Steamworld Build

Steamworld Build is a city builder that scales across resolutions and presets in ways that reveal a clear performance hierarchy for the Intel Core i5-14600K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 combination. The data shows a system that is exceptionally strong at 1080p and 1440p, but which begins to struggle at 4K when pushed to the highest visual settings. With an average benchmark score placing the CPU in the 93rd percentile and the GPU in the 72nd percentile, this pairing is a mainstream high-end contender. The measured FPS results indicate that the experience is heavily dictated by the graphics preset, more so than by the resolution itself, offering a wide range of playability from extremely high refresh rates to more cinematic framerates.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to achieve a high refresh rate experience?

A: At 1920x1080, the combo delivers an average of 196.5 FPS on Medium settings and 149.3 FPS on High, making it ideal for high refresh rate monitors. Even at 2560x1440, the High preset maintains an average of 90.5 FPS, which is still well above the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming?

A: Yes, but with caveats. At 3840x2160 on High settings, it averages 48.4 FPS, which is playable but not smooth. Dropping to Medium yields 65.3 FPS, which is a solid 4K experience. The Ultra preset at 4K is the only configuration that dips below 40 FPS, averaging 36.1 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Intel Core i5-14600K has an average benchmark score of 49166, which is essentially tied with the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, coming in just 0.2% ahead. It trails the Intel Core i5-14600KF by a negligible 0.4%.

Q: What is the performance difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1440p?

A: The jump is substantial. At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 162.5 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 61.9 FPS. This represents a significant performance cost for the highest visual fidelity, with a difference of over 100 FPS between the two extremes.

Q: Is there a settings preset that offers a balanced experience for this hardware?

A: The High preset appears to be the sweet spot. It maintains an average of 90.5 FPS at 2560x1440 and 149.3 FPS at 1920x1080, while providing significantly better visuals than the Low preset. At 4K, High is playable at 48.4 FPS, but Medium is the better choice for smoother frame pacing.

Q: How does the GPU compare to its nearest rivals in aggregate benchmarks?

A: The RTX 3070 has an average benchmark score of 28238. It is 0.9% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT and 1% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti, while sitting 0.6% behind the AMD FirePro S7150.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data suggests that the High preset offers the most balanced experience across all resolutions for this hardware configuration. At 1920x1080, High delivers 149.3 FPS, which is a massive improvement over the 96.8 FPS of Ultra while still providing a significant visual upgrade over Medium's 196.5 FPS. The trend continues at 2560x1440, where High hits 90.5 FPS, comfortably above the 60 FPS standard, while Ultra drops to 61.9 FPS. This indicates that High is the optimal choice for players with 1440p monitors who want to maintain high refresh rates.

For 4K displays, the recommendation shifts. The High preset at 3840x2160 produces 48.4 FPS, which is just below the ideal smoothness threshold. The Medium preset, averaging 65.3 FPS, is a more suitable choice for 4K as it ensures consistent frame delivery above 60 FPS. The Low preset at 4K is viable for those seeking maximum performance, achieving 88.7 FPS, but it sacrifices too much visual quality for a city builder where detail matters. The Ultra preset at 4K is the only configuration that should be avoided, as its 36.1 FPS average falls below the playability threshold for most users.

How This Combo Ranks

In the specific context of Steamworld Build, this combination of the Intel Core i5-14600K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 ranks 776 out of 1730 tested combos. This places it in the 44.8th percentile of all tested configurations, meaning it outperforms a significant portion of the database but is not at the top tier. The ranking reflects a mid-to-high-end position, which aligns with the hardware's individual percentiles (CPU in the 93rd percentile vs. all CPUs, GPU in the 72nd percentile vs. all GPUs).

The data indicates that the CPU is a stronger performer relative to its peers than the GPU. The 14-core, 20-thread processor with a 5.30 GHz boost clock is a formidable partner, but the 8 GB VRAM of the RTX 3070 likely becomes a limiting factor at the highest settings and resolutions. This is evident in the 4K Ultra result, which drops to 36.1 FPS, suggesting the GPU is unable to maintain the same level of performance scaling as the CPU.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data reveals a consistent scaling pattern across all resolutions. At 1920x1080, the performance ranges from a peak of 254.1 FPS on Low to a minimum of 96.8 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset delivers 196.5 FPS, while High achieves 149.3 FPS. This shows a clear step-down in performance as visual fidelity increases, with the gap between Low and Ultra being 157.3 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the results show a similar hierarchy with reduced values. Low averages 162.5 FPS, Medium 126.4 FPS, High 90.5 FPS, and Ultra 61.9 FPS. The relative performance drop from 1080p to 1440p is consistent, with the High preset losing about 39% of its frame rate when resolution increases. At 3840x2160, the scores are expectedly lower: Low hits 88.7 FPS, Medium 65.3 FPS, High 48.4 FPS, and Ultra drops to 36.1 FPS.

The data shows that the 1440p High setting (90.5 FPS) is comparable to the 1080p Ultra setting (96.8 FPS), indicating that users can achieve similar frame rates by either lowering resolution or lowering settings. The 4K results suggest that this combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, with 4K requiring a significant compromise in visual quality to maintain playable frame rates.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 plays a critical role in Steamworld Build's performance, particularly at higher resolutions and settings. The GPU features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Memory clocks are rated at 1750 MHz with 14 Gbps effective speed, and the core operates at a base clock of 1500 MHz with a boost clock of 1725 MHz. These specifications are reflected in the measured FPS, where the GPU demonstrates strong performance at lower resolutions but shows signs of strain at 4K Ultra.

The 8 GB VRAM capacity is likely a determining factor in the 4K Ultra result of 36.1 FPS. City builders often require substantial memory for texture storage and simulation data, and the 4K Ultra preset likely pushes against this limit. In contrast, the 1080p and 1440p results are less constrained, allowing the GPU's 5888 shading units and 96 ROPs to work efficiently, as evidenced by the 254.1 FPS at 1080p Low and 162.5 FPS at 1440p Low.

The GPU's synthetic benchmark scores corroborate its mid-range positioning. It scores 22214 in Passmark G3D and 11195 in Passmark GPU Compute, with a DirectX 12 score of 85 and a Vulkan score of 120664 in Geekbench. These numbers, combined with its 72nd percentile ranking, suggest that the RTX 3070 is a capable 1440p card that can handle 4K with adjusted settings. The performance scaling from Low to Ultra at each resolution shows that the GPU is the bottleneck at higher settings, while the CPU's strong multi-core performance (32881 in Cinebench R23 multi-core) ensures it does not become a limiting factor in this simulation-heavy genre.