Outriders

# Outriders with Intel Core i7-13700K + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080

The Intel Core i7-13700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 delivers a formidable Outriders experience, with measured frame rates that range from a playable 59.4 FPS at 4K Ultra to a blistering 265.1 FPS at 1080p Low. This combo ranks 32nd out of 1,693 tested combinations, placing it in the top 2% of all systems benchmarked for this looter shooter. The data reveals a system with substantial headroom at lower resolutions, but one that still respects the demanding nature of Ultra settings at 4K, where the GPU's capabilities are stretched to their limits.

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

The Intel Core i7-13700K is a 16-core, 24-thread processor built on Intel's Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. Its 30 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4/DDR5 memory support provide ample bandwidth for feeding a high-end GPU. In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU achieves a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 39,000 and a single-core score of 5,505, with a PassMark multithread score of 45,887. Its 93rd percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates it sits comfortably in the upper echelon of processors.

In Outriders, the CPU's role becomes evident when examining frame rates at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the system produces 265.1 FPS, while at 1080p Ultra it drops to 182.1 FPS — a difference of 83 FPS that is primarily driven by GPU workload rather than CPU limitations. The processor's strong single-thread performance, evidenced by its 3DMark single-thread score of 1,136 and PassMark single-thread score of 4,333, ensures that game logic and physics calculations are handled efficiently. The 16 physical cores provide substantial headroom for background tasks and streaming, though Outriders' engine does not appear to be heavily multi-threaded based on the scaling patterns observed.

The nearest rivals for this CPU include the Intel Core i7-13700KF with an average score of 47,334 (0.1% higher) and the AMD EPYC 4364P at 47,131 (0.3% lower). These negligible differences of less than 1% suggest that the 13700K's performance profile is well-matched to its peers, with no single competitor offering a meaningful advantage in CPU-bound scenarios.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is the clear performance driver in this configuration. Built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process, this GPU features 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its boost clock of 2,617 MHz and 10,752 shading units produce a peak FP32 throughput of 56.28 TFLOPS. The GPU's 84 RT cores and 336 tensor cores provide hardware acceleration for ray tracing and DLSS features, though Outriders' measured results do not specifically isolate these workloads.

The GPU's benchmark scores reflect its high-end positioning: a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 8,637 and a PassMark G3D score of 36,565 place it in the 89th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Arc A570M (1.6% higher average score) and the Intel Arc Pro A60 (1.9% lower), though these comparisons are based on aggregate benchmarks rather than gaming-specific performance.

In Outriders, the GPU's capabilities manifest clearly in the resolution scaling pattern. At 4K Ultra, the system produces 59.4 FPS, which is exactly at the threshold of smooth gameplay. The 16 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for the game's textures at all settings, as evidenced by the consistent performance across resolutions without signs of memory-related stuttering or texture pop-in. The GPU's 960.0 GB/s memory bandwidth becomes increasingly important at higher resolutions, where the demand for texture data and geometry processing grows exponentially.

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

The measured data reveals a clear story about system bottlenecks across resolutions. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 265.1 FPS, but this drops to 152.2 FPS at 4K Low — a 42.6% reduction. This scaling pattern suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is the primary limiting factor, as the GPU has ample headroom to render frames faster than the processor can feed it. The relatively modest drop from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings (265.1 to 231.6 FPS, a 12.6% decrease) further supports this interpretation.

The picture changes dramatically at Ultra settings. At 1080p Ultra, the system produces 182.1 FPS, which drops to 110.8 FPS at 1440p (39.1% reduction) and then to 59.4 FPS at 4K (67.4% reduction from 1080p). This steep decline indicates that the GPU becomes the dominant bottleneck at higher resolutions and quality settings. The RTX 5080's raw compute power is being fully utilized at 4K Ultra, where 59.4 FPS represents the practical ceiling for this combination.

The Medium and High settings show intermediate scaling patterns. At Medium, the frame rates range from 237.6 FPS at 1080p to 111.5 FPS at 4K, while High settings span 214 to 81.5 FPS across the same resolution range. The consistent pattern across all settings — where the gap between 1080p and 1440p is smaller than the gap between 1440p and 4K — indicates that pixel throughput becomes increasingly demanding as resolution climbs, with the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth being the constraining factors at 4K.

FAQ

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

A: The highest measured average frame rate is 265.1 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This represents the system's peak output when GPU load is minimized.

Q: Can this system maintain 60 FPS at 4K Ultra settings?

A: Yes, but barely. The measured average at 3840x2160 Ultra is 59.4 FPS, which is just below the 60 FPS threshold. Players seeking a consistent 60 FPS experience should consider dropping to High settings, which yields 81.5 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Intel Core i7-13700K scores 47,282 on average, which is 0.1% lower than the Core i7-13700KF (47,334), 0.3% higher than the AMD EPYC 4364P (47,131), and 0.4% higher than the Intel Core i9-12900F (47,081). These differences are negligible in real-world gaming scenarios.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Low settings produce 231.6 FPS while Ultra settings produce 110.8 FPS. This 52.2% reduction in frame rate represents the cost of enabling all visual features.

Q: How much VRAM does the RTX 5080 have and does it matter for Outriders?

A: The RTX 5080 has 16 GB of GDDR7 memory. The measured performance shows no signs of VRAM limitation at any resolution or settings combination, indicating that 16 GB is sufficient for Outriders' memory requirements.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested systems?

A: This combination ranks 32nd out of 1,693 tested combos, placing it in the top 1.9% of all systems benchmarked for Outriders.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For 4K gaming, High settings provide the best balance, delivering 81.5 FPS — a 37.2% improvement over Ultra's 59.4 FPS while maintaining visual quality that is nearly indistinguishable in fast-paced gameplay. The jump from High to Ultra at 4K costs 22.1 FPS, which is a significant sacrifice for marginal visual gains.

At 1440p, High settings yield 157 FPS, which is well above the 144 Hz refresh rate of most gaming monitors. Ultra settings at 1440p produce 110.8 FPS, still comfortably above 100 FPS and suitable for high-refresh displays. For competitive play, Low settings at 1440p achieve 231.6 FPS, providing maximum responsiveness. The Medium preset at 1440p offers 200.3 FPS, which may be the sweet spot for players who want a balance of visual fidelity and extreme frame rates.

At 1080p, all settings produce frame rates above 180 FPS, making this resolution the domain of competitive players. Low settings at 265.1 FPS provide the absolute maximum frame rate, while Ultra at 182.1 FPS still exceeds the refresh rate of most monitors. The Medium preset at 237.6 FPS represents a strong middle ground for players with 240 Hz displays.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers 265.1 FPS on Low, 237.6 FPS on Medium, 214 FPS on High, and 182.1 FPS on Ultra. These figures show a consistent 10-15% performance drop for each tier of visual quality, with the total range spanning 83 FPS from lowest to highest settings.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates are 231.6 FPS on Low, 200.3 FPS on Medium, 157 FPS on High, and 110.8 FPS on Ultra. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at each setting tier shows reductions of 12.6% (Low), 15.7% (Medium), 26.6% (High), and 39.1% (Ultra), respectively. The increasingly larger percentage drops at higher quality settings confirm that the GPU becomes more of a bottleneck as visual complexity increases.

At 3840x2160, the measured results are 152.2 FPS on Low, 111.5 FPS on Medium, 81.5 FPS on High, and 59.4 FPS on Ultra. The transition from 1440p to 4K produces reductions of 34.3% (Low), 44.3% (Medium), 48.1% (High), and 46.4% (Ultra). The relatively consistent percentage drops across settings at this resolution indicate that the GPU is now the primary limiting factor regardless of quality level, with the 4K pixel count overwhelming the RTX 5080's capabilities.

How This Combo Ranks

This Intel Core i7-13700K + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 combination ranks 32nd out of 1,693 tested combos, placing it in the top 1.9% of all systems benchmarked for Outriders. This ranking reflects the synergy between a top-tier CPU and a high-end GPU, where neither component significantly bottlenecks the other at most resolution and settings combinations.

The CPU's 93rd percentile ranking among all processors and the GPU's 89th percentile ranking among all graphics cards suggest that this system is well-balanced, though the GPU's slightly lower percentile indicates that the CPU has more headroom relative to its peers. In Outriders specifically, the combination's strong ranking is attributable to the CPU's excellent single-thread performance (3DMark single-thread score of 1,136) complementing the GPU's massive compute throughput (56.28 TFLOPS FP32).

The data shows that this combo excels at 1080p and 1440p across all settings, with frame rates consistently above 110 FPS even at the most demanding settings. At 4K, the system remains playable at all settings, with the only sub-60 FPS result occurring at Ultra (59.4 FPS). This places the combo in an elite tier of systems capable of handling Outriders at maximum visual fidelity, while still providing ample performance headroom for players who prioritize frame rate over visual quality.