Greedfall

The pairing of AMD’s Ryzen 7 7700X with the Radeon RX 580 in Greedfall creates a striking bottleneck dynamic. The CPU is a modern 8-core powerhouse, while the GPU is an older Polaris part that was end-of-life before the game even launched. Measured frames per second across resolutions and presets reveal a system where the graphics card’s age is the dominant constraint, yet the processor’s strong single-thread performance prevents the experience from collapsing entirely at lower settings.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent, pointing decisively to the GPU as the limiting component. At Medium settings, the average frame rate falls from 63.3 FPS at 1920x1080 to 43.7 FPS at 2560x1440 — a 31% reduction — and then plummets further to 25.4 FPS at 3840x2160, which is 60% below the 1080p figure. This pattern of diminishing returns as pixel count rises is classic graphics-bound behavior. The RX 580’s 256-bit memory bus and 256.0 GB/s bandwidth are simply overwhelmed by the 4K pixel workload, especially when paired with its 8 GB of GDDR5 memory.

The scaling from 1440p to 4K is even more punishing. At High settings, the drop is from 40.0 FPS to 24.2 FPS, a 39.5% loss. This suggests that the card’s compute resources, rather than memory capacity, are the primary constraint at higher resolutions. The Radeon RX 580’s 6.175 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is not enough to feed a 4K display with Greedfall’s dense environments and foliage. Interestingly, the gap between Low and Ultra settings widens dramatically as resolution increases — at 1080p, Ultra is 53.6% slower than Low (37.9 vs 81.7 FPS), but at 4K, the gap grows to 53.7% (14.4 vs 31.0 FPS). This indicates that the GPU’s fixed-function units, like the 32 ROPs, become the hard ceiling at high pixel counts.

The data implies that 1080p is the only viable resolution for this combo in Greedfall. At 1440p, even Low settings barely reach 57.7 FPS, and the experience becomes marginal. The 4K results are largely academic, with no preset breaking 31 FPS. This is a textbook case of a CPU that could drive far more frames being held back by a GPU that was already mid-range when released in 2017.

CPU Role

The Ryzen 7 7700X brings 8 cores and 16 threads based on Zen 4 architecture, with a base clock of 4.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. Its benchmark scores are impressive: Cinebench R23 multi-core hits 30325, and single-core reaches 4281. PassMark single-thread performance is 4190, placing it in the 89th percentile among all CPUs. However, in Greedfall, the CPU’s role is largely to stay out of the way. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 81.7 FPS, which suggests the CPU is feeding the GPU adequately at that resolution. The processor’s 32 MB of shared L3 cache and 83.2 GB/s memory bandwidth are more than sufficient for a 2019 Action RPG.

The nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks — the Intel Core i5-13500 (0.4% faster) and Intel Core i7-12800HX (0.5% faster) — show that the 7700X is competitive, but those deltas are irrelevant here because the GPU is the bottleneck. The real question is whether the CPU’s high single-thread score (Geekbench 2985) helps at lower settings. The data suggests yes: the jump from 60.5 FPS at 1080p High to 81.7 FPS at 1080p Low indicates that the CPU can push frame rates higher when the GPU’s pixel workload is reduced. This 35% improvement from lowering settings is only possible because the processor has headroom to spare.

The CPU’s 16 threads are unlikely to be fully utilized by Greedfall, which typically scales to fewer cores. The PassMark multi-thread score of 35686 is strong, but the game’s engine likely benefits more from the 7700X’s 5.40 GHz boost clock. The data implies that the processor is not the limiting factor in any measured configuration; the GPU’s inability to maintain high frame rates at 1440p and 4K is the sole cause of the performance cliff.

FAQ

Q: How does the Ryzen 7 7700X compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: The 7700X’s average benchmark score is 34313, which is 0.4% behind the Intel Core i5-13500 (34175) and 0.5% behind the Intel Core i7-12800HX (34136). It is 0.8% ahead of the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H (34584) and the AMD EPYC 4244P (34599) in terms of deltaPct, though those rivals have higher absolute scores.

Q: What is the best 1080p setting for this combo?

A: Medium provides 63.3 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold. High delivers 60.5 FPS, nearly identical. Low yields 81.7 FPS, but Medium offers a better visual balance for a 3.8% frame rate cost over High.

*Q: Can this system handle 1440p gaming in Greedfall?*

A: Only at Low settings, where it achieves 57.7 FPS. Medium drops to 43.7 FPS, High to 40.0 FPS, and Ultra to 28.5 FPS. The 2560x1440 resolution is playable only with the lowest preset.

Q: Why is 4K performance so poor?

A: The RX 580’s 6.175 TFLOPS and 256.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for 3840x2160. Ultra averages 14.4 FPS, High 24.2 FPS, and even Low only reaches 31.0 FPS. The GPU’s 32 ROPs become the limiting factor.

Q: Does the CPU’s multi-threading help in this game?

A: The 7700X’s Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 30325 is strong, but Greedfall does not appear to scale beyond a few cores. The single-thread score of 4281 in R23 and 4190 in PassMark is more relevant, as the 1080p Low result of 81.7 FPS shows the CPU can drive higher frames when the GPU is not saturated.

Q: How does the RX 580 rank against its GPU rivals?

A: The RX 580’s average benchmark score is 13559, essentially tied with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 (13564, 0% delta) and GTX 950 (13549, 0.1% delta). It is 1.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro 455 (13416) and 1.1% behind the NVIDIA P106-090 (13716).

Settings Recommendations

The measured data points to 1080p Medium as the optimal experience for this combo. It delivers 63.3 FPS, which is smooth enough for an Action RPG, while High is nearly identical at 60.5 FPS — a negligible 4.4% difference. The jump to Low yields 81.7 FPS, a 29% improvement, but sacrifices visual fidelity that Greedfall’s art style benefits from. At 1440p, Low is the only playable option at 57.7 FPS, but this is marginal and prone to dips. Ultra settings are not recommended at any resolution: 37.9 FPS at 1080p and 14.4 FPS at 4K are both below playable thresholds.

The data shows that raising settings from Medium to High at 1080p costs only 2.8 FPS, making High a viable alternative for users who prioritize image quality. However, the step from High to Ultra costs 22.6 FPS (60.5 to 37.9), a 37.4% drop for incremental visual gains. The sweet spot is 1080p Medium, where the GPU’s 8 GB VRAM is adequate and the CPU’s headroom ensures consistent frame delivery. For users with 1440p monitors, the recommendation is to lower internal resolution or accept 57.7 FPS on Low.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this pairing of Ryzen 7 7700X and Radeon RX 580 ranks 1574 out of 1705 total combos in Greedfall. This places it in the bottom 7.7% of all systems tested, which is consistent with the GPU’s 53rd percentile standing among all GPUs. The CPU’s 89th percentile ranking is irrelevant to the game’s performance because the RX 580 is the clear limiting factor. The rank indicates that most other combinations tested deliver higher average FPS, likely due to more modern GPUs.

The delta between the CPU and GPU percentiles — 89 versus 53 — quantifies the bottleneck. This combo is severely imbalanced for Greedfall, where the GPU’s age shows. The rank of 1574 suggests that users would see significant gains by upgrading the graphics card while keeping the 7700X, as the processor has ample headroom to support a faster GPU. The data implies that this pairing is only suitable for 1080p gaming at medium settings, which matches the measured FPS results.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full settings range is playable to varying degrees. Low averages 81.7 FPS, Medium 63.3 FPS, High 60.5 FPS, and Ultra 37.9 FPS. The drop from High to Ultra is the steepest single-step decline at 22.6 FPS. At 2560x1440, Low achieves 57.7 FPS, Medium 43.7 FPS, High 40.0 FPS, and Ultra 28.5 FPS. None of these are ideal for fast-paced action, but Low is technically above 30 FPS. At 3840x2160, all results are poor: Low 31.0 FPS, Medium 25.4 FPS, High 24.2 FPS, and Ultra 14.4 FPS.

The pattern is consistent: each resolution step down from 1080p to 4K reduces FPS by roughly 40-50% at the same settings. For example, at High settings, the progression is 60.5 → 40.0 → 24.2 FPS, a 33.9% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 39.5% drop from 1440p to 4K. At Low settings, the progression is 81.7 → 57.7 → 31.0 FPS, a 29.4% drop followed by a 46.3% drop. The non-linear scaling at Low settings indicates that the GPU’s memory bandwidth becomes more critical as resolution increases, even when texture quality is low.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 580 is the definitive bottleneck in this system. With a boost clock of 1340 MHz, 2304 shading units, and 32 ROPs, it delivers 6.175 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. Its 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth. These specs place it in the 53rd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13559. The nearest rivals — GTX 570 and GTX 950 — are all older or lower-tier cards, confirming the RX 580’s mid-range status.

In Greedfall, the GPU’s limitations are exposed at higher resolutions. The 32 ROPs are responsible for pixel fill rate, and the 42.88 GPixel/s pixel rate is insufficient for 4K Ultra, resulting in 14.4 FPS. The 193.0 GTexel/s texture rate is also modest, which explains why lowering texture-heavy settings like Ultra yields large gains. The 8 GB VRAM is not exhausted at 1080p Medium, but the card’s compute capacity is. The PassMark G3D score of 8813 and DirectX 12 score of 43 indicate that the GPU is not optimized for modern workloads, and Greedfall’s 2019 engine demands more than this 2017 card can provide. The GPU’s end-of-life status and 14 nm process node (with 5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die) further explain its struggles. This is a card that was mid-range at launch and is now firmly entry-level for this game.