Minimum

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data for this Intel Core i9-14900K + AMD Radeon RX 570 combination reveals a steep and consistent performance cliff as resolution climbs. At 1080p Low, the system delivers 82.9 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 50.8 FPS, a reduction of roughly 39%. Pushing further to 4K Low yields just 27.2 FPS — a 67% drop from the 1080p baseline. This scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, where the rendering workload grows faster than the frame rate can follow.

The trend is even more pronounced at higher settings. At 1080p Ultra, the combo produces 38.9 FPS; at 1440p Ultra it falls to 27.9 FPS; at 4K Ultra it collapses to 15.2 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at each resolution is telling: at 1080p the difference is 44 FPS (82.9 vs 38.9), but at 4K it narrows to just 12 FPS (27.2 vs 15.2). This compression suggests that at 4K, even the lowest settings cannot escape the GPU's fundamental throughput ceiling. The CPU, with its 24 cores and 6.00 GHz boost clock, is almost certainly not the constraint here; the data points to the RX 570's 4 GB VRAM and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth as the primary bottlenecks at higher resolutions.

What does this imply for gameplay? At 1080p, the combo is playable across most settings, with Medium hitting 62.7 FPS and High reaching 50.6 FPS. At 1440p, only Low (50.8 FPS) and Medium (38 FPS) approach playable territory. At 4K, every measured setting falls well below 30 FPS, making the experience marginal at best. The scaling curve is linear enough to suggest that the GPU is the limiting component throughout, but the severity of the 4K collapse indicates a hard memory or fill-rate wall rather than a gradual degradation.

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

The Intel Core i9-14900K is an extreme processor by any measure. It packs 24 cores and 32 threads, with a base clock of 3.20 GHz and a boost clock of 6.00 GHz. Its 36 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB per-core L2 cache provide ample headroom for demanding workloads. In synthetic benchmarks, it scores 49,872 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 7,040 in single-core, placing it in the 97th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals — the AMD EPYC 7413, Intel Core i9-14900KF, and Intel Core Ultra 7 265KF — are all within 0.9% of its average benchmark score, confirming it sits at the very top of the CPU hierarchy.

Yet in this game, the CPU's raw power appears almost entirely untapped. The FPS data shows no sign of CPU limitation: at 1080p Low, the system hits 82.9 FPS, but at 1080p Ultra it drops to 38.9 FPS — a pattern driven by GPU settings, not core count. The game, released in 2014, was designed for CPUs with far fewer cores. The i9-14900K's 24 cores and 32 threads are likely overkill for a title that probably scales to a handful of threads at most. The 6.00 GHz boost clock ensures that even single-threaded game logic runs at maximum speed, but the data suggests that frame rates are dictated by the GPU's pixel-pushing ability, not the CPU's instruction throughput.

The benchmark percentile (97 vs all CPUs) and the tight deltaPct values against rivals (all within 0.9%) indicate that swapping the i9-14900K for any similar-tier processor would produce negligible FPS changes in this game. The CPU's role here is to stay out of the way, and with a 6.00 GHz boost clock and 3.20 GHz base, it does exactly that. Even at 4K Ultra, where the GPU is clearly struggling at 15.2 FPS, the CPU is not the bottleneck — the RX 570's 5.095 TFLOPS FP32 throughput and 32 ROPs are simply insufficient for that workload.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Radeon RX 570 is the clear limiting factor in this combination. Built on the Polaris 20 chip with GCN 4.0 architecture and a 14 nm process, it features 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. Its base clock is 1168 MHz, boosting to 1244 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective) across a 256-bit bus, yielding 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The 4 GB GDDR5 frame buffer is modest by modern standards, and this game's settings likely push against that capacity at higher resolutions.

The benchmark scores reflect the GPU's mid-range positioning. It achieves 880 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, 44,915 in Geekbench Metal, and 42,752 in Geekbench Vulkan. Its average benchmark score of 30,158 places it in the 74th percentile of all GPUs, with nearest rivals — the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT, NVIDIA Tesla M60, and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile — all within 0.8% in average score. This clustering suggests the RX 570 is performance-equivalent to those cards in synthetic tests, yet the measured FPS data tells a different story for this specific game.

The 4 GB VRAM is likely the critical constraint. At 1080p Low, the GPU can feed frames at 82.9 FPS, but as texture detail and resolution increase, the memory bandwidth and capacity become saturated. At 4K High, the 18.5 FPS result is barely above a slideshow, and 4K Ultra at 15.2 FPS is unplayable. The 224.0 GB/s bandwidth, while adequate for 1080p, cannot sustain the data throughput required for 4K rendering. The pixel rate of 39.81 GPixel/s and texture rate of 159.2 GTexel/s further cap the GPU's ability to fill high-resolution frames. In short, the RX 570 is a capable 1080p card, but the data shows it is out of its depth at 1440p and completely overwhelmed at 4K.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution. At 1080p, the Medium preset (62.7 FPS) offers the best balance between visual quality and smoothness, staying comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold. High (50.6 FPS) is viable for those who prefer better visuals, while Low (82.9 FPS) provides maximum headroom for competitive play. Ultra (38.9 FPS) drops below 40 FPS, which may feel sluggish for a third-person shooter.

At 1440p, the choices narrow significantly. Low (50.8 FPS) is the only preset that stays above 50 FPS, making it the recommended choice for playable frame rates. Medium (38 FPS) is borderline, and High (32.2 FPS) and Ultra (27.9 FPS) are likely too choppy for smooth gameplay. The data suggests that 1440p users should stick to Low to maintain responsiveness, as the 16 FPS gap between Low and Ultra is substantial.

At 4K, no preset delivers playable performance. Low (27.2 FPS), Medium (22.9 FPS), High (18.5 FPS), and Ultra (15.2 FPS) all fall below 30 FPS, making the game essentially unplayable at this resolution with this GPU. The recommendation is clear: avoid 4K entirely with the RX 570 in this title. The 1080p Medium preset is the sweet spot, offering 62.7 FPS with a reasonable visual uplift over Low. For players prioritizing frame rate, 1080p Low at 82.9 FPS is the best option, providing a 32% improvement over Medium.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Intel Core i9-14900K and AMD Radeon RX 570 ranks 1685th out of 1733 tested combos in this game. This places it in the bottom 3% of all configurations, a surprisingly low position given the CPU's top-tier status. The rank reflects the GPU's limitations more than the CPU's strengths — the i9-14900K is in the 97th percentile of all CPUs, but the RX 570 is only in the 74th percentile of GPUs, and in this game, the GPU dominates the performance equation.

This low rank means that the vast majority of tested hardware combinations outperform this pairing. The data implies that the i9-14900K's power is wasted when paired with such a modest GPU for this particular title. Users with this combo would see dramatically better results by upgrading the GPU, as the CPU has enormous headroom to feed a more capable graphics card. The rank also suggests that this is not a balanced pairing — the CPU is overkill for the GPU's capabilities, and the game's FPS numbers reflect that imbalance. For context, the CPU's nearest rivals all score within 0.9% of its average, meaning the CPU choice is not the differentiator here; the GPU is what drags the combo down to the 1685th spot.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

1080p (1920x1080):

• Low: 82.9 FPS
• Medium: 62.7 FPS
• High: 50.6 FPS
• Ultra: 38.9 FPS

1440p (2560x1440):

• Low: 50.8 FPS
• Medium: 38 FPS
• High: 32.2 FPS
• Ultra: 27.9 FPS

4K (3840x2160):

• Low: 27.2 FPS
• Medium: 22.9 FPS
• High: 18.5 FPS
• Ultra: 15.2 FPS

The data shows a clear pattern: at every resolution, lowering settings from Ultra to Low provides a substantial FPS boost. At 1080p, the jump from Ultra to Low is 44 FPS (from 38.9 to 82.9). At 1440p, the same jump yields 22.9 FPS (from 27.9 to 50.8). At 4K, the improvement is 12 FPS (from 15.2 to 27.2). The diminishing returns at higher resolutions underscore the GPU's memory and bandwidth constraints. The 1080p Low result of 82.9 FPS is the only measurement that approaches high-refresh-rate territory, while the 4K Ultra result of 15.2 FPS is the worst-case scenario.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo playable at 1080p?

A: Yes, at 1080p Medium the combo delivers 62.7 FPS, and at Low it reaches 82.9 FPS. High is also playable at 50.6 FPS, but Ultra drops to 38.9 FPS.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in this title?

A: No. The best 4K result is Low at 27.2 FPS, which is below the 30 FPS threshold. Ultra at 4K yields only 15.2 FPS, making it unplayable.

Q: What is the limiting component in this configuration?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 570, with its 4 GB VRAM and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth, is the bottleneck. The Intel Core i9-14900K's 24 cores and 6.00 GHz boost clock provide far more capability than the GPU can utilize.

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

A: It ranks 1685th out of 1733 combos, placing it in the bottom 3% of all tested configurations for this game.

Q: What is the best settings preset for this combo?

A: At 1080p, Medium (62.7 FPS) is the best balance. At 1440p, Low (50.8 FPS) is recommended. At 4K, no preset is playable.

Q: How does the RX 570 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: Its average benchmark score of 30,158 is within 0.8% of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060, AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT, NVIDIA Tesla M60, and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile, placing it in the 74th percentile of all GPUs.