Steamworld Build

The Intel Core i5-14600K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 combination delivers a robust Steamworld Build experience, scaling effectively from high-refresh 1080p play to playable 4K. Benchmark data shows this pairing is well-balanced, with the GPU becoming the primary constraint only at the highest resolutions and settings. The measured frames per second (FPS) across twelve distinct configurations indicate that users can prioritize visual fidelity or frame rate depending on their display, with the CPU’s strong single-thread performance ensuring consistent city-building simulation logic.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate recorded for this combo?

A: The best performance comes at 1920x1080 with Low settings, producing an average of 223.5 FPS. This drops to 90.2 FPS at the same resolution with Ultra settings, showing a wide performance envelope.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming?

A: Yes, it is playable. At 3840x2160, the combo achieves 42.1 FPS on High settings and 30.4 FPS on Ultra. For smoother 4K gameplay, reducing to Medium yields 56.1 FPS, while Low settings push the average to 75.1 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 4060 compare to its closest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The GPU’s average benchmark score of 23181 sits just 0.6% below the AMD Radeon RX 6600M and 0.7% below the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti. It is 0.7% ahead of the Intel Arc B580 and 0.8% ahead of the AMD Radeon 760M.

Q: What is the performance delta between the i5-14600K and its nearest CPU competitor?

A: The i5-14600K has an average benchmark score of 49166, placing it 0.2% above the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X and 1% above the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H. It trails the Intel Core i5-14600KF by 0.4% and the AMD EPYC 4345P by 0.9%.

Q: What kind of frame rate uplift does dropping from Ultra to High settings provide at 1440p?

A: A significant one. At 2560x1440, the average FPS jumps from 53.1 on Ultra to 83.1 on High, a difference of 30 FPS. This makes High a compelling alternative for users with high-refresh 1440p monitors.

Q: Is the RTX 4060 considered a high-performance GPU relative to all others?

A: The data places it in the 66th percentile among all tested GPUs. While not a top-tier enthusiast card, its performance is above the midpoint, and its benchmark results show it trading blows with mid-range competitors like the Intel Arc B580.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data reveals a clear hierarchy of presets, with the optimal choice depending on the target resolution. For 1920x1080, the High preset provides an excellent balance, delivering 127.2 FPS average. This is more than sufficient for smooth gameplay, and the 37.2 FPS gain from dropping to Medium (171.3 FPS) is unlikely to be noticeable for most players in a city builder, while the visual fidelity loss is. Ultra at 1080p still yields a very playable 90.2 FPS, so those with high refresh rate displays or a preference for maximum detail can justify it.

At 2560x1440, the High preset remains the sweet spot, averaging 83.1 FPS. This provides a fluid experience that takes advantage of the resolution’s clarity. The Medium preset is also a strong option at 107.1 FPS, offering a sizeable performance buffer. The Ultra preset at 1440p drops to 53.1 FPS, which is acceptable for a slower-paced genre but sacrifices the smoothness that the other presets achieve. For the best experience at this resolution, High is the recommended default.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes dramatically. The Ultra preset becomes demanding, yielding only 30.4 FPS, which is below the threshold for a comfortable experience. The High preset improves this to 42.1 FPS, which is playable but not ideal. To achieve a consistently smooth 4K experience, the Medium preset is the best choice, providing 56.1 FPS. This offers a significant improvement over High while retaining a reasonable level of graphical detail, making it the recommended setting for 4K displays.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture and manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It features 3072 shading units, 96 texture mapping units, and 48 raster output units. The card operates at a base clock of 1830 MHz and can boost up to 2460 MHz, with memory running at 2125 MHz (17 Gbps effective). This configuration yields a pixel rate of 118.1 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 236.2 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance rated at 15.11 TFLOPS.

The GPU’s 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s. In Steamworld Build, this capacity is sufficient for the game’s asset streaming and texture storage needs, even at 4K resolution. The benchmark data shows that the GPU’s influence on performance grows with resolution. At 1920x1080, the CPU is likely the primary driver of the high frame rates, as the RTX 4060 has ample headroom. However, the frame rate drop from 90.2 FPS at 1080p Ultra to 42.1 FPS at 4K High indicates that the GPU’s rendering capabilities become the limiting factor at higher pixel counts. The percentage difference in performance between the Low and Ultra settings also widens significantly at 4K (75.1 FPS vs 30.4 FPS) compared to 1080p (223.5 FPS vs 90.2 FPS), reinforcing that the GPU is the bottleneck as resolution scales.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-14600K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 combination is ranked 986th out of 1730 tested combos for Steamworld Build. This placement in the 57th percentile indicates that while this system is not at the top of the performance charts, it outperforms a majority of tested configurations. The rank reflects the balance between the capable CPU and the mid-range GPU, which together provide solid performance but are outclassed by systems with higher-end components.

The CPU’s average benchmark score of 49166 places it in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs, showing it is a very strong processor. In contrast, the GPU’s average score of 23181 puts it in the 66th percentile of all GPUs. This disparity suggests that the system’s overall rank in the game is likely held back more by the GPU than the CPU. The data indicates that the combination is well-matched for mainstream gaming, but users seeking top-tier performance in this title would need to look at configurations with more powerful graphics cards. The 986th rank out of 1730 combos is a strong result for a system based on the i5-14600K and RTX 4060.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14600K is a 14-core, 20-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, built on Intel’s 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. The processor includes 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 2 MB of L2 cache per core, and a shared 24 MB L3 cache. It supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory in a dual-channel configuration and has a TDP of 125 W. The CPU is unlocked for overclocking and uses the Intel Socket 1700.

In Steamworld Build, the CPU’s role is critical for managing the simulation logic, pathfinding, and entity counts that are characteristic of city builders. The benchmark results show strong single-thread performance, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4642 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2803. This is essential for ensuring the game’s simulation runs smoothly without stutters, even when the GPU is not heavily taxed. The multi-threaded performance is also substantial, as evidenced by a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32881 and a Passmark multithread score of 38682, which helps with background tasks and complex calculations.

The CPU’s percentile ranking of 93 versus all CPUs confirms its high standing. Its average benchmark score of 49166 is nearly identical to that of the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, which scores 49062, a difference of just 0.2%. The data suggests that at lower resolutions like 1080p, the CPU’s strong single-core capabilities enable the high frame rates seen in the measurements (e.g., 223.5 FPS on Low settings). As the resolution increases, the demand shifts to the GPU, and the CPU’s performance becomes less of a limiting factor. However, its robust multi-threading ensures that the game’s simulation remains fluid, preventing frame time spikes that could occur with a weaker processor.