Rust

# Rust Performance Analysis: Intel Core i7-13700K + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER

This combination of an Intel Core i7-13700K processor and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER graphics card delivers a playable but not exceptional experience in Rust, a survival game released in 2018. The measured frame rates across resolutions and settings reveal a system that is consistently GPU-limited at higher resolutions, while the strong CPU ensures that even at 1080p Low settings, the frame rate ceiling is determined by the graphics card rather than processor throughput. The combo ranks 2640 out of 3723 tested combinations, placing it in the lower third of all tested configurations, which aligns with the RTX 2060 SUPER's 62nd percentile ranking among all GPUs and the i7-13700K's 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K clearly demonstrates where the performance bottleneck lies in this system. At 1080p High settings, the combination produces 78 FPS, which drops to 54 FPS at 1440p and further to 32 FPS at 4K — a reduction of 59% from 1080p to 4K. This steep decline indicates that the GPU is the limiting component, as the rendering workload scales dramatically with pixel count.

Examining the Low settings preset provides the clearest picture of the CPU's capability. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 138 FPS, dropping to 95 FPS at 1440p and 56 FPS at 4K. The 1080p Low result is notably high, suggesting that the i7-13700K with its 16 cores and 24 threads can feed frames quickly, but the RTX 2060 SUPER's 7.181 TFLOPS of FP32 compute becomes the constraint as resolution increases. The gap between 1080p and 1440p Low settings is 43 FPS, while the gap between 1440p and 4K Low is 39 FPS, showing a relatively consistent scaling pattern that points to raw pixel throughput limitations.

The Medium preset shows a similar pattern with 92 FPS at 1080p, 64 FPS at 1440p, and 38 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset, which is the most demanding, yields 59 FPS at 1080p, 41 FPS at 1440p, and 24 FPS at 4K. These numbers indicate that Ultra settings at 4K are effectively unplayable, while Ultra at 1080p remains barely playable. The scaling from Medium to Ultra at each resolution is consistent — roughly a 36% performance penalty — suggesting that the additional visual features in Ultra impose a predictable cost on the GPU's shader and memory subsystems.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination ranks 2640 out of 3723 tested combos in Rust, which places it in the 29th percentile of all tested configurations. This is a modest ranking that reflects the RTX 2060 SUPER's age and position in NVIDIA's lineup, despite the i7-13700K being a high-end desktop processor. The GPU's 62nd percentile ranking among all GPUs, combined with the CPU's 89th percentile ranking, creates an imbalance where the graphics card limits overall gaming performance.

The i7-13700K's nearest rival in CPU benchmarks is the AMD Ryzen 9 5900, which scores 46971 versus the i7-13700K's 46881 average benchmark score — a negligible 0.2% difference. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 is 0.3% ahead, while the Intel Xeon w3-2535 is 0.5% behind. This tight grouping indicates that the i7-13700K is firmly in the upper echelon of CPU performance, with its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 30745 and single-core score of 2116 providing ample headroom for gaming workloads.

Conversely, the RTX 2060 SUPER's nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile, which scores 18159 versus the RTX 2060 SUPER's 18093 average benchmark score — a 0.4% deficit. The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 is 0.5% ahead, the AMD Radeon RX 460 is 1.5% ahead, and the Intel Arc A770M is 1.6% ahead. These rival GPUs, some of which are mobile parts or older desktop cards, highlight that the RTX 2060 SUPER sits in a crowded mid-range performance tier. In Rust specifically, the combo rank of 2640 out of 3723 indicates that many other CPU-GPU pairings deliver higher frame rates, reinforcing that the GPU is the primary constraint.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER, built on the TU106 chip using a 12 nm process at TSMC, provides 8 GB of GDDR6 memory across a 256-bit bus, yielding 448.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth. This memory configuration is sufficient for Rust's textures and world data, but the 24 FPS at 4K Ultra settings suggests that the GPU's compute resources — 2176 shading units, 136 TMUs, and 64 ROPs — are overwhelmed by the game's highest visual demands.

The GPU's clock behavior shows a base clock of 1470 MHz and a boost clock of 1650 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). These clocks, combined with the 7.181 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 224.4 GTexel/s texture fill rate, determine the frame rates observed across the measured rows. The pixel rate of 105.6 GPixel/s directly impacts how quickly the GPU can fill the 3840x2160 frame buffer, explaining the dramatic falloff at 4K.

The GPU's 34 RT cores and 272 tensor cores are present but are not typically utilized heavily in Rust, which is a rasterization-focused survival title. The 62nd percentile ranking among all GPUs places it in the lower-middle range, and its benchmark scores — 16462 in Passmark G3D and 2011 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 — reflect its mid-range positioning. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is adequate for Rust at 1080p and 1440p, but the 4K High result of 32 FPS indicates that the GPU is both compute-bound and potentially memory-bandwidth-limited at higher resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play Rust with this CPU-GPU combination?

A: The measured data shows that 1920x1080 provides the most consistent playability, with 138 FPS at Low settings and 78 FPS at High settings. At 2560x1440, frame rates range from 95 FPS at Low to 41 FPS at Ultra, while 3840x2160 only reaches 56 FPS at Low and drops to 24 FPS at Ultra.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 SUPER compare to its nearest GPU rivals in benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 2060 SUPER scores 18093 on average, which is 0.4% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile, 0.5% behind the AMD Radeon Pro 5700, 1.5% behind the AMD Radeon RX 460, and 1.6% behind the Intel Arc A770M.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-13700K the performance bottleneck in this system for Rust?

A: No, the data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor. The i7-13700K achieves high scores in CPU benchmarks, including 30745 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 2116 in single-core, and its 16 cores and 24 threads provide ample gaming performance. The steep frame rate drops as resolution increases confirm GPU limitation.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset delivers 95 FPS while Ultra delivers 41 FPS, representing a 54 FPS difference. The Medium preset sits between them at 64 FPS, and High achieves 54 FPS.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested CPU-GPU combinations in Rust?

A: This combination ranks 2640 out of 3723 tested combos, placing it in the lower third of all configurations. This ranking is consistent with the GPU's 62nd percentile position among all GPUs.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM capacity affect performance at 4K?

A: The 4K results show significant frame rate drops, with 38 FPS at Medium and 32 FPS at High, suggesting that the 448.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 8 GB capacity may be strained at this resolution, though the compute limitations of the 2176 shading units are also a factor.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-13700K, based on Raptor Lake architecture and manufactured on Intel's 10 nm process, provides substantial processing power that remains underutilized in Rust at most settings. With 16 cores and 24 threads, a base clock of 3.40 GHz, and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, this processor can handle Rust's simulation and server-side logic without becoming a bottleneck. The 30 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB L2 cache per core provide ample fast storage for game data, while the dual-channel DDR4/DDR5 memory support ensures adequate memory bandwidth.

The CPU's benchmark results confirm its high-end positioning: 30745 in Cinebench R23 multi-core, 2116 in single-core, 16292 in Cinebench R20 multi-core, and 45887 in Passmark multithread. The 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 46881, places it just 0.2% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 5900 and 0.3% behind the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375. The 3DMark results — 10717 for 16 threads, 12412 for max threads, and 1136 for single thread — demonstrate strong scaling across thread counts.

In Rust, the CPU's role is most visible at 1080p Low settings, where the 138 FPS result suggests the processor can push frame rates well above what the GPU can sustain at higher settings. The fact that 1080p Low achieves more than double the frame rate of 4K Ultra (138 vs 24 FPS) indicates that reducing GPU load reveals the CPU's capability to drive high frame rates. However, even at 1080p Ultra, the 59 FPS result is well below the CPU's potential, confirming that the RTX 2060 SUPER is the primary constraint in all tested configurations.

Settings Recommendations

The measured frame rate data provides clear guidance for optimal settings based on the user's refresh rate and resolution preferences. At 1920x1080, the High preset delivers 78 FPS, which is suitable for standard 60 Hz monitors, while the Medium preset at 92 FPS provides headroom for 75 Hz or 100 Hz displays. The Low preset at 138 FPS enables high-refresh-rate gaming on 120 Hz or 144 Hz panels, though visual fidelity is reduced.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset at 64 FPS offers the best balance for 60 Hz gaming, while High at 54 FPS is slightly below the 60 FPS threshold. The Low preset at 95 FPS is the only 1440p option that comfortably exceeds 60 FPS, making it the recommended choice for users prioritizing smooth gameplay over visual quality. The Ultra preset at 41 FPS is not recommended for competitive play, as the 41 FPS average falls below the 54 FPS minimum of the Medium preset's measured range.

For 3840x2160, the Low preset at 56 FPS is the only viable option for playable frame rates, while Medium at 38 FPS and High at 32 FPS are marginal. The Ultra preset at 24 FPS is not playable in most scenarios. Given that the Medium preset at 1440p provides 64 FPS with a measured range of 54 to 73 FPS, this represents the sweet spot for visual quality and performance. For users with 1080p displays, the High preset at 78 FPS offers a strong balance, while those with high-refresh-rate monitors should consider the Medium preset at 92 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions and four settings presets, providing a comprehensive view of performance. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset achieves 59 FPS average, the High preset reaches 78 FPS, the Medium preset delivers 92 FPS with a range of 79 to 106 FPS, and the Low preset peaks at 138 FPS. This progression shows a 79 FPS difference between Ultra and Low, highlighting the substantial impact of settings on frame rate at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset produces 41 FPS, High achieves 54 FPS, Medium delivers 64 FPS with a range of 54 to 73 FPS, and Low reaches 95 FPS. The 54 FPS difference between Ultra and Low at 1440p is consistent with the 1080p scaling, though the absolute values are lower. The Medium preset's minimum of 54 FPS matches the High preset's average, indicating that frame time consistency is maintained across these settings.

At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset drops to 24 FPS, High achieves 32 FPS, Medium delivers 38 FPS with a range of 32 to 43 FPS, and Low reaches 56 FPS. The 32 FPS difference between Ultra and Low at 4K is smaller than at lower resolutions, suggesting that the GPU is increasingly constrained by raw pixel throughput rather than settings complexity. The Medium preset's maximum of 43 FPS highlights the difficulty of maintaining playable frame rates at 4K with this GPU. Across all resolutions, the measured data shows that the RTX 2060 SUPER's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for Rust's requirements, but the 7.181 TFLOPS compute performance limits the combination to 1080p and 1440p gaming for most users.