Greedfall

Greedfall, an Action RPG released in 2019, places significant demands on hardware, and the pairing of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 with the Intel Arc B390 produces a distinctive performance profile. This combination ranks 2595th out of 2938 tested combos in this game, placing it in the lower percentile of systems. The data indicates a configuration where the integrated graphics solution is the primary constraint, creating a performance ceiling that varies dramatically with resolution and quality settings.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a steep performance cliff as resolution increases, clearly identifying the limiting component. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 84 FPS, but this drops to 58 FPS at 1440p and further to 35 FPS at 4K. This represents a 58% reduction in frame rate from 1080p to 4K at Low settings, indicating that the rendering pipeline becomes progressively more saturated as pixel count increases.

The scaling pattern becomes even more pronounced at higher quality presets. With Ultra settings, the system manages 38 FPS at 1080p, 27 FPS at 1440p, and only 16 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at Ultra costs 11 FPS (29% reduction), while the jump from 1440p to 4K costs another 11 FPS (41% reduction). This non-linear scaling suggests that the Arc B390's fill rate and shading capabilities are being overwhelmed by the combination of high resolution and complex pixel shading.

At Medium settings, the pattern holds with 66 FPS at 1080p, 46 FPS at 1440p, and 27 FPS at 4K. The 1080p to 1440p transition at Medium reduces performance by 30%, while the 1440p to 4K transition reduces it by 41%. This consistent ~30% penalty for the first resolution step and ~40% for the second step across multiple settings presets strongly indicates that the GPU's pixel processing throughput is the bottleneck, rather than memory bandwidth or CPU limitations.

The High preset shows similar characteristics: 60 FPS at 1080p, 42 FPS at 1440p (30% drop), and 25 FPS at 4K (40% drop from 1440p). The consistency of these scaling factors across all four quality presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) provides compelling evidence that resolution scaling is purely GPU-bound. The 4K results, ranging from 16 to 35 FPS depending on settings, suggest that 4K gaming is only viable at the lowest quality preset, and even then, the frame rate barely reaches playable territory.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics solution based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on Intel's 3 nm process. Its performance profile in Greedfall is characterized by the system-shared memory configuration, which means VRAM size, type, and bus width are all listed as "System Shared" with bandwidth described as "System Dependent." This architectural choice has direct implications for the measured results, as the GPU must compete with the CPU for memory access.

The GPU's clock speeds show a base of 300 MHz and a boost of 2500 MHz, with 1536 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 24 ROPs. The pixel rate is rated at 60.00 GPixel/s, and the texture rate at 120.0 GTexel/s. These specifications align with the observed performance ceiling in Greedfall. The 7.680 TFLOPS FP32 throughput provides theoretical context, but the actual game performance is heavily influenced by the shared memory subsystem.

The Arc B390's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482 places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, with nearest rivals including the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (scoring 1463, 1.3% slower) and the NVIDIA GeForce 800M (scoring 1460, 1.5% slower). This benchmark positioning correlates with the Greedfall results, where even at 1080p Low settings, the system only manages 84 FPS — a figure that would be considered modest for a dedicated GPU.

The memory configuration is particularly relevant for Greedfall's open-world environments. The game's texture streaming and draw distance requirements benefit from dedicated VRAM, and the shared memory architecture likely introduces latency penalties. The 24 MB L3 cache on the CPU, while substantial for general computing, does not directly compensate for the GPU's memory access patterns. The system-dependent bandwidth means that performance can vary based on the DDR5 memory configuration, though the specific capacity and speed are not detailed in the measured data.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS achievable with this combo in Greedfall?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 84, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This is the only configuration in the measured data that exceeds 80 FPS.

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with the Intel Arc B390?

A: At 3840x2160, the best average FPS is 35 with Low settings, which is below the typical 60 FPS target. Ultra settings at 4K produce only 16 FPS, making this resolution impractical for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the Arc B390 compare to its nearest GPU rivals based on synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Arc B390 scores 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, which is 1.3% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463) and 2.7% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 (1443). These are all entry-level performance tiers.

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

A: At 1920x1080, Low settings produce 84 FPS average, while Ultra settings produce 38 FPS average. This represents a 46 FPS difference, with Ultra delivering 55% lower performance than Low.

Q: Does the CPU's 14-core configuration help mitigate GPU limitations in this game?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 has 14 cores and 14 threads, with a boost clock of 5.10 GHz. However, the consistent FPS scaling patterns across resolutions indicate that the GPU is the limiting factor, as the CPU's performance headroom does not translate into higher frame rates.

Q: What are the minimum FPS values recorded for this combo?

A: The only settings preset with min/max data is Medium, which shows 23/32 FPS at 4K, 39/53 FPS at 1440p, and 56/76 FPS at 1080p. Other presets do not have min/max values recorded.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and Intel Arc B390 ranks 2595th out of 2938 tested combos in Greedfall, placing it in the bottom 12% of all configurations. This rank reflects the GPU's integrated nature and its synthetic benchmark standing at the 9th percentile of all GPUs. The CPU, by contrast, performs at the 90th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 48995.

The CPU's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks include the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G (scoring 49196, 0.4% higher), the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 (scoring 49228, 0.5% higher), and the Intel Core i5-14600K (scoring 48618, 0.8% lower). These close margins indicate that the Ultra 5 245 is competitively positioned in the CPU market, yet the overall combo rank is dragged down significantly by the GPU.

The disparity between the CPU's 90th percentile ranking and the combo's 2595th overall position highlights a substantial imbalance. In Greedfall, this manifests as a system that is severely GPU-limited at all tested settings and resolutions. The 2938 total combos include configurations with dedicated graphics cards, and the Arc B390's integrated nature places this combo at a significant disadvantage regardless of CPU capabilities.

The measured FPS data supports this ranking, with even the best-case scenario (1080p Low at 84 FPS) being notably lower than what a mid-range dedicated GPU would achieve. The 4K Ultra result of 16 FPS places this combo firmly in the lowest performance tier for demanding resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience balances visual quality with playable frame rates. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset provides 66 FPS average with a minimum of 56 FPS, offering smooth gameplay while maintaining decent visual fidelity. The High preset at 1080p achieves 60 FPS average, which is also playable, but the Medium preset's 10% higher frame rate and 6 FPS higher minimum makes it the recommended choice for consistent performance.

For 2560x1440, the Low preset at 58 FPS is the only configuration approaching playable frame rates, with Medium dropping to 46 FPS and High to 42 FPS. The Low preset at 1440p provides the best balance, though the visual compromise is substantial. Ultra settings at 1440p produce only 27 FPS, which is not recommended for gameplay.

At 3840x2160, no settings preset achieves a playable frame rate. The Low preset at 35 FPS is the best 4K result, but this falls below the 40 FPS threshold that many players consider the minimum for action RPGs. The Medium preset at 4K shows a minimum of 23 FPS, indicating significant frame time inconsistency.

The data suggests that players should prioritize 1080p with Medium settings for the best experience, as this is the only configuration that consistently maintains above 60 FPS. Alternatively, 1440p with Low settings offers higher resolution but requires accepting a 58 FPS average that may dip in demanding scenes.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full range of settings was measured. Low settings produce 84 FPS average, the highest of any configuration. Medium settings yield 66 FPS average with a minimum of 56 and maximum of 76. High settings produce 60 FPS average. Ultra settings drop to 38 FPS average, representing a 55% reduction from Low.

The 2560x1440 resolution shows a consistent step down. Low settings achieve 58 FPS average. Medium settings produce 46 FPS average with a range of 39 to 53. High settings yield 42 FPS average. Ultra settings fall to 27 FPS average, which is a 53% reduction from Low — closely mirroring the 1080p scaling between the same presets.

At 3840x2160, the performance becomes marginal across all settings. Low settings produce 35 FPS average. Medium settings achieve 27 FPS average with a minimum of 23 and maximum of 32. High settings yield 25 FPS average. Ultra settings drop to 16 FPS average, which is the lowest measured result in the entire dataset.

The progression from Low to Ultra at each resolution shows consistent penalties: at 1080p, Medium is 21% slower than Low, High is 29% slower, and Ultra is 55% slower. At 1440p, the penalties are 21% for Medium, 28% for High, and 53% for Ultra. At 4K, Medium is 23% slower than Low, High is 29% slower, and Ultra is 54% slower. This consistency across resolutions indicates that the quality presets scale predictably, with the GPU's processing capabilities being the uniform constraint.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 brings 14 cores and 14 threads based on the Arrow Lake-S architecture, built on TSMC's 3 nm process. Its base clock of 3.50 GHz boosts to 5.10 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The CPU's synthetic benchmark scores are respectable: Cinebench R23 multi-core at 32924 and single-core at 4648, with PassMark multi-thread at 38706 and single-thread at 4394.

In Greedfall, the CPU's role appears secondary to the GPU. The measured FPS data shows that even at 1080p Low, where the GPU has the least work, the system only reaches 84 FPS — a figure that suggests the CPU could theoretically support higher frame rates if the GPU were more capable. The 14 cores and 5.10 GHz boost clock provide ample processing power for the game's AI, physics, and game logic systems.

The CPU's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks show it performs within 1% of the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G, AMD Ryzen 9 7900, and Intel Xeon Gold 5318H. This places the Ultra 5 245 in a competitive position for CPU-bound tasks. However, the 24 MB L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support (102.4 GB/s theoretical bandwidth) are configured to feed a powerful discrete GPU, not an integrated one.

The PassMark physics score of 2569 and floating point math score of 120548 indicate strong computational throughput. In Greedfall's action RPG combat and exploration scenarios, these capabilities ensure that the CPU does not introduce additional bottlenecks beyond what the GPU already imposes. The data suggests that upgrading the GPU would yield significant performance improvements, as the CPU has substantial headroom to support a more powerful graphics solution.