Steamworld Build

Steamworld Build is a city builder where the pace of simulation and the size of your colony dictate performance more than raw graphical spectacle. The combination of the Intel Core i7-14700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D produces a wide range of frame rates depending on resolution and settings, and the data reveals a system that is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher resolutions but can become surprisingly CPU-limited at 1080p with lower settings. The benchmark results show a top-tier pairing that delivers smooth gameplay in nearly all scenarios, with the only major compromise appearing at 4K Ultra, where the demands of the simulation and rendering stack up.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep, directly illustrating how the RTX 5090 D’s workload scales with pixel count. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 275 FPS at 1920x1080 to 175 FPS at 2560x1440, a 36% reduction, and then to 92 FPS at 3840x2160, a 67% drop from the 1080p baseline. This scaling pattern indicates that at 1080p, the CPU is likely the limiting factor, as the GPU has ample headroom to render frames quickly, but as resolution increases, the GPU becomes the bottleneck, causing a more pronounced performance hit.

The trend is even more dramatic at the Low settings preset. At 1080p Low, the system produces a massive 396 FPS average, which drops to 305 FPS at 1440p and 161 FPS at 4K. The percentage drop from 1080p to 4K is 59%, showing that even when the graphical load is light, the sheer number of pixels at 4K still demands significant GPU resources. The gap between Low and High settings also widens with resolution: at 1080p, the difference is 121 FPS (396 vs 275), but at 4K, it narrows to 69 FPS (161 vs 92), further confirming that higher resolutions shift the bottleneck firmly onto the GPU.

Looking at Medium settings, which include min and max FPS data, the frame rate at 4K averages 124 FPS with a minimum of 105 FPS, while at 1440p it averages 234 FPS with a minimum of 199 FPS, and at 1080p it averages 359 FPS with a minimum of 305 FPS. This shows that even at the lowest 4K result (105 FPS), the experience remains fluid, suggesting that the RTX 5090 D has enough bandwidth to handle the simulation’s demands without causing stutter. The scaling from 1440p to 4K at Medium settings is a 47% drop (234 to 124 FPS), which is more severe than the drop from 1080p to 1440p (35% drop from 359 to 234 FPS), indicating that the GPU’s pixel throughput is the primary constraint at the higher resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database of tested combinations for Steamworld Build, this specific CPU-GPU pairing ranks 16th out of 2924 tested combos. This places it in the top 1% of all configurations, which is a strong indicator of its overall capability in this title. The high rank is driven by the combination’s ability to maintain triple-digit frame rates at 1440p and respectable performance at 4K, which is a common target for high-end builds.

While the rank is impressive, it is not the absolute top, which suggests that other pairings, likely with even more powerful CPUs or GPUs, have produced slightly higher average frame rates in the game’s specific simulation-heavy scenarios. However, the gap between this combo and the first-place position is likely small, given that the RTX 5090 D is one of the fastest consumer GPUs available. The i7-14700K’s 20 cores and 28 threads provide substantial multi-threaded headroom, which is beneficial for a city builder that must track numerous entities and processes simultaneously.

The percentile data for the individual components supports this ranking. The CPU sits in the 94th percentile of all CPUs, and the GPU in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs, confirming that both are high-end parts. The fact that the combo rank (16th) is slightly lower than what the individual percentiles might suggest is likely due to the specific way Steamworld Build scales with hardware, where a CPU with even higher single-thread performance or a GPU with better compute capabilities for simulation tasks could edge out this pairing in specific test runs.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture and features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 1.79 TB/s. This massive memory pool is not heavily taxed by Steamworld Build’s art style, but the bandwidth is crucial for handling the high-resolution textures and the large number of on-screen objects that accumulate as a city grows. The GPU’s boost clock of 2407 MHz, combined with 21,760 shading units, allows it to process geometry and pixel data at an exceptionally high rate.

The measured FPS data shows that the GPU is the primary driver of performance differences between settings presets. At 4K, the average frame rate scales from 62 FPS at Ultra to 161 FPS at Low, a 2.6x increase. This wide spread indicates that the Ultra preset applies significant graphical effects, such as advanced shadows and lighting, which heavily load the GPU’s compute units. The 4K Ultra result of 62 FPS is the only sub-60 FPS average in the entire dataset, suggesting that this preset is extremely demanding and may be more than what the game’s engine can efficiently utilize.

The GPU’s transistor count of 92,200 million and die size of 750 mm² are significant, but in this game, the practical benefit is seen in the high frame rates at lower resolutions. At 1080p, the GPU is often not the bottleneck, as evidenced by the 396 FPS Low result. However, the 1.79 TB/s of memory bandwidth becomes more critical at 4K, where the data shows a 59% drop from Low to Ultra (161 to 62 FPS), indicating that the GPU’s memory subsystem and compute cores are working near their limits to feed the display.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset provides a clear picture of performance across all settings and resolutions. At 1920x1080, the average FPS ranges from 186 at Ultra to 396 at Low. The Medium preset yields 359 FPS with a minimum of 305 and a maximum of 413, while High produces 275 FPS. These numbers indicate that at 1080p, the system is capable of driving high-refresh-rate monitors easily, and even the most demanding Ultra preset remains well above 144 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS ranges from 118 at Ultra to 305 at Low. Medium settings produce 234 FPS with a minimum of 199 and a maximum of 269, while High yields 175 FPS. The 1440p results show a similar pattern to 1080p but with a noticeable shift. The gap between Low and Ultra is 187 FPS (305 vs 118), which is slightly narrower than at 1080p (210 FPS difference), indicating that the GPU is starting to become a more significant factor.

At 3840x2160, the average FPS ranges from 62 at Ultra to 161 at Low. Medium settings produce 124 FPS with a minimum of 105 and a maximum of 142, while High yields 92 FPS. The 4K results show the most significant drop-off, particularly at Ultra, which falls below 60 FPS. Even at High, the 92 FPS average is playable but not as fluid as the lower resolutions. The Medium preset at 4K, with its 105 FPS minimum, is the recommended choice for a smooth 4K experience without sacrificing too much visual quality.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Steamworld Build at 4K with maxed-out settings?

A: At 4K Ultra settings, the average frame rate is 62 FPS. This is playable but close to the edge of a 60 FPS target. For a more consistent experience, the Medium preset at 4K provides an average of 124 FPS with a minimum of 105 FPS.

Q: Is the RTX 5090 D overkill for 1080p gaming in this title?

A: The data suggests yes. At 1080p Low, the system averages 396 FPS, and even at Ultra, it averages 186 FPS. The CPU is likely the limiting factor at this resolution, as the GPU has more than enough power to render frames quickly.

Q: What is the best resolution to play at for a high-refresh-rate monitor?

A: At 2560x1440, the average frame rates are 175 FPS at High and 234 FPS at Medium. These results are well-suited for 144Hz or 165Hz monitors. Even the Ultra preset at 1440p averages 118 FPS, which is still smooth.

Q: How does the performance scale between Low and Ultra settings?

A: The scaling is significant. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 210 FPS (396 vs 186). At 1440p, the difference is 187 FPS (305 vs 118). At 4K, the difference is 99 FPS (161 vs 62), showing that GPU limitations compress the range at higher resolutions.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU bottleneck this game at 4K?

A: The data indicates the GPU is the bottleneck at 4K. The frame rate drops substantially as resolution increases, and the gap between Low and High settings narrows, suggesting the GPU cannot keep up with the pixel workload.

Q: What performance can I expect at Medium settings?

A: At Medium settings, the average FPS is 359 at 1080p, 234 at 1440p, and 124 at 4K. The minimum FPS at these resolutions are 305, 199, and 105 respectively, indicating consistent frame delivery.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700K, with its 20 cores (8 performance and 12 efficiency) and 28 threads, is a formidable processor for a simulation-heavy game like Steamworld Build. Its base clock of 3.40 GHz and boost clock of 5.60 GHz provide strong single-thread performance, which is critical for the game’s main simulation loop. The L3 cache is 33 MB shared, which helps keep frequently accessed data close to the cores, reducing latency in complex city simulations.

The CPU’s benchmark scores show its multi-threaded prowess, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 33440.5 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 20767. This power is relevant for Steamworld Build, as the game must manage the AI of thousands of citizens, resource flows, and building construction simultaneously. The data shows that at 1080p with Low settings, the system hits 396 FPS, which is likely near the CPU’s limit for frame generation, as the GPU is not heavily taxed at that resolution.

However, the CPU’s role becomes less prominent as resolution increases. The measured FPS at 4K Ultra is 62 FPS, which is less than a third of the 1080p Low result. This indicates that the GPU is the primary constraint at high resolutions. The CPU’s nearest rivals, such as the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X, have an average benchmark score that is 0.2% lower, showing that the i7-14700K is competitive at the top end. The CPU’s 94th percentile ranking among all CPUs confirms that it will not be a bottleneck in most gaming scenarios, including this one, except perhaps at the lowest resolutions where the GPU has excess capacity.