Steamworld Build

Steamworld Build is a city builder that can scale from a light simulation to a heavy one, and the data for the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X paired with the Intel Arc B370 shows a system that is decisively bound by the graphics processor at every turn. The measured frame rates reveal a combo that is serviceable at 1080p with adjustments, but which falls apart quickly as resolution demands increase. The Arc B370’s integrated nature, combined with its low percentile ranking, creates a hard ceiling on performance that the capable Ryzen 5 9600X cannot overcome.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a steep and consistent penalty as resolution climbs, which is a textbook indicator of a GPU-limited scenario. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo produces 55 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same preset drops the average to 35 FPS, a reduction of 20 frames. The step to 3840x2160 is even more punishing, resulting in just 18 FPS. This progression shows that the rendering load is the primary bottleneck; the CPU is not the limiting factor here.

The scaling pattern is consistent across all settings presets. At Low settings, the frame rate falls from 95 FPS at 1080p to 61 FPS at 1440p, and then to 32 FPS at 4K. Medium settings follow the same trajectory: 73 FPS at 1080p, 46 FPS at 1440p, and 25 FPS at 4K. Even the Ultra preset, which starts at a low 37 FPS at 1080p, drops to 23 FPS at 1440p and bottoms out at 12 FPS at 4K. This uniformity confirms that the performance delta is almost entirely a function of pixel count, not scene complexity or CPU simulation overhead.

The data suggests that the Intel Arc B370’s memory architecture, which relies on system shared memory, is severely strained by the bandwidth demands of higher resolutions. The GPU’s pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate of 96.00 GTexel/s are simply insufficient for the fill-rate requirements of 1440p and 4K in a modern game. The 18 FPS result at 4K High is not a playable experience, and the 12 FPS at 4K Ultra is a slideshow. The takeaway is clear: this combo is designed for 1080p operation, and even that requires careful settings management to hit smooth frame rates.

FAQ

Q: What is the performance difference between 1080p and 4K at High settings?

A: At 1920x1080 High, the combo averages 55 FPS. At 3840x2160 High, the average drops to 18 FPS. This represents a 37 FPS loss, or roughly a 67% reduction in frame rate, when moving from Full HD to 4K.

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X or the Intel Arc B370 the limiting factor in this game?

A: The data strongly indicates the Intel Arc B370 is the bottleneck. The consistent frame rate drops across all settings when resolution increases point to a GPU limitation. The CPU’s benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 17528.5 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2923, are relatively strong, but the GPU’s percentile ranking of 5th out of all GPUs suggests it is far too weak to feed the CPU adequately in this title.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B370 compare to its nearest rivals in terms of raw benchmarks?

A: The Arc B370’s 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 1184. Its closest rival, the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570, scores 1186, which is a 0.2% difference. The ATI Radeon HD 5770 scores 1190, putting it 0.5% ahead. The AMD FirePro M2000 is 1.4% behind with a score of 1168. These are all very old, low-end parts, highlighting the B370’s limited graphical capability.

Q: What is the best resolution to use for this combo in Steamworld Build?

A: Based on the measured data, 1920x1080 is the only viable resolution. At 1440p, even Low settings only manage 61 FPS, which is acceptable, but High settings drop to 35 FPS. 4K is not playable, as even Low settings only produce 32 FPS.

Q: Can this combo handle Ultra settings at any resolution?

A: No. The Ultra preset is the most demanding. At 1080p, it averages only 37 FPS. At 1440p, it drops to 23 FPS, and at 4K, it manages just 12 FPS. The system is not powerful enough to maintain a fluid experience on the highest preset at any measured resolution.

Q: How does the CPU’s thread count affect performance in this city builder?

A: The Ryzen 5 9600X has 6 cores and 12 threads. While city builders can often use multiple cores, this game’s performance is not limited by the CPU here. The frame rates are consistently low across resolutions, which indicates the GPU is the bottleneck. The CPU’s 3DMark max threads score of 7590 and its 81st percentile ranking among all CPUs suggest it has sufficient headroom for this workload.

Settings Recommendations

The data shows a clear trade-off between visual fidelity and frame rate, and the optimal preset depends entirely on the target resolution. For 1080p, which is the only resolution that offers a playable experience, the Medium preset appears to be the sweet spot. It delivers an average of 73 FPS, with a minimum of 62 FPS and a maximum of 84 FPS. This provides a smooth, responsive experience that is well above the 60 FPS threshold typically desired for gameplay. The jump from Low to Medium costs 22 FPS (from 95 to 73), but the visual improvement is likely worth it for a city builder where detail matters.

The High preset at 1080p is also viable, producing 55 FPS. This is a more cinematic experience but may feel less smooth than Medium. The 18 FPS drop from Medium to High is significant, and the visual gains may not justify the performance loss for all users. The Ultra preset, at 37 FPS, should be avoided, as the frame rate dips below the level needed for comfortable camera panning and management in a simulation game.

At 1440p, the situation is more challenging. Low settings produce 61 FPS, which is playable, but the visual quality will be quite basic. Medium settings drop to 46 FPS, which is borderline. The data suggests that if a user must play at 1440p, Low is the only preset that ensures a reasonably smooth experience. High and Ultra are not recommended, as they fall to 35 FPS and 23 FPS, respectively. For 4K, no preset is recommended; the highest average frame rate is 32 FPS at Low, which is too low for a management game.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of tested hardware combinations, this pairing performs poorly. The combo rank in game is 2683 out of 2924 tested combos. This places it in the bottom 10% of all systems, which is unsurprising given the GPU’s low benchmark scores. The Intel Arc B370 has an average benchmark score of 1184 and is in the 5th percentile of all GPUs. This is a fundamentally weak graphics solution.

The CPU, however, is not the issue. The Ryzen 5 9600X is in the 81st percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 29713. Its nearest rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755GE (29656, +0.2%) and the AMD Ryzen 7 7840H (29868, -0.5%), are all within a 1% performance delta. This indicates the CPU is a solid, mid-to-high-range part. The bottleneck is unequivocally the graphics processor, which drags the entire system’s ranking down. The rank of 2683 out of 2924 is a clear indicator that the GPU is holding the system back to a severe degree.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture, codenamed Granite Ridge. It operates with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. This is a modern, capable CPU with a 65W TDP. Its benchmark results confirm its competence: a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 17528.5 and a single-core score of 2183.5, along with a Geekbench single-core score of 2923. The processor has 32 MB of shared L3 cache.

In the context of Steamworld Build, the CPU’s role is to manage the game’s simulation logic, which includes the AI, resource management, and pathfinding for the city’s inhabitants. However, the measured frame rates do not reflect a CPU bottleneck. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect to see frame rates that remain relatively static across different resolutions. Instead, the frame rates plummet as resolution increases, which is the signature of a GPU limitation. For instance, at Low settings, the combo hits 95 FPS at 1080p but only 32 FPS at 4K. This massive drop is not caused by the CPU, which can easily handle the simulation at these frame rates. The data suggests the CPU has ample headroom, and the Arc B370 is the component that is failing to keep up with the rendering demands.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table details the exact measured average frame rates for the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and Intel Arc B370 combination in Steamworld Build.

| Resolution | Settings | Average FPS | Minimum FPS | Maximum FPS |

| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |

| 3840x2160 | High | 18 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 32 | - | - |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 25 | 21 | 28 |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 12 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | High | 35 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 61 | - | - |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 46 | 39 | 53 |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 23 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | High | 55 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 95 | - | - |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 73 | 62 | 84 |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 37 | - | - |

The data shows a clear hierarchy. At 1080p, the Low preset achieves the highest frame rate at 95 FPS, while the Ultra preset is the lowest at 37 FPS. The Medium preset, with a minimum of 62 FPS, provides the most consistent experience above 60 FPS. At 1440p, the frame rates across all presets are halved or worse compared to their 1080p counterparts. The 4K results are universally poor, with the best case being 32 FPS at Low settings. The lack of min and max FPS data for most entries suggests that the frame pacing is likely unstable, but the averages alone are enough to show that this hardware combination is not suited for high-resolution or high-detail gaming in this title.