Greedfall

Greedfall, the 2019 Action RPG from Spiders, presents a fascinating case study when paired with the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X and AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT. The measured frame rates across resolutions and settings reveal a configuration that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions but shows surprising headroom at 1080p. The data indicates this combo ranks in the 1399th position out of 3703 tested combinations, placing it in the top 38% of all tested systems, which suggests a balanced pairing that excels in specific scenarios while struggling in others. The benchmark results show a clear narrative: this system is designed for high-refresh 1440p gaming, but it can also handle 4K at playable frame rates with the right settings adjustments.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1080p to 4K with this combo reveals a classic GPU-bound scaling pattern, but with some notable nuances at the extremes. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 149 at 1920x1080 to 103 at 2560x1440, a 31% reduction, and then plummets to 62 at 3840x2160, representing a 58% total drop from 1080p. This steep decline indicates that the RX 7700 XT's rendering pipeline is the primary limiting factor as pixel count increases, with the Ryzen 9 7900X's substantial compute resources remaining underutilized at higher resolutions.

The scaling pattern at Low settings is even more revealing. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 209 FPS, which drops to 145 at 1440p and 86 at 4K. The relative drop from 1080p to 1440p is 31%, nearly identical to the High settings drop, suggesting that even at Low settings, the GPU is still the bottleneck at 1440p. However, the 4K Low performance of 86 FPS versus 62 FPS at High settings shows a 39% improvement, indicating that reducing graphics workload can significantly extend this GPU's 4K capabilities.

The Medium settings row provides the only complete min/max data in the measured results, which offers insight into frame time consistency. At 4K Medium, the average is 68 FPS with a minimum of 58 and maximum of 78, showing a 20 FPS spread. At 1440p Medium, the average rises to 114 FPS with a min of 97 and max of 131, a 34 FPS spread. At 1080p Medium, the average is 164 FPS with a min of 140 and max of 189, a 49 FPS spread. The increasing spread at lower resolutions suggests that the CPU begins to introduce more frame time variance as the GPU becomes less constrained, though the Ryzen 9 7900X's 12 cores and 24 threads are still capable of maintaining high minimums.

CPU Role

The Ryzen 9 7900X brings formidable processing power to this pairing, with 12 cores and 24 threads based on the Zen 4 Raphael architecture built on a 5 nm process. The processor operates at a 4.70 GHz base clock and boosts up to 5.60 GHz, which is reflected in its benchmark scores: a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 29300 and a single-core score of 2016.5, alongside a Geekbench multi-core score of 19267 and single-core score of 2617. These numbers place the CPU in the 91st percentile versus all CPUs, indicating it is a top-tier processor for gaming workloads.

In Greedfall specifically, the CPU's role appears to be secondary to the GPU at most settings, but its influence becomes apparent at 1080p Low where the system reaches 209 FPS. This is the only setting where the CPU might be approaching its limits, though the data suggests it still has headroom. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 10972 and max-thread score of 12536 show strong multi-threading capabilities, while the single-thread score of 1093 and 2-thread score of 2137 indicate robust single-core performance that many games still rely on.

The CPU's 64 MB of shared L3 cache and 1 MB L2 cache per core provide substantial on-die storage for game assets, which is beneficial for an open-world Action RPG like Greedfall that streams environments and character data. The memory bandwidth of 83.2 GB/s via DDR5 dual-channel support ensures the CPU can feed the GPU without creating a data bottleneck, though the measured FPS data shows that the GPU's 12 GB VRAM and 432.0 GB/s bandwidth are more critical factors in this game's performance.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo ranking of 1399 out of 3703 tested combinations places this system in the 62nd percentile of all tested combos, which is a solid but not exceptional position. This ranking reflects the balance between a high-end CPU and a mid-range GPU — the Ryzen 9 7900X is clearly capable of supporting much more powerful graphics cards, but the RX 7700 XT is the limiting factor in this pairing. The data suggests that this combination would perform better in CPU-intensive scenarios, but Greedfall is evidently more GPU-bound.

Comparing the individual components, the CPU's 91st percentile ranking is significantly higher than the GPU's 67th percentile ranking, which confirms that the GPU is the weaker link in this system. The CPU's nearest rivals include the AMD EPYC 7313P with an average score of 53206 (0.2% lower), the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 at 53469 (0.3% higher), and the Intel Core i7-14700F at 53620 (0.6% higher), all of which are within 1% of the 7900X's average benchmark score of 53288. This tight clustering indicates that the 7900X is well-positioned among its peers.

For the GPU, the nearest rivals show a similar clustering: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile at 22435 (0.5% lower), the RTX 4060 Mobile at 22729 (0.8% higher), and the desktop RTX 2080 at 22895 (1.5% higher). The RX 7700 XT's average benchmark score of 22549 places it in a competitive position, but the 4K Ultra performance of just 39 FPS in Greedfall shows its limitations at the highest settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of this combo's performance across all resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the system delivers 209 FPS at Low, 164 FPS at Medium, 149 FPS at High, and 95 FPS at Ultra. These numbers indicate that 1080p is well within the GPU's comfort zone, with even Ultra settings maintaining nearly 100 FPS. The jump from Low to Medium (45 FPS difference) is larger than from Medium to High (15 FPS difference), suggesting that the Medium setting introduces significant visual improvements for a relatively small performance cost.

At 2560x1440, the performance drops to 145 FPS at Low, 114 FPS at Medium, 103 FPS at High, and 66 FPS at Ultra. The 1440p High setting of 103 FPS is particularly notable, as it provides a smooth experience for high-refresh monitors. The Ultra setting at 66 FPS is playable but approaches the threshold where some players might notice frame pacing issues. The 4K resolution shows the most dramatic scaling: 86 FPS at Low, 68 FPS at Medium, 62 FPS at High, and 39 FPS at Ultra.

The Medium settings row provides the most complete data with min and max FPS at all three resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the 140-189 FPS range shows excellent consistency for competitive play. At 1440p Medium, the 97-131 FPS range maintains smooth gameplay. At 4K Medium, the 58-78 FPS range demonstrates that this setting is the sweet spot for 4K gaming on this hardware, providing a playable experience without requiring the significant visual sacrifices of Low settings.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT is the defining component in this system's Greedfall performance. Based on the Navi 32 chip with RDNA 3.0 architecture, this GPU features 3456 shading units, 216 texture mapping units, and 96 raster output units. The 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus provides 432.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is crucial for loading the high-resolution textures and environmental details in Greedfall's colonial-era setting.

The GPU's clock speeds are notable: a 1435 MHz base clock, 2171 MHz game clock, and 2544 MHz boost clock. The 35.17 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 549.5 GTexel/s texture rate indicate substantial compute capability, but the 4K Ultra performance of 39 FPS shows that the GPU's 96 ROPs and 12 GB VRAM are insufficient for the most demanding settings at 4K. The pixel rate of 244.2 GPixel/s is a limiting factor at high resolutions with anti-aliasing enabled.

The GPU's benchmark scores paint a picture of mid-range performance: a Passmark G3D score of 22547 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3316. The Geekbench OpenCL score of 138383 and Vulkan score of 46443 show strong compute capabilities, but Greedfall's rendering engine appears to favor the GPU's rasterization pipeline rather than its compute units. The GPU's 67th percentile ranking versus all GPUs confirms its position as a capable but not top-tier graphics solution, which aligns with the measured FPS data showing strong 1080p and 1440p performance but limited 4K capabilities.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For 4K gaming, the Medium setting at 68 FPS average provides the best balance of visual quality and performance, with a minimum of 58 FPS ensuring that most scenes remain fluid. The High setting at 62 FPS is also viable, but the 4K Ultra setting at 39 FPS is not recommended for a playable experience, as it falls below the 60 FPS threshold that most players consider acceptable.

For 1440p, the High setting at 103 FPS is the clear winner, offering excellent visual fidelity while maintaining a frame rate that exceeds the refresh rate of most 1440p monitors. Players with 144Hz or higher refresh displays might prefer the Medium setting at 114 FPS, but the visual difference between Medium and High is substantial enough that most users should accept the 11 FPS reduction for the improved graphics. The Ultra setting at 66 FPS is playable but not ideal, as the significant visual improvements over High do not justify the 37 FPS drop.

At 1080p, the Ultra setting at 95 FPS is the recommended choice for most players, as it provides the best visual experience while still maintaining near-100 FPS performance. The High setting at 149 FPS is preferable for competitive players or those with 165Hz+ monitors, but the visual tradeoff from Ultra to High is noticeable. The Low setting at 209 FPS is only recommended for players who prioritize maximum frame rates above all else, as the visual quality at Low settings in an Action RPG like Greedfall significantly diminishes the atmospheric experience.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Greedfall?

A: Yes, but with compromises. The measured data shows 62 FPS at High, 68 FPS at Medium, and 86 FPS at Low settings at 3840x2160. The Ultra setting at 39 FPS is not recommended, but Medium or High settings provide playable frame rates above 60 FPS.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combination?

A: The data suggests 2560x1440 is the sweet spot, with 103 FPS at High settings and 114 FPS at Medium settings. This resolution provides a balance between visual fidelity and performance, with frame rates suitable for high-refresh monitors.

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

A: The Ryzen 9 7900X has an average benchmark score of 53288, which is 0.2% higher than the AMD EPYC 7313P (53206) and 0.3% lower than the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 (53469). It also sits 0.6% lower than the Intel Core i7-14700F (53620) and 0.6% higher than the Intel Xeon 634 (52974).

Q: What is the GPU's performance relative to similar cards?

A: The RX 7700 XT scores 22549 on average, which is 0.5% higher than the RTX 5060 Mobile (22435) and 0.8% lower than the RTX 4060 Mobile (22729). It is 1.5% lower than the RTX 2080 (22895) and 1.7% higher than the RX 5700 (22170).

Q: Is the 12 GB VRAM sufficient for Greedfall?

A: The measured FPS data indicates that 12 GB is sufficient at all tested settings and resolutions, as the GPU maintains playable frame rates at 4K Medium (68 FPS) and High (62 FPS). However, the 4K Ultra performance of 39 FPS suggests that VRAM or memory bandwidth may become a limiting factor at the highest settings.

Q: What FPS can I expect at 1080p with this setup?

A: The measured results show 209 FPS at Low, 164 FPS at Medium, 149 FPS at High, and 95 FPS at Ultra settings at 1920x1080. All settings provide smooth gameplay, with even Ultra maintaining nearly 100 FPS.