Red Dead Redemption 2

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F paired with the Intel Arc B370 produces a severely constrained gaming experience in Red Dead Redemption 2. Benchmark results show this combination ranks 2670th out of 2902 tested combos, placing it in the bottom 8% of all systems. The data reveals a configuration where the CPU’s substantial processing power is almost entirely neutralized by a GPU that operates at integrated-graphics performance levels. This analysis breaks down the measured frame rates, component roles, and practical settings for this pairing.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a predictable but steep decline as resolution increases, yet the pattern reveals more about the GPU’s limits than any CPU bottleneck. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 47 FPS average. Moving to 1440p drops that to 35 FPS, a 25.5% reduction. At 4K, the average falls to 23 FPS, which is a 51% drop from the 1080p Low result. These scaling factors are relatively modest for a game like Red Dead Redemption 2, which typically shows bigger FPS penalties at higher resolutions when the GPU has headroom.

The 4K results are particularly telling. At 4K High, the system manages only 14 FPS average. Dropping to 4K Low raises that to 23 FPS, but even that is below playable thresholds. The spread between 4K Low (23 FPS) and 4K Ultra (10 FPS) is 13 FPS, demonstrating that the GPU is the limiting component at this resolution. The CPU’s 8 cores and 16 threads are far more capable than what the Arc B370 can feed.

The scaling from Medium to High settings at each resolution shows a consistent pattern. At 1080p, Medium produces 35 FPS while High produces 29 FPS, a 17% penalty. At 1440p, the same settings drop from 26 to 22 FPS, a 15% penalty. At 4K, Medium gives 17 FPS while High gives 14 FPS, an 18% penalty. This consistency suggests the GPU’s fill rate and shading capabilities are the primary constraint across all resolutions.

The fact that 1080p Low (47 FPS) is the only measured configuration exceeding 30 FPS average indicates that this combo is only viable at the lowest settings and resolution. The 4K Ultra result of 10 FPS is essentially a slideshow, confirming that the Arc B370’s 6.144 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 20 ROPs are woefully insufficient for this game’s demands at high pixel counts.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 2670 out of 2902 places this system in the 92nd percentile from the bottom — only 232 tested combinations perform worse. This is a remarkably low position for a CPU that individually ranks in the 94th percentile among all processors. The disconnect between CPU and GPU capabilities is stark.

The Ryzen 7 9700F’s nearest rivals in CPU benchmarks include the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (0.2% ahead), Intel Core i7-14700KF (0.2% behind), AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (0.7% ahead), and Intel Core i7-14700K (0.9% ahead). All four rivals are within 1% of the 9700F’s average benchmark score of 69,996, indicating that the CPU is performing exactly as expected for its class. The bottleneck is entirely on the GPU side.

The Intel Arc B370’s nearest GPU rivals paint a dire picture. The ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 is 0.2% ahead, the ATI Radeon HD 5770 is 0.5% ahead, the AMD Radeon HD 7650M is 0.7% ahead, and the AMD FirePro M2000 is 1.4% behind. These are all legacy or low-end parts from over a decade ago. The Arc B370’s 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs, meaning 95% of tested graphics cards outperform it.

For Red Dead Redemption 2 specifically, this rank means the combo is effectively unusable for standard gaming expectations. The 1080p Medium result of 35 FPS is below the 60 FPS target most gamers consider smooth, and the 1080p High result of 29 FPS is borderline unplayable for an action-adventure title. The data suggests this system is only suitable for 1080p Low settings, and even then, the 47 FPS average leaves no headroom for demanding scenes.

FAQ

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 9700F the bottleneck in this system for Red Dead Redemption 2?

A: No. The CPU has an average benchmark score of 69,996 and ranks in the 94th percentile of all processors. Its nearest rivals are all within 1% in performance, including the Ryzen 9 7950X and Core i7-14700K. The GPU is clearly the limiting factor, as its 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1184 places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs.

Q: What is the best playable setting for this combo?

A: Based on measured results, 1080p Low is the only configuration that breaks 40 FPS, achieving 47 FPS average. The next best is 1080p Medium at 35 FPS, which has a minimum of 30 FPS. No other resolution or setting combination exceeds 35 FPS average.

Q: How does the Arc B370 perform against its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B370’s 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1184 is within 1.4% of the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186), ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190), AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192), and AMD FirePro M2000 (1168). These are all legacy parts, indicating the Arc B370 performs at a very low tier.

Q: What is the FPS difference between 1080p and 4K at Medium settings?

A: At 1080p Medium, the combo achieves 35 FPS average (30 min, 40 max). At 4K Medium, it drops to 17 FPS average (15 min, 20 max). That is a 51.4% reduction in average FPS when moving from 1080p to 4K at the same settings.

Q: Does the CPU’s 8-core/16-thread configuration help in this game?

A: The Ryzen 7 9700F has 8 cores, 16 threads, and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz, which are strong specifications for gaming. However, the measured FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2 never exceeds 47 FPS at any resolution or setting, indicating the CPU’s capabilities are never fully utilized due to GPU constraints.

Q: Can this combo run Red Dead Redemption 2 at 4K?

A: Technically yes, but not playably. The best 4K result is 23 FPS at Low settings, while High produces 14 FPS, Medium 17 FPS, and Ultra 10 FPS. All 4K configurations fall well below the 30 FPS threshold commonly considered minimum for playability.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo produces its highest frame rates. Low settings deliver 47 FPS average, which is the only measured result above 45 FPS. Medium settings drop to 35 FPS average with a minimum of 30 and maximum of 40. High settings produce 29 FPS average, and Ultra falls to 21 FPS average. The progression from Low to Ultra at 1080p shows a 55.3% performance penalty, going from 47 to 21 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the results are significantly lower. Low settings achieve 35 FPS average, which matches the 1080p Medium result. Medium settings produce 26 FPS average with a range of 22 to 30. High settings drop to 22 FPS average, and Ultra produces 16 FPS average. The 1440p results show that even the lowest settings cannot maintain 40 FPS, unlike at 1080p.

At 3840x2160, the performance becomes marginal. Low settings yield 23 FPS average, Medium produces 17 FPS average (15 min, 20 max), High drops to 14 FPS, and Ultra falls to 10 FPS. The 4K results are uniformly below 25 FPS, making this resolution impractical for any game mode. The Ultra setting at 4K produces a 10 FPS average, which is unplayable.

The minimum FPS data provided for Medium settings shows the variance across resolutions. At 1080p Medium, the minimum is 30 FPS, which matches the average of 1440p Low. At 1440p Medium, the minimum is 22 FPS, and at 4K Medium, the minimum is 15 FPS. These minimums indicate that frame pacing will be inconsistent, particularly at higher resolutions.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F is a Zen 5 architecture processor built on a 4nm process by TSMC. It features 8 cores and 16 threads with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.50 GHz. The CPU has 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 1 MB of L2 cache per core, and 32 MB of shared L3 cache. It supports DDR5 memory in dual-channel configuration with a bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s.

In CPU benchmarks, the 9700F scores 46,91 in single-thread performance and 36,470 in multithread performance. Its PassMark integer math score is 120,788, floating point math is 77,955, and extended instructions score 33,688. The CPU’s percentile rank of 94 means it outperforms 94% of all tested processors.

For Red Dead Redemption 2, the CPU’s role is largely academic because the GPU cannot keep up. The 9700F’s nearest rival, the Ryzen 9 7940HX, scores 69,875 versus the 9700F’s 69,996, a 0.2% difference. The Core i7-14700KF scores 70,163, which is 0.2% higher. These margins are negligible in real-world gaming.

The CPU’s 4nm process and 8,315 million transistors on a 70.6 mm² die indicate a modern, efficient design. However, the measured FPS data shows no evidence of CPU limitation — even at 1080p Low, the combo only reaches 47 FPS, which is far below what the 9700F could support with a capable GPU. The CPU’s high single-thread score of 4,691 suggests it could handle the game’s simulation and AI workloads easily if the GPU were faster.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data points to a single viable configuration: 1080p Low. This setting produces 47 FPS average, which is the only result that approaches smooth gameplay for an action-adventure title. The next option, 1080p Medium, drops to 35 FPS average with a 30 FPS minimum, which is borderline playable but risks stuttering in dense scenes.

At 1440p, even Low settings only produce 35 FPS average, which matches 1080p Medium but with no minimum FPS data to confirm stability. Given that 1080p Medium has a documented 30 FPS minimum, 1440p Low is likely less stable. The 4K options are all below 25 FPS and should be avoided entirely.

For users who prioritize visual fidelity over frame rate, 1080p Medium offers a compromise at 35 FPS average. The minimum of 30 FPS suggests that most scenes will stay above the playability threshold, but the 40 FPS maximum indicates significant variance. The High preset at 1080p (29 FPS) and Ultra at 1080p (21 FPS) are too slow for consistent gameplay.

The settings scaling shows that Low to Medium at 1080p costs 12 FPS (25.5% reduction), while Medium to High costs 6 FPS (17.1% reduction), and High to Ultra costs 8 FPS (27.6% reduction). The largest penalty is between Low and Medium, suggesting that the GPU’s shading units are stressed by even modest increases in graphical complexity.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is a mobile-class integrated GPU based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, fabricated on Intel’s 3nm process. It has 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster output units. The GPU runs at a base clock of 300 MHz and boosts to 2400 MHz. It supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

The GPU’s memory is system-shared, meaning it uses the CPU’s DDR5 memory rather than dedicated VRAM. This is a critical limitation for Red Dead Redemption 2, which requires substantial memory bandwidth for its open-world textures. The GPU’s memory bandwidth is listed as system-dependent, and its pixel rate is 48.00 GPixel/s with a texture rate of 96.00 GTexel/s.

The Arc B370’s FP32 performance is 6.144 TFLOPS, which is extremely low for this game. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 places it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs. The nearest rivals are all legacy parts from more than a decade ago, confirming that this GPU operates at entry-level integrated performance.

In Red Dead Redemption 2, the GPU’s limitations dominate every measured result. The 20 ROPs limit fill rate, which explains the steep FPS drops at higher resolutions. The 40 TMUs struggle with texture-heavy scenes, and the 10 ray tracing cores are insufficient for any modern RT implementation. The system-shared memory adds latency and bandwidth constraints that further reduce performance.

The GPU’s TDP of 25 W and slot width of IGP indicate it is designed for power efficiency rather than gaming performance. The boost clock of 2400 MHz is respectable, but the underlying architecture cannot translate that frequency into playable frame rates in this demanding title. The data shows that the Arc B370 is the single largest bottleneck in this combo, rendering the powerful Ryzen 7 9700F largely irrelevant for gaming purposes.