Steamworld Build

Steamworld Build is a city builder that rarely stresses a modern GPU, yet the pairing of the Intel Core i5-9400 with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 produces a wide spread of results depending on resolution and quality preset. The data shows a system that can comfortably push high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, but which begins to show its CPU limitations at the highest settings, while the GPU’s 12 GB VRAM and high bandwidth keep 4K performance respectable. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS figures, the role of the components, and how this specific combo ranks among the 1,730 tested configurations in this game.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1080p with High settings?

A: The measured average FPS is 150.7, indicating a very smooth experience for a city builder at this resolution.

Q: How much faster is the system at 1080p Low compared to 4K Ultra?

A: The average FPS at 1080p Low is 183.5, while at 4K Ultra it drops to 41.5. This represents a significant 142 FPS difference between the lowest and highest stress scenarios.

Q: Does the RTX 4070 have enough memory for 4K gaming in this title?

A: Yes, the GPU features 12 GB of GDDR6X memory. The data shows playable frame rates at 4K High (58.2 FPS), suggesting the VRAM capacity is sufficient for this game's demands.

Q: What is the percentile ranking of the RTX 4070 among all GPUs?

A: The GPU sits in the 81st percentile, indicating it outperforms the majority of graphics cards in the database's benchmark suite.

Q: How does the Core i5-9400 compare to its nearest rival in average benchmark score?

A: The i5-9400 has an average score of 2305, which is just 0.2% higher than the Intel Core i3-10305 score of 2300. It is also 0.6% behind the Intel Core i7-8809G, which scores 2319.

Q: What is the measured average FPS at 1440p with Ultra settings?

A: The average FPS is 74.6, which is still quite fluid but represents a notable drop from the 115.2 FPS seen at 1440p High settings.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 is the dominant component in this pairing for most of the tested scenarios. Its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 504.2 GB/s, which is more than sufficient for Steamworld Build’s textures and geometry. With a boost clock of 2475 MHz and 5888 shading units, the GPU delivers substantial raw compute power, reflected in its 29.15 TFLOPS FP32 performance. This hardware profile explains why the frame rates scale so dramatically with resolution and settings.

At 1080p, the GPU is clearly not the limiting factor. The frame rates range from 121.2 FPS at Ultra to 183.5 FPS at Low, showing that the card has headroom to spare. Even at 1440p, the RTX 4070 maintains high performance, with the average FPS only dropping below 100 when moving from High (115.2 FPS) to Ultra (74.6 FPS). The GPU's role becomes more critical at 4K, where the pixel throughput demand increases substantially. Here, the card’s 158.4 GPixel/s pixel rate and 455.4 GTexel/s texture rate are put to the test, resulting in a 41.5 FPS average at Ultra settings. The data suggests that the RTX 4070’s memory subsystem and compute units are well-matched to this game's engine until the Ultra preset at 4K pushes the rendering load past a comfortable threshold.

Resolution Scaling

The performance scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a classic pattern of GPU-bound behavior, but with a clear inflection point. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 150.7 at 1080p to 115.2 at 1440p, a 23.6% decrease. Moving from 1440p to 4K, the frame rate falls to 58.2, a 49.5% drop. This steep decline at 4K indicates that the rendering resolution is demanding more from the GPU’s fill rate and memory bandwidth, which are finite resources. The 4K High score of 58.2 FPS is just under the 60 FPS threshold, showing the system is on the edge of smoothness at this resolution.

The scaling pattern changes with the quality preset. At Low settings, the 4K average FPS is 106.5, which is only 42% lower than the 1080p Low score of 183.5. In contrast, at Ultra settings, the 4K score of 41.5 FPS is 65.8% lower than the 1080p Ultra score of 121.2. This shows that the Ultra preset amplifies the resolution penalty, likely due to increased shader complexity and memory pressure. The data suggests that while the GPU is the primary bottleneck at 4K, the CPU also contributes to the frame rate ceiling at lower resolutions. The 1080p Ultra score of 121.2 FPS is significantly lower than the 1080p Medium score of 165.7 FPS, indicating that the CPU's single-thread performance may be holding back the GPU at high settings with lower resolution overhead.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of performance across all combinations of resolution and settings. At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates. Low settings yield an average of 183.5 FPS, while Medium settings produce 165.7 FPS. High settings drop to 150.7 FPS, and Ultra settings bottom out at 121.2 FPS. All of these figures are well above the refresh rate of most monitors, ensuring a fluid experience. The spread of 62.3 FPS between Low and Ultra shows that the settings menu has a significant impact on performance, even at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but begin to show more variation. Low settings average 161 FPS, which is still excellent. Medium settings follow closely at 142.6 FPS, and High settings maintain a strong 115.2 FPS. Ultra settings, however, see a more substantial drop to 74.6 FPS. This 86.4 FPS difference between Low and Ultra indicates that the Ultra preset introduces effects that heavily tax the GPU at this resolution. The 1440p High score of 115.2 FPS is a sweet spot for smooth gameplay, while the Ultra score of 74.6 FPS is still acceptable for a strategy title.

At 3840x2160, the system’s performance becomes more variable. Low settings produce a very playable 106.5 FPS, proving the RTX 4070 has enough power for 4K gaming when visual fidelity is reduced. Medium settings drop to 77 FPS, which remains smooth. High settings fall to 58.2 FPS, which is borderline for a 60 Hz display. Ultra settings are the most demanding, yielding just 41.5 FPS. This final figure shows that the Ultra preset at 4K is too heavy for this combo to maintain a consistent 60 FPS, making High settings the practical ceiling for a smooth 4K experience.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 ranks 734th out of 1,730 tested combos in Steamworld Build. This places the system in the upper half of all configurations tested, specifically around the 57.6th percentile. This rank is notable because the RTX 4070 is a high-end GPU (81st percentile among all GPUs), but the i5-9400 is a mid-range processor (50th percentile among all CPUs). The discrepancy suggests that the CPU is likely holding the combo back from a higher ranking in this particular game.

The data supports this interpretation when looking at the measured FPS. At 1080p Low, the system hits 183.5 FPS, which is likely near the game's engine limit or the CPU's frame generation capacity. The fact that 1080p Ultra only reaches 121.2 FPS, while the GPU has more headroom, points to a CPU bottleneck. In contrast, the GPU's nearest rival in the database, the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56, has an average score that is only 0.6% lower, indicating that the RTX 4070 is a significantly faster card in general benchmarks. However, in this specific game, the combo's rank of 734 suggests that the CPU limits the overall frame rate in less demanding scenarios, preventing the GPU from fully expressing its potential. The 4K Ultra score of 41.5 FPS, where the GPU should be the primary bottleneck, confirms that the RTX 4070 is not capable of brute-forcing the most demanding settings at this resolution with this CPU.