Red Dead Redemption 2

The Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 delivers a highly capable Red Dead Redemption 2 experience, but the data reveals a clear performance hierarchy that favors lower resolutions and medium presets. The combination ranks in the 81st percentile of all tested system configurations, demonstrating that while it is not at the absolute top tier, it provides a robust and consistent frame rate across the board. The measured results show a system that is well-balanced, though the scaling patterns indicate that the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck as resolution and visual fidelity increase.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and consistent, revealing the RTX 5070 as the limiting component at higher resolutions. At High settings, average frame rate falls from 101.2 FPS at 1920x1080 to 75 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 25.9%, and then further to 47.3 FPS at 3840x2160, a 37% drop from 1440p. This trend is uniform across all presets, with the Ultra preset showing the most severe scaling: 72.8 FPS at 1080p, 58.1 FPS at 1440p, and a demanding 35.2 FPS at 4K.

The data suggests that at 1080p, the system has ample headroom, with even Ultra settings maintaining a playable 72.8 FPS average. Moving to 1440p, Medium and High settings remain smooth, but Ultra dips below the 60 FPS threshold. At 4K, only the Low preset achieves a comfortable frame rate at 81.9 FPS, while Medium drops to 61.7 FPS and High falls to 47.3 FPS. This scaling pattern indicates a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions, where the RTX 5070's 12 GB of VRAM and 192-bit memory bus are sufficient for 1080p and 1440p but struggle to maintain high frame rates at 4K with demanding presets.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F provides a strong foundation for this game, with its 20 cores and 28 threads ensuring that CPU bottlenecks are rarely a concern. The processor's boost clock of 5.40 GHz is particularly relevant for Red Dead Redemption 2, a title that benefits from strong single-thread performance, and its Cinebench R23 single-core score of 5003 reflects this capability. Multi-threaded performance is equally impressive, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35443, placing the CPU in the 94th percentile of all processors.

The data shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor in this configuration. At 1080p with Low settings, the system reaches 167 FPS, indicating that the processor can feed the GPU efficiently even at high frame rates. The gap between Low and Medium settings at 1080p (167 FPS vs 124.9 FPS) suggests that the GPU is already becoming the primary constraint as settings increase, rather than the CPU. The i7-14700F's 33 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory further contribute to its ability to handle the game's open-world demands without creating a performance ceiling.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 is the determining factor in this system's performance, particularly at higher resolutions and settings. With 12 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 192-bit bus and a bandwidth of 672.0 GB/s, the card has sufficient resources for 1080p and 1440p gaming, but the 4K results show its limitations. The GPU's boost clock of 2512 MHz and 6144 shading units deliver solid raw performance, as evidenced by its Passmark G3D score of 29137, which places it in the 83rd percentile of all GPUs.

The benchmark results clearly demonstrate the GPU's role in frame rate scaling. At 1080p, the RTX 5070 can push well beyond 100 FPS on High settings and reach 167 FPS on Low. However, at 4K, the card's performance drops significantly, with Ultra settings yielding only 35.2 FPS. This is a 51.6% reduction from the 72.8 FPS achieved at 1080p Ultra, highlighting the GPU's inability to maintain high frame rates at 4K with maximum settings. The RTX 5070's 30.87 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is substantial, but the memory bandwidth and VRAM capacity become limiting factors at 4K, particularly with the game's detailed textures and draw distances.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain 60+ FPS on High settings?

A: At 2560x1440, the system achieves 75 FPS on High, while 3840x2160 drops to 47.3 FPS. The data shows that 1440p High is the highest setting and resolution combination that stays above 60 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Core i7-14700F has an average benchmark score of 54097, which is 0.6% lower than the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X and 1.1% lower than the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X3D, but 1.2% higher than the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 and 1.7% higher than the AMD EPYC 7313P.

Q: Is the RTX 5070 capable of 4K gaming in Red Dead Redemption 2?

A: Yes, but only with reduced settings. At 4K Low, the system averages 81.9 FPS, and at Medium it reaches 61.7 FPS. High settings drop to 47.3 FPS, and Ultra falls to 35.2 FPS.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low settings produce 167 FPS, while Ultra settings produce 72.8 FPS. This represents a 56.4% reduction in performance when moving from Low to Ultra.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: The Intel Core i7-14700F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 combination ranks 328 out of 1687 tested combos, placing it in the top 19.4% of all systems.

Q: Does the GPU's memory capacity affect 4K performance?

A: The RTX 5070 has 12 GB of GDDR7 memory with a bandwidth of 672.0 GB/s. The benchmark data shows a significant frame rate drop at 4K Ultra (35.2 FPS) compared to 1440p Ultra (58.1 FPS), indicating that memory capacity and bandwidth are limiting factors at this resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i7-14700F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 achieves a rank of 328 out of 1687 tested combos for Red Dead Redemption 2, placing it in the 81st percentile of all systems. This is a strong result, indicating that the pairing is well-suited for this game, though it does not reach the top tier. The CPU's 94th percentile ranking among all processors suggests that the i7-14700F is a high-performing component, while the GPU's 83rd percentile ranking shows that the RTX 5070 is a solid but not exceptional graphics card.

The rank is consistent with the measured performance data. The system is capable of excellent frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, but its 4K performance is limited. This places it in a competitive position against many other configurations, but it is not a top-tier system for 4K gaming. The deltaPct values for the CPU's nearest rivals show that the i7-14700F is within 1.7% of its closest competitors, indicating a closely contested mid-to-high-end processor market. The GPU's nearest rivals, including the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090, are within 0.7% of its average score, further reinforcing the notion that the RTX 5070 is a solid performer that sits in a crowded performance band.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured frame rates provide a comprehensive view of the system's performance across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the system delivers 167 FPS on Low, 124.9 FPS on Medium, 101.2 FPS on High, and 72.8 FPS on Ultra. At 2560x1440, the results are 125 FPS on Low, 88.6 FPS on Medium, 75 FPS on High, and 58.1 FPS on Ultra. At 3840x2160, the system achieves 81.9 FPS on Low, 61.7 FPS on Medium, 47.3 FPS on High, and 35.2 FPS on Ultra.

The data reveals a consistent pattern: the system is capable of maintaining high frame rates at 1080p across all settings, with even Ultra settings remaining above 70 FPS. At 1440p, Low and Medium settings provide smooth gameplay, but High drops below 80 FPS and Ultra falls below 60 FPS. At 4K, only Low settings provide a comfortable frame rate, with Medium barely exceeding 60 FPS and High and Ultra falling well below that threshold. These numbers demonstrate that the RTX 5070 is best utilized at 1080p or 1440p, where it can deliver high frame rates, while 4K requires significant settings reductions to remain playable.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual quality and performance, the Medium preset at 2560x1440 is the optimal choice, delivering 88.6 FPS. This provides a smooth experience with a significant improvement over Low settings while maintaining a frame rate well above the 60 FPS threshold. For players prioritizing frame rate over visual fidelity, the Low preset at 1080p offers 167 FPS, which is ideal for competitive or high-refresh-rate gameplay.

At 4K, the Medium preset is the recommended setting, achieving 61.7 FPS, which is just above the playable threshold. The High preset at 4K drops to 47.3 FPS, which may be acceptable for slower-paced gameplay but is not ideal for action sequences. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as it only achieves 72.8 FPS at 1080p and drops to a sub-60 FPS experience at both 1440p and 4K. The data suggests that the system's sweet spot is 1440p Medium or High, where it delivers a strong combination of visual quality and performance, while 1080p is best suited for maximum frame rates.