Palworld

Palworld pairs a 20-core Intel Core i7-14700K with a 4 GB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650, and the benchmark results show a system that is heavily constrained by the graphics card. The CPU is a top-tier performer, sitting in the 96th percentile of all tested processors, while the GPU lands in the 43rd percentile. This mismatch is visible across every resolution and settings preset in the measured data, with the frame rate collapsing at higher graphical loads. The data indicates that this combo is only viable for low-to-medium settings at 1080p, and even then, it struggles to maintain high refresh rates.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep, confirming that the GTX 1650 is the primary bottleneck. At Low settings, the average FPS falls from 71.3 at 1920x1080 to 47.7 at 2560x1440, a reduction of roughly 33%. Moving to 3840x2160 at Low settings yields just 25.7 FPS, which is a 64% decrease from the 1080p result. This scaling pattern is typical of a GPU that has run out of pixel throughput and memory bandwidth, not a CPU limitation.

At High settings, the trend is even more pronounced. The system manages 44.4 FPS at 1080p, but this drops to 31.4 FPS at 1440p and a nearly unplayable 15.9 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, producing 32.2 FPS at 1080p, 24.3 FPS at 1440p, and a dismal 9.5 FPS at 4K. The gap between Low and Ultra at the same resolution widens as resolution increases, indicating that the GPU’s 4 GB VRAM and 128.1 GB/s bandwidth are saturated long before the CPU’s capabilities are ever challenged.

The data suggests that 4K gaming is out of the question for this pairing, regardless of settings. Even the best 4K result (Low, 25.7 FPS) falls short of playable thresholds. At 1440p, only the Low preset approaches a playable experience at 47.7 FPS, while Medium and High hover in the 30-40 FPS range. The limiting component is unequivocally the GPU, as the i7-14700K’s frame generation potential is far beyond what the GTX 1650 can feed.

How This Combo Ranks

In Palworld, this specific CPU-GPU combination ranks 1673 out of 1718 tested combos. That places it in the bottom 2.6% of all pairings, which is a poor result for a system built around a high-end 20-core processor. The rank is driven almost entirely by the GPU’s low average benchmark score of 8713, which sits below the 43rd percentile of all graphics cards. The CPU’s average benchmark score of 70074 is excellent, but it cannot compensate for the GPU’s lack of rasterization power.

The combo’s rank is worse than the individual components might suggest. The GTX 1650’s nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA Quadro P2200 and AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100, have nearly identical average scores (8671 and 8761, respectively), with deltaPct values of 0.5 and -0.5. This means the GPU is performing exactly as expected for its class, but that class is simply too weak for modern survival games like Palworld at higher settings. The CPU’s nearest rivals, including the Intel Core i7-14700KF and AMD Ryzen 9 9950X, are within 0.5% of its score, confirming that the processor is not the weak link.

Benchmark results indicate that this combo is best suited for older titles or esports games, not for a demanding survival title with large open worlds. In Palworld, the rank reflects the reality that the GPU is holding back the entire system, making the high-end CPU a wasted investment for this specific game.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 is built on the Turing architecture with a TU117 chip, manufactured on a 12 nm process at TSMC. It features 896 shading units, 56 texture mapping units, and 32 raster output units, with a base clock of 1485 MHz and a boost clock of 1665 MHz. The memory configuration is 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 128.1 GB/s of bandwidth. These specs produce a pixel rate of 53.28 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 93.24 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance at 2.984 TFLOPS.

In Palworld, the GPU’s VRAM capacity is a critical constraint. The 4 GB frame buffer is insufficient for high-resolution textures, which explains why the Ultra preset at 4K manages only 9.5 FPS. The measured data shows that dropping from High to Medium at 1080p improves performance from 44.4 FPS to 60.2 FPS, a 36% gain that indicates the GPU is bandwidth-limited. At 1440p, the same settings change yields 31.4 to 41.9 FPS, a similar proportional improvement.

The GPU’s 75 W TDP and lack of power connectors make it a low-power part, but that does not help in this context. The boost clock of 1665 MHz is modest, and the 2.984 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is far below what modern games require for smooth frame rates. The passmark G3D score of 7880 and the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 305 confirm the GPU’s low standing, placing it in the 43rd percentile of all GPUs. For Palworld, the GTX 1650 is the definitive bottleneck, and its performance cannot be improved through CPU overclocking or settings that do not reduce the GPU load.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance for optimal settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 71.3 FPS, which is the only setting that approaches high refresh rates. Medium yields 60.2 FPS, which is still playable for most users, while High drops to 44.4 FPS and Ultra falls to 32.2 FPS. For a smooth experience, Low or Medium at 1080p is recommended, with Medium offering a better visual balance at a 60 FPS target.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset is the only viable option, producing 47.7 FPS. Medium drops to 41.9 FPS, High to 31.4 FPS, and Ultra to 24.3 FPS, all of which are below the ideal 60 FPS threshold. Users with a 1440p monitor should stick to Low settings and accept a slightly lower frame rate, or they can reduce the resolution to 1080p for a better experience.

At 3840x2160, no preset is playable. The best result is Low at 25.7 FPS, which is borderline, and Ultra at 9.5 FPS is a slideshow. The data suggests avoiding 4K entirely with this GPU. The best experience per the measured rows is Low or Medium at 1080p, where the frame rate stays above 60 FPS. High settings at 1080p are acceptable if the user prioritizes visuals over smoothness, but Ultra should be avoided due to the significant FPS drop.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Palworld at 1080p with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, at Low settings the average FPS is 71.3, and at Medium it is 60.2. High settings drop to 44.4 FPS, which is still playable but not smooth. Ultra is not recommended at 32.2 FPS.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-14700K bottlenecking the GTX 1650 in this game?

A: No. The CPU is in the 96th percentile of all processors with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44534, while the GPU is in the 43rd percentile. The frame rate drops are consistent with GPU limitations, not CPU constraints.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Palworld?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the system exceeds 60 FPS, and only at Low or Medium settings. At 1440p, the best result is 47.7 FPS on Low, and at 4K, the best is 25.7 FPS on Low.

Q: How does the GTX 1650 compare to its nearest rivals in terms of average score?

A: The GTX 1650 has an average benchmark score of 8713. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile, scores 8746 with a deltaPct of -0.4, indicating nearly identical performance. The AMD Radeon 550X scores 8749, also within 0.4%.

Q: Does the 4 GB VRAM affect Palworld performance?

A: Yes, the 4 GB memory capacity is insufficient for higher settings. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 9.5 FPS, and the large gap between Low and Medium at all resolutions suggests the GPU is running out of memory bandwidth and capacity.

Q: Is this combo ranked well among other tested configurations?

A: No, it ranks 1673 out of 1718 combos in Palworld. This places it in the bottom 2.6% of all tested pairings, reflecting the GPU’s low performance relative to the CPU.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700K is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, manufactured on Intel’s 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, with 33 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU’s benchmark scores are exceptional: a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44534 and a single-core score of 6287, placing it in the 96th percentile of all CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 70074 is within 0.5% of the Intel Core i7-14700KF and AMD Ryzen 9 9950X, confirming its high-end status.

In Palworld, however, the CPU’s role is minimal because the game is not CPU-bound at these settings. The measured FPS at all resolutions shows a clear GPU limitation, with the frame rate dropping by over 50% when going from Low to Ultra at the same resolution. For example, at 1080p, the CPU can easily generate frames, but the GPU cannot render them, resulting in 71.3 FPS at Low versus 32.2 FPS at Ultra. The i7-14700K’s 20 cores and 28 threads are far more than Palworld requires, and the game does not utilize the CPU’s full potential.

The CPU’s 4.5 GHz+ boost clock and large cache do not translate to higher FPS in this pairing because the GTX 1650 is the limiting factor. The data shows that reducing the resolution from 1440p to 1080p at the same settings improves FPS by roughly 40-50%, which is a classic GPU-bound behavior. The CPU is effectively idle, waiting for the GPU to deliver frames. For users with this combo, the CPU is not a concern; the GPU must be upgraded to see any meaningful performance gains in Palworld.