Steamworld Build

Steamworld Build is a city builder where the pace of simulation and the density of on-screen geometry can shift the bottleneck between the CPU and GPU dramatically. This particular pairing of the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 produces a fascinating dataset, showing extreme performance at lower resolutions but exposing the raw demands of 4K Ultra. The measured frames per second reveal a system that is overwhelmingly powerful for this genre, yet still subject to the specific constraints of the game engine and the settings applied.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a classic transition from a CPU-limited state to a GPU-limited one. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves 337.4 FPS, but dropping the resolution to 2560x1440 Low only yields 288.4 FPS, a reduction of roughly 14.5%. This relatively small penalty for a 1.78x increase in pixel count suggests that at 1080p, the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F is the limiting factor, preventing the RTX 5090 from stretching its legs fully. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads, while fast with a 5.00 GHz boost clock, cap the frame rate in these lighter scenarios.

The picture changes dramatically when moving to 4K. At 3840x2160 Low, the average FPS drops to 149.5, which is a 48% reduction from the 288.4 FPS seen at 1440p. This steep decline indicates that the game’s rendering load at 4K is now heavily taxing the GPU, even on Low settings. The trend becomes even more pronounced with higher quality presets. The gap between 1440p High (166.5 FPS) and 4K High (85.3 FPS) is a 48.8% performance hit, while the Ultra preset sees an even steeper fall from 111.0 FPS at 1440p to 57.4 FPS at 4K, a 48.3% reduction. This consistent ~48% drop across high-load presets confirms that at 4K, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090’s rendering pipeline is the primary constraint, with its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth being pushed hard by the resolution.

Interestingly, the scaling between Low and Ultra at 4K is stark, with a 2.6x performance difference (149.5 FPS vs 57.4 FPS). This is a much larger spread than at 1080p, where the difference is only 1.9x (337.4 FPS vs 174.6 FPS). This data suggests that the CPU overhead at 1080p compresses the performance range, while at 4K, the GPU’s workload expands it, making settings choices far more impactful on the final frame rate.

FAQ

Q: Is this CPU and GPU combo overkill for a city builder like Steamworld Build?

A: Benchmark results indicate that the combo is exceptionally powerful for this title. At 1080p Low, it produces 337.4 FPS, which far exceeds any practical refresh rate. Even at 4K Ultra, it maintains a playable 57.4 FPS average, suggesting the hardware is capable of handling the game's most demanding settings, though not necessarily at high refresh rates.

Q: What is the limiting component at 1080p resolution?

A: The data shows the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F becomes the primary limiter at 1080p. The frame rate difference between Low (337.4 FPS) and Medium (308.1 FPS) is relatively small compared to the jump from 1440p to 4K, indicating that CPU processing power, not the GPU, is setting the ceiling for performance at this resolution.

Q: How much performance is lost when moving from 1440p to 4K on the High preset?

A: The average frame rate drops from 166.5 FPS at 2560x1440 to 85.3 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a significant 48.8% reduction in performance, highlighting the massive increase in pixel shading workload that the RTX 5090 must handle at 4K.

Q: Can this system handle 4K Ultra settings?

A: Yes, the measured average FPS at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings is 57.4 FPS. This is above the 30 FPS baseline for playability and is suitable for a slow-paced strategy game, though it will not take advantage of high-refresh-rate 4K monitors.

Q: Given the high frame rates, is the RTX 5090's 32 GB of VRAM necessary?

A: While the game may not use all 32 GB, the data shows that the 4K Ultra preset requires substantial GPU resources to maintain 57.4 FPS. The large memory pool and 512-bit bus width prevent any potential memory bandwidth bottlenecks, allowing the GPU to focus purely on compute and shading tasks.

Q: How does the Ryzen 5 7500F compare to its direct rivals in general benchmarks?

A: In the provided benchmark data, the Ryzen 5 7500F has an average score of 24993. It is virtually tied with the Intel Core i7-11850H, which has a deltaPct of 0.1%, and it is slightly ahead of the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X and Ryzen 5 8400F, both of which have a deltaPct of -0.3%. It also leads the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX by 0.4%.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of all tested combinations for Steamworld Build, this specific pairing of the AMD Ryzen 5 7500F and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 ranks 26th out of 1730 combos. This places it in the top 1.5% of all systems tested, which is a dominant position. The fact that it doesn't rank higher (e.g., #1) reinforces the analysis that the Ryzen 5 7500F is the limiting factor in this pairing. There are likely other CPUs with higher multi-threaded performance that can feed frames to the RTX 5090 more effectively in this specific title, allowing those combos to achieve higher average FPS. The 26th rank is still an exceptional result, indicating that this system will provide a top-tier experience in Steamworld Build, but it also suggests that the CPU is holding back the GPU's full potential in this particular game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured data provides a clear matrix of performance across three resolutions and four quality presets. At 1920x1080, the system is exceptionally fast. The Low preset produces an average of 337.4 FPS, which is the highest score in the entire dataset. The Medium preset achieves 308.1 FPS, and High drops slightly to 261.6 FPS. The Ultra preset, while still very fast at 174.6 FPS, shows a significant 33% performance decrease compared to High, indicating a substantial increase in visual effects that impact the CPU or GPU pipeline.

At 2560x1440, the performance remains high but begins to show more differentiation. Low settings produce 288.4 FPS, which is still an incredibly high number for a 1440p resolution. Medium hits 223.5 FPS, while High achieves 166.5 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1440p yields 111.0 FPS, which is a very playable frame rate and represents a solid experience for a city builder. The scaling from Low to Ultra at this resolution is a 2.6x difference, similar to the 4K scaling, showing that the GPU is becoming the more active component.

At 3840x2160, the true demands of 4K are revealed. Low settings still provide a very playable 149.5 FPS. Medium settings drop to 116.9 FPS, which is still excellent. High settings produce 85.3 FPS, which is a very good result for 4K gaming. However, the Ultra preset yields 57.4 FPS. While this is playable, it is the only configuration in the dataset that dips below the 60 FPS threshold, making it the most demanding setting for the RTX 5090 to handle in this game.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the clear driver of performance when the resolution and settings are cranked up. Its massive specifications, including 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, provide a 1.79 TB/s bandwidth. This is crucial for 4K textures and high-detail geometry, as the data shows the GPU can handle Low settings at 4K with ease (149.5 FPS) but is taxed heavily by the Ultra preset (57.4 FPS). The high transistor count of 92,200 million on the GB202 chip and the 104.8 TFLOPS FP32 compute power are what allow it to maintain such high frame rates in a simulation-heavy genre.

The GPU's clock speeds, with a base of 2017 MHz and a boost of 2407 MHz, are relatively high and contribute to its raw throughput. The benchmark results show that the card has a Passmark G3D score of 39650 and an average benchmark score of 84306, placing it in the 94th percentile of all GPUs. This confirms its status as a top-tier component. However, the data from Steamworld Build shows that even this GPU has limits, particularly when combined with a mid-range CPU. The fact that it ranks 26th overall, rather than #1, suggests that in this game, the GPU is often waiting on data from the CPU, especially at lower resolutions where the engine's simulation logic takes precedence.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal settings depend heavily on the user's target resolution and refresh rate. For 1080p and 1440p displays, the Ultra preset is the recommended choice. At 1440p, it provides a robust 111.0 FPS average, which is smooth and responsive. At 1080p, it delivers 174.6 FPS, which is more than enough for any high-refresh-rate monitor. The performance cost of moving from High to Ultra is noticeable (a 33% drop at 1080p and a 33% drop at 1440p), but the result is still well above playable thresholds, making the visual upgrade worthwhile.

For 4K displays, the choice is more nuanced. If the user has a 120Hz or 144Hz 4K monitor, the High preset is the best option, as it provides 85.3 FPS, which is a good balance of visual fidelity and smoothness. The Medium preset offers a higher 116.9 FPS, which is ideal for competitive play or if the user prefers maximum frame rate over visual quality. The Ultra preset at 4K is only recommended for users with a 60Hz display who prioritize maximum visual detail, as the 57.4 FPS average is just below the 60 FPS standard. The data shows that the jump from High to Ultra at 4K is a 32.7% performance hit, a steep cost for the additional graphical effects, making High the more practical choice for most 4K users.