Rust

The AMD Ryzen 5 3600 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER delivers a compelling 1080p and 1440p experience in Rust, but the data reveals a clear performance ceiling at 4K. This combination ranks 1032nd out of 3723 tested combos, placing it in the upper third of all configurations. The measured frame rates show how the game scales across resolutions and settings, with the CPU and GPU taking turns as the limiting factor depending on the workload.

Resolution Scaling

The progression from 1080p to 4K shows a significant drop in average frame rates across all settings. At Low settings, the system produces 150 FPS at 1920x1080, which falls to 132 FPS at 2560x1440, and finally to 102 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 32% reduction from 1080p to 4K at Low, suggesting that even at the lowest graphical preset, the resolution increase still taxes the rendering pipeline substantially.

At High settings, the scaling is more pronounced. The average FPS drops from 121 at 1080p to 98 at 1440p, then to 58 at 4K. The 4K result is less than half of the 1080p figure, indicating that the RTX 4070 SUPER begins to struggle with the pixel count at this resolution when higher quality textures and effects are enabled. The gap between 1440p and 4K at High is particularly steep, with a 41% performance loss.

Medium settings follow a similar pattern: 129 FPS at 1080p, 114 FPS at 1440p, and 68 FPS at 4K. The 4K Medium result includes a minimum FPS of 58 and a maximum of 79, showing notable variance in frame times. This suggests that while the average is playable, there are moments where performance dips closer to the High preset's average.

Ultra settings produce the lowest frame rates across the board. The system manages 108 FPS at 1080p, 74 FPS at 1440p, and only 44 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is the only configuration in the entire dataset that falls below 60 FPS on average, making it unsuitable for smooth gameplay. The scaling factor from 1080p to 4K at Ultra is approximately 59%, meaning nearly 60% of the performance is lost when quadrupling the pixel count.

The data indicates that the RTX 4070 SUPER is the primary bottleneck at 4K, particularly at Medium and High settings. The CPU still has headroom at these resolutions, as evidenced by the relatively smaller performance gaps between 1080p and 1440p. However, at 1080p with Low settings, the 150 FPS ceiling suggests the Ryzen 5 3600 is approaching its limit, preventing the GPU from pushing even higher frame rates.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER comes with 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. This memory configuration is sufficient for Rust's texture-heavy environments at 1440p, but the 4K results suggest that the 12 GB capacity may be limiting when combined with the game's large world maps and asset streaming.

The GPU's clock speeds show a base of 1980 MHz and a boost of 2475 MHz. These clocks, combined with the Ada Lovelace architecture's 7168 shading units, deliver the raw compute power needed for the game's physics and rendering. The 35.48 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is substantial, yet the 4K Ultra result of 44 FPS indicates that raw compute is not the only factor — memory bandwidth and capacity play crucial roles at higher resolutions.

The RTX 4070 SUPER's benchmark scores place it in the 83rd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 43223. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 24 GB, which scores 43262 (0.1% higher), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile at 43268 (0.1% higher). The RTX 4090 Mobile scores 43667, which is 1% higher, showing that the desktop 4070 SUPER is competitive with even high-end mobile parts.

In Rust specifically, the GPU's performance at 1440p High (98 FPS) and 1080p High (121 FPS) demonstrates that it has ample headroom for competitive play. The 4K results, however, reveal a different story. The gap between Low (102 FPS) and High (58 FPS) at 4K is 44 FPS, showing how much of the GPU's resources are consumed by higher quality settings. The RTX 4070 SUPER's 12 GB frame buffer is likely the limiting factor at 4K, as the game's draw distances and texture streaming can exceed this capacity.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU-GPU combo in Rust?

A: The data shows that 2560x1440 provides the best balance. At Medium settings, it achieves 114 FPS average, and at High it reaches 98 FPS. Both are well above the 60 FPS threshold, while 4K at Ultra drops to 44 FPS.

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 3600 affect 1080p performance?

A: At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 150 FPS, but this appears to be CPU-limited. The Ryzen 5 3600 has 6 cores and 12 threads with a boost clock of 4.20 GHz, and its 3dmark single-thread score of 696 suggests it cannot push beyond this frame rate in Rust's simulation-heavy gameplay.

Q: Is the RTX 4070 SUPER sufficient for 4K gaming in Rust?

A: Only at Low settings, where it produces 102 FPS. At Medium it drops to 68 FPS, and at High it falls to 58 FPS. The 4K Ultra result of 44 FPS is not smooth enough for most players.

Q: What settings should be avoided with this combo?

A: The 4K Ultra preset should be avoided entirely, as it produces the lowest average FPS in the dataset (44 FPS). At 1440p, the Ultra preset still delivers 74 FPS, which is playable but leaves performance on the table.

Q: How does this combo compare to similar GPUs in Rust?

A: The RTX 4070 SUPER's nearest rivals, such as the Quadro M6000 24 GB and RTX 5050 Mobile, have benchmark scores within 0.2% of this card. However, the 4070 SUPER's 12 GB GDDR6X memory and Ada Lovelace architecture likely give it an advantage in Rust's modern rendering pipeline.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at any resolution?

A: The data suggests bottlenecking at 1080p Low, where 150 FPS appears to be the ceiling. At 1440p and above, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, as evidenced by the steep FPS drops when increasing resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

This combination of AMD Ryzen 5 3600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER ranks 1032nd out of 3723 tested combos in Rust. This places it in the 72nd percentile of all configurations, meaning it outperforms roughly 72% of tested systems. The ranking reflects a balanced pairing where neither component is severely mismatched for the game's requirements.

The CPU's individual standing helps contextualize this rank. The Ryzen 5 3600 sits in the 71st percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 17035. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i7-1260P (17007, 0.2% higher), the Intel Core i5-11400 (17067, 0.2% lower), and the AMD EPYC 7742 (16998, 0.2% higher). These small deltas show that the 3600 is competitive with much newer and more expensive processors in synthetic benchmarks.

The GPU's percentile is higher, at 83rd among all GPUs, with an average score of 43223. This 12-percentage-point gap between CPU and GPU percentiles indicates that the graphics card has more headroom relative to its peers than the processor does. In Rust, this manifests as the CPU becoming the limiting factor at lower resolutions, while the GPU handles the workload better at higher resolutions.

The combo rank of 1032 suggests that while the GPU is strong, the CPU holds back the overall performance in Rust's CPU-intensive scenes. Systems with similar GPUs but faster processors likely rank higher, as Rust's simulation and entity tracking can stress even 6-core processors. The 3600's 3dmark max-threads score of 4603 and cinebench r23 multicore score of 15045 are respectable, but they are not exceptional by modern standards.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance for optimal settings. At 1080p, the High preset (121 FPS) offers a better experience than Ultra (108 FPS) because the 13 FPS difference is not worth the potential visual gain, and High still maintains a comfortable margin above 100 FPS. For players prioritizing maximum frame rates, Low at 150 FPS is the fastest option, but Medium at 129 FPS provides a balanced middle ground.

At 1440p, the Medium preset stands out as the best choice. It delivers 114 FPS average with a minimum of 97 FPS, ensuring consistent performance above 90 FPS in most scenes. High at 98 FPS is also viable, but the 16 FPS drop from Medium is significant. Ultra at 74 FPS is playable, but the lower average frame rate makes it less ideal for competitive play.

For 4K, the options are limited. Low at 102 FPS is the only preset that maintains a comfortable frame rate. Medium at 68 FPS is playable but close to the 60 FPS threshold, and the minimum FPS of 58 shows that dips below 60 are possible. High at 58 FPS and Ultra at 44 FPS are not recommended for smooth gameplay.

The overall recommendation is to use Medium settings at 1440p for the best balance of visual quality and performance. This configuration achieves 114 FPS average, which is well above the 60 FPS standard, and the minimum of 97 FPS ensures that even demanding scenes remain fluid. For players with 1080p monitors, High settings at 121 FPS offer a superior visual experience without sacrificing frame rate.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset for this combo in Rust shows the following results:

At 1920x1080, Low settings produce 150 FPS average. Medium settings yield 129 FPS average, with a minimum of 110 FPS and a maximum of 148 FPS. High settings reach 121 FPS average, and Ultra settings drop to 108 FPS average.

At 2560x1440, Low settings achieve 132 FPS average. Medium settings deliver 114 FPS average, with a minimum of 97 FPS and a maximum of 131 FPS. High settings produce 98 FPS average, and Ultra settings fall to 74 FPS average.

At 3840x2160, Low settings maintain 102 FPS average. Medium settings drop to 68 FPS average, with a minimum of 58 FPS and a maximum of 79 FPS. High settings reach 58 FPS average, and Ultra settings bottom out at 44 FPS average.

The Medium preset is the only setting that provides both minimum and maximum FPS values in the dataset. This allows for a more detailed analysis of frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the range from 110 to 148 FPS shows a 38 FPS spread, indicating some variance but generally stable performance. At 1440p Medium, the range narrows to 34 FPS (97 to 131), and at 4K Medium, the range widens to 21 FPS (58 to 79), showing that higher resolutions introduce more frame time instability.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 3600 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 2 architecture, codenamed Matisse. It operates at a base clock of 3.60 GHz and boosts to 4.20 GHz, with a 32 MB L3 cache shared across all cores. The CPU's 65 W TDP and dual-channel DDR4 memory support provide 51.2 GB/s of memory bandwidth, which is adequate for Rust's simulation requirements.

In Rust, the CPU's role is critical for handling the game's entity interactions, building mechanics, and network synchronization. The 3dmark benchmarks show a single-thread score of 696 and a 2-thread score of 1361, indicating that the 3600's per-core performance is modest by current standards. However, the 8-thread score of 3844 and max-threads score of 4603 demonstrate that the processor scales well with additional threads, which is beneficial for Rust's multi-threaded server and client simulation.

The cinebench r23 results reinforce this picture. The single-core score of 2124 is lower than many modern CPUs, but the multicore score of 15045 shows that the 3600 can leverage its 12 threads effectively. In Rust, this means the CPU can handle the game's background simulation while the GPU renders frames, but it may struggle to maintain very high frame rates in heavily populated areas.

The 1080p Low result of 150 FPS is likely constrained by the CPU. The RTX 4070 SUPER is capable of much higher frame rates in less demanding games, but Rust's CPU-bound nature at lower resolutions limits the overall performance. This is evident when comparing the 1080p Low (150 FPS) to the 1440p Low (132 FPS) — the relatively small 18 FPS drop suggests that the CPU is still keeping pace at 1440p, but the GPU is becoming more involved.

For players with this combo, the CPU will be the limiting factor at 1080p and in CPU-intensive scenarios. The GPU takes over as the bottleneck at 4K, particularly at higher settings. This creates an interesting dynamic where the optimal resolution depends on whether the player prioritizes maximum frame rates (1080p) or visual fidelity (1440p Medium).