Minimum

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i7-14700KF brings substantial compute resources to this pairing, with 20 cores and 28 threads running on Intel's Raptor Lake architecture. The base clock sits at 3.40 GHz with a boost capability reaching 5.60 GHz, giving the CPU strong single-threaded headroom that older titles like Minimum (released in 2014) typically leverage heavily. The 33 MB of shared L3 cache, alongside 2 MB L2 per core, provides ample on-die storage for game logic and physics calculations that a third-person shooter from that era would depend on.

Synthetic benchmarks place this processor in the 94th percentile among all CPUs tested, with an average benchmark score of 70163. In Cinebench R23, the multi-core score reaches 44167, while the single-core score hits 6235. These figures position the i7-14700KF as a high-end desktop part, even when compared to newer silicon. The nearest rival data shows it trading blows with AMD's Ryzen 7 9700F (0.2% ahead), Ryzen 9 7940HX (0.4% ahead), and Ryzen 9 7950X (0.9% ahead), while sitting 1% behind Intel's own Core Ultra 7 265K.

What does this mean for Minimum specifically? The game's measured FPS results suggest the CPU is rarely the limiting factor at lower resolutions, but the picture becomes more complex as resolution climbs. At 1080p Low, the combo reaches 85 FPS average, which indicates the CPU can feed the GPU adequately at moderate settings. The 125W TDP and unlocked multiplier suggest this is a part designed for sustained performance, though the game itself is old enough that it likely cannot fully utilize all 20 cores.

The Raptor Lake-R codename and 10nm process node reflect Intel's mature manufacturing at the time of release. With DDR4 and DDR5 memory support over a dual-channel bus, the platform offers flexibility, though the measured FPS data does not distinguish between memory types. The Passmark multi-thread score of 52425 and single-thread score of 4480 reinforce that this CPU has both parallel throughput and responsive single-core behavior—the latter being particularly relevant for Minimum's engine, which was designed in an era when quad-core CPUs were the mainstream standard.

Settings Recommendations

Examining the measured FPS rows, the sweet spot for playability appears to be the Medium preset across all resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the combo delivers 65 FPS average with a minimum of 56 and maximum of 75, providing a smooth experience with some headroom for dips. The 1440p Medium row shows 42 FPS average with a 36-48 range, which remains playable for a slower-paced third-person shooter, though it approaches the lower boundary of comfort.

The Low preset offers the highest frame rates—85 FPS at 1080p, 55 FPS at 1440p, and 30 FPS at 2160p—but the visual compromise may be significant for a game that relies on atmospheric presentation. The Ultra preset, by contrast, drops to 42 FPS at 1080p and 27 FPS at 1440p, with 4K Ultra falling to 15 FPS. These numbers suggest Ultra is only viable at 1080p if the player tolerates sub-60 performance.

High settings sit between these extremes: 55 FPS at 1080p, 35 FPS at 1440p, and 19 FPS at 4K. The delta between Low and High at 1080p is 30 FPS (85 vs 55), which is substantial, while the delta between High and Ultra is only 13 FPS (55 vs 42). This nonlinear scaling suggests diminishing returns at the highest preset.

Given the data, Medium at 1080p offers the best balance of frame rate and visual fidelity, with 65 FPS average and a minimum above 55. For those prioritizing smoothness over visuals, Low at 1440p provides 55 FPS, which matches the High preset at 1080p—an interesting trade-off where resolution can be traded for settings. At 4K, even Low settings only reach 30 FPS, so players with 4K displays should either drop to 1440p or accept a sub-30 experience.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS progression from 1080p to 4K reveals a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 85 at 1080p to 55 at 1440p (a 35% reduction) and then to 30 at 4K (another 45% reduction). This steep decline indicates the Intel Arc B370 struggles as pixel count increases, which aligns with its 5th percentile ranking among all GPUs.

At Medium settings, the scaling shows 65 FPS at 1080p, 42 FPS at 1440p, and 23 FPS at 4K. The 4K result includes a recorded minimum of 19 and maximum of 26, suggesting inconsistent frame pacing. High settings follow a similar pattern: 55 FPS at 1080p, 35 FPS at 1440p, and 19 FPS at 4K. Ultra settings drop to 42 FPS at 1080p, 27 FPS at 1440p, and 15 FPS at 4K.

The resolution scaling factor—roughly 0.65x from 1080p to 1440p and 0.45x from 1440p to 4K across most settings—points to the GPU as the primary bottleneck. The i7-14700KF's strong single-core performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6235) means it can likely maintain high frame rates if the GPU could keep up. The data suggests the CPU is not the limiting component; rather, the Arc B370's 6.144 TFLOPS FP32 throughput and 20 ROPs constrain output as pixel count rises.

The 4K Low result of 30 FPS is particularly telling—even the lowest settings cannot achieve playable frame rates at 4K, implying that resolution, not quality, is the primary constraint. Players targeting 4K would need to rely on the game's age and potentially lower internal rendering resolutions, though such techniques are not captured in the measured data.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of Intel Core i7-14700KF and Intel Arc B370 ranks 2703 out of 2939 tested combos for Minimum, placing it in the bottom 8% of all system configurations. This rank reflects the significant mismatch between the high-end CPU and the entry-level GPU performance.

The i7-14700KF's CPU percentile of 94 indicates it outperforms 94% of all processors in the database, yet the Arc B370's GPU percentile of 5 means it only outperforms 5% of graphics cards. This disparity creates a system where the CPU is dramatically overqualified relative to the GPU. In Minimum, a game that stresses both components but leans on GPU fill rate at higher resolutions, the combo rank suffers accordingly.

Nearest GPU rivals illustrate the Arc B370's positioning: it scores 1184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, which is 0.2% behind the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186), 0.5% behind the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190), and 0.7% behind the AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192). It sits 1.4% ahead of the AMD FirePro M2000 (1168). These are all legacy or low-end parts, confirming that the Arc B370 operates in a performance tier far below what the i7-14700KF can feed.

For Minimum specifically, the combo rank suggests that players with this pairing are leaving significant performance on the table. The CPU's capabilities—evidenced by its 4452 Cinebench R15 multi-core score and 628 single-core score—cannot compensate for GPU limitations. The measured FPS data shows that even the best-case scenario (1080p Low at 85 FPS) does not approach the high refresh rates that the CPU could theoretically support with a more capable GPU.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is an integrated graphics solution based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on Intel's 3nm process node. Its base clock runs at 300 MHz with a boost reaching 2400 MHz, and it draws just 25W TDP. The GPU features 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 render output units, with 10 ray tracing cores. Its pixel rate is 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate is 96.00 GTexel/s, while FP32 compute reaches 6.144 TFLOPS.

Memory is entirely system-shared, with no dedicated VRAM. The memory clock is listed as "System Shared" and bandwidth as "System Dependent," meaning performance scales with the host system's RAM configuration. This architecture choice impacts Minimum's performance because the game must share memory bandwidth with the CPU, potentially causing bottlenecks in texture-heavy scenes.

The GPU's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs, confirming its entry-level positioning. Its nearest rivals—all ATI/AMD parts from a previous era—show that the Arc B370 competes with hardware from 2010-2012, which explains the measured FPS results in Minimum despite the game's age.

The DirectX 12 Ultimate support and Vulkan 1.4 compatibility are modern features, but Minimum's 2014 release date means it likely uses older DirectX paths that may not fully leverage these capabilities. The 12_2 feature level suggests hardware-level ray tracing support, though a 2014 title with 10 RT cores at this performance tier would see negligible benefit.

The GPU's boost clock of 2400 MHz is relatively high for an integrated part, but the low base clock of 300 MHz indicates power management is aggressive. The "IGP" slot width and "None" power connectors confirm this is not a discrete card, and the "Portable Device Dependent" display outputs suggest it may target mobile or compact systems despite being paired with a desktop-class CPU in this test configuration.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo achieve 60 FPS in Minimum at 1080p?

A: Only at Low settings, where the measured average is 85 FPS. Medium settings drop to 65 FPS, which is still above 60, but High and Ultra fall to 55 FPS and 42 FPS respectively, so consistent 60 FPS requires Medium or lower.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in this pairing?

A: The data strongly indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. The i7-14700KF ranks in the 94th CPU percentile, while the Arc B370 ranks in the 5th GPU percentile. FPS drops steeply with resolution (85 to 30 FPS from 1080p to 4K at Low), which is characteristic of GPU-bound scenarios.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo?

A: 1080p provides the most playable results, with Medium settings delivering 65 FPS average and a minimum of 56. At 1440p, only Low settings exceed 50 FPS (55 average), while 4K is below 30 FPS even at Low, so 1080p is clearly the recommended resolution.

Q: How does the Arc B370 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B370's 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1184 is 0.2% below the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570, 0.5% below the ATI Radeon HD 5770, and 0.7% below the AMD Radeon HD 7650M, while sitting 1.4% above the AMD FirePro M2000.

Q: Does Minimum benefit from the i7-14700KF's 20 cores?

A: Given the game's 2014 release date and the CPU's strong single-core performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6235), it is unlikely that Minimum fully utilizes 20 cores. The game likely depends more on single-thread performance, where this CPU excels.

Q: What frame rates can be expected at 1440p Medium?

A: The measured data shows 42 FPS average with a minimum of 36 and maximum of 48. This is playable but not smooth by modern standards, and the 12 FPS spread between minimum and maximum indicates some frame pacing variability.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its best results. Low settings achieve 85 FPS average, Medium reaches 65 FPS with a 56-75 range, High hits 55 FPS, and Ultra drops to 42 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 43 FPS total spread, with the largest single-step drop occurring between Medium and High (10 FPS).

At 2560x1440, performance scales down noticeably. Low settings average 55 FPS, Medium averages 42 FPS with a 36-48 range, High averages 35 FPS, and Ultra averages 27 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 28 FPS, and notably, 1440p Low matches 1080p High at 55 FPS, illustrating the resolution-versus-settings trade-off.

At 3840x2160, the results fall below playable thresholds for most titles. Low settings average 30 FPS, Medium averages 23 FPS with a 19-26 range, High averages 19 FPS, and Ultra averages 15 FPS. The 4K data shows that even the lowest settings cannot maintain 30 FPS consistently, as the Medium preset's minimum of 19 FPS indicates significant dips.

The only recorded minimum and maximum values appear in the Medium presets: 56-75 at 1080p, 36-48 at 1440p, and 19-26 at 4K. These ranges provide insight into frame pacing, with the 1080p Medium results showing a 19 FPS spread, which is relatively tight and suggests consistent performance. The 4K Medium spread of 7 FPS is narrower but at an unusable performance level.

Across all resolutions, the delta between Low and Ultra settings is consistent: 43 FPS at 1080p, 28 FPS at 1440p, and 15 FPS at 4K. This diminishing absolute difference at higher resolutions further confirms the GPU bottleneck—when pixel count rises, the GPU cannot deliver frame rate improvements from reduced settings as effectively.