Rust

The Intel Core i7-13700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER lands at rank 1034 out of 1717 tested combos in Rust, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the database. This positioning reflects a pairing where the CPU is far more capable than the GPU, a dynamic that becomes increasingly apparent as resolution rises. The i7-13700K sits in the 93rd percentile among all CPUs, while the RTX 2070 SUPER manages only the 65th percentile among GPUs, creating a significant imbalance that shapes every benchmark result in this dataset.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 1034 out of 1717 tested configurations means it outperforms roughly 40% of all recorded pairings in Rust, but it sits behind the majority of systems. This is not a top-tier result, and the data suggests the bottleneck is overwhelmingly the graphics card. The CPU’s average benchmark score of 47282 places it within 0.5% of the Intel Core i7-13700KF (47334) and the AMD Ryzen 9 PRO 5945 (47527), while running slightly ahead of the AMD EPYC 4364P (47131) and Intel Core i9-12900F (47081). Those deltas are negligible in real-world gaming, meaning the processor is delivering performance essentially identical to its closest rivals.

On the GPU side, the RTX 2070 SUPER’s average score of 22206 is nearly tied with the NVIDIA RTX A400 (22307, -0.5% delta) and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z (22006, +0.9% delta). It trails the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile (22729) by 2.3% and leads the AMD Radeon RX 5700 (21670) by 2.5%. These are all close figures, reinforcing that the graphics card is the limiting factor—swapping the CPU for a cheaper model would likely change Rust results by only a few percent, while upgrading the GPU would produce a far larger jump in the combo’s overall ranking.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER comes with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its base clock runs at 1605 MHz with a boost clock of 1770 MHz, while memory operates at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). These specifications place it as a mid-range card from the Turing generation, built on TSMC’s 12 nm process with 13,600 million transistors on a 545 mm² die.

In Rust, the GPU’s role is decisive across all measured settings. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for the game’s demanding environments, but the card’s compute throughput—9.062 TFLOPS FP32 and 283.2 GTexel/s texture rate—proves insufficient for high frame rates at higher resolutions. The data shows a stark contrast between Low and Ultra settings at every resolution, with the gap widening as pixel count increases. At 1080p, the difference between Low (149.7 FPS) and Ultra (62.3 FPS) is 87.4 FPS; at 1440p that gap grows to 58.4 FPS (105.5 vs 47.1); and at 4K it reaches 34.7 FPS (62.7 vs 28). This pattern indicates the GPU is struggling with the increased shading and texture work at higher presets, not the CPU.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience per the measured rows, the Medium preset offers the most balanced trade-off between visual quality and performance. At 1080p, Medium produces 103.4 FPS, which is smooth for competitive play, while High drops to 85.2 FPS and Ultra falls to 62.3 FPS. The jump from Low (149.7 FPS) to Medium costs 46.3 FPS, but the visual improvement in Rust is substantial, making Medium the sweet spot.

At 1440p, Medium delivers 67.3 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for fast-paced action. High drops to 61.6 FPS, and Ultra falls below 60 to 47.1 FPS. If you have a 1440p monitor, Medium is the highest preset that keeps average frame rates above 60. At 4K, even Low only manages 62.7 FPS, while Medium drops to 39.8 FPS and High to 36.8 FPS. Ultra at 4K is nearly unplayable at 28 FPS, so users at this resolution should stick to Low for any semblance of responsiveness.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results. Low settings produce 149.7 FPS, which is excellent for a game like Rust where frame rate matters for survival combat. Medium drops to 103.4 FPS, High to 85.2 FPS, and Ultra to 62.3 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra costs 87.4 FPS, with the largest single drop occurring between Medium and High (18.2 FPS) and between High and Ultra (22.9 FPS).

At 2560x1440, performance falls off noticeably. Low settings still manage 105.5 FPS, which is respectable, but Medium drops to 67.3 FPS and High to 61.6 FPS. Ultra bottoms out at 47.1 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold most players consider minimum for smooth gameplay. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at the same settings ranges from 44.2 FPS on Low (149.7 to 105.5) to 15.2 FPS on Ultra (62.3 to 47.1), showing that lower presets are more sensitive to resolution increases.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly overwhelmed. Low settings produce 62.7 FPS, which is the only preset that remains playable. Medium falls to 39.8 FPS, High to 36.8 FPS, and Ultra to 28 FPS. The difference between Low and Medium at 4K is 22.9 FPS, which is more than the difference between Medium and Ultra (11.8 FPS), indicating that the card’s memory bandwidth and shading units are saturated well before maximum settings are reached.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K reveals a GPU-bound system. At Low settings, the frame rate falls from 149.7 FPS at 1080p to 105.5 FPS at 1440p (a 29.5% reduction), then to 62.7 FPS at 4K (a 40.6% further reduction). This steep decline with increasing pixel count is the classic signature of a graphics card that has reached its limits—the CPU is capable of feeding far more frames than the GPU can render.

At Ultra settings, the scaling is even more dramatic: 62.3 FPS at 1080p, 47.1 FPS at 1440p, and 28 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 24.4% from 1080p to 1440p and 40.6% from 1440p to 4K. This non-linear scaling indicates that the RTX 2070 SUPER’s 8 GB VRAM and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for the higher memory pressure at 4K Ultra, causing the card to thrash. The i7-13700K, with its 16 cores and 24 threads running at up to 5.40 GHz boost, is not the constraint here—it can easily keep up with the GPU’s output at any resolution.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo better suited for 1080p or 1440p gaming in Rust?

A: The data shows 1080p is the sweet spot. At Medium settings, the combo delivers 103.4 FPS at 1080p versus 67.3 FPS at 1440p. For consistent 60+ FPS gameplay, 1080p Medium or High (85.2 FPS) are the best choices, while 1440p requires Medium or lower to stay above 60.

Q: Can this system run Rust at 4K?

A: Yes, but only at Low settings, where it averages 62.7 FPS. Medium (39.8 FPS), High (36.8 FPS), and Ultra (28 FPS) all fall below playable thresholds. The 8 GB VRAM and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient for higher presets at this resolution.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The i7-13700K scores 47282 on average, which is 0.1% behind the i7-13700KF (47334), 0.3% ahead of the AMD EPYC 4364P (47131), and 0.4% ahead of the Intel Core i9-12900F (47081). These differences are negligible for gaming, so the CPU choice won’t meaningfully change Rust performance.

Q: What is the main bottleneck in this combo?

A: The GPU. The RTX 2070 SUPER scores in the 65th percentile among all GPUs, while the CPU sits in the 93rd percentile. The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a steep decline with resolution, which is typical of a graphics-limited system.

Q: Which GPU is closest in performance to the RTX 2070 SUPER?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A400 (22307) is 0.5% slower, and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z (22006) is 0.9% slower. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile (22729) is 2.3% faster, and the AMD Radeon RX 5700 (21670) is 2.5% slower.

Q: What is the best preset for a 1440p monitor?

A: Medium, which averages 67.3 FPS. High drops to 61.6 FPS, and Ultra falls to 47.1 FPS. Medium provides the highest visual quality while maintaining a frame rate above 60, which is important for Rust’s competitive survival gameplay.