Steamworld Build

# Steamworld Build with Intel Core i5-12400 + Intel Arc B390

This pairing combines a 6-core/12-thread Alder Lake desktop processor with an integrated-class Intel Arc B390 GPU, and the measured results show a system that is firmly CPU-bound at lower resolutions while the GPU becomes the primary constraint as resolution climbs. The data set covers 1080p, 1440p, and 4K across Low, Medium, High, and Ultra presets, offering a complete picture of where this combo lands in the 2,924 tested combinations.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frames per second, the Medium preset at 1920x1080 delivers the most balanced experience for this hardware pairing. At 1080p Medium, the system produces an average of 81 FPS with a minimum of 69 FPS and a maximum of 93 FPS, which represents a smooth, playable experience for a city builder where steady frame pacing matters more than peak rates. Dropping to Low at 1080p pushes the average to 106 FPS, but the visual compromise in a game that relies heavily on reading detailed building layouts and resource chains is not worth the 25 FPS gain when Medium already clears the 60 FPS threshold comfortably.

At 1440p, the Medium preset again stands out as the best choice, averaging 51 FPS with a minimum of 44 FPS and a maximum of 59 FPS. This is borderline for players who demand a locked 60, but the 44 FPS minimum indicates the system rarely stutters into unplayable territory. The High preset at 1440p drops to 38 FPS average, which is workable for slower-paced city building but will feel less responsive during heavy zoom operations or when large sections of the map are on screen simultaneously. Low at 1440p reaches 67 FPS average, but again, the visual downgrade is substantial.

For 4K, no preset delivers a fully smooth experience. The best option is Low, which averages 35 FPS, followed by Medium at 27 FPS, High at 20 FPS, and Ultra at 14 FPS. Given that the game genre tolerates lower frame rates better than action titles, 4K Low is the only viable path for 4K display owners, and even then, expectations must be tempered. Players with 4K monitors should strongly consider running the game at 1440p with Medium settings instead, as the 51 FPS average at that resolution provides a far more consistent experience than any 4K preset.

Ultra settings should be avoided entirely on this hardware. At 1080p Ultra, the average falls to 41 FPS, which is below the acceptable threshold for a game where camera panning across a dense city can cause noticeable judder. The gap between Medium and Ultra at 1080p is a 40 FPS drop, indicating that the Ultra preset's additional effects tax the Arc B390's limited resources disproportionately. For the best experience, the data strongly supports 1080p Medium as the primary recommendation, with 1440p Medium as a viable alternative for users prioritizing resolution over absolute smoothness.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 brings 6 cores and 12 threads with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz to this pairing. Its benchmark profile shows strong single-threaded performance with a 3DMark single-thread score of 910 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2257, while multi-threaded results include a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 15989 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 8564. The processor sits in the 72nd percentile among all CPUs, placing it well above average for gaming workloads.

In Steamworld Build, the CPU's role is significant at lower resolutions where the GPU is not the bottleneck. The data shows that at 1080p, scaling from Low to Ultra produces a wide spread of results, with Low at 106 FPS and Ultra at 41 FPS. This 65 FPS range indicates that both the CPU and GPU are contributing to performance limits, but the CPU's ability to feed frames is demonstrated by the fact that even at 1080p Low, the system cannot exceed 106 FPS average. A more powerful GPU paired with this CPU would likely push higher, suggesting the i5-12400's 6 cores are sufficient for the game's simulation logic but not the sole limiting factor.

The processor's nearest rivals in average benchmark score include the AMD EPYC 7643 at 18697 (0.1% lower), the Intel Core i7-1355U at 18730 (0.3% lower), and the AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 at 18811 (0.7% lower), while the Intel Core i3-14100F scores 18519 (0.9% higher). These tight margins indicate the i5-12400 performs competitively within its class, and for Steamworld Build specifically, the 12 threads handle the game's background simulation tasks—such as villager pathfinding and resource distribution—without appearing to bottleneck the frame rate at any resolution above 1080p Low.

The 18 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel memory support provide adequate bandwidth for the game's data streaming needs. The 2.50 GHz base clock is modest, but the 4.40 GHz boost clock ensures that single-threaded game logic runs at high frequency when needed. The CPU's 65 W TDP indicates efficient operation, and the Alder Lake architecture's 10 nm process contributes to the processor's 72nd percentile ranking. For this game, the CPU delivers enough headroom that the GPU becomes the dominant constraint at 1440p and above, as evidenced by the proportional FPS drops when resolution increases.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo playable at 1080p?

A: Yes, at Medium settings the system averages 81 FPS with a 69 FPS minimum and 93 FPS maximum. Low settings push the average to 106 FPS, while High achieves 60 FPS exactly, and Ultra falls to 41 FPS. Medium is the recommended preset for a smooth experience.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B390 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B390 has an average benchmark score of 1482, which places it 1.3% above the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463), 1.5% above the GeForce 800M (1460), 2.5% above the GT 625 OEM (1446), and 2.7% above the GT 710 (1443). These are all low-end or legacy parts, indicating the B390 sits at the entry level of GPU performance.

Q: What is the best resolution for this hardware pair?

A: The data shows 1080p Medium is the best overall experience with an 81 FPS average. At 1440p, Medium drops to 51 FPS average, which is acceptable but not ideal, while 4K tops out at 35 FPS on Low settings. For consistent frame rates, 1080p is the clear choice.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU in this game?

A: The i5-12400 ranks in the 72nd percentile among CPUs and has a passmark multi-thread score of 18747. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 106 FPS, but the GPU's low benchmark standing (9th percentile) means the Arc B390 is the limiting factor at higher resolutions and settings, not the processor.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: It ranks 2573 out of 2924 tested combos, placing it in the bottom 12% of all pairings. This reflects the GPU's weak performance rather than the CPU, as the i5-12400 is a capable processor that could drive a much stronger graphics card.

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with this setup?

A: Only at Low settings, where the average is 35 FPS. Medium at 4K scores 27 FPS, High scores 20 FPS, and Ultra scores 14 FPS. None of these are smooth, so 1440p Medium at 51 FPS is the highest resolution that provides a reasonable experience.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-12400 and Intel Arc B390 achieves a rank of 2573 out of 2924 tested combos in Steamworld Build, placing it in the bottom 12% of all configurations tested. This ranking is heavily influenced by the GPU, which sits in the 9th percentile among all graphics cards with an average benchmark score of 1482. The CPU, by contrast, holds a 72nd percentile ranking with an average benchmark score of 18683, demonstrating a substantial mismatch between the two components' capabilities.

The measured frame rates confirm this imbalance. At 1080p, the system performs reasonably well at lower presets, with Low at 106 FPS and Medium at 81 FPS, but even these numbers are modest compared to what a stronger GPU could achieve with the same processor. The i5-12400's nearest rivals—the AMD EPYC 7643, Intel Core i7-1355U, AMD Ryzen AI 5 330, and Intel Core i3-14100F—all score within 1% of the i5-12400, indicating that swapping the CPU for a comparable part would not meaningfully change the in-game results. The bottleneck is squarely the Arc B390.

This low ranking has practical implications for users. The combo will handle 1080p gaming at medium settings in a city builder like Steamworld Build, but it will struggle with higher resolutions or more demanding titles. The 2573rd position out of 2924 means that a large majority of tested configurations outperform this pairing, which is expected given the GPU's entry-level standing. Users with this hardware should focus on optimizing settings rather than expecting high-end performance, and the data suggests that investing in a stronger GPU would yield far greater gains than upgrading the CPU.

Resolution Scaling

The measured data shows a clear pattern of frame rate degradation as resolution increases, with the GPU becoming the dominant limiting factor at higher pixel counts. At 1080p Medium, the system averages 81 FPS. Moving to 1440p Medium drops this to 51 FPS, a reduction of 30 FPS or approximately 37%. At 4K Medium, the average falls to 27 FPS, another 24 FPS drop from 1440p, representing a 47% reduction. This scaling behavior indicates that the Arc B390's pixel throughput is the primary constraint, as the CPU's role diminishes at higher resolutions where the GPU must process more pixels per frame.

The Low preset shows similar scaling trends: 106 FPS at 1080p, 67 FPS at 1440p, and 35 FPS at 4K. The 1080p to 1440p drop of 39 FPS (37%) and the 1440p to 4K drop of 32 FPS (48%) are nearly identical to the Medium preset's percentage decreases, confirming that resolution scaling is consistent regardless of settings. This consistency suggests that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth—both listed as system-dependent due to the shared memory architecture—are the limiting factors, not the CPU's ability to submit draw calls.

The High preset follows the same pattern: 60 FPS at 1080p, 38 FPS at 1440p, and 20 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with 41 FPS at 1080p, 26 FPS at 1440p, and 14 FPS at 4K. Across all presets, the 4K to 1080p ratio is roughly 3:1 to 4:1, meaning that 4K performance is approximately one-third to one-quarter of 1080p performance. This steep drop-off is characteristic of a GPU that lacks dedicated video memory, as the system-shared memory architecture must compete with CPU workloads for bandwidth.

The data indicates that the CPU is not the limiting component at higher resolutions. If the CPU were the bottleneck, frame rates would remain relatively flat across resolutions, but the substantial drops observed—particularly the 47-48% reductions from 1440p to 4K—point to the GPU's pixel processing limits. At 1080p Low, the 106 FPS average may still be partially CPU-limited, but as resolution increases, the GPU's workload grows faster than the CPU's, shifting the bottleneck entirely to the Arc B390.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its best performance across all presets. The Low preset produces the highest average at 106 FPS, with no reported minimum or maximum values. Medium averages 81 FPS with a minimum of 69 FPS and a maximum of 93 FPS, providing the most complete data set and indicating stable frame delivery. High averages 60 FPS, exactly hitting the standard refresh rate target, while Ultra drops to 41 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 65 FPS, showing that the Ultra preset's additional graphical effects impose a severe cost on the Arc B390.

At 2560x1440, performance decreases noticeably. Low averages 67 FPS, still comfortably above 60. Medium averages 51 FPS with a minimum of 44 FPS and a maximum of 59 FPS, meaning the system will occasionally dip below the 60 FPS threshold but rarely into stutter territory. High averages 38 FPS, which is playable for a city builder but requires adjusting camera movement expectations. Ultra averages 26 FPS, which is borderline for this genre. The 1440p to 1080p ratio at Medium is approximately 0.63, indicating a 37% performance loss from the resolution increase.

At 3840x2160, all presets fall below playable thresholds. Low averages 35 FPS, which is the only preset approaching a workable frame rate. Medium averages 27 FPS with a minimum of 23 FPS and a maximum of 31 FPS, providing the only complete min/max data at 4K. High averages 20 FPS, and Ultra averages 14 FPS. The 4K to 1080p ratios are stark: Low drops from 106 to 35 FPS (67% reduction), Medium from 81 to 27 FPS (67% reduction), High from 60 to 20 FPS (67% reduction), and Ultra from 41 to 14 FPS (66% reduction). This consistent 66-67% reduction across all presets reinforces that the GPU's resolution scaling is the dominant factor, and it explains why the combo ranks 2573rd out of 2924—the hardware simply lacks the pixel throughput for modern resolutions beyond 1080p.