Minimum

Minimum is a 2014 third-person shooter that still gets recommended by builders for its low system demands, but the measured results for the Intel Core i5-13400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 show that this title scales heavily with resolution and settings. The data indicates a system that is firmly GPU-bound at 4K, yet at 1080p the frame rates become high enough that the CPU’s 10 cores and 16 threads start to matter more than raw GPU throughput. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS rows, interprets the scaling behavior, and provides practical settings advice based strictly on the provided facts.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is the defining characteristic of this pairing in Minimum. At 1080p with Low settings, the system delivers 214 FPS average. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 138 FPS, a 35.5% reduction, and then to 4K Low it falls to 74 FPS, a 65.4% reduction from the 1080p baseline. This steep decline indicates that the Radeon RX 7700 is the primary limiting factor as pixel count rises, which is expected given that the GPU’s 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and 256-bit bus are being fed progressively larger frame buffers.

At the High preset, the scaling pattern is similar but with lower absolute numbers. The system hits 137 FPS at 1080p, 89 FPS at 1440p (a 35% drop), and 48 FPS at 4K (a 65% drop from 1080p). The consistent ~35% drop from 1080p to 1440p and ~65% drop from 1080p to 4K across both Low and High presets suggests a purely resolution-bound GPU workload. The CPU’s boost clock of 4.60 GHz and 20 MB of shared L3 cache are sufficient to keep up at 1080p, but they are not the bottleneck at higher resolutions.

The Medium preset, which is the only one with measured min and max FPS values, reinforces this. At 1080p Medium, the average is 164 FPS with a min of 139 and max of 188. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 106 FPS (min 90, max 121), and at 4K Medium, the average falls to 57 FPS (min 48, max 65). The min FPS at 4K Medium of 48 is exactly the same as the average FPS at 4K High, which tells you that the GPU is so saturated that preset changes yield diminishing returns at that resolution.

The most telling data point is the Ultra preset. At 1080p Ultra, the system manages 105 FPS, which is still highly playable. But at 1440p Ultra, it drops to 68 FPS, and at 4K Ultra, it collapses to 36 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is below the 48 FPS average seen at 4K Medium, and it is the only measured row where the frame rate falls below the 60 FPS threshold. This confirms that 4K Ultra is not a realistic target for this combo, while 1440p Ultra remains viable for those who prioritize image quality over refresh rate.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with a Navi 32 chip, and its specifications explain the measured behavior. The GPU has a base clock of 1900 MHz, a game clock of 2041 MHz, and a boost clock of 2459 MHz. The game clock is the relevant figure for sustained gaming loads, and the data suggests that Minimum is not fully utilizing the boost headroom at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the 214 FPS average is likely hitting a CPU or game engine limit, not a GPU limit, because the RX 7700’s 25.18 TFLOPS FP32 performance is far more than needed for a 2014 title at those settings.

The memory configuration is substantial for this game’s age. The RX 7700 comes with 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 624.1 GB/s of bandwidth. Minimum, released in 2014, would have been designed for GPUs with far less memory bandwidth, so the RX 7700 is never memory-constrained in this title. The 16 GB capacity is overkill for Minimum’s textures, but it means that even at 4K Ultra, the frame rate is limited by the GPU’s shading units and ROPs, not by memory capacity or bandwidth.

The GPU’s 40 ray tracing cores are irrelevant for this game, as Minimum does not support ray tracing based on the available data. The 96 ROPs and 160 TMUs are the more relevant specs for a traditional rasterized shooter. At 4K Ultra, the 36 FPS average suggests that the pixel fill rate and texture rate are the limiting factors. The pixel rate of 236.1 GPixel/s and texture rate of 393.4 GTexel/s are high, but Minimum at 4K Ultra demands enough fill that the RX 7700 falls short of 60 FPS.

The GPU’s position in the benchmark rankings is worth noting. It scores 20974 in Passmark G3D, placing it at the 58th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, which is 1.7% faster in average benchmark score, and the AMD Radeon RX 9060, which is 1% faster. This places the RX 7700 in a competitive mid-range tier, and the measured FPS in Minimum reflects that positioning — it is strong at 1080p and 1440p, but not a 4K Ultra card for this game.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured rows, the optimal settings depend entirely on the target resolution and refresh rate. For 1080p, the High preset at 137 FPS average is the recommended choice for competitive play, as it provides a significant visual upgrade over Low (214 FPS) while still clearing the 120 FPS mark. The Ultra preset at 105 FPS is acceptable for those with 100 Hz monitors, but the 32 FPS difference between High and Ultra is not worth the visual gains in a fast-paced shooter.

At 1440p, the Medium preset at 106 FPS average is the sweet spot. It offers a 16 FPS improvement over High (89 FPS) while only losing the extra visual effects that Ultra provides. The Ultra preset at 68 FPS is playable but leaves little headroom for frame drops, especially in busy scenes. The data shows that Medium is the best balance of frame rate and visual fidelity at this resolution, with a min FPS of 90 that keeps the experience smooth.

At 4K, the situation is more constrained. The Medium preset at 57 FPS average is the only reasonable option, as it stays just below 60 FPS but remains smooth enough for a single-player experience. The High preset at 48 FPS is noticeably less fluid, and the Ultra preset at 36 FPS should be avoided entirely. For 4K gaming on this combo, dropping to Medium is the correct trade-off, as the difference between Medium and High at this resolution is less impactful than the 9 FPS frame rate penalty.

The Low preset is not recommended at any resolution for this GPU, as it leaves too much performance on the table. At 1080p Low, the 214 FPS average is beyond what most monitors can display, and at 1440p Low, the 138 FPS is still below what High offers at 1080p. The RX 7700 is capable of running Minimum at Medium or High at most resolutions, so the Low preset is only useful for players targeting extremely high refresh rates on 240 Hz+ displays.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1920x1080 (1080p): The Low preset delivers the highest average at 214 FPS, followed by Medium at 164 FPS (min 139, max 188), High at 137 FPS, and Ultra at 105 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is 50 FPS, which is substantial, but the gap between Medium and High is only 27 FPS. The Ultra preset is 59 FPS slower than Low, but it remains above 100 FPS, indicating that the GPU is not fully taxed at this resolution.

2560x1440 (1440p): The Low preset averages 138 FPS, Medium averages 106 FPS (min 90, max 121), High averages 89 FPS, and Ultra averages 68 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is consistent at approximately 35% reduction for each preset. At this resolution, the Medium preset’s min FPS of 90 ensures that the frame rate never dips below the 60 FPS threshold, making it the most reliable option for competitive play.

3840x2160 (4K): The Low preset averages 74 FPS, Medium averages 57 FPS (min 48, max 65), High averages 48 FPS, and Ultra averages 36 FPS. This is the only resolution where the Low preset falls below 100 FPS, and it is also where the Medium preset’s min FPS of 48 becomes a concern. The data shows that 4K is the boundary for this combo, with only the Low preset able to maintain a consistent 60+ FPS average.

The measured data is complete for the Medium preset across all three resolutions, providing min/max values that the other presets lack. This allows for a detailed analysis of frame pacing at Medium: at 1080p, the range is 49 FPS (139 to 188), at 1440p it is 31 FPS (90 to 121), and at 4K it is 17 FPS (48 to 65). The tightening range at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU is becoming the bottleneck, as frame times become more consistent when the workload is saturated.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Minimum at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, but only at Low or Medium settings. The measured data shows 74 FPS average at 4K Low and 57 FPS average at 4K Medium. The High preset drops to 48 FPS, and Ultra falls to 36 FPS, both of which are below the 60 FPS threshold for smooth play.

Q: What is the best preset for 1440p gaming?

A: The Medium preset at 106 FPS average is the recommended choice, as it provides a high frame rate with a min FPS of 90. The High preset at 89 FPS is also viable, but the Ultra preset at 68 FPS leaves less headroom for demanding scenes.

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

A: At 1080p Low with 214 FPS average, the system is likely CPU-bound, as the RX 7700 is capable of far higher frame rates in a 2014 title. The Intel Core i5-13400F’s boost clock of 4.60 GHz and 16 threads are sufficient to drive these frame rates, but the game engine’s single-thread performance may be the limiting factor.

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

A: The RX 7700 has an average benchmark score of 15852, which is 1.7% slower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti and 1% slower than the AMD Radeon RX 9060. In Minimum, this translates to similar frame rates, with the RX 7700 being roughly 1-2% behind those cards at each resolution and preset.

Q: Should I use the Ultra preset at 1080p?

A: The Ultra preset at 105 FPS average is acceptable for 100 Hz monitors, but the High preset at 137 FPS provides a 32 FPS improvement. For a third-person shooter where reaction time matters, the High preset is the better choice, as the visual difference between High and Ultra is not worth the frame rate penalty.

Q: What is the frame rate range at 4K Medium?

A: The measured data shows an average of 57 FPS with a minimum of 48 FPS and a maximum of 65 FPS. This means the frame rate can dip below 50 FPS in demanding scenes, so players seeking a locked 60 FPS experience should consider dropping to Low settings at 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-13400F is a 10-core, 16-thread processor from the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. In Minimum, the CPU’s role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic, and the data shows that it is not a bottleneck at any resolution above 1080p. The benchmark results for the CPU include a Passmark multithread score of 25032 and a single-thread score of 3634, which places it at the 77th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS with a 0% delta and the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D with a -0.3% delta, indicating that the i5-13400F is competitively positioned in the mid-range.

The CPU’s performance in Minimum is best illustrated by the 1080p Low result of 214 FPS. This is a frame rate that exceeds what most 144 Hz monitors can display, and it suggests that the game engine’s single-thread performance is the limiting factor, not the CPU’s raw throughput. The i5-13400F’s single-thread score of 3634 in Passmark is robust, but Minimum’s 2014 engine likely does not scale perfectly across all 16 threads. The 10 cores and 16 threads are more than sufficient for this title, and the CPU’s 20 MB of shared L3 cache helps with game asset streaming.

At higher resolutions, the CPU’s role diminishes further. The frame rate drops from 214 FPS at 1080p Low to 138 FPS at 1440p Low and 74 FPS at 4K Low, which directly corresponds to the increase in pixel count. This indicates that the RX 7700 is the limiting component at 1440p and 4K, and the CPU has ample headroom. The i5-13400F’s TDP of 65 W and 10 nm process node make it an efficient choice for a gaming system, and its L3 cache of 20 MB ensures that game data is quickly accessible to the cores.

The CPU’s benchmark scores in Cinebench R23 (22604 multicore, 3191 single-core) and Geekbench (11068 multicore, 1996 single-core) confirm that it is a well-rounded processor for gaming workloads. In Minimum, the CPU is never the limiting factor at 1440p or 4K, and even at 1080p, the 214 FPS ceiling is more likely a game engine limitation than a CPU deficiency. The i5-13400F’s 16 threads allow for background tasks like streaming or Discord to run without impacting game performance, making it a solid pairing with the RX 7700 for this title.