Steamworld Build

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-13400F brings a 10-core, 16-thread Raptor Lake-S design to this city-building workload. With a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz, the processor sits in the 82nd percentile of all CPUs tested. Its 20 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4/DDR5 memory support shape how the simulation layer of Steamworld Build behaves. The benchmark data shows a strong single-thread score of 960 in 3dMark single-thread and 3004 in Cinebench R23 single-core, which matters because city builders often serialize simulation logic on one thread.

Multi-threaded performance is robust as well, with Cinebench R23 multicore hitting 21279 and Passmark multithread scoring 25032. The 16 threads give the game room to spread entity updates and pathfinding across cores when the city grows dense. Compared to its nearest rivals, the i5-13400F sits within 0.5% of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D and within 0.1% of the Intel Core i7-13620H in average benchmark score. That statistical tie suggests the CPU is not the limiting factor in most scenes — the data indicates the game's frame pacing at lower resolutions is far more dependent on how many objects are being simulated than on raw clock speed.

The processor's 65 W TDP and locked multiplier mean sustained all-core loads stay within a modest power envelope. For a game like Steamworld Build, where the camera often pulls back to show entire districts, the 10-core count ensures background simulation tasks do not starve the render thread. The L2 cache of 1.25 MB per core and 80 KB L1 per core provide enough local storage for frequently accessed building state. Notably, the single-thread Passmark score of 3634 and the 3dmark 2-thread score of 1880 both point to a CPU that can handle the game's periodic AI bursts without stalling the frame output.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070, built on the AD104 chip with Ada Lovelace architecture, delivers 12 GB of GDDR6X memory across a 192-bit bus. Memory bandwidth measures 504.2 GB/s, which is ample for the texture streaming and draw calls typical of a voxel-styled city builder. The GPU's base clock of 1920 MHz and boost clock of 2475 MHz, combined with 5888 shading units, produce a passmark G3D score of 26927 and a 3dmark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3854. The GPU sits in the 81st percentile of all tested GPUs.

The 12 GB VRAM capacity is particularly relevant for Steamworld Build's high and ultra settings, where texture detail and shadow resolution increase memory pressure. At 4K ultra, the measured average FPS drops to 39.6, suggesting the GPU is not just filling frames but also managing large texture sets. The 184 texture mapping units and 64 ROPs handle the game's geometric complexity, while 46 ray tracing cores and 184 tensor cores remain largely idle because the game does not appear to use RT or DLSS in the measured rows.

Comparing to rivals, the RTX 4070's average benchmark score of 37283 places it 0.6% behind the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 and 1.9% behind the NVIDIA GeForce MX570 A in the synthetic suite. Those deltas are noise-level. What matters more is the measured FPS behavior: the GPU scales cleanly across settings, which indicates a well-balanced memory subsystem and shader array. The 158.4 GPixel/s pixel rate and 455.4 GTexel/s texture rate explain why high settings at 1440p hold 111.4 FPS — the GPU has headroom to spare until the resolution climbs.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured data reveals a clear scaling pattern. At 1080p low, the combo hits 310.3 FPS; at 1440p low, 196.9 FPS; and at 4K low, 106.2 FPS. That is a 65.6% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a further 46.1% drop from 1440p to 4K. For ultra settings, the progression is 119.5 FPS at 1080p, 75.0 FPS at 1440p, and 39.6 FPS at 4K — a 37.2% drop followed by a 47.2% drop. The consistent halving between 1440p and 4K across settings suggests the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck at 4K, especially under ultra where pixel fill and texture bandwidth dominate.

At 1080p, the CPU's role becomes more visible. The gap between low (310.3 FPS) and ultra (119.5 FPS) at 1080p is 2.6x, which is larger than the gap at 4K between low (106.2 FPS) and ultra (39.6 FPS) at 2.68x — but the absolute numbers tell a different story. At 1080p, the CPU can feed the GPU fast enough that settings changes produce massive FPS swings. At 4K, the GPU is so saturated that even dropping to low settings cannot push past 106.2 FPS, indicating the render pipeline is the wall. The data implies that for 1080p and 1440p gaming, the i5-13400F has enough single-thread headroom to avoid capping the RTX 4070, but at 4K ultra, the GPU's 12 GB frame buffer and 504.2 GB/s bandwidth are the limiting factors.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific pairing of the Intel Core i5-13400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 ranks 408th out of 1730 tested combos for Steamworld Build. That places it in roughly the top 23.6% of all configurations measured. The rank reflects a balanced system where neither component dramatically outclasses the other. The CPU's 82nd percentile and the GPU's 81st percentile align closely, which explains why the combo lands above the median but below the top tier of high-end pairings.

The rank also suggests that upgrading from this combo would yield diminishing returns for this game. The nearest CPU rivals — the i7-13620H (0.1% higher avg score) and Ryzen 5 5600X3D (0.5% lower) — would likely shift the combo rank by only a few positions. Similarly, the GPU's nearest rivals (RX Vega 56 at -0.6%, MX570 A at -1.9%) would not meaningfully change the in-game ranking. The 408th position indicates that this combo sits in a crowded middle-upper tier where many similar configurations produce comparable FPS. The measured FPS at 1440p high (111.4 FPS) and 4K high (59.1 FPS) shows that the combo hits the sweet spot for 60 FPS gaming at 4K high, which is a notable achievement for a mid-range pairing.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain 60+ FPS?

A: At 1440p, every settings preset except ultra (75 FPS) exceeds 60 FPS, with high hitting 111.4 FPS and medium reaching 153.2 FPS. At 4K, only low (106.2 FPS) and medium (80.2 FPS) clear 60 FPS, while high sits just below at 59.1 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU's single-thread performance affect the game's simulation?

A: The i5-13400F scores 960 in 3dmark single-thread and 3004 in Cinebench R23 single-core, placing it in the 82nd percentile. This ensures the game's simulation logic does not bottleneck the render thread at 1080p and 1440p, where the GPU is the primary constraint.

Q: Is the RTX 4070's 12 GB VRAM sufficient for 4K ultra settings?

A: The measured 4K ultra average of 39.6 FPS suggests the GPU is memory-bandwidth limited rather than capacity limited. The 12 GB frame buffer is not exhausted, but the 504.2 GB/s bandwidth and the 192-bit bus cannot sustain ultra-level texture and shadow loads at 4K.

Q: What settings preset gives the closest to a locked 60 FPS at 4K?

A: Medium settings at 4K produce 80.2 FPS, which is 35.7% above the 60 FPS threshold. High settings produce 59.1 FPS, just 1.5% below 60 FPS, so medium is the safe choice while high is borderline.

Q: How does this combo compare to the top-tier configurations for this game?

A: Ranking 408th out of 1730 combos places it in the top 23.6% of all tested systems. The CPU and GPU both sit near the 81-82nd percentile, meaning the combo outperforms the majority of configurations but does not reach the top 10% of extreme high-end builds.

Q: Why does the FPS gap between low and ultra widen at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, the GPU is underutilized, so the CPU and game engine handle more of the frame time. The difference between 310.3 FPS (low) and 119.5 FPS (ultra) is 190.8 FPS, whereas at 4K the difference is only 66.6 FPS. This indicates that at 1080p, the settings determine the load, while at 4K the GPU's fill rate dominates regardless of settings.

Settings Recommendations

For the best balance of visual quality and frame rate, medium settings at 1440p deliver 153.2 FPS, which is more than double the 75 FPS from ultra while still providing a substantial visual upgrade over low. At 4K, medium gives 80.2 FPS, which is the only preset that both clears 60 FPS and retains meaningful detail. High at 4K is playable at 59.1 FPS, but the 1.5 FPS margin below 60 is risky for a city builder where camera panning across a large metropolis can cause sudden dips. Low settings at 1080p (310.3 FPS) are unnecessary for this game's pacing, as even ultra at 1080p (119.5 FPS) exceeds the refresh rate of most monitors.

If the goal is a locked 60 FPS at 4K, medium is the recommended preset. The 80.2 FPS average provides a 33.7% headroom above 60 FPS, which should absorb frame-time spikes from heavy simulation. For 1440p, high (111.4 FPS) is the sweet spot — it offers a 48.5% margin over 60 FPS and avoids the visual compromises of medium. Ultra at 1440p (75 FPS) is viable but leaves only a 25% margin, which may feel less stable during large building placements.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080, the combo produces 310.3 FPS on low, 239.3 FPS on medium, 176.9 FPS on high, and 119.5 FPS on ultra. The scaling from low to ultra is a 61.5% reduction in frame rate, indicating that the GPU and CPU both have headroom at this resolution. The jump from medium to high costs 62.4 FPS, while high to ultra costs 57.4 FPS, showing a nearly linear trade-off in the upper settings range.

Moving to 2560x1440, low yields 196.9 FPS, medium 153.2 FPS, high 111.4 FPS, and ultra 75.0 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at the same settings is consistent: low falls by 113.4 FPS, medium by 86.1 FPS, high by 65.5 FPS, and ultra by 44.5 FPS. This shows that lower settings scale more steeply with resolution because the GPU is not yet saturated.

At 3840x2160, low produces 106.2 FPS, medium 80.2 FPS, high 59.1 FPS, and ultra 39.6 FPS. The 4K ultra result is the only measured average below 40 FPS, and it is 48.4% slower than 4K high. The spread from low to ultra at 4K is 66.6 FPS, which is smaller than the 190.8 FPS spread at 1080p. This compression of the FPS range at higher resolutions confirms that the GPU becomes the dominant bottleneck as pixel count rises. The data shows that for this game, the RTX 4070 can comfortably handle 1440p at any preset, but 4K ultra requires a stronger graphics solution or a reduction in settings.