Greedfall

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 pairs a 14-core, 14-thread layout based on the Arrow Lake-S architecture with a 3.50 GHz base clock and a 5.10 GHz boost clock. This configuration places the CPU in the 90th percentile among all tested processors, indicating that its raw compute capability is well above the median for desktop parts. In synthetic multi-threaded workloads, the chip scores 32,924 points in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 4,648 points in single-core, showing a balanced profile that avoids a severe bottleneck in either direction. Its nearest rivals in aggregate benchmark scores include the AMD Ryzen 9 7900, which trails by 0.5%, and the Intel Core i5-14600K, which is 0.8% ahead; the data shows this CPU sits within a tight performance band around those parts.

For a game like Greedfall, an action RPG that relies on consistent frame pacing for combat responsiveness, the CPU’s job is to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic updates. The measured FPS data suggests that the Ultra 5 245 is not the primary constraint in most settings, because frame rates scale strongly with GPU load changes as resolution increases. The processor’s 24 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support with 102.4 GB/s of bandwidth provide ample headroom for the game’s world streaming and entity updates. The 14 threads are sufficient for the game’s threading model, as evidenced by the fact that dropping from 1080p to 4K at the same settings produces a frame rate drop consistent with GPU-bound behavior rather than a CPU wall.

Notably, the CPU’s single-thread performance, as seen in the 4,648 Cinebench R23 single-core score, is strong enough to handle the game’s primary simulation thread without becoming a limiting factor at High settings. At 1080p High, the combo achieves 136 FPS, which is far above the threshold where CPU limitations would typically manifest. Only at Low settings, where the GPU workload is minimal, does the CPU’s role become more visible; the 191 FPS at 1080p Low shows that the processor can push very high frame rates when the GPU is underutilized. The delta between 1080p Low and 4K Low (191 FPS vs 79 FPS) is a 59% drop, which is a classic sign of the GPU taking over as the bottleneck at higher resolutions, while the CPU maintains its output.

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Navi 32 chip, featuring a base clock of 1900 MHz and a boost clock of 2459 MHz. The GPU is equipped with 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 624.1 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is substantial for a 2019-era title like Greedfall, which does not require excessive VRAM even at 4K, but the capacity ensures no texture swapping or stutter is introduced at Ultra settings. The GPU’s 40 ray tracing cores and 96 ROPs are more than adequate for the game’s traditional rasterization pipeline, and its 25.18 TFLOPS of FP32 compute provides raw shading power that scales well with resolution.

In benchmark terms, the RX 7700 sits in the 58th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 15,852. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 9060, which is 1% faster, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, which is 1.7% faster. The data shows this GPU is positioned in the upper-midrange tier, which aligns with its measured performance in Greedfall. The GPU’s 200 W TDP and dual-slot design are consistent with a card that can sustain high clocks under load, but the game’s engine is the more important factor here.

The measured FPS data reveals that the RX 7700’s performance in Greedfall is heavily dependent on the preset. At 1080p High, the card delivers 136 FPS, which is a smooth experience for a fast-paced action RPG. Moving to 1440p High drops the average to 94 FPS, a 31% reduction, while 4K High yields 56 FPS, a 59% reduction from 1080p. This scaling pattern indicates that the GPU is the dominant component at 1440p and above, because the frame rate drops proportionally with the pixel count increase. The GPU’s memory bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s is sufficient to feed the shader cores at 4K, as evidenced by the fact that the card does not experience a catastrophic drop when moving from 1440p to 4K; the 56 FPS at 4K High is still playable, though not ideal for competitive play.

The RX 7700’s performance at Ultra settings is notably lower across all resolutions, which suggests that the game’s Ultra preset introduces effects that are particularly taxing on the GPU’s compute units. At 1080p Ultra, the card achieves 87 FPS, while at 1440p Ultra it drops to 60 FPS, and at 4K Ultra it falls to 36 FPS. This steep decline from High to Ultra indicates that the Ultra preset includes settings that heavily stress the GPU, such as higher shadow resolution or ambient occlusion quality, which are not well optimized in this older title. The data suggests that the GPU’s VRAM capacity is not the issue, as even at 4K Ultra with 16 GB available, the frame rate is limited by compute throughput rather than memory capacity.

The measured FPS table provides a clear picture of how the game performs across different presets and resolutions. At 1080p, the Low preset achieves 191 FPS, Medium 150 FPS, High 136 FPS, and Ultra 87 FPS. This range shows that the GPU has enough headroom to push very high frame rates at lower settings, but the jump from High to Ultra incurs a 36% performance penalty, which is significant. At 1440p, the same pattern holds: Low 132 FPS, Medium 104 FPS, High 94 FPS, and Ultra 60 FPS. The drop from High to Ultra at 1440p is 36%, consistent with the 1080p behavior. At 4K, the numbers compress: Low 79 FPS, Medium 62 FPS, High 56 FPS, and Ultra 36 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is 54%, showing that the GPU is running out of compute headroom at this resolution.

The Medium preset offers the best balance for most users. At 1080p Medium, the combo hits 150 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold and provides a smooth experience with only minor visual compromises compared to High. At 1440p Medium, 104 FPS is still very playable, and even at 4K Medium, 62 FPS is above the 60 FPS target. The Medium preset also has the only measured minimum and maximum FPS values in the dataset: at 1080p Medium, the range is 127 to 172 FPS, and at 1440p Medium, it is 88 to 120 FPS. These minimums indicate that the game maintains reasonable frame pacing without severe drops, which is important for combat scenarios.

High settings are a viable alternative for those with 1080p or 1440p displays. At 1080p High, 136 FPS is excellent, and at 1440p High, 94 FPS is still above the 60 FPS standard. However, at 4K High, 56 FPS is slightly below the 60 FPS target, so users with 4K displays should consider Medium to avoid occasional dips below playable rates. Ultra settings are only recommended for 1080p users who prioritize visual fidelity over frame rate, as the 87 FPS at 1080p Ultra is still acceptable, but the 36 FPS at 4K Ultra is not suitable for smooth gameplay.

Q: What is the best preset for a 1440p display?

A: Based on the measured data, Medium at 2560x1440 delivers 104 FPS average with a minimum of 88 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS target. High at 1440p achieves 94 FPS, but Medium provides a safer margin for frame time consistency, as indicated by the measured minimum.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K Ultra?

A: The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 Ultra is 36 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. This setting is not recommended for this resolution, as the GPU becomes the limiting factor.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck at 1080p Low?

A: At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 191 FPS, which is significantly higher than at other settings. This suggests the GPU is not fully utilized, and the CPU’s 14 threads are capable of driving the frame rate to a very high level, indicating a CPU-bound scenario at this extreme setting.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between High and Ultra at 1440p?

A: The measured data shows a drop from 94 FPS at High to 60 FPS at Ultra, a 36% reduction. This indicates that the Ultra preset introduces effects that are disproportionately taxing on the GPU.

Q: Does the 16 GB VRAM cause any issues in Greedfall?

A: The measured data does not show any VRAM-related stuttering or frame drops, even at 4K Ultra. The GPU’s 16 GB memory is sufficient for this game, as performance is limited by compute throughput rather than memory capacity.

Q: How does the RX 7700 compare to its nearest rival in this game?

A: The RX 7700 has an average benchmark score that is 1% lower than the AMD Radeon RX 9060 and 1.7% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti. In Greedfall, the measured FPS data shows the card performs consistently with its midrange positioning.

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the nature of the limiting component in this combo. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 136 at 1080p to 94 at 1440p to 56 at 4K. This represents a 31% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 40% drop from 1440p to 4K, which is a geometric progression consistent with a GPU-bound scenario. The pixel count increases by 78% from 1080p to 1440p and by 125% from 1440p to 4K, but the FPS drops do not match these percentages exactly, indicating that the GPU’s memory bandwidth and shader throughput are not perfectly scaling with resolution.

At Low settings, the pattern is similar: 191 FPS at 1080p, 132 FPS at 1440p, and 79 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 31%, and from 1440p to 4K is 40%, which is nearly identical to the High settings scaling. This consistency suggests that the GPU is the sole limiting factor across all settings, as the CPU’s performance headroom is not exposed even at Low settings. The fact that the frame rate drop is consistent regardless of preset indicates that the GPU’s rendering pipeline is the bottleneck, not the CPU’s ability to feed it data.

The data also shows that the game’s engine does not scale perfectly with resolution. A perfectly GPU-bound scenario would show a frame rate drop proportional to the pixel count increase, but the measured drops are smaller. For example, moving from 1080p to 4K increases pixel count by 4x, but the FPS drops from 136 to 56 at High, which is a 59% reduction, not a 75% reduction. This suggests that the game’s rendering workload does not increase linearly with resolution, possibly due to fixed-cost effects like shadow rendering or post-processing that remain constant regardless of resolution. This is beneficial for the combo, as it means 4K performance is better than expected based on pixel count alone.

The resolution scaling analysis points to the GPU as the primary constraint at all resolutions above 1080p. The CPU’s performance, as indicated by its 90th percentile ranking and high Cinebench scores, is sufficient to maintain frame rates that are limited only by the GPU’s rendering capability. This is a balanced pairing for Greedfall, where the GPU’s 16 GB of VRAM and 624.1 GB/s of bandwidth are well-matched to the CPU’s 102.4 GB/s of memory bandwidth, ensuring that neither component starves the other.

The measured FPS breakdown provides a complete picture of the combo’s performance across all tested configurations. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 191 FPS average, which is the highest frame rate in the dataset. The Medium preset achieves 150 FPS with a minimum of 127 FPS and a maximum of 172 FPS, showing a tight frame time distribution. The High preset delivers 136 FPS, and the Ultra preset drops to 87 FPS. This range of 87 to 191 FPS at 1080p demonstrates that the GPU has significant headroom, and users can choose between high refresh rates at lower settings or visual fidelity at Ultra.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset achieves 132 FPS, which is a 31% drop from 1080p Low. The Medium preset delivers 104 FPS with a minimum of 88 FPS and a maximum of 120 FPS, which is a solid experience for a 1440p display. The High preset achieves 94 FPS, and the Ultra preset drops to 60 FPS. The 60 FPS at 1440p Ultra is exactly at the threshold for smooth gameplay, but the lack of measured minimum and maximum values for Ultra suggests that frame pacing may vary. The Medium preset’s measured minimum of 88 FPS provides more confidence in consistency.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset achieves 79 FPS, which is still playable, but the Medium preset delivers 62 FPS with a minimum of 53 FPS and a maximum of 71 FPS. The 53 FPS minimum is below the 60 FPS target, indicating that there may be occasional dips during intense scenes. The High preset achieves 56 FPS, and the Ultra preset drops to 36 FPS, which is not suitable for smooth gameplay. The data shows that 4K gaming is possible with this combo, but users must accept lower settings to maintain playable frame rates.

The complete dataset allows for a direct comparison between settings at each resolution. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 104 FPS (191 vs 87), which is a 55% reduction. At 1440p, the difference is 72 FPS (132 vs 60), a 55% reduction. At 4K, the difference is 43 FPS (79 vs 36), a 54% reduction. This consistent 55% reduction from Low to Ultra across all resolutions indicates that the game’s graphics settings have a uniform impact on the GPU’s workload, regardless of resolution. This is a useful data point for users who want to predict performance at other resolutions.

The combo ranks 1307 out of 2938 tested combinations in Greedfall, placing it in the 44th percentile of all tested systems. This rank reflects the balance between the CPU’s strong performance and the GPU’s midrange positioning. The CPU’s 90th percentile ranking among all processors is higher than the GPU’s 58th percentile ranking, which means the GPU is the limiting factor in this pairing. This is confirmed by the resolution scaling analysis, which shows the GPU becoming more dominant as resolution increases.

In the context of the database, a rank of 1307 out of 2938 means that 1630 other combinations perform better in this game, and 1306 perform worse. This places the combo in the middle of the pack, which is expected given the GPU’s midrange positioning. The CPU’s high percentile ranking does not translate to a top-tier game performance rank because Greedfall is a GPU-intensive title, especially at higher resolutions. Users with 1080p displays will see a better relative performance, as the CPU’s strength can be leveraged at lower resolutions where the GPU is less stressed.

The comparison to the CPU’s nearest rivals shows that the Ultra 5 245 is competitive in synthetic benchmarks, but this does not directly translate to game performance because the GPU is the bottleneck. The data shows that the combo’s game rank is more dependent on the GPU’s capabilities than the CPU’s. This is a common pattern in modern games, where resolution and graphics settings determine the performance ceiling. For users considering this combo, the data suggests that the GPU should be upgraded first to improve game performance, while the CPU has ample headroom for future GPU upgrades.