Steamworld Build

Steamworld Build is a city builder where simulation logic and rendering demands intersect, and the measured results for the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X paired with the Intel Arc B390 reveal a system heavily constrained by its graphics component. The data shows a configuration that can handle the game’s CPU overhead with ease but struggles to maintain fluid frame rates at higher visual presets and resolutions.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the 9000 series, built on the Zen 5 architecture (Granite Ridge) using a 4 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. This is a modern desktop part on the AMD Socket AM5 platform, supporting dual-channel DDR5 memory with a bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s. For a simulation-heavy genre like city builders, the processor’s single-thread performance and multi-thread capacity are critical, as these games often simulate hundreds of agents and complex economic systems.

Benchmark data shows the Ryzen 5 9600X is a strong performer. It scores 2183.5 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 17528.5 in multi-core, while Geekbench results show 2923 single-core and 14438 multi-core. Its PassMark multithread score is 30027, and it achieves a single-thread score of 4570. In 3DMark tests, the processor scales well from 2456 in 2-thread to 7590 in max-thread scenarios. The chip sits at the 81st percentile of all CPUs, indicating it outperforms the majority of tested processors. Its nearest rivals—the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755GE (0.2% ahead), AMD Ryzen 7 7840H (0.5% behind), AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT (0.6% behind), and AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS (0.8% behind)—are all close in average score, which places the 9600X in a competitive tier for mid-range desktop processors.

In Steamworld Build, the CPU’s role is to manage the game’s logic, including resource distribution, pathfinding, and the simulation of worker populations. The high single-core performance (2183.5 in Cinebench R23 single-core) ensures that the game’s main thread, which often handles the core simulation loop, is not a bottleneck. The 12 threads provide headroom for background tasks and parallel workloads like building construction and terrain updates. Given the measured frame rates, the CPU is delivering more than enough processing power; the limiting factor is clearly the GPU, as evidenced by the fact that frame rates drop dramatically when settings are increased without a corresponding change in resolution.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, fabricated on Intel’s 3 nm process. It features 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 raster operation pipelines, along with 12 ray tracing cores. Its base clock is 300 MHz, boosting to 2500 MHz, and it uses system shared memory for both VRAM and bandwidth, meaning performance is dependent on the host system’s DDR5 memory. The GPU’s raw compute is rated at 7.680 TFLOPS FP32, with a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s. The TDP is 80 W, and it supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

The Arc B390’s benchmark results are modest. It scores 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad (DX12), which places it at just the 9th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1.3% ahead), NVIDIA GeForce 800M (1.5% ahead), NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM (2.5% ahead), and NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 (2.7% ahead). These are all entry-level or legacy parts, confirming that the Arc B390 is positioned at the very low end of graphics performance. In Steamworld Build, this translates to a significant bottleneck: the GPU is unable to keep up with the CPU’s ability to feed it draw calls and geometry.

The memory bandwidth being "System Dependent" means that the shared DDR5 memory is a critical factor. While the CPU can access 89.6 GB/s, the GPU’s effective bandwidth is shared with the CPU, and in practice, this limits the fill rate and texture throughput. The measured FPS numbers show that the GPU’s performance collapses at higher settings, which is typical for an IGP that must rely on system memory rather than dedicated VRAM. The pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s sounds adequate on paper, but the shared memory architecture reduces real-world throughput, especially at 4K where the fill rate demand is quadrupled compared to 1080p.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS rows, the optimal experience for this combo is at 1080p with Low settings, where the average frame rate is 106 FPS. This is the only configuration that provides a high-refresh experience, comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold. At 1080p Medium, the average drops to 81 FPS, which is still playable but shows the GPU starting to strain. High settings at 1080p yield 60 FPS, which is exactly at the standard baseline for smooth gameplay, but any further increase in settings leads to a dramatic falloff.

At 1440p, the situation worsens. Low settings produce 67 FPS, which is acceptable, but Medium drops to 51 FPS, and High falls to 38 FPS. Ultra settings are not viable at this resolution, with only 26 FPS. At 4K, the data shows a slideshow: Low settings give 35 FPS, Medium 27 FPS, High 20 FPS, and Ultra 14 FPS. The recommendation is clear: for a playable experience, users must stay at 1080p and use Low or Medium settings. Pushing to High at 1080p is borderline, but the 20 FPS drop from Low to Ultra at 1080p (106 to 41 FPS) illustrates the GPU’s limited headroom. The data indicates that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming with reduced visual fidelity to maintain frame rates above 60 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and Intel Arc B390 ranks 2573 out of 2924 tested combos in Steamworld Build. This places it in the bottom 12% of all configurations, which is a poor showing for a system with a modern, high-percentile CPU. The ranking is dragged down almost entirely by the GPU, as the CPU’s 81st percentile standing is negated by the GPU’s 9th percentile performance. In practical terms, this means that 2572 other CPU-GPU pairings deliver better frame rates in this game, and only 351 combos are worse.

This rank is consistent with the measured FPS data. The combination is effectively limited to 1080p Low/Medium settings for playable performance, which is below the standard for most modern gaming systems. The CPU’s nearest rivals in benchmark scores—like the AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT, which is 0.6% slower in average score—would likely yield similar results when paired with the same GPU, since the GPU is the bottleneck. The rank reflects the overall system balance: a high-end CPU paired with an entry-level IGP creates a severely unbalanced setup for a game like Steamworld Build, which relies on both CPU simulation and GPU rendering.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the GPU as the limiting component. At Low settings, the average frame rate drops from 106 FPS at 1080p to 67 FPS at 1440p and 35 FPS at 4K. This is a reduction of 67% from 1080p to 4K, which is a steep decline that points to fill-rate and memory bandwidth constraints. At Medium settings, the drop is from 81 FPS at 1080p to 51 FPS at 1440p and 27 FPS at 4K, again showing a consistent halving of performance with each resolution step. High settings show the same pattern: 60 FPS at 1080p, 38 FPS at 1440p, and 20 FPS at 4K.

The scaling is almost perfectly linear with pixel count, which is a classic sign of a GPU-bound scenario. The CPU is not the issue, as the frame rates do not plateau at higher resolutions; instead, they continue to fall in proportion to the increase in pixels. For a CPU-bound game, you would expect the FPS to remain relatively flat across resolutions once the GPU can handle the load, but here the FPS is halved each time the resolution doubles. This indicates that the Arc B390 is running at maximum capacity at 1080p, and any additional pixel load directly translates to lower frame rates. The data suggests that the system’s memory bandwidth is the primary constraint, as the "System Shared" memory configuration cannot provide the necessary throughput for 4K textures and geometry.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured FPS shows a clear hierarchy of settings. Low settings achieve an average of 106 FPS, which is the highest recorded for this combo. Medium settings drop to 81 FPS, with a minimum of 69 FPS and a maximum of 93 FPS, indicating some frame time variance but still a smooth experience. High settings average 60 FPS, which is the minimum acceptable for many players, but Ultra settings fall to 41 FPS, making them unplayable for a city builder where consistent frame pacing is important for UI responsiveness. The drop from Low to Ultra is 65 FPS, which is a 61% reduction.

At 2560x1440, the performance takes a significant hit across all settings. Low settings average 67 FPS, which is still playable but shows the GPU struggling. Medium settings average 51 FPS, with a range of 44 to 59 FPS, which is borderline for smooth gameplay. High settings drop to 38 FPS, and Ultra settings are at 26 FPS. The minimum FPS values for Medium (44 FPS) suggest that even at this moderate setting, there are moments where the frame rate dips below 45 FPS, which can be noticeable in a game with frequent UI updates and scrolling.

At 3840x2160, the data shows that this combo is not capable of 4K gaming. Low settings average 35 FPS, which is below the playable threshold for most users. Medium settings average 27 FPS, with a minimum of 23 FPS and a maximum of 31 FPS, indicating very inconsistent frame delivery. High settings average 20 FPS, and Ultra settings are at 14 FPS. The 4K results are uniformly poor, with the best case (Low) still being a 35 FPS average that will feel choppy. The minimum FPS of 23 FPS at Medium settings highlights the GPU’s inability to maintain a stable frame rate under load. Ultimately, the measured data makes it clear that this combo is only suitable for 1080p gaming at Low or Medium settings, with any higher resolution or preset resulting in a compromised experience.