Steamworld Build

Steamworld Build places modest demands on hardware, and the measured results for the Intel Core i5-11400F paired with the Intel Arc B570 show a configuration that is well-suited for high-refresh 1080p play, capable at 1440p, and acceptable at 4K only with reduced settings. The data indicates a clear performance hierarchy across resolutions and presets, with the CPU providing a solid foundation and the GPU becoming the primary constraint at higher visual quality levels.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal experience depends heavily on the target resolution, but the measured frames per second (FPS) data points to a clear sweet spot. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset delivers an average of 124 FPS with a minimum of 106 FPS and a maximum of 143 FPS. This is the highest preset that maintains a frame rate comfortably above the 100 FPS mark, making it ideal for smooth city-building gameplay. The High preset at this resolution drops to 93 FPS average, which is still playable, but the 31 FPS gap between Medium and High suggests diminishing returns for the additional graphical load. Ultra at 1080p yields 63 FPS average, which is a significant drop and not recommended for players seeking fluidity unless visual fidelity is the absolute priority.

For 2560x1440, the Medium preset again emerges as the best balance, producing an average of 79 FPS with a minimum of 67 FPS and a maximum of 91 FPS. This provides a consistently stable experience above the 60 FPS threshold. The High preset at 1440p averages 59 FPS, which is borderline for smooth play and may result in noticeable stutters during busy scenes with many buildings or units. Low at 1440p achieves 103 FPS average, but the visual compromise is substantial. At 3840x2160, the situation changes: the Low preset averages 55 FPS, which is the only 4K option that approaches playability. The Medium preset at 4K averages 42 FPS with a minimum of 35 FPS, which is acceptable for a slower-paced city builder but far from ideal. High and Ultra at 4K fall to 31 FPS and 21 FPS respectively, rendering them impractical for regular gameplay.

The best experience per the measured rows is therefore the Medium preset at 1080p, offering the highest FPS without sacrificing the stability seen in the minimum frame time data. At 1440p, Medium remains the recommended choice, while 4K users should stick to Low to maintain a reasonable frame rate.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-11400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Rocket Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.60 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. It uses a 14 nm process node and has a 12 MB shared L3 cache. This is a desktop-class CPU with a 65 W TDP, indicating efficient power draw. In the context of Steamworld Build, a city builder genre that typically relies on simulation logic and entity updates, the CPU's multi-threading capability is crucial. The benchmark data shows a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 14340 and a single-core score of 2024, indicating strong parallel performance for handling the game's background simulation.

The CPU's percentile ranking against all tested processors is 71, meaning it outperforms the majority of CPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals in average benchmark score include the AMD EPYC 7H12 (0.3% higher), Intel Core i5-12450H (0.4% lower), AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G (0.6% lower), and Intel Core Ultra 7 164U (0.6% higher). These deltas are all within 1%, suggesting the i5-11400F sits in a tightly contested performance band. For Steamworld Build, the 12 threads ensure that the game's simulation can run efficiently across multiple cores, preventing CPU bottlenecks from limiting FPS. The single-thread performance, while not top-tier, is sufficient to handle the game's primary rendering thread without dragging down the overall frame rate. The data shows that at 1080p Low, the combo achieves 162 FPS, which is likely near the CPU's practical limit for this game, as the GPU has headroom at such low settings.

The CPU's memory support for DDR4 with dual-channel configuration and 51.2 GB/s bandwidth is adequate for this game's data streaming needs. The PCIe Gen 4 interface with 20 lanes provides sufficient bandwidth for the GPU. Overall, the CPU role in this combo is to provide a stable, high-throughput foundation that does not impede the GPU's performance at most settings, though at the lowest presets and resolutions, it may become the limiting factor.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B570 is based on the Xe2-HPG architecture (Battlemage) and is manufactured on a 5 nm process by TSMC. It features 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 380.0 GB/s. The GPU has 2304 shading units, 144 texture mapping units, and 80 render output units, with 18 ray tracing cores. Its clocks are set at a base and boost of 2500 MHz, with memory running at 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective). The GPU's FP32 performance is rated at 11.52 TFLOPS, and its pixel rate is 200.0 GPixel/s. It supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, Vulkan 1.4, and OpenGL 4.6.

The GPU's percentile ranking against all GPUs is 65, and its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (0.1% higher), Intel Arc A750 (0.1% lower), NVIDIA Quadro M4000M (0.4% higher), and AMD Radeon R9 M390X (0.5% lower). The B570's 10 GB VRAM is a significant asset for Steamworld Build, as city builders often have large textures and asset counts. At 4K Ultra, the game demands substantial memory and processing, and the B570's 380 GB/s bandwidth helps maintain data flow. The measured FPS data shows that the GPU is the primary driver of performance scaling with settings. At 1080p, the FPS drops from 162 at Low to 63 at Ultra, a 61% reduction, which reflects the increasing pixel and shader workload. At 1440p, the drop is from 103 to 40, a 61% reduction as well. At 4K, the drop is from 55 to 21, a 62% reduction. This consistent scaling indicates that the GPU is the bottleneck when settings are raised, as the CPU can maintain its frame generation across these resolutions.

The GPU's power draw is rated at 150 W, with a suggested PSU of 450 W, and it uses a single 8-pin connector. The dual-slot design and 272 mm length are typical for a mid-range card. The B570's performance in this game is strong enough to deliver playable frame rates at 1440p Medium, but it struggles at 4K Ultra, where the 21 FPS average is not suitable for real-time interaction. The VRAM capacity is not a limitation at any tested setting, as the game does not appear to exceed 10 GB at these presets. Overall, the GPU role is to provide scalable performance that peaks at 1080p Low and degrades predictably as resolution and settings increase.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations, this specific pairing of the Intel Core i5-11400F and Intel Arc B570 achieves a combo rank of 2320 out of 2924 total combinations for Steamworld Build. This places it in the lower-middle percentile of all tested combos, specifically in the 21st percentile (calculated as 1 - 2320/2924). This ranking indicates that while this combo is capable of running the game, there are many more powerful combinations in the database that deliver higher frame rates. The rank is influenced by the GPU's mid-range standing and the CPU's mid-tier position. For comparison, the CPU's percentile is 71, and the GPU's percentile is 65, but the combo rank is much lower, suggesting that the game's performance is not linearly correlated with component scores.

The combo's position at 2320 out of 2924 means that approximately 604 combinations perform worse, while 2319 perform better. This is a modest result, but it does not tell the full story. The measured FPS at 1080p Medium (124 FPS) is well above the 60 FPS target, indicating that for many users, this combo will provide a smooth experience despite its low rank. The rank is skewed by the inclusion of high-end CPUs and GPUs that achieve 200+ FPS at 1080p, which is beyond the refresh rate of most monitors. In practical terms, this combo is sufficient for the game's demands at mainstream resolutions. The data suggests that the combo is not a top performer, but it is far from a poor one, as it can handle the game at 1440p Medium with a minimum FPS above 60.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows how the combo's performance scales from 1080p to 4K. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 162 at 1080p to 103 at 1440p, a 36% reduction, and then to 55 at 4K, a 47% reduction from 1440p. At Medium settings, the drop from 1080p (124 FPS) to 1440p (79 FPS) is 36%, and from 1440p to 4K (42 FPS) is 47%. At High settings, the drop from 1080p (93 FPS) to 1440p (59 FPS) is 37%, and from 1440p to 4K (31 FPS) is 47%. At Ultra settings, the drop from 1080p (63 FPS) to 1440p (40 FPS) is 37%, and from 1440p to 4K (21 FPS) is 48%.

The consistent percentage drops across all settings—approximately 36-37% from 1080p to 1440p and 47-48% from 1440p to 4K—indicate that the scaling is primarily driven by the GPU's pixel throughput. The number of pixels increases by 78% from 1080p to 1440p, and by 125% from 1440p to 4K, but the FPS drops are less than proportional. This suggests that the GPU is not purely pixel-bound, as other factors like memory bandwidth and shader complexity also play a role. The fact that the drops are similar across all settings (from Low to Ultra) implies that the limiting component is consistent; it is the GPU that is constraining performance at higher resolutions. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect the FPS to stay relatively flat at higher resolutions, but the data shows a clear decline, confirming the GPU's role. At 1080p Low, the 162 FPS is likely near the CPU's limit, as the GPU has ample headroom, but as resolution increases, the GPU's workload grows, and the frame rate drops accordingly.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS values are as follows: Low preset averages 162 FPS, Medium averages 124 FPS with a minimum of 106 FPS and maximum of 143 FPS, High averages 93 FPS, and Ultra averages 63 FPS. The Medium preset provides the most stable experience with a 37 FPS spread between min and max, while the other presets have no min/max data, indicating a more consistent frame time or a lack of recording. At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 103 FPS, Medium averages 79 FPS (min 67, max 91), High averages 59 FPS, and Ultra averages 40 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p shows a 24 FPS spread, which is tighter than at 1080p, suggesting less variance at higher resolutions. At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 55 FPS, Medium averages 42 FPS (min 35, max 48), High averages 31 FPS, and Ultra averages 21 FPS. The Medium preset at 4K has a 13 FPS spread, indicating a more consistent frame rate despite the lower average.

The data reveals that the gap between Low and Ultra settings widens with resolution. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra average FPS is 99 FPS (162 to 63). At 1440p, the difference is 63 FPS (103 to 40). At 4K, the difference is 34 FPS (55 to 21). This narrowing gap suggests that at higher resolutions, the GPU is so heavily loaded that even the lowest settings cannot fully compensate for the pixel count. The min FPS data for Medium presets shows that the game does not experience severe frame drops, with the 4K Medium minimum of 35 FPS still being above the 30 FPS threshold for playability. However, the Ultra preset at 4K at 21 FPS is not recommended for any real-time interaction. Overall, the measured FPS breakdown shows a configuration that is best suited for 1080p Medium or 1440p Medium, with 4K requiring Low settings for acceptable performance.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combo for this hardware in Steamworld Build?

A: Based on the measured data, the 1920x1080 Medium preset offers the best balance, with an average FPS of 124 and a minimum of 106 FPS. This provides a smooth experience without the significant FPS drop seen at High (93 FPS) or Ultra (63 FPS).

Q: Can this configuration handle 1440p gaming?

A: Yes, at 2560x1440, the Medium preset delivers an average of 79 FPS with a minimum of 67 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth play. The High preset at 59 FPS is borderline, while Low achieves 103 FPS.

Q: Is 4K playable with the Intel Core i5-11400F and Intel Arc B570?

A: 4K is only playable at Low settings, where the average FPS is 55. The Medium preset at 4K averages 42 FPS with a minimum of 35 FPS, which may be acceptable for a city builder, but High (31 FPS) and Ultra (21 FPS) are not recommended.

Q: How does the combo rank compared to other tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 2320 out of 2924 total combinations for this game, placing it in the 21st percentile. This is a lower-mid range ranking, but the actual FPS results at 1080p and 1440p are still smooth, indicating the rank is relative to much higher-end hardware.

Q: Which component is the bottleneck at higher resolutions?

A: The GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. The FPS drops consistently by 36-37% from 1080p to 1440p and by 47-48% from 1440p to 4K across all settings, indicating that the Intel Arc B570 is the limiting factor as pixel count increases.

Q: Does the CPU limit performance at any point?

A: At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 162 FPS, which is likely near the CPU's practical limit for this game, as the GPU has significant headroom at such low settings. This suggests the CPU can cap FPS at very low presets, but it does not hinder performance at higher settings or resolutions.