Minimum

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F and Radeon RX 9070 XT combination ranks 650th out of 2,939 tested combos for Minimum, placing it in the top 22% of all configurations. This is a strong result for a 2014 third-person shooter, indicating that this modern pairing is more than capable of handling the game’s demands. The percentile positioning suggests that while there are faster combos, this system sits comfortably above the median experience, meaning most players would not find themselves wanting for performance at standard display resolutions. The data implies that this pairing is well-balanced for the game, with neither component likely to be a significant bottleneck at the settings where most users would play.

GPU Role

The Radeon RX 9070 XT is built on the RDNA 4.0 architecture and features 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 644.6 GB/s. The card’s base clock is 1660 MHz, with a game clock of 2400 MHz and a boost clock of 2970 MHz. For a title like Minimum, which was released in 2014, these specifications are substantial overkill on paper. Yet, the measured frame rates reveal that the GPU is still the primary driver of performance scaling across different settings, especially at higher resolutions.

The GPU’s 4096 shading units and 128 ROPs handle the game’s rendering tasks without breaking a sweat, but the data shows that the frame rate still drops significantly as visual fidelity increases. For instance, at 4K, moving from Low to Ultra settings reduces the average FPS from 97 to 47, a reduction of more than half. This indicates that even with a powerful GPU, the game’s more demanding presets can push the card to its limits. The card’s FP32 performance of 48.66 TFLOPS and texture rate of 760.3 GTexel/s are more than adequate for a game of this era, yet the benchmark results suggest that the Ultra preset still introduces enough graphical load to test the hardware.

The 16 GB VRAM buffer is another factor. While Minimum likely does not require that much memory, the sheer bandwidth and capacity ensure that there are no texture streaming or memory-related hitches, which is reflected in the stable frame times observed at Medium settings where min FPS data is available. The GPU’s performance percentile of 55 versus all GPUs is modest, but the nearest rival data shows it is closely matched with older cards like the GTX 570 in synthetic benchmarks, which reflects how well-optimized the game is for a wide range of hardware.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the best experience for most users would be the High preset at 1440p. The data shows an average of 115 FPS at this setting, which is well above the threshold for smooth gameplay on high-refresh-rate monitors. At 1080p, High delivers 179 FPS, which is also excellent, but the 1440p result suggests that users can push the resolution without sacrificing smoothness. The Medium preset at 1440p also performs well at 137 FPS, but the jump to High is only a 22 FPS penalty (from 137 to 115), which is a reasonable trade for better visual quality.

For those with 4K displays, High is the sweet spot, hitting 62 FPS on average. This is playable, but it is close to the edge of what might be considered ideal for fast-paced shooters. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 47 FPS, which is likely to feel less responsive. For competitive play, the Low preset at 1080p offers 278 FPS, which is incredibly high and would be beneficial for players with 240Hz or faster monitors, but the visual compromise is significant.

The data suggests that the Medium preset provides the most balanced experience across all resolutions, with stable frame times indicated by the min and max FPS values. At 1080p Medium, the average is 213 FPS with a minimum of 181 FPS, which shows a tight frame pacing that is ideal for avoiding stutter. At 1440p Medium, the average is 137 FPS with a minimum of 117 FPS, which is still very smooth. The recommendation is to start with High at 1440p for the best balance, and only drop to Medium if you prefer higher, more consistent frame rates over minor visual enhancements.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the performance envelope is wide. The Low preset achieves an average of 278 FPS, making it the highest measured score. Medium follows at 213 FPS, with a minimum of 181 FPS and a maximum of 245 FPS. High drops to 179 FPS, and Ultra is the lowest at 136 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra shows a clear pattern: each step up in settings costs roughly 50-70 FPS, which is a substantial hit but leaves even the Ultra preset well above the 60 FPS threshold.

Moving to 2560x1440, the same settings order persists. Low delivers 179 FPS, which is a 36% drop from the 1080p Low result. Medium produces 137 FPS (min 117, max 158), High hits 115 FPS, and Ultra falls to 88 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 91 FPS, showing that the GPU is still the limiting factor as resolution increases. Even the Ultra preset at 1440p remains playable, which is a strong indicator of the combo’s capability.

At 3840x2160, the results show a more pronounced impact of resolution. Low yields 97 FPS, which is just shy of the 100 FPS mark. Medium achieves 74 FPS with a minimum of 63 FPS, which is the only 4K setting with min/max data. High drops to 62 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 47 FPS. The 4K results suggest that while the GPU can handle the game, it requires a reduction in settings to maintain high refresh rates. The difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is exactly 50 FPS, indicating that the visual preset has a linear effect on performance at this resolution.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep, but the pattern is consistent across all settings. At Low, the average FPS goes from 278 at 1080p to 179 at 1440p, then to 97 at 4K. This represents a 35% drop from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 46% drop from 1440p to 4K. At High, the progression is 179 to 115 to 62, which is a 36% drop followed by a 46% drop. The consistency of these percentages suggests that the scaling is primarily driven by the GPU’s pixel throughput, rather than any CPU limitation.

This scaling behavior points to the GPU being the primary limiting component at higher resolutions. The CPU’s role is less pronounced as resolution increases, because the frame rate is constrained by the graphics hardware’s ability to fill pixels. The fact that the Low preset at 4K (97 FPS) is lower than the Ultra preset at 1080p (136 FPS) highlights how much of a burden 4K resolution places on the GPU, even for a less demanding game. The data implies that if you are targeting 4K, you must be willing to sacrifice settings to achieve frame rates above 60 FPS, as only the Low preset reaches that mark.

The scaling also reveals that the combo is not CPU-bound at any resolution tested. If it were, we would expect to see the FPS plateau at 1080p, but instead, we see a steady increase from Low to Ultra at all resolutions. The Ryzen 7 9700F, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, is likely providing more than enough headroom to keep the GPU fed, allowing the graphics card to be the sole determinant of performance scaling.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F is a Zen 5 architecture processor on the AM5 socket, with 8 cores and 16 threads. Its base clock is 3.80 GHz, and it boosts up to 5.50 GHz. In the context of Minimum, which is a 2014 title, this CPU is exceptionally powerful. The benchmark data shows that the CPU’s multithreaded score is 36,470, and its single-thread score is 4,691. These numbers place it in the 94th percentile versus all CPUs, indicating top-tier performance.

In this game, the CPU’s role appears to be secondary to the GPU, as evidenced by the resolution scaling. However, the CPU’s high single-thread performance is crucial for maintaining high frame rates at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 278 FPS, which requires the CPU to handle game logic and draw calls quickly. The 5.50 GHz boost clock ensures that the processor can keep up with the GPU at these extreme frame rates, preventing any bottleneck that would cap the FPS below what the GPU can deliver.

The nearest rivals to this CPU, such as the Intel Core i7-14700KF and AMD Ryzen 9 7950X, have similar average scores with deltas of -0.2% and 0.7% respectively. This suggests that the 9700F is on par with some of the best CPUs available, and swapping it for another high-end processor would likely yield no measurable difference in Minimum. The data confirms that the CPU is not a limiting factor in this combo, as the frame rate scales predictably with GPU load across all settings and resolutions. The 65W TDP also indicates that the CPU runs cool and efficiently, but this has no direct impact on the game’s performance metrics.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution to play Minimum with this combo for a 60 FPS experience?*

A: At 4K, the High preset delivers an average of 62 FPS, which is the minimum requirement for a smooth 60 FPS experience. For a more comfortable margin, 1440p Ultra provides 88 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the combo rank compared to other systems tested for this game?

A: The combo ranks 650th out of 2,939 tested combinations, placing it in the top 22% of all systems. This indicates that it is a high-performing pairing, but not the absolute fastest available.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for performance in this title?

A: The data suggests the GPU plays a larger role. The FPS drops by roughly 35-46% when moving from 1080p to 4K, which is a GPU-driven scaling pattern. The CPU’s high single-thread score of 4,691 ensures it does not bottleneck the system at lower resolutions.

Q: What is the difference in FPS between the Low and Ultra presets at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, the Low preset averages 278 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 136 FPS. This represents a 142 FPS difference, or a 51% reduction in performance when moving to the highest settings.

Q: Does the combo provide stable frame pacing at any settings?

A: Yes, the Medium preset at 1080p shows a minimum of 181 FPS and a maximum of 245 FPS, with an average of 213 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the minimum is 117 FPS and the maximum is 158 FPS, indicating consistent frame delivery.

Q: Is the GPU’s 16 GB VRAM necessary for this game?

A: While Minimum is a 2014 title and likely does not require 16 GB, the large VRAM buffer and 644.6 GB/s bandwidth ensure there are no memory-related performance drops. The measured data shows no signs of texture pop-in or stutter, which suggests the VRAM is sufficient for all settings tested.