Red Dead Redemption 2

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 pairing delivers a solid 1080p and 1440p experience in Red Dead Redemption 2, but the data shows a sharp decline at 4K, particularly at higher settings. This analysis breaks down the CPU and GPU contributions, contextualizes the combo's overall rank, and answers common questions based on measured performance.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X is an 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, codenamed Raphael, and built on a 5 nm process by TSMC. It has a base clock of 4.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, with a 105 W TDP. The processor features a total of 32 MB of shared L3 cache and 1 MB of L2 cache per core, and it supports DDR5 memory on the AMD Socket AM5 platform. Its benchmark scores are substantial, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core result of 30325 and a single-core result of 4281, alongside a Geekbench multi-core score of 15538 and a single-core score of 2985. The processor also achieves a 3DMark 16-thread score of 8859 and an 8-thread score of 7057, indicating strong scaling across core counts.

In Red Dead Redemption 2, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and manage the game's simulation logic. The 7700X's high single-thread performance, evidenced by its Passmark single-thread score of 4190, is critical for maintaining high framerates, as the game's engine is not infinitely scalable across cores. The data shows that at 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 123.4 FPS, which is the highest measured average across all resolutions. This suggests that at lower resolutions and settings, the CPU is capable of driving the frame rate to high levels, though the GPU still plays a significant role. The processor's 3DMark 2-thread score of 2112 also highlights its strong dual-core performance, which is relevant for older or less-threaded game engines. The 7700X's benchmark average score of 34313 places it in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, and it is closely matched with rivals like the Intel Core i5-13500, which has an average score of 34175 and a deltaPct of 0.4. This indicates that the 7700X is not a bottleneck in most scenarios, but the performance ceiling in this game is often set by the graphics card, especially at higher resolutions and settings.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 is based on the Ampere architecture and features the GA104 chip, manufactured on an 8 nm process by Samsung. It has 5888 shading units, 184 texture mapping units, and 96 raster operation units, along with 46 ray tracing cores and 184 tensor cores. The GPU has a base clock of 1500 MHz and a boost clock of 1725 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). It is equipped with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. The RTX 3070 has a TDP of 220 W and offers a FP32 performance of 20.31 TFLOPS. Its Passmark G3D score is 22214, and it achieves a Geekbench OpenCL score of 123479 and a Vulkan score of 120664. The GPU is in the 72nd percentile of all GPUs, with its average benchmark score of 28238 being close to that of the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT, which has a score of 27985 and a deltaPct of 0.9.

In Red Dead Redemption 2, the GPU is the primary driver of performance at higher resolutions and settings. The measured frames per second (FPS) data shows a clear trend: at 1080p High, the combo hits 78.5 FPS, but at 1440p High, it drops to 61 FPS, and at 4K High, it falls to 36 FPS. This indicates that the RTX 3070's 8 GB of VRAM and memory bandwidth are sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but at 4K with High settings, the GPU becomes the limiting factor. The performance hit is even more pronounced at Ultra settings, where 4K yields only 27.5 FPS, while 1080p Ultra delivers 58.7 FPS. The GPU's boost clock of 1725 MHz and its 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are not enough to maintain playable framerates at 4K with maximum settings. The data suggests that for a smooth 4K experience, users would need to lower settings to Medium (48.4 FPS) or Low (61.1 FPS), which are more playable but still below the 60 FPS threshold. The GPU's performance relative to its nearest rivals, such as the AMD FirePro S7150, which has a deltaPct of -0.6, shows that the RTX 3070 is a mid-to-high-range card that excels at 1080p and 1440p but struggles at 4K in this demanding title.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 ranks 769th out of 1687 tested combos in Red Dead Redemption 2. This places it in the middle of the pack, which is consistent with the individual performance of the components. The CPU is in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, and the GPU is in the 72nd percentile, so the combo's overall rank is dragged down by the GPU's limitations at higher resolutions. In practical terms, this means that while the CPU is capable of supporting higher-end graphics cards, the RTX 3070 holds the combo back from reaching the top tiers. The data shows that the combo performs best at 1080p, where it can achieve 123.4 FPS on Low settings and 78.5 FPS on High, which are above the 60 FPS target. At 1440p, it still manages 61 FPS on High, which is playable, but it drops to 41.4 FPS on Ultra. The combo's rank reflects this: it is a capable 1080p and 1440p performer but not a 4K powerhouse. The nearest rival GPUs, such as the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT, have similar average scores, but the RTX 3070's performance in this specific game is what determines its rank. The combo's position in the middle of the pack suggests that it is a balanced build for mainstream gaming, but users seeking higher framerates at 4K would need to look at more powerful GPUs.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings for this combo to achieve 60 FPS?

A: At 1440p with High settings, the combo achieves 61 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS target. At 1080p, High settings yield 78.5 FPS, and Medium settings produce 95.1 FPS, providing a comfortable margin above 60 FPS.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K with Ultra settings?

A: At 4K with Ultra settings, the combo achieves an average of 27.5 FPS, which is not playable for a smooth experience. Lowering to Medium settings at 4K brings the average to 48.4 FPS, and Low settings yield 61.1 FPS.

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

A: At 1080p, the GPU is still the primary limiting factor, but the CPU is not far behind. The 7700X's strong single-thread performance (Passmark score of 4190) allows it to keep up, but the RTX 3070's 8 GB VRAM and bandwidth become a constraint at higher settings, as seen in the drop from 123.4 FPS on Low to 58.7 FPS on Ultra.

Q: How does the RTX 3070 compare to its closest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT?

A: The RTX 3070 has an average benchmark score of 28238, while the RX 6600 XT has a score of 27985, a deltaPct of 0.9. This means the RTX 3070 is slightly ahead in overall benchmarks, but the difference is minimal, and in-game performance may vary.

Q: What is the CPU's benchmark percentile and what does it mean?

A: The Ryzen 7 7700X is in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, meaning it outperforms 89% of tested processors. Its average benchmark score of 34313 is very close to that of the Intel Core i5-13500, which has a deltaPct of 0.4, indicating they are nearly equal in performance.

Q: Does the combo support ray tracing in this game?

A: The RTX 3070 has 46 ray tracing cores and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, which includes ray tracing features. However, the measured FPS data in the fact pack does not specify whether ray tracing was enabled, so its impact on performance cannot be quantified from this data.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and consistent drop as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K, which is typical for a GPU-bound title like Red Dead Redemption 2. At High settings, the average FPS decreases from 78.5 at 1080p to 61 at 1440p (a 22.3% drop) and then to 36 at 4K (a 41% drop from 1440p). This steep decline indicates that the RTX 3070's computational power and memory bandwidth are the primary constraints at higher resolutions. The CPU's performance is less of a factor, as the 7700X can handle the increased workload without significant impact, given its high multi-threaded scores (Cinebench R23 multi-core of 30325). The pattern is similar at other settings: at Low settings, FPS drops from 123.4 at 1080p to 93.2 at 1440p and then to 61.1 at 4K; at Medium, it goes from 95.1 to 68 to 48.4; and at Ultra, it falls from 58.7 to 41.4 to 27.5. This scaling behavior confirms that the GPU is the limiting component, as the relative performance drop is larger when moving from 1440p to 4K than from 1080p to 1440p, which is characteristic of a card approaching its memory and bandwidth limits. The data suggests that for a consistent 60 FPS experience, users should target 1440p High or 1080p Ultra, while 4K is only viable at Low settings, where the average FPS of 61.1 is just above the target. This makes the combo a strong 1080p and 1440p performer, but not a 4K-capable one for this game.