Red Dead Redemption 2

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Red Dead Redemption 2 with the Intel Core i5-13400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling as resolution increases. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces 150.4 FPS, which drops to 111.7 FPS at 1440p and further to 77.7 FPS at 4K. This progression shows a 27.8% reduction from 1080p to 1440p, and a 30.4% reduction from 1440p to 4K at Low settings. The consistent performance degradation across resolution steps indicates that the RTX 4070's rendering workload scales predictably with pixel count, while the i5-13400F maintains sufficient headroom to avoid becoming the limiting factor.

At High settings, the scaling curve steepens. The 1080p result of 94.2 FPS falls to 68.6 FPS at 1440p, a 27.1% drop, then reaches 48.1 FPS at 4K, representing a 29.8% decline from 1440p. The 4K High result sits below the 60 FPS threshold, suggesting that this preset pushes the GPU to its limits at that resolution. Medium settings follow a similar trajectory: 114.4 FPS at 1080p, 86.8 FPS at 1440p, and 56.7 FPS at 4K. The gap between 1440p and 4K Medium is 34.7%, which is larger than the corresponding gap at Low settings, indicating that the additional shading and texture work at Medium amplifies the resolution penalty.

Ultra settings exhibit the most dramatic scaling. Starting at 67.6 FPS in 1080p, the frame rate collapses to 49.5 FPS at 1440p — a 26.8% reduction — and then to 31.6 FPS at 4K, a 36.2% decline from the 1440p figure. The 4K Ultra result is less than half of the 1080p Ultra score, demonstrating that this preset combination is heavily constrained by the GPU's compute and memory bandwidth at higher resolutions. The data strongly suggests that the RTX 4070's 504.2 GB/s memory bandwidth and 29.15 TFLOPS of FP32 throughput are the primary determinants of performance at 4K, while at 1080p the CPU's 10 cores and 16 threads provide ample support.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database of tested CPU-GPU combinations for Red Dead Redemption 2, this pairing of the i5-13400F and RTX 4070 achieves a combo rank of 465 out of 1687 tested combos. This places it in the 72.4th percentile of all tested configurations, meaning that roughly 27.6% of tested combos deliver higher frame rates in this specific game. The rank is a composite measure that accounts for performance across all resolution and settings combinations, giving it a holistic view of the combo's capability.

The CPU's standalone benchmark positioning provides context for this ranking. The i5-13400F holds an average benchmark score of 25236, placing it in the 82nd percentile against all CPUs. Its nearest rivals in aggregate CPU performance include the Intel Core i7-13620H with a score of 25201 (0.1% slower), the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D at 25365 (0.5% faster), the AMD EPYC 9474F at 25103 (0.5% slower), and the AMD Ryzen AI 5 PRO 340 at 25099 (0.5% slower). This tight clustering around the 25200-25300 mark suggests that the i5-13400F delivers CPU throughput that is highly competitive with these alternatives, none of which deviate by more than 0.5% from its aggregate score.

For the GPU, the RTX 4070's average benchmark score of 37283 places it in the 81st percentile against all GPUs. Its nearest rivals show more variance: the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 scores 37507 (0.6% higher), the NVIDIA GeForce MX570 A scores 38008 (1.9% higher), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile scores 38135 (2.2% higher), and the AMD Radeon RX 5300M scores 36371 (2.5% lower). The fact that the RTX 4070 ranks below several mobile and older desktop parts in aggregate GPU benchmarks, yet still achieves a strong in-game combo rank, indicates that Red Dead Redemption 2's specific workload favors the Ada Lovelace architecture's feature set.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 brings 12 GB of GDDR6X memory across a 192-bit bus, yielding a memory bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s. This memory configuration proves adequate for the game's demands at 1080p and 1440p, where the High preset maintains playable frame rates, but becomes strained at 4K Ultra where the 31.6 FPS result indicates both memory bandwidth and shader throughput limitations. The GPU's 5888 shading units, 184 texture mapping units, and 64 raster output pipelines work in concert to produce the measured results, with the 184 tensor cores and 46 ray tracing cores available for advanced rendering features that Red Dead Redemption 2 may not fully utilize.

Clock speeds for the RTX 4070 are specified at 1920 MHz base and 2475 MHz boost, with memory running at 1313 MHz (21 Gbps effective). These clocks, combined with the 158.4 GPixel/s pixel rate and 455.4 GTexel/s texture rate, explain the scaling behavior observed across resolutions. At 1080p Low, the GPU delivers 150.4 FPS, which is likely near the CPU's practical limit for frame submission in this game, given that the i5-13400F's single-thread performance (3dmark_single_thread score of 960) provides sufficient per-core throughput. At 4K Ultra, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck, as evidenced by the dramatic frame rate collapse to 31.6 FPS, which aligns with the increased pixel shader load and memory pressure from higher resolution textures.

The GPU's 200 W TDP and dual-slot cooler design suggest sustained boost clocks are achievable under load, though the measured FPS data does not include thermal throttling metrics. The PCIe 4.0 x16 bus interface provides ample bandwidth for CPU-GPU communication, ensuring that the i5-13400F's 20 MB of shared L3 cache and 16 threads can feed the GPU without interface bottlenecks. The RTX 4070's end-of-life production status and predecessor/successor relationships (GeForce 30 before, GeForce 50 after) position it as a mature product whose performance characteristics are well understood.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results across all settings. Low settings produce 150.4 FPS, which is the highest measured figure for this configuration. Medium settings yield 114.4 FPS, representing a 23.9% reduction from Low. High settings achieve 94.2 FPS, a 17.7% drop from Medium. Ultra settings produce 67.6 FPS, which is 28.2% lower than High. The progression from Low to Ultra at 1080p shows a total decline of 55.1%, from 150.4 FPS to 67.6 FPS, indicating that each settings tier imposes a substantial incremental load on the GPU.

The 2560x1440 results follow a similar pattern with reduced absolute numbers. Low settings deliver 111.7 FPS, Medium achieves 86.8 FPS, High produces 68.6 FPS, and Ultra falls to 49.5 FPS. The percentage drops between tiers at 1440p are 22.3% (Low to Medium), 21.0% (Medium to High), and 27.8% (High to Ultra). Notably, the 1440p High result of 68.6 FPS is only 1.0 FPS higher than the 1080p Ultra result of 67.6 FPS, suggesting that the game's Ultra preset at 1080p imposes a similar GPU load to the High preset at 1440p.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates become more constrained. Low settings yield 77.7 FPS, which is playable but 48.4% lower than the 1080p Low result. Medium settings produce 56.7 FPS, a 27.0% reduction from Low at the same resolution. High settings achieve 48.1 FPS, which is 15.2% below Medium. Ultra settings deliver 31.6 FPS, a 34.3% decline from High. The 4K Ultra result is the only measured configuration that falls below 35 FPS, making it the weakest performance point in the dataset. Across all resolutions, the Low-to-Ultra scaling factor at 4K is 59.3%, compared to 55.1% at 1080p, showing that the GPU's resource limits become more binding as resolution increases.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For 1080p, the High preset at 94.2 FPS offers an excellent balance between visual quality and smoothness, comfortably exceeding the 60 FPS threshold while providing substantially better image quality than Low or Medium. The Ultra preset at 67.6 FPS is also viable for users prioritizing maximum visual fidelity, as it remains above 60 FPS, though the 28.2% performance penalty compared to High may not justify the marginal graphical improvements in fast-paced action sequences.

At 1440p, the High preset delivers 68.6 FPS, which is the best combination of quality and performance for this resolution. The Medium preset at 86.8 FPS offers a smoother experience for users sensitive to frame rate fluctuations, while the Low preset at 111.7 FPS is ideal for competitive play or high-refresh-rate displays. The Ultra preset at 49.5 FPS falls below the 60 FPS threshold, making it a poor choice for most users unless they prioritize absolute visual quality over smoothness.

For 4K, the Low preset at 77.7 FPS is the only configuration that comfortably exceeds 60 FPS, making it the recommended choice for users with 4K displays who demand fluid gameplay. The Medium preset at 56.7 FPS is a reasonable compromise, offering improved visuals while staying close to the 60 FPS target. The High preset at 48.1 FPS and Ultra preset at 31.6 FPS are both below playable thresholds for most users, with Ultra being particularly unsuitable for action sequences. In summary, the data indicates that High settings at 1080p, High at 1440p, and Low at 4K provide the best measured experiences for their respective resolutions, balancing visual fidelity against the hardware's demonstrated capabilities.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for 1080p gaming with this combo?

A: The High preset at 94.2 FPS offers the best balance, staying well above 60 FPS while delivering better visuals than Medium (114.4 FPS) or Low (150.4 FPS). Ultra at 67.6 FPS is also viable but carries a 28.2% performance penalty versus High.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K gaming in Red Dead Redemption 2?

A: Yes, but only at lower settings. The Low preset achieves 77.7 FPS at 4K, and Medium reaches 56.7 FPS. High drops to 48.1 FPS, and Ultra falls to 31.6 FPS, so 4K Ultra is not recommended for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does this combo rank against other tested configurations?

A: It ranks 465th out of 1687 tested combos for this game, placing it in the 72.4th percentile. The CPU sits in the 82nd percentile overall, while the GPU is in the 81st percentile.

Q: Is the i5-13400F or the RTX 4070 the limiting factor in this game?

A: The GPU is the primary limiter at higher resolutions and settings. At 4K Ultra, the frame rate drops to 31.6 FPS, indicating GPU bottlenecking, while at 1080p Low the 150.4 FPS result suggests the CPU provides adequate headroom.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 1080p and 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, 1080p produces 94.2 FPS while 4K produces 48.1 FPS, representing a 48.9% reduction. This large drop highlights the GPU's difficulty with high-resolution rendering under this preset.

Q: How does the RTX 4070 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in aggregate benchmarks?

A: The RTX 4070 scores 37283 on average, which is 0.6% below the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56, 1.9% below the NVIDIA GeForce MX570 A, 2.2% below the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile, and 2.5% above the AMD Radeon RX 5300M.