Greedfall

Greedfall, the 2019 Action RPG, presents an interesting case study for the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 combination. The data shows a system capable of high frame rates across the board, but the scaling patterns reveal distinct bottlenecks depending on the resolution and preset. This analysis breaks down the measured performance, contextualizes it within the broader benchmark database, and provides actionable settings recommendations based strictly on the collected data.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a classic pattern of GPU-bound scaling as resolution increases, though the magnitude of the drop is heavily influenced by the graphics preset. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves an average of 248 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops this to 172 FPS, a reduction of 76 frames. The jump to 4K Low yields 103 FPS, which is a further drop of 69 frames from 1440p. This steep decline indicates that at lower settings, the GPU's rendering load scales almost linearly with pixel count, and the CPU is not the limiting factor.

The scaling behavior changes significantly when examining the High preset. At 1080p High, the average is 177 FPS. At 1440p High, it falls to 123 FPS, and at 4K High, it settles at 73 FPS. The percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is roughly 30%, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is roughly 40%. This non-linear scaling suggests that the RTX 4070's memory bandwidth and compute resources are becoming increasingly strained as the pixel count grows, a typical sign of a GPU bottleneck. The gap between Low and High at 4K is 30 FPS (103 vs. 73), highlighting how much headroom is lost to higher-quality shading and texture work.

The Ultra preset tells the most revealing story about the limiting component. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 113 FPS. This is a massive drop from the 177 FPS seen at High, indicating that Ultra settings introduce a disproportionately heavy workload. At 1440p Ultra, the average falls to 78 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it plummets to 47 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the lowest in the entire dataset, and the scaling from 1080p to 4K at Ultra shows a 58% performance loss. This pattern strongly suggests that at Ultra settings, the GPU is the absolute limiting factor, as the RTX 4070's 12 GB of VRAM and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are saturated by the game's most demanding visual features.

The data indicates that the CPU, with its 12 cores and 24 threads, is not the primary constraint at any tested configuration. The frame rate drops are consistent with a GPU that is progressively more loaded. The 1080p Low result of 248 FPS is high enough to suggest that the CPU can feed frames well beyond typical display refresh rates, but the scaling from Low to High at 1080p (a 71 FPS drop) shows that even at 1080p, the GPU's architectural limits are exposed by higher presets. The combination is well-balanced at High settings, but at Ultra, the GPU is clearly working at its maximum capacity.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for Greedfall, this specific pairing of the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 holds a combo rank of 694 out of 2938 tested combos. This places it in the top quarter of all tested systems, specifically around the 76th percentile. The ranking reflects the overall average performance across all measured resolutions and settings, and it indicates that this system is substantially faster than the median combination in the database.

The GPU's own percentile ranking is 81, which is slightly higher than the combo's overall rank. This suggests that while the RTX 4070 is a strong performer relative to other GPUs, the specific pairing with this CPU does not boost it to the very top of the combo charts for this game. The CPU's percentile rank is 91, which is notably higher than both the GPU and the combo rank. This discrepancy implies that the CPU has more headroom than the GPU is able to utilize in Greedfall. The system is not CPU-limited, but the GPU's performance ceiling defines the combo's position.

The nearest rivals for the RTX 4070 in the GPU database show a tight cluster of performance. The NVIDIA Tesla P4 is a mere 0.1% faster, while the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 is 0.4% slower. The RTX 4080 Mobile is 1.3% faster, and the AMD Radeon PRO W6400 is 1.3% slower. This data shows that the RTX 4070's raw benchmark score is positioned in a very competitive band, and its ranking in Greedfall will be determined more by game-specific optimization than by a massive raw power advantage over its immediate peers. The combo rank of 694 suggests that within Greedfall, the RTX 4070 performs as expected, but it is not an outlier in either direction.

The CPU's nearest rivals similarly show a close grouping. The Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF is 0.6% slower, the Intel Core Ultra 5 245K is 1.3% faster, the Intel Xeon 6505P is 2% faster, and the Intel Core i7-14700F is 2.1% faster. These small deltas indicate that the 9900X3D is not head-and-shoulders above its immediate competition in synthetic benchmarks, and its high percentile rank (91) is more a function of the overall distribution of CPUs than a dominant lead over its direct competitors. In Greedfall, the combo's rank is solidly in the upper echelon, indicating a high-performance pairing that will deliver a smooth experience at most settings.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070, based on the AD104 chip and Ada Lovelace architecture, is the primary driver of the measured frame rates in Greedfall. Its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus provides a memory bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. The card operates at a base clock of 1920 MHz and a boost clock of 2475 MHz. These specifications directly influence the game's performance, particularly at higher resolutions and settings where memory capacity and bandwidth become critical.

The data shows a clear correlation between the GPU's workload and the FPS drops. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS falls to 47, which is the lowest recorded score. This is a direct consequence of the 12 GB VRAM being potentially stressed by the Ultra preset's texture and geometry demands, combined with the bandwidth limit. The 192-bit bus is narrower than higher-tier cards, and while 504.2 GB/s is substantial, the 4K Ultra workload in Greedfall appears to exceed the card's comfortable operating envelope. The 69 FPS minimum and 93 FPS maximum recorded at 4K Medium show that frame pacing remains stable even when the card is under significant load, but the average of 81 FPS indicates that the GPU is the bottleneck at this resolution.

The RTX 4070's compute capabilities are also relevant. With 5888 shading units and 184 texture mapping units, the card can handle the game's shader complexity. The 29.15 TFLOPS of FP32 performance provides ample raw compute for the game's effects. However, the scaling from 1080p High (177 FPS) to 4K High (73 FPS) shows that the GPU's fillrate and shading capacity are progressively overwhelmed by the increasing pixel count. The pixel rate of 158.4 GPixel/s and texture rate of 455.4 GTexel/s are the theoretical limits that the game approaches at 4K, particularly with High and Ultra presets.

The GPU's benchmark scores corroborate its mid-to-high-end positioning. A Passmark G3D score of 26927 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3854 place it in the 81st percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals, including the Tesla P4 and RX Vega 56, are within a 1.3% delta, confirming that the RTX 4070 is a solid performer but not a flagship. In Greedfall, this translates to a card that can deliver 4K High at 73 FPS and 1440p High at 123 FPS, which are excellent results, but it cannot maintain playable frame rates at 4K Ultra, where the average drops to 47 FPS. The GPU is clearly the limiting component at the highest settings, and its 12 GB memory buffer is the most likely constraint.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Greedfall?

A: The data shows that 1440p High (123 FPS) offers a strong balance of visual quality and performance. 4K High (73 FPS) is also playable, but 1440p provides a higher frame rate headroom. 1080p High (177 FPS) is ideal for high-refresh monitors.

Q: Can this system run Greedfall at 4K Ultra?

A: Yes, but with a significant performance cost. The measured average FPS at 4K Ultra is 47 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The GPU is the limiting factor at this setting.

Q: How does the CPU affect performance in this game?

A: The Ryzen 9 9900X3D's 12 cores and 24 threads are not the bottleneck. The frame rate scaling is consistent with a GPU-bound workload. At 1080p Low (248 FPS), the CPU demonstrates it can handle high frame rates without limiting the GPU.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: The average FPS drops from 248 at Low to 113 at Ultra, a reduction of 135 FPS. This indicates that the Ultra preset imposes a heavy load on the GPU, even at the lowest resolution.

Q: Is the RTX 4070 a good match for the Ryzen 9 9900X3D in this game?

A: Yes, the combo ranks 694th out of 2938, placing it in the top quartile. The GPU's 81st percentile rank and CPU's 91st percentile rank indicate a well-balanced system, though the GPU is the limiting factor at higher settings.

Q: Are the frame rates consistent, or are there stutters?

A: The data includes minimum and maximum FPS for Medium settings. At 1080p Medium, the range is 166-224 FPS (avg 195). At 1440p Medium, the range is 115-155 FPS (avg 135). At 4K Medium, the range is 69-93 FPS (avg 81). This shows stable frame pacing with no major dips.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured data provides a complete picture of performance across three resolutions and four settings presets.

At 1920x1080, the results are consistently high. The Low preset achieves an average of 248 FPS. The Medium preset averages 195 FPS, with a minimum of 166 and a maximum of 224. The High preset averages 177 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 113 FPS. The frame rate drops from Low to Ultra by 135 FPS, a 54% reduction, emphasizing the GPU's workload at the highest settings.

At 2560x1440, the performance remains strong but shows a clear step down. The Low preset averages 172 FPS. The Medium preset averages 135 FPS, with a minimum of 115 and a maximum of 155. The High preset averages 123 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 78 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p results in a 76 FPS drop for Low and a 54 FPS drop for High, showing that the GPU is handling the additional pixels with diminishing returns.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is heavily taxed. The Low preset averages 103 FPS. The Medium preset averages 81 FPS, with a minimum of 69 and a maximum of 93. The High preset averages 73 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 47 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the only score below 60 FPS in the entire dataset, and it represents a 66 FPS drop from the 1440p Ultra score. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is 56 FPS, indicating that the Ultra preset's additional effects have a substantial impact on the GPU's ability to render at this resolution.

The data for High and Ultra presets at all resolutions does not include minimum or maximum FPS, but the Medium preset data shows that frame times are consistent, with the range between min and max being relatively narrow (e.g., 58 FPS at 1080p, 40 FPS at 1440p, 24 FPS at 4K). This suggests that the combination does not suffer from severe stuttering, even when the GPU is under load.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D is a 12-core, 24-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture. It operates with a base clock of 4.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. Its substantial L3 cache of 128 MB is a key feature for gaming performance, though the data in Greedfall does not show a scenario where the CPU is the limiting factor. The CPU's benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 47737 and a Geekbench multicore score of 22884, confirm its high processing power.

In Greedfall, the CPU's role appears to be that of a capable feeder for the GPU. The highest recorded average FPS is 248 at 1080p Low. This score is high enough to suggest that the CPU can maintain a high frame rate ceiling. The fact that the FPS drops significantly when the resolution or settings are increased indicates that the GPU is taking over as the primary bottleneck. The CPU's 3DMark scores, including a max threads score of 13795 and a single thread score of 1269, show strong multi-threaded and single-threaded performance, but the game's frame rate scaling does not exhibit CPU-related plateaus.

The CPU's percentile ranking of 91 places it in the top 10% of all CPUs, and its average benchmark score of 54762 is very close to its nearest rivals. The Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF is only 0.6% slower, and the Intel Core i7-14700F is 2.1% faster. These small deltas suggest that while the 9900X3D is a top-tier processor, its advantage over the immediate competition is marginal in synthetic tests. In Greedfall, the combo's overall rank of 694 is likely driven more by the GPU's performance than the CPU's, as the CPU provides ample headroom for the RTX 4070 to operate without being starved of data. The data shows a system where the CPU is not a source of frame rate instability or limitation.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the target resolution and frame rate preference.

For 1080p gaming, the High preset is recommended for the best experience. It delivers an average of 177 FPS, which is excellent for high-refresh-rate monitors. While the Low preset achieves 248 FPS, the visual quality reduction is substantial, and the Medium preset at 195 FPS is a good middle ground if a higher frame rate is desired. The Ultra preset at 113 FPS is playable but offers diminishing returns over High, with a 64 FPS penalty for the increased visual fidelity.

For 1440p gaming, the High preset is the clear recommendation. It averages 123 FPS, which is smooth and responsive. The Medium preset at 135 FPS is only 12 FPS faster, so the visual upgrade to High is worth the minor performance cost. The Ultra preset at 78 FPS is also viable for a more visually rich experience, but it falls below the 100 FPS mark and may feel less fluid for fast-paced action. The Low preset at 172 FPS is unnecessary unless chasing maximum refresh rates, as High offers a much better visual experience with a still-high frame rate.

For 4K gaming, the High preset is the best choice for a balanced experience. It achieves an average of 73 FPS, which is playable on most displays. The Medium preset at 81 FPS is a better option if a higher frame rate is critical, but the visual difference between Medium and High is often noticeable. The Ultra preset at 47 FPS is not recommended for a consistent gameplay experience, as it dips below the 60 FPS threshold. The Low preset at 103 FPS is the only way to achieve a high frame rate at 4K, but the visual compromise is severe. For most users, the High preset at 4K offers the best combination of image quality and performance, while the Medium preset is a safe fallback for those who prioritize frame rate stability.