728, which is only 0.1% higher than the 5700X3D's 24709. This indicates that the 5700X3D is essentially on par with a newer 3D V-Cache part in synthetic benchmarks. In Greedfall, however, the game's engine appears to be GPU-limited, so the CPU's strong benchmark performance does not translate to high frame rates. The data suggests that the CPU is not the bottleneck, as frame rates scale almost entirely with resolution and settings changes rather than CPU workload.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated GPU based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on Intel's 3 nm process. It has a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz. The GPU features 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 raster output units. It also includes 12 ray tracing cores. Memory is system-shared, meaning the GPU uses the same DDR4 memory as the CPU, with bandwidth dependent on the system configuration.

The Arc B390's compute capabilities are modest. It delivers 7.680 TFLOPS FP32 performance and a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s. The texture rate is 120.0 GTexel/s. These specifications place it in the entry-level segment, which is confirmed by its 9th percentile ranking among all GPUs. The only benchmark result for the GPU is a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482, which is slightly higher than its nearest rivals but still represents very low absolute performance.

In Greedfall, the GPU's limitations are evident in the measured FPS data. The system-shared memory architecture means that increasing resolution not only increases the pixel workload but also places greater demands on memory bandwidth, which is already shared with the CPU. The 24 ROPs are insufficient for high-resolution rendering, explaining the steep drop from 1080p to 4K. The GPU's nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 with a score of 1443, are similarly low-end parts, confirming that the Arc B390 is not designed for demanding AAA titles at high settings. The data shows that Greedfall requires more GPU throughput than the Arc B390 can provide for a consistently smooth experience at resolutions above 1080p.