Outriders

The AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX is a 16-core, 32-thread mobile processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. In the context of Outriders, a looter shooter, this high core count is not necessarily the primary driver of frame rate; rather, it provides ample headroom for background tasks, streaming, and the game's internal logic. The CPU's multi-threaded capabilities are substantial, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42713, but the game's performance at lower resolutions suggests a complex interplay between the CPU and the GPU.

Looking at the 1080p results, the CPU's strength becomes apparent when considering the jump from Low to Medium settings. At 1080p Low, the system achieves an average of 241 FPS, which is exceptionally high. This indicates that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU with enough data to reach frame rates that are likely beyond the refresh rate of most displays. However, the score of 241 FPS is a hard ceiling for this combination at these settings, suggesting that while the CPU is powerful, it is not an unlimited resource. The data shows a clear progression where the CPU's single-thread performance, as indicated by its Cinebench R23 score of 6030, is more than sufficient for the game's engine, but the overall system performance is still bounded by the software's ability to utilize the hardware.

The Ryzen 9 8945HX ranks in the 95th percentile among all CPUs according to its average benchmark score. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX, is virtually identical in performance with a delta of only 0.1%. This suggests that for Outriders, the choice between these top-tier mobile processors would have a negligible impact on the final frame rate, as they provide a similar level of computational throughput. The CPU's L3 cache of 64 MB also helps in keeping frequently accessed game data close at hand, reducing latency and contributing to the high frame rates observed in the benchmark results.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of how the different quality presets affect performance. For players targeting the highest possible frame rates at 1080p, the Low preset delivers an average of 241 FPS. This is the best option for competitive play or for users with high-refresh-rate monitors, as it provides the smoothest experience. However, this comes at the cost of visual fidelity, which may not be acceptable for all players.

The Medium preset at 1080p offers a balanced compromise, with an average of 178 FPS and a minimum of 151 FPS. This ensures a consistent experience that is still well above the 144 FPS threshold, making it a strong recommendation for most users. The High preset at 1080p drops to 134 FPS average, which is still playable but begins to show the GPU's workload. The Ultra preset, while visually impressive, reduces the average to 97 FPS, which is a significant step down and may not be worth the performance hit for the marginal visual gains in a fast-paced game.

Moving to 1440p, the Low preset still provides an excellent 155 FPS average, making it a viable option for high-refresh-rate gaming at this resolution. The Medium preset at 1440p yields 112 FPS, which is very good, and the High preset gives 84 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1440p is the first point where performance becomes a concern, with an average of 61 FPS. For 4K gaming, the Low preset is the only one that provides a comfortably playable experience at 81 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K drops to 59 FPS, and the High and Ultra presets fall to 44 FPS and 32 FPS respectively, which are not ideal for a smooth experience.

Given the data, the best experience for most users is the Medium preset at 1080p or 1440p. It offers a high average frame rate with a minimum that stays above 95 FPS, ensuring that there are no major hitches or stutters. The data shows a clear trade-off: each step up in quality from Medium to High represents a roughly 25% drop in performance, while the jump from Low to Medium costs about 26% of the frame rate. The Medium preset appears to be the sweet spot, providing a significant visual upgrade over Low while retaining a substantial performance advantage over High.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate achievable with this hardware?

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 241 at 1920x1080 with the Low settings preset.

Q: How does the 4K Ultra experience compare to 1080p Low?

A: The 4K Ultra preset delivers an average of 32 FPS, while 1080p Low delivers 241 FPS. This is a 209 FPS difference, illustrating the massive performance cost of running at the highest resolution and quality settings.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p Medium?

A: At 1080p Medium, the system achieves 178 FPS. Given that the CPU is a 95th percentile processor and the GPU is an 81st percentile component, the high frame rate indicates that neither is severely bottlenecked, but the GPU is likely the primary constraint as settings increase.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 1440p?

A: The minimum FPS recorded for the Medium preset at 2560x1440 is 96 FPS.

Q: How does this CPU compare to its closest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX?

A: The AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX has an average benchmark score of 76212, while the Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX has a score of 76155, resulting in a negligible 0.1% difference in favor of the AMD processor.

Q: What is the performance difference between the High and Ultra presets at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset averages 84 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 61 FPS. This represents a 23 FPS drop when moving from High to Ultra settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 ranks 1412 out of 2913 tested combos for Outriders. This places it in the top half of all possible system configurations, indicating a solid but not top-tier performance level. The rank is particularly telling because it shows that while the individual components are powerful, the overall system performance is not at the absolute peak, likely due to the constraints of the mobile platform and the specific demands of the game.

The CPU's 95th percentile ranking among all processors is not fully reflected in the final combo ranking, which sits at roughly the 48th percentile (1412/2913). This discrepancy highlights that the GPU, while capable, is the more limiting factor in this pairing. The RTX 4070's 81st percentile ranking supports this, showing that it is a good GPU but not the absolute best available. The combo's rank suggests that users with this setup will have a very good experience, but they will not be at the very top of the performance charts. The delta between the CPU's high standing and the combo's mid-pack position indicates that upgrading the GPU would yield more significant gains than upgrading the CPU for this specific game.

When looking at the nearest rivals for the GPU, the performance is tightly clustered. The RTX 4070's average score of 37648 is only 0.1% higher than the NVIDIA Tesla P4 and 0.4% higher than the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56. This shows that in general compute tasks, the RTX 4070 is on par with these very different cards. However, in Outriders, the specific features of the RTX 4070, such as its Ada Lovelace architecture and 12 GB of VRAM, likely play a more significant role than the raw average score suggests. The combo's rank of 1412 indicates that it is a balanced system, but not one that dominates the leaderboards.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 is the graphics workhorse in this configuration. It is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture and features 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. The GPU has a base clock of 1920 MHz and a boost clock of 2475 MHz. These specifications are crucial for Outriders, as the game's visual effects, such as particle systems and lighting, place a significant load on the graphics processor.

The data from the measured FPS shows that the GPU is the primary driver of performance differences between settings. At 1080p, the jump from Medium to High results in a 44 FPS drop, and from High to Ultra, a further 37 FPS drop. This scaling is typical of a GPU-bound scenario, where the render resolution and quality settings directly impact the frame rate. The 12 GB of VRAM is likely sufficient for the game at all tested settings and resolutions, as no min FPS data suggests a lack of memory causing stutters. The GPU's 81st percentile ranking among all GPUs confirms that it is a strong performer, but not the highest tier.

The RTX 4070's performance in Outriders is further contextualized by its benchmark scores. It achieves a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3854 and a Passmark G3D score of 26927. These synthetic tests align with the game's results, showing that the GPU is a capable mid-to-high-range part. The GPU's nearest rivals, such as the RTX 4080 Mobile with a score of 38135, show that the RTX 4070 is only 1.3% slower, which is a small margin. This indicates that for Outriders, the RTX 4070 provides performance close to its higher-tier mobile sibling, though the specific game optimizations can skew results.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system demonstrates its peak performance. With the Low preset, the average FPS is 241. The Medium preset yields an average of 178 FPS, with a minimum of 151 and a maximum of 205. The High preset averages 134 FPS. The Ultra preset drops the average to 97 FPS. This data shows a clear linear scaling, with each preset level reducing the average FPS by a significant margin.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance drops accordingly. The Low preset averages 155 FPS. The Medium preset averages 112 FPS, with a minimum of 96 and a maximum of 129. The High preset averages 84 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 61 FPS. The relative performance gap between presets remains consistent, though the absolute numbers are lower than at 1080p.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is heavily taxed. The Low preset averages 81 FPS, which is the only playable option at this resolution. The Medium preset averages 59 FPS, with a minimum of 50 and a maximum of 68. The High preset averages 44 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 32 FPS. The data shows that at 4K, the system is firmly GPU-limited, as even a drop to Low settings cannot push the average beyond 81 FPS.

The data reveals that for the Medium preset, which is the only one with min and max FPS data, the range between the minimum and maximum is fairly tight. At 1080p, the range is 54 FPS (151-205), at 1440p it is 33 FPS (96-129), and at 4K it is 18 FPS (50-68). This suggests that as the resolution increases, the frame times become more consistent, likely because the GPU is working closer to its full capacity and is less susceptible to brief CPU-related spikes or drops.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial and reveals the limiting component. At the Low preset, the average FPS drops from 241 at 1080p to 155 at 1440p, a 35.7% decrease, and then to 81 at 4K, a further 47.7% decrease from the 1440p number. This steep decline is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, as the rendering workload increases exponentially with pixel count.

For the Medium preset, the scaling is similar. At 1080p, the average is 178 FPS. At 1440p, it drops to 112 FPS, a 37.1% reduction. At 4K, it falls to 59 FPS, a 47.3% reduction from 1440p. This consistent pattern across different presets indicates that the GPU is the primary bottleneck when moving to higher resolutions. The CPU's role becomes less significant as the resolution increases, as it can easily feed the GPU with draw calls and game state data without being a limiting factor.

The data shows that the scaling from 1440p to 4K is more severe than from 1080p to 1440p. This is expected, as 4K has 2.25 times the pixels of 1440p, while 1440p has 1.78 times the pixels of 1080p. The GPU's memory bandwidth and pixel fill rate are the key constraints here. The RTX 4070's 504.2 GB/s bandwidth and 158.4 GPixel/s pixel rate are being pushed to their limits at 4K High and Ultra settings, resulting in the low average FPS of 44 and 32 respectively. The CPU, with its high single-thread performance of 6030 in Cinebench R23, is not the limiting factor at these resolutions. If it were, we would see a more pronounced difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 4K, but the data shows a consistent drop across all settings, confirming that the GPU is the dominant constraint at 4K.