Steamworld Build

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

The Intel Core i5-13400F sits in an interesting position for Steamworld Build. This is a city builder, a genre that typically scales with single-thread performance and memory latency more than raw core counts. The chip brings 10 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 2.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. Those clocks matter because simulation ticks in city builders often run on a single thread, and the boost behavior determines how quickly the game can process the thousands of agents, resources, and building states that Steamworld Build manages.

Benchmark data supports this interpretation. The 3DMark single-thread score is 960, while the 2-thread score is 1880 — nearly double, suggesting good scaling from one to two cores. The 4-thread score jumps to 3459, and the 8-thread score reaches 5591. By the max-thread test, the chip scores 7307, which is only slightly above the 8-thread result. This pattern indicates that Steamworld Build's engine, at least in these measurement runs, benefits strongly from the first few cores but sees diminishing returns beyond eight threads. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 21279 versus a single-core score of 3004 reinforces this: the CPU can deliver substantial multi-threaded throughput, but the per-core performance is what likely drives the game's simulation responsiveness.

The percentileVsAllCpus of 82 means this CPU outperforms 82% of all tested processors in aggregate benchmark scores. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i7-13620H, scores 25201 against 25236 for the i5-13400F, a deltaPct of 0.1 — essentially identical. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D trails by 0.5%, while the AMD EPYC 9474F and AMD Ryzen AI 5 PRO 340 are 0.5% behind and 0.1% ahead respectively. These tiny deltas suggest that for Steamworld Build, the i5-13400F's performance envelope is well-matched to the game's demands; it neither bottlenecks nor overshoots in a way that would show up as a dramatic difference in frame pacing.

The 20 MB shared L3 cache is relevant here. City builders often have large working sets — the game state, pathfinding data, and resource flows. A larger cache can reduce memory stalls. The 1.25 MB L2 per core and 80 KB L1 per core are standard for this architecture, but the L3 is where the game's simulation data likely lives. With a 65 W TDP and DDR4/DDR5 support, the platform offers flexibility, though the benchmark data doesn't specify which memory type was used in these measurements.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is a Blackwell 2.0 architecture GPU built on a 5 nm TSMC process, with 45,600 million transistors on a 378 mm² die. It carries 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, yielding 960.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The base clock is 2295 MHz with a boost of 2617 MHz, and memory runs at 1875 MHz (30 Gbps effective). These specs matter for Steamworld Build because the game renders dense scenes with many small objects — buildings, workers, vehicles — which can stress fill-rate and memory bandwidth.

The 16 GB VRAM is generous for a city builder. At 4K Ultra settings, the average FPS drops to 52.9, which suggests the GPU is being pushed hard, but not necessarily by texture memory — rather by the sheer number of draw calls and geometry. The 10752 shading units and 112 ROPs provide the pixel throughput needed for high-resolution output, while 336 TMUs handle texture mapping across the many small surfaces that populate a Steamworld Build map.

The RTX 5080's percentileVsAllGpus of 89 places it above 89% of all GPUs in aggregate benchmarks. Its nearest rivals are interesting: the Intel Arc A570M scores 58239 (1.6% behind), the Intel Arc Pro A60 scores 60326 (1.9% ahead), and the Intel Arc A580 is 2.5% behind. These deltas are small, which is surprising given the RTX 5080's premium positioning. The PassMark G3D score of 36565 and the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 8637 give a sense of raw compute capability. The FP32 throughput of 56.28 TFLOPS is substantial, though Steamworld Build likely doesn't stress compute shaders heavily — it's more of a CPU-bound simulation with GPU rendering.

The 360 W TDP and PCIe 5.0 x16 interface are modern standards, but the game's performance at 1080p Low (323.3 FPS average) versus 4K Ultra (52.9 FPS) indicates that resolution scaling is the dominant factor, which points to GPU-bound rendering at higher settings rather than a memory capacity issue.

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

The measured FPS data reveals a clear scaling pattern. At 1080p High settings, the combo delivers 239.7 FPS. Moving to 1440p High drops that to 155.6 FPS — a 35% reduction. At 4K High, it falls to 78.3 FPS, which is another 50% drop from 1440p. This steep decline as resolution increases is a classic sign of GPU-bound rendering; the CPU is capable of feeding frames at 1080p, but the GPU's fill-rate and shading work become the bottleneck as pixel count quadruples from 1080p to 4K.

Look at the Low settings across resolutions: 1080p Low hits 323.3 FPS, 1440p Low hits 268 FPS, and 4K Low hits 139.1 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 4K at Low settings is still significant — a 57% reduction — but the absolute numbers remain high, suggesting that even at 4K Low, the GPU has enough headroom to render the scene without the CPU holding it back. The Ultra settings tell a different story: 163 FPS at 1080p, 103.6 FPS at 1440p, and 52.9 FPS at 4K. The 4K Ultra result is less than a third of the 1080p Low figure, indicating that the combination of high resolution and high graphical fidelity pushes the GPU to its limits.

The scaling between Medium and High is also informative. At 1080p, Medium delivers 291 FPS versus High at 239.7 FPS — a 21% difference. At 4K, Medium delivers 110.8 FPS versus High at 78.3 FPS — a 41% difference. This widening gap at higher resolutions suggests that the High preset introduces effects that become exponentially more expensive as pixel count rises, such as ambient occlusion or shadow resolution. The Ultra preset at 4K (52.9 FPS) versus High at 4K (78.3 FPS) shows a 32% drop, meaning Ultra adds significant visual work that the GPU struggles to sustain at 4K.

The data implies that at 1080p, this combo is CPU-limited in the sense that the GPU could push even higher frame rates if the CPU could feed it faster — 323 FPS at Low is near the practical ceiling for many games. At 4K, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck, with the CPU's simulation work hidden behind the GPU's rendering time.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This Intel Core i5-13400F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 combination ranks 76th out of 1730 tested combos in Steamworld Build. That places it in the top 4.4% of all configurations measured for this game. The rank reflects the aggregate performance across all resolutions and settings, weighted by the game's actual demand profile.

Being 76th out of 1730 is notable because the RTX 5080 is a high-end GPU, but the i5-13400F is a mid-range CPU. The fact that this combo ranks as high as it does suggests that Steamworld Build does not heavily penalize the CPU for having fewer cores than top-tier options. The 10-core, 16-thread configuration appears sufficient to keep the RTX 5080 fed at most settings, except perhaps at 1080p Low where the CPU might become the limiting factor.

The nearest CPU rivals — the i7-13620H (0.1% ahead), Ryzen 5 5600X3D (0.5% behind), EPYC 9474F (0.5% ahead), and Ryzen AI 5 PRO 340 (0.5% behind) — all show negligible differences in aggregate CPU benchmarks. This means the ranking is likely driven more by GPU performance and the specific combination's balance. The RTX 5080's nearest GPU rivals (Intel Arc A570M, Arc Pro A60, Arc A580, Radeon Pro W5500X) are all within 2.6% in aggregate GPU scores, yet the RTX 5080's actual in-game performance is clearly superior given the 76th rank — this suggests that Steamworld Build rewards the RTX 5080's specific architectural strengths more than generic benchmark scores indicate.

The rank also implies that there are 75 combos that perform better, likely featuring higher-end CPUs paired with this GPU or similar GPUs with more CPU headroom. But the gap between rank 76 and rank 1 in a city builder is often small in terms of playable experience — once you're past 60 FPS at 4K, additional frames have diminishing returns for a genre that doesn't require twitch reflexes.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

The measured FPS rows provide clear guidance for optimal settings based on target resolution and refresh rate. At 1080p, every preset delivers playable frame rates: Low at 323.3 FPS, Medium at 291 FPS, High at 239.7 FPS, and Ultra at 163 FPS. For a 144 Hz monitor, Ultra at 1080p is perfectly smooth, and even High leaves headroom. The data suggests that 1080p Ultra (163 FPS) is the best choice for maximum visual quality without sacrificing smoothness.

At 1440p, the situation becomes more nuanced. Ultra delivers 103.6 FPS, which is above 60 FPS and suitable for a 120 Hz display. High delivers 155.6 FPS, which is ideal for 144 Hz monitors. Medium hits 203.4 FPS, and Low reaches 268 FPS. For most players, 1440p High (155.6 FPS) offers the best balance — it's visually rich and comfortably above the 144 Hz threshold. If the monitor is 165 Hz or higher, Medium at 203.4 FPS would be the safer choice to ensure consistent frame delivery.

At 4K, the trade-offs are more pronounced. Ultra drops to 52.9 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold that many consider the minimum for smooth gameplay. High at 78.3 FPS is playable but not ideal for high-refresh displays. Medium at 110.8 FPS is the sweet spot for 4K — it's well above 60 FPS and likely to provide a stable experience. Low at 139.1 FPS is also viable if the player prioritizes frame rate over visual fidelity, but the jump from Medium to Low (110.8 to 139.1 FPS) may not be worth the visual downgrade.

The data indicates that Ultra settings at 4K are not recommended for this combo, as the 52.9 FPS average could dip below 60 in dense city sections. Medium at 4K (110.8 FPS) is the best recommendation for a balanced experience, while High (78.3 FPS) is acceptable for players who prefer visual quality over frame rate stability.

FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-13400F sufficient for Steamworld Build at 4K?

A: Yes. The measured data shows that at 4K Medium, the combo delivers 110.8 FPS average, and at 4K High it reaches 78.3 FPS. The CPU's 10 cores and 16 threads provide enough simulation throughput to feed the RTX 5080 at these frame rates, as evidenced by the 76th rank out of 1730 combos.

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 144 Hz 1440p monitor?

A: The High preset at 2560x1440 delivers 155.6 FPS average, which is above the 144 Hz threshold. Medium at 1440p hits 203.4 FPS, providing additional headroom if the scene becomes more complex. Ultra at 1440p drops to 103.6 FPS, which is below 144 Hz and may not be ideal.

Q: Does the RTX 5080's 16 GB VRAM matter for Steamworld Build?

A: The data doesn't show VRAM usage, but the 16 GB capacity is large enough to handle the game's textures at 4K Ultra (52.9 FPS) without likely hitting memory limits. The performance drop at 4K Ultra is more attributable to rendering workload than memory capacity, given that the game is a city builder with many small objects rather than high-resolution textures.

Q: How does this combo compare to the nearest CPU rival, the Intel Core i7-13620H?

A: The i5-13400F has an avgBenchmarkScore of 25236 versus 25201 for the i7-13620H, a deltaPct of 0.1%. This means the i5-13400F is essentially tied with the i7-13620H in aggregate CPU performance, so the choice between them would not meaningfully affect Steamworld Build frame rates.

Q: Is 4K Ultra playable with this combo?

A: The measured average FPS at 4K Ultra is 52.9, which is below the 60 FPS standard for smooth play. While it may be technically playable, the data suggests that 4K Medium (110.8 FPS) or 4K High (78.3 FPS) provides a better experience with less risk of frame drops during heavy simulation load.

Q: What does the comboRankInGame of 76 out of 1730 indicate?

A: It means this configuration performs better than 95.6% of all tested combos in Steamworld Build. The rank suggests that the i5-13400F paired with the RTX 5080 is a well-balanced combination for this game, with the GPU being the primary performance driver at higher resolutions.

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

The measured data covers three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 323.3 FPS average. Medium at 1080p achieves 291 FPS, High reaches 239.7 FPS, and Ultra tops out at 163 FPS. These numbers show that at 1080p, the combo has substantial headroom, with even Ultra well above the 144 Hz threshold.

At 2560x1440, the scaling is more demanding. Low hits 268 FPS, Medium delivers 203.4 FPS, High reaches 155.6 FPS, and Ultra drops to 103.6 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra at 1440p shows a 61% reduction in frame rate, indicating that each preset tier adds significant GPU workload.

At 3840x2160, the numbers compress further. Low delivers 139.1 FPS, Medium hits 110.8 FPS, High reaches 78.3 FPS, and Ultra falls to 52.9 FPS. The drop from 1080p Low (323.3 FPS) to 4K Low (139.1 FPS) is 57%, while the drop from 1080p Ultra (163 FPS) to 4K Ultra (52.9 FPS) is 68%. This widening gap at Ultra settings confirms that the highest preset scales poorly with resolution, likely due to shader complexity and overdraw.

The data shows a consistent pattern: Medium settings offer the most linear scaling across resolutions, with 291 FPS at 1080p, 203.4 FPS at 1440p, and 110.8 FPS at 4K. The High preset shows a steeper decline, particularly between 1440p and 4K (155.6 to 78.3 FPS, a 50% drop). Ultra is the most demanding, with the 4K result (52.9 FPS) falling below the 60 FPS mark. These measurements provide a complete picture of how this combo behaves across the full spectrum of visual settings, allowing players to match their display's refresh rate and resolution to the appropriate preset.