Greedfall

Greedfall, the 2019 Action RPG from Spiders, presents an interesting case study in system scaling when paired with the Intel Core i5-14600K and AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT. The measured data reveals a configuration that is heavily skewed toward CPU performance at lower resolutions, while the GPU becomes the definitive bottleneck as pixel count rises. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS across three resolutions and four settings presets, interpreting what the numbers indicate about the limiting component and the overall capability of this specific hardware pairing.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 produces a dramatic and predictable drop in frame rates, but the shape of that curve is highly informative. At 1080p with Low settings, the configuration achieves 152 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 105 FPS, a 31% reduction, and then to 4K Low, which lands at 63 FPS, a further 40% reduction from the 1440p figure. This scaling pattern—where the percentage loss accelerates as resolution increases—is a classic sign that the GPU is becoming progressively more saturated. The 1080p result is likely constrained by the CPU or game engine's single-threaded draw call limits, as the RX 6600 XT has ample headroom to render more frames if the processor could feed it faster.

The High preset tells a similar story with slightly different magnitudes. Starting at 1080p High with 108 FPS, the drop to 1440p High is 75 FPS (a 31% decrease), and then to 4K High is 45 FPS (a 40% decrease from 1440p). The consistency of these percentage drops across Low and High settings suggests that the scaling penalty is driven primarily by pixel count and memory bandwidth rather than by the complexity of the shaders. The RX 6600 XT's 256.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 128-bit bus width become the limiting factors at 4K, where the fill rate requirement outpaces the data delivery.

The Ultra preset shows the steepest degradation. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 69 FPS, which is already below the High preset's 1080p result. At 1440p Ultra, this falls to 48 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it collapses to 29 FPS. The gap between 1440p Ultra (48) and 4K Ultra (29) is a 40% reduction, matching the trend of other presets. However, the absolute numbers reveal that Ultra settings place an enormous load on the GPU's 8 GB VRAM and compute units, pushing the card to its limits even at mainstream resolutions. The data indicates that the limiting component shifts from CPU-bound at 1080p Low to strongly GPU-bound at 4K Ultra, with the crossover point occurring somewhere between 1080p and 1440p depending on the preset.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT, built on the RDNA 2.0 architecture with the Navi 23 chip, is the primary determinant of performance in this pairing once resolution exceeds 1080p. Its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming but becomes strained at 4K. The card's boost clock of 2589 MHz and game clock of 2359 MHz are relatively high for this class, yet the FP32 throughput of 10.60 TFLOPS is the ceiling that limits raw shading performance. The measured FPS at 4K High (45) and 4K Medium (49) shows that the card can handle the resolution with reduced settings, but the drop to 29 FPS at 4K Ultra indicates that the 64 ROPs and 2048 shading units are overwhelmed by the combination of high resolution and complex pixel shaders.

The GPU's memory configuration is a critical factor. With only 8 GB of VRAM, Greedfall at 4K with High or Ultra textures likely exceeds the available memory, forcing the card to swap data to system memory via the PCIe 4.0 x8 interface. This would explain why the 4K Medium preset (49 FPS) is so close to 4K High (45 FPS), while the Ultra preset falls off a cliff to 29 FPS. The card's 32 RT cores are irrelevant for this title, as Greedfall does not utilize ray tracing, meaning the raw rasterization performance is what matters. The GPU's average benchmark score of 24442 places it in the 70th percentile of all GPUs, but its nearest rivals in the synthetic benchmarks—such as the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER (deltaPct 1.1%)—show that the RX 6600 XT is competitive with older high-end cards, yet the measured game data reveals its limitations under heavy load.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14600K is a 14-core, 20-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. This CPU is exceptionally powerful, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 24491 and single-core score of 2064. Its 24 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB per-core L2 cache provide ample capacity for game logic and asset streaming. In this benchmark pairing, the CPU is rarely the bottleneck at higher resolutions, but it does define the upper bound at 1080p. The 152 FPS result at 1080p Low is likely near the engine's frame rate ceiling for this CPU, as the GPU is far underutilized at that setting.

The CPU's 90th percentile ranking against all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 48618, shows that it is a top-tier gaming processor. Its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks include the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H (deltaPct -0.2%) and the Intel Core Ultra 5 245HX (deltaPct 0.7%), indicating that the i5-14600K sits in a performance band where small percentage differences separate it from other high-end chips. However, in Greedfall, the CPU's role is to maintain a stable frame delivery rate, and the data shows that it does so effectively. The 1080p High preset at 108 FPS and 1080p Medium at 119 FPS both demonstrate that the CPU can feed the GPU enough frames to keep the card busy, but the GPU becomes the limiting factor as soon as resolution or settings increase the pixel workload.

The processor's 125W TDP and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory give it flexibility, but the measured FPS numbers do not show any memory bandwidth constraints. The CPU's integrated UHD Graphics 770 is not used in this configuration, as the discrete GPU handles all rendering. The benchmark results indicate that the i5-14600K has significant headroom left on the table at 4K, where the GPU is clearly the limiting component, but at 1080p Low, the CPU is the ceiling, as the GPU could theoretically render more frames if the CPU could issue draw calls faster.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the configuration delivers playable frame rates across all presets. The Low preset averages 152 FPS, which is exceptionally smooth and indicates that the GPU is nowhere near its limit. The Medium preset averages 119 FPS with a minimum of 101 and maximum of 137, showing a narrow frame time distribution that suggests consistent performance. The High preset averages 108 FPS, which is still excellent for a 2019 title. The Ultra preset drops to 69 FPS, which is noticeably lower but still above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The gap between High and Ultra at 1080p is 39 FPS, which is a significant penalty for the extra visual fidelity.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain respectable but show the GPU starting to struggle. The Low preset averages 105 FPS, which is still very smooth. The Medium preset averages 83 FPS with a minimum of 70 and maximum of 95, indicating that frame times are starting to vary more under load. The High preset averages 75 FPS, which is a 31% drop from the 1080p High result, confirming that the GPU is becoming the bottleneck. The Ultra preset at 1440p averages 48 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target and indicates that the card is being pushed hard. The 1440p Ultra result is 30% lower than the 1080p Ultra result, showing that the resolution increase exacts a heavy toll on the highest settings.

At 3840x2160, the configuration is only viable with lower presets. The Low preset averages 63 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold and playable. The Medium preset averages 49 FPS with a minimum of 42 and maximum of 57, which is borderline for smooth gameplay. The High preset averages 45 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for fast-paced action. The Ultra preset averages 29 FPS, which is effectively unplayable for a smooth experience. The 4K results clearly show that the RX 6600 XT is not designed for 4K gaming with high settings, as the frame rates drop below 30 FPS at Ultra and struggle to maintain 60 FPS even at Low.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i5-14600K and AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT ranks 2624 out of 3703 tested combos in Greedfall, placing it in the 29th percentile of all configurations tested. This ranking might seem low given the CPU's strength, but it reflects the fact that the GPU is the limiting factor in most gaming scenarios. The combo's rank is dragged down by the RX 6600 XT's 70th percentile GPU ranking, which is significantly lower than the CPU's 90th percentile ranking. The data indicates that this pairing is unbalanced for Greedfall, as the CPU is far more powerful than the GPU can utilize at higher resolutions.

The combo rank of 2624 out of 3703 suggests that there are many other combinations that perform better in this game, likely those with more powerful GPUs paired with similar or less powerful CPUs. The bottleneck analysis from the resolution scaling section confirms this interpretation: the CPU has headroom, but the GPU is saturated. In the context of the nearest rival benchmarks, the RX 6600 XT is competitive with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER (deltaPct 1.1%) and Intel Arc A350M (deltaPct -0.8%), but these are older or lower-tier cards. The combo's ranking indicates that for Greedfall, the GPU is the deciding factor, and the i5-14600K's high synthetic benchmark scores do not translate to a high in-game rank because the game is not CPU-bound at typical settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this configuration depend on the target resolution and frame rate goal. For 1080p, the High preset at 108 FPS is the best balance of visual quality and performance, as it provides a smooth experience without the steep penalty of Ultra. The Ultra preset at 69 FPS is also playable, but the 39 FPS loss from High is substantial for the incremental visual improvement. For 1440p, the Medium preset at 83 FPS is the recommended choice, as it maintains a frame rate well above 60 FPS while providing decent visuals. The High preset at 75 FPS is also acceptable, but the Medium preset offers a better safety margin for frame time spikes.

For 4K, the Low preset at 63 FPS is the only setting that achieves the 60 FPS target, but it sacrifices significant visual fidelity. The Medium preset at 49 FPS is a compromise, but the minimum frame rate of 42 FPS may cause noticeable stuttering in busy scenes. The Ultra preset at 29 FPS is not recommended for any gameplay scenario. The data suggests that 1440p Medium is the sweet spot for this configuration, as it delivers a smooth frame rate without compromising too much on visual detail. For users with 1080p displays, the High preset is the clear winner, as it provides near-maximum quality with excellent frame rates.

FAQ

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

A: The measured data shows that 2560x1440 with Medium settings achieves 83 FPS average (70 min, 95 max), making it the best balance of visual quality and smooth performance. At 1080p High, the average is 108 FPS, but the higher resolution provides more detail.

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

A: Yes, but only with reduced settings. The 4K Low preset averages 63 FPS, while 4K Medium averages 49 FPS. The 4K High preset drops to 45 FPS, and 4K Ultra averages only 29 FPS, which is not smooth.

Q: Why is the 1080p Low FPS (152) so much higher than 1080p High FPS (108)?

A: The difference is due to the GPU load. At 1080p Low, the RX 6600 XT is not fully utilized, allowing it to render more frames. At High settings, the GPU's shading units and memory bandwidth become more saturated, reducing the frame rate.

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-14600K or AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT the bottleneck in this game?

A: At 1080p Low, the CPU is the bottleneck, as the GPU has headroom. At 1440p and 4K, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, as the CPU has significant spare capacity. The crossover occurs between 1080p and 1440p depending on the settings preset.

Q: What is the frame rate at 1440p Ultra?

A: The measured average FPS at 2560x1440 with Ultra settings is 48 FPS. This is below the 60 FPS target, and the result is 30% lower than the 1080p Ultra average of 69 FPS.

Q: How does the RX 6600 XT compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RX 6600 XT has an average benchmark score of 24442, which is 0.7% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1630 and 1.1% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER. It is 0.8% lower than the Intel Arc A350M.