Steamworld Build

Steamworld Build, a city builder from late 2023, presents a demanding workload for the tested configuration of an AMD Ryzen 5 7600 and an Intel Arc B390. The benchmark data reveals a system that is heavily constrained by its graphics processor, particularly at higher resolutions, while the CPU demonstrates ample headroom. The overall combo ranking places this pairing in the lower percentile of tested systems, indicating that while playable at lower settings, this is not a combination suited for high-fidelity or high-resolution play in this title.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates show a steep and consistent performance penalty as resolution increases, clearly identifying the graphics processor as the primary bottleneck. At 1080p, the combination achieves a playable 60 FPS on High settings, but this drops by 37% to 38 FPS at 1440p, and further down to a nearly unplayable 20 FPS at 4K. This pattern indicates that the Intel Arc B390 is being overwhelmed by the pixel throughput required at higher resolutions, with the scaling being almost linear in its severity.

The gap between Low and Ultra settings becomes more pronounced at higher resolutions, but for different reasons than one might expect. At 1080p, the difference between Low (106 FPS) and Ultra (41 FPS) is a massive 65 FPS, showing that the GPU is the limiting factor even at the lowest resolution. However, at 4K, the range narrows to just 21 FPS (from 35 FPS on Low to 14 FPS on Ultra), which suggests that the GPU is so saturated at this resolution that even reducing graphical fidelity cannot free up enough processing power to make a significant difference.

The data suggests that the sweet spot for this hardware is 1080p. The performance drop from 1080p to 1440p at High settings is a 37% reduction, but the game remains technically playable at 38 FPS. The jump to 4K, however, is catastrophic, with the average frame rate falling below 30 FPS even on Low settings. This indicates that the system's rendering pipeline is completely dominated by the GPU's fill rate and shading capabilities at 4K, and the CPU's potential is left largely untapped.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 7600 and Intel Arc B390 combination ranks 2573 out of 2924 tested combos for Steamworld Build, placing it in the bottom 12% of all tested systems. This low ranking is almost entirely attributable to the graphics card, which sits in the 9th percentile against all other GPUs in the database. The CPU, in contrast, performs much more respectably, ranking in the 78th percentile against all CPUs, indicating a massive imbalance in capability between the two components.

This pairing is a classic case of a strong processor being held back by a weak graphics solution. While the Ryzen 5 7600's benchmark scores are competitive—its average benchmark score of 26324 is within 0.5% of the AMD Ryzen 5 8540U and 0.4% ahead of the Intel Core i9-11900KF—the Arc B390's average score of 1482 places it just 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX and 2.7% ahead of the GeForce GT 710. These rivals are from a completely different era of graphics hardware, underscoring the B390's position as an entry-level or integrated-class solution.

In practical terms, this means the combo's ranking in Steamworld Build is not a reflection of the CPU's capabilities but rather a direct consequence of the GPU's inability to keep pace. The benchmark results indicate that the system is only suitable for low-to-medium fidelity gaming at 1080p, and any attempt to push it further will result in frame rates that fall well below the threshold for a smooth experience. The data strongly suggests that the CPU is not a contributing factor to the system's low rank.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is the definitive limiting factor in this configuration. Its performance profile, characterized by a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482, places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs, directly competing with legacy parts like the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710. The card's specifications, including a boost clock of 2500 MHz and 1536 shading units, are insufficient for the demands of modern city builders, which require substantial geometry and draw-call processing power.

The B390's memory configuration is "System Shared," meaning its bandwidth and capacity are "System Dependent" rather than dedicated. This is a critical weakness for a game like Steamworld Build, which likely requires frequent access to large textures and game state data. The lack of dedicated VRAM forces the system to rely on slower system memory, which can cause stuttering and frame drops, particularly when the simulation complexity grows. This is evident in the 4K Medium settings result, which shows a minimum FPS of 23 and a maximum of 31, indicating inconsistent frame pacing.

The GPU's raw compute capabilities are also limited. With an FP32 performance of 7.680 TFLOPS and a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s, it is simply outpaced by the resolution demands. The transition from 1080p Low (106 FPS) to 1440p Low (67 FPS) shows a 37% drop, and the move to 4K Low (35 FPS) represents a further 48% reduction. This scaling behavior confirms that the GPU's shading and rasterization resources are exhausted well before the CPU can become a limiting factor, even at the lowest graphical settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play Steamworld Build with this hardware?

A: The benchmark data clearly shows 1920x1080 as the only resolution where playable frame rates are consistently achieved. At this resolution, the system can maintain 60 FPS on High settings and 81 FPS on Medium, while 1440p and 4K resolutions result in average frame rates that drop below the generally accepted 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does this CPU compare to its nearest rivals in general benchmarks?

A: The AMD Ryzen 5 7600 has an average benchmark score of 26324. This puts it 0.2% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX, 0.4% ahead of the Intel Core i9-11900KF, and 0.5% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 5 8540U. Conversely, it is 0.3% behind the AMD Ryzen 7 7435HS, indicating near-identical general processing performance.

Q: Is the Intel Arc B390 a good match for this CPU in this game?

A: No. The GPU's average benchmark score of 1482 places it in the 9th percentile, directly competing with legacy parts like the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM. The CPU, on the other hand, is in the 78th percentile. This massive performance gap makes the GPU the clear bottleneck, preventing the CPU from reaching its potential in Steamworld Build.

Q: What is the difference in performance between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: The difference is substantial. The system achieves 106 FPS on Low settings, which drops to 81 FPS on Medium, 60 FPS on High, and finally 41 FPS on Ultra. This represents a 61% performance reduction from Low to Ultra, showing that the GPU is heavily taxed by the higher-fidelity effects.

Q: Does the game's performance scale well with resolution on this system?

A: The scaling is poor. While the game does get slower as resolution increases, the frame rate drops are disproportionate. For example, moving from 1080p High (60 FPS) to 1440p High (38 FPS) is a 37% loss, but moving to 4K High (20 FPS) is a further 47% loss from the 1440p score, indicating that the GPU's resources are being exhausted exponentially.

Q: What do the minimum FPS numbers tell us about gameplay smoothness?

A: The data shows that on Medium settings, the minimum FPS is 69 at 1080p, 44 at 1440p, and 23 at 4K. This suggests that even when the average frame rate is acceptable, there can be significant dips, especially at higher resolutions, which can lead to noticeable stuttering during complex simulation moments.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 7600 is a powerful 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture. With a boost clock of 5.10 GHz and a 32 MB shared L3 cache, it provides ample processing power for a city builder. Its benchmark scores are consistently strong, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 12735 and a single-core score of 1852, indicating excellent thread scaling and responsiveness.

In Steamworld Build, the CPU's role is to manage the game's simulation logic, including citizen pathfinding, resource distribution, and complex economy systems. The data suggests that the Ryzen 5 7600 is more than capable of handling these tasks, as the frame rates are overwhelmingly dictated by the GPU's performance. The fact that the FPS drops significantly when moving from Low to Ultra settings at the same resolution points to a GPU-bound scenario, not a CPU limitation.

The CPU's 78th percentile ranking among all CPUs further supports this conclusion. Its nearest rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen 7 7435HS and Intel Core i9-11900KF, have nearly identical average scores, confirming that the Ryzen 5 7600 is a high-performing part. The system's poor performance in this game cannot be attributed to the processor; the bottleneck lies entirely with the Intel Arc B390's inability to render frames fast enough to utilize the CPU's available headroom.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal experience for this hardware is found at 1920x1080 resolution with the High preset. This setting provides a solid 60 FPS average, which is the standard target for smooth gameplay in most titles. While the Medium preset offers a higher 81 FPS, the jump to High provides a significant visual quality improvement for a playable frame rate. The Low preset is not recommended as it yields 106 FPS, but the visual compromises are likely too severe for a city builder where clarity and detail are important.

At 2560x1440, the data indicates that only the Low preset, with an average of 67 FPS, can maintain a playable frame rate. The High preset drops to 38 FPS, which is borderline, and the Ultra preset at 26 FPS is not recommended for a playable experience. For users who prefer 1440p, the Low preset is the only viable option, but the visual downgrade will be noticeable.

The 3840x2160 resolution should be avoided entirely. Even the Low preset can only achieve a 35 FPS average, and the Medium preset drops to 27 FPS with dips to 23 FPS. The Ultra preset is unplayable at 14 FPS. The data clearly shows that this combination is not capable of delivering a satisfactory experience at 4K resolution in Steamworld Build, regardless of the graphical settings chosen.