Greedfall

Greedfall, the 2019 Action RPG from Spiders, places a notable load on the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER when paired with the Intel Core i5-13400F. The measured frame rates across four resolutions and four quality presets reveal a configuration that is firmly GPU-limited at higher settings, while the CPU provides ample headroom at lower resolutions. This analysis breaks down the scaling behavior, optimal settings, and the specific roles of the graphics card and processor in this title.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and consistent drop as resolution increases, which is the hallmark of a GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p with High settings, the configuration delivers an average of 83.8 FPS. Moving to 1440p reduces that to 57.1 FPS, a decline of approximately 32%. Stepping up to 4K (3840x2160) at High settings yields only 33.6 FPS, which is roughly a 60% reduction from the 1080p figure. This steep drop-off indicates that the GTX 1660 SUPER’s rendering capabilities are the primary constraint as pixel count rises.

The scaling pattern across all presets reinforces this conclusion. At Low settings, the frame rate goes from 119.6 FPS at 1080p to 80.2 FPS at 1440p, then down to 49.7 FPS at 4K. The relative drops are similar to those seen at High, suggesting that resolution, not the complexity of the preset, is the dominant factor. Even at the least demanding settings, the 4K result falls below 50 FPS, which highlights the GPU’s inability to maintain high frame rates at that pixel density regardless of visual fidelity.

At Ultra settings, the scaling becomes even more punishing. The 1080p result is 51.1 FPS, which drops to 36.6 FPS at 1440p and plummets to 20.8 FPS at 4K. The gap between 1080p and 4K at Ultra is nearly 60%, and the absolute numbers suggest that Ultra is only viable at the lowest resolution. The data shows that this pairing is not suited for 4K gaming in Greedfall, as even the Low preset only manages 49.7 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold many consider playable. The limiting component is unambiguously the graphics card; the CPU’s performance, as indicated by its benchmark scores, is more than sufficient to feed the GPU at these settings.

Settings Recommendations

The measured rows provide a clear hierarchy of performance versus visual quality. For a target of 60 FPS or higher, the only viable options at 1080p are Low, Medium, and High presets, with average scores of 119.6, 94.9, and 83.8 FPS respectively. Ultra at 1080p produces 51.1 FPS, which is below that target. At 1440p, the story changes: Low and Medium achieve 80.2 and 64.1 FPS, while High falls to 57.1 FPS, just under the 60 FPS mark. Ultra at 1440p is not advisable, given its 36.6 FPS average.

For the best balance between visual fidelity and performance, High settings at 1080p appear to be the sweet spot. It delivers 83.8 FPS, which is comfortably above 60, and the visual uplift over Medium is meaningful in a game with detailed environments. At 1440p, Medium is the recommended preset, as it is the highest quality tier that maintains an average above 60 FPS. Pushing to High at 1440p introduces a noticeable frame rate penalty without a proportional visual gain, based on the data. Ultra settings should be avoided entirely; even at 1080p, the 51.1 FPS average is marginal, and at 1440p and 4K, the results are 36.6 and 20.8 FPS, which are not smooth for an action RPG that requires responsive combat.

The data suggests that users with a 4K display should not expect a playable experience with this hardware, as the best case is 49.7 FPS on Low. For 1080p and 1440p users, the measured results indicate that High and Medium are the respective maximum presets that maintain fluid frame rates.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER is the decisive component in this configuration’s Greedfall performance. Its 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s. The GPU’s base clock is 1530 MHz, with a boost clock of 1785 MHz. These specifications, combined with 1408 shading units, yield a FP32 performance of 5.027 TFLOPS. The benchmark results place this GPU at the 55th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 14286. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 and the Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics, which have average scores of 14314 and 14315, respectively, showing a delta of -0.2% for both. This indicates that the GTX 1660 SUPER is slightly below those integrated solutions in synthetic tests, yet the gaming data shows it handles Greedfall’s 1080p High preset well.

The VRAM capacity of 6 GB is sufficient for Greedfall at 1080p and 1440p, as the measured frame rates do not suggest any memory-related stutters or severe drops. However, at 4K, the combination of higher resolution and the game’s texture demands likely pushes against the memory limit, contributing to the low average FPS. The GPU’s compute score in Passmark is 5076, while its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 1278, reflecting its DirectX 12 capabilities. The card supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The measured performance in Greedfall, a title released in 2019, aligns with the GPU’s mid-range standing. The data shows that the card is the bottleneck in this system, as the CPU’s frame delivery is not the limiting factor. The Ultra preset’s steep penalty, dropping from 51.1 FPS at 1080p to 20.8 FPS at 4K, is a direct consequence of the GPU’s pixel throughput and memory bandwidth limitations.

FAQ

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

A: The data indicates that 1080p is the optimal resolution for the GTX 1660 SUPER and Core i5-13400F combination. At 1080p High, the average FPS is 83.8, which is well above playable thresholds. At 1440p, the same preset drops to 57.1 FPS, and at 4K, it falls to 33.6 FPS.

Q: Can this system run Greedfall at 4K?

A: Yes, but only at Low settings, which yields an average of 49.7 FPS. Medium and High presets at 4K produce 38.5 and 33.6 FPS respectively, while Ultra drops to 20.8 FPS. None of these results are ideal for a smooth experience.

Q: How does the GTX 1660 SUPER compare to its closest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The GPU’s average benchmark score is 14286. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11, scores 14314, which is a delta of -0.2%. The Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics scores 14315, also a -0.2% delta. This shows the GTX 1660 SUPER is essentially on par with these components in synthetic tests.

Q: Why does the Ultra preset perform so poorly at high resolutions?

A: The Ultra preset at 4K averages 20.8 FPS, compared to 51.1 FPS at 1080p. This large drop is due to the GPU’s limited pixel throughput and 6 GB VRAM, which are stressed by the increased resolution and visual effects. The data shows a 60% reduction from 1080p to 4K at Ultra.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this system?

A: The measured FPS scaling strongly indicates the GPU is the bottleneck. As resolution increases, frame rates drop proportionally, which is characteristic of GPU limitation. The Core i5-13400F, with its high multi-threaded score of 21279 in Cinebench R23, is not the constraint.

Q: What settings provide the highest frame rate above 60 FPS at 1440p?

A: At 1440p, the Medium preset delivers an average of 64.1 FPS, which is the highest quality setting that stays above 60 FPS. Low produces 80.2 FPS, while High falls to 57.1 FPS, just below the target.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-13400F provides the computational foundation for this configuration. With 10 cores and 16 threads, it has a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. Its 20 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory make it a capable processor for gaming. The benchmark data shows it scores 21279 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 3004 in single-core, placing it at the 82nd percentile among all CPUs. Its average benchmark score is 25236, with nearest rivals including the Intel Core i7-13620H (score 25201, delta 0.1%) and the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D (score 25365, delta -0.5%). This places the i5-13400F in a strong position, with performance essentially matching or slightly exceeding those chips.

In Greedfall, the CPU’s role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and handle game logic. The measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 119.6 FPS, which is a high frame rate that could potentially be limited by CPU performance in some games. However, the consistent scaling with resolution and settings suggests the CPU is not the primary bottleneck. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 7314 and the max-thread score of 7307 indicate strong multi-threading capabilities, while the single-thread score of 960 in 3DMark shows solid per-core performance. Given that Greedfall is an Action RPG from 2019, it does not require extreme CPU resources. The Core i5-13400F’s 10 cores and 16 threads are more than adequate to maintain frame rates above what the GTX 1660 SUPER can deliver at most settings. The data confirms that the CPU is not the limiting factor; the GPU’s performance dictates the frame rates across all measured configurations.