Palworld

Palworld pairs the Intel Core i5-14600K with the AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT, a combination that lands at rank 2417 out of 3711 tested combos in this game. The data reveals a system that is decisively GPU-bound at higher resolutions, while the CPU’s strong multi-threading provides a solid foundation for the survival game’s simulation demands.

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

The Intel Core i5-14600K is a 14-core, 20-thread processor built on the Raptor Lake architecture, using a 10 nm process. Its base clock is 3.50 GHz, with a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. The CPU’s cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and a shared 24 MB of L3 cache. This processor supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory across a dual-channel bus, and it utilizes a PCIe Gen 5 interface with 16 lanes for the CPU. The chip also includes integrated UHD Graphics 770, though the discrete GPU handles rendering duties here.

Benchmark results place this CPU in the 90th percentile among all tested processors, with an average benchmark score of 48618. Its nearest rivals in synthetic testing are the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H (scoring 48698, a delta of -0.2%), the AMD EPYC 4345P (48470, +0.3%), the Intel Core Ultra 5 245HX (48287, +0.7%), and the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 (48995, -0.8%). These deltas are all under 1%, meaning the i5-14600K sits at the center of a tightly clustered group of high-end processors.

In multi-threaded workloads, the CPU scores 24491 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 13709 in Cinebench R20 multi-core, while single-core results reach 2064 and 1935 respectively. Geekbench scores are 16673 multi-core and 2491 single-core. PassMark multi-thread performance is 38682, with a single-thread score of 4270. The data compression score of 482020 and floating point math score of 92794 suggest strong integer and FPU throughput, which is relevant for Palworld’s world simulation, creature AI, and physics calculations that run on the CPU cores.

For Palworld specifically, the measured FPS data shows that at 1080p Low settings, the combo achieves 158 FPS, which is the highest recorded frame rate across all tested configurations. At 1080p High, it drops to 98 FPS. This scaling from Low to High at the same resolution indicates the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU efficiently, as the frame rate drops by 60 FPS (from 158 to 98) when settings increase, which is a GPU-side load change rather than a CPU bottleneck. The 14 cores and 20 threads provide ample headroom for background tasks and the game’s simulation, even if the game does not fully utilize all threads. The CPU’s high single-core boost of 5.30 GHz helps maintain consistent frame pacing in scenarios where the game’s main thread is the limiting factor.

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

The AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT is built on the RDNA 2.0 architecture using a 7 nm process at TSMC, with the Navi 23 chip containing 11,060 million transistors on a 237 mm² die. It features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering 280.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU has 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs, along with 32 ray tracing cores. Base clock is 2055 MHz, with a boost clock of 2635 MHz and a game clock of 2410 MHz. Memory runs at 2190 MHz, which translates to 17.5 Gbps effective. The card supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, and connects via PCIe 4.0 x8.

In the GPU benchmark hierarchy, this card sits at the 65th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 19765. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA Tesla K40m (19885, -0.6%), AMD FirePro D300 (19637, +0.7%), AMD FirePro W7000 (19905, -0.7%), and NVIDIA Quadro K5200 (19602, +0.8%). These deltas are similarly tight, placing the RX 6650 XT in a competitive mid-range tier. Specific scores include a PassMark G3D score of 17166 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1859. The OpenCL score is 10111, while Vulkan reaches 81306.

In Palworld, the GPU’s role becomes clear when examining the measured FPS across settings and resolutions. At 1080p Low, the GPU produces 158 FPS, but this drops to 128 FPS at Medium, 98 FPS at High, and 75 FPS at Ultra. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient at 1080p, but the bandwidth of 280.3 GB/s appears to be a limiting factor as settings increase. At 1440p, the frame rates are 104 FPS (Low), 84 FPS (Medium), 65 FPS (High), and 49 FPS (Ultra). The step from 1080p to 1440p at High settings reduces performance from 98 FPS to 65 FPS, a 33 FPS drop that suggests the GPU is struggling with the increased pixel count. At 4K, the GPU is clearly overburdened: 58 FPS at Low, 47 FPS at Medium, 36 FPS at High, and 27 FPS at Ultra. These numbers indicate that the RX 6650 XT is a capable 1080p performer, adequate for 1440p at lower settings, but not suited for 4K gaming beyond Low presets.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the best resolution to play Palworld with this combo to maintain above 60 FPS?

A: At 1080p, all settings from Low to High exceed 60 FPS, with Medium at 128 FPS and High at 98 FPS. At 1440p, only Low (104 FPS) and Medium (84 FPS) stay above 60 FPS, while High drops to 65 FPS. At 4K, no settings reach 60 FPS; the highest is Low at 58 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU’s multi-core performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The i5-14600K has an average benchmark score of 48618. Its closest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 5 245, scores 48995, which is 0.8% higher. The AMD EPYC 4345P scores 48470, 0.3% lower, and the Intel Core Ultra 5 245HX scores 48287, 0.7% lower. The Intel Xeon Gold 5318H is essentially tied at 48698, just 0.2% higher.

Q: Is the GPU’s 8 GB VRAM a bottleneck at high settings?

A: The data shows that at 1080p Ultra, the combo achieves 75 FPS, while at 1080p High it reaches 98 FPS. This 23 FPS drop suggests that the increased VRAM usage and texture detail at Ultra are taxing the GPU, though the exact VRAM allocation is not listed. At 1440p Ultra, performance falls to 49 FPS, indicating the 8 GB frame buffer and 128-bit bus are limiting at higher resolutions.

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

A: At 1440p, Low settings produce 104 FPS, while Ultra settings produce 49 FPS. This is a 55 FPS difference, representing a performance drop of approximately 53% from Low to Ultra. Medium (84 FPS) and High (65 FPS) fall between these extremes.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested systems for Palworld?

A: The combo ranks 2417 out of 3711 tested combinations, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the database. This rank reflects the GPU’s mid-range position (65th percentile) rather than the CPU’s high-end position (90th percentile), indicating the graphics card is the primary limiter.

Q: Does the CPU’s high single-thread performance help in Palworld?

A: The CPU’s single-core scores (2064 in Cinebench R23, 4270 in PassMark) are strong, and at 1080p Low the combo achieves 158 FPS, which is the highest measured result. This suggests that when the GPU is not overloaded, the CPU’s 5.30 GHz boost clock can drive high frame rates without bottlenecking.

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

At 1920x1080, the measured FPS values are as follows: Low settings produce an average of 158 FPS, Medium produces 128 FPS with a minimum of 109 and maximum of 147, High produces 98 FPS, and Ultra produces 75 FPS. This resolution shows the widest spread between Low and Ultra, with a 83 FPS difference. The Medium preset has the only reported min/max range at this resolution, indicating some frame variability even at 128 FPS average.

At 2560x1440, the FPS numbers drop significantly. Low settings average 104 FPS, Medium averages 84 FPS with a min/max of 72/97, High averages 65 FPS, and Ultra averages 49 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 55 FPS. Compared to 1080p, the same settings show reductions of 54 FPS (Low), 44 FPS (Medium), 33 FPS (High), and 26 FPS (Ultra). This pattern shows that higher settings suffer less absolute FPS loss when moving from 1080p to 1440p, but the percentage loss is similar.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is heavily taxed. Low settings average 58 FPS, Medium averages 47 FPS with a min/max of 40/54, High averages 36 FPS, and Ultra averages 27 FPS. The Ultra preset at 4K is the lowest recorded performance, at 27 FPS, which is unplayable for most users. The jump from 1440p to 4K at Low settings costs 46 FPS (from 104 to 58), while at High settings it costs 29 FPS (from 65 to 36). The Medium preset at 4K shows a tight min/max range of 40-54 FPS, suggesting the frame pacing is relatively stable even at lower averages.

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

The scaling behavior from 1080p to 4K reveals a classic GPU-bound scenario. At Low settings, performance drops from 158 FPS at 1080p to 104 FPS at 1440p (a 34% reduction) and then to 58 FPS at 4K (a 44% reduction from 1440p). This steep decline mirrors the pixel count increase: 1440p has about 1.78 times the pixels of 1080p, and 4K has 2.25 times the pixels of 1440p. The fact that FPS drops nearly proportionally to pixel count indicates the GPU’s rendering throughput is the limiting factor, not the CPU.

At High settings, the scaling is less steep in absolute terms: 98 FPS at 1080p, 65 FPS at 1440p, and 36 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 34% (1080p to 1440p) and 45% (1440p to 4K), which are similar to the Low settings pattern. This consistency across presets suggests that the GPU’s pixel processing capability, rather than memory bandwidth or VRAM capacity, is the primary constraint. The RX 6650 XT’s 280.3 GB/s bandwidth is likely sufficient for Low settings but becomes more stressed at higher detail levels, which is reflected in the larger absolute FPS drops at 4K.

The data also shows that the CPU is not a bottleneck at any resolution. At 1080p Low, the 158 FPS result is likely near the CPU’s maximum frame output for this game, but the fact that 1080p Ultra still achieves 75 FPS demonstrates that the CPU can handle the game’s simulation even when the GPU is fully occupied. If the CPU were limiting, we would expect to see similar FPS numbers across resolutions at the same settings, but the clear downward trend from 1080p to 4K indicates the GPU is the binding constraint.

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

For a 60 FPS target, the best experience at 1080p is the High preset, which delivers 98 FPS average. This provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS while offering significantly better visual quality than Medium (128 FPS) or Low (158 FPS). The Ultra preset at 75 FPS is also viable, but the 23 FPS cost over High suggests diminishing returns in visual fidelity for the performance hit. At 1440p, the Medium preset at 84 FPS is the recommended choice, as it stays well above 60 FPS while High drops to 65 FPS, which is closer to the threshold. Low at 104 FPS is playable but sacrifices too much detail for the extra frames.

At 4K, no preset achieves 60 FPS, so the recommendation is to avoid this resolution for a smooth experience. The Low preset at 58 FPS is only marginally below 60 FPS and might be acceptable for some players, but the Medium preset at 47 FPS is too choppy. If 4K is a requirement, the data suggests that the RX 6650 XT is insufficient, and users should either lower the resolution or accept sub-60 FPS performance.

Considering the min/max data available, the Medium preset at both 1080p (min 109, max 147) and 1440p (min 72, max 97) shows stable frame delivery with no extreme dips. The High and Ultra presets do not have min/max data reported, but their lower averages imply more frequent frame time spikes. For the best balance of visual quality and performance, the Medium preset at 1440p offers the most consistent experience, while 1080p High is the sweet spot for maximum detail without sacrificing smoothness.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combo of Intel Core i5-14600K and AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT ranks 2417 out of 3711 tested combinations in Palworld, placing it in the 35th percentile of all combos. This ranking is notably lower than the CPU’s individual percentile (90th) and the GPU’s percentile (65th), which indicates that the combination is hampered by the GPU’s mid-range position. The rank suggests that many other combinations with weaker CPUs but stronger GPUs outperform this setup in Palworld, as the game appears to be heavily GPU-dependent based on the resolution scaling data.

The CPU’s nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks all have similar average scores, but their in-game performance with different GPUs could vary. The fact that this combo ranks near the bottom third of all tested systems implies that the RX 6650 XT is the limiting component, and that pairing the i5-14600K with a higher-tier GPU would yield a much better rank. Conversely, the CPU’s high percentile (90th) means it is not holding back the GPU in most scenarios, as evidenced by the 158 FPS result at 1080p Low.

The rank of 2417 also indicates that Palworld’s performance requirements are moderate, and that the RX 6650 XT’s 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit bus are insufficient for the game’s higher presets at 1440p and 4K. The measured FPS data supports this, with only the 1080p presets and 1440p Low/Medium exceeding 60 FPS. For users seeking a higher rank, the data suggests that upgrading the GPU would be more impactful than upgrading the CPU, as the i5-14600K already provides strong multi-threaded performance that exceeds the needs of this title.