Steamworld Build

The Intel Core i7-14700KF and Intel Arc B570 pairing in Steamworld Build demonstrates a clear GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions, with the data showing a steep performance cliff as pixel count increases. At 1080p, the combination delivers highly playable frame rates, but the transition to 4K reveals the Arc B570’s limitations, making resolution scaling the primary determinant of the experience.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates show a predictable but pronounced drop as resolution increases, indicating that the Intel Arc B570 becomes the limiting factor well before the Core i7-14700KF’s headroom is exhausted. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo produces 162 FPS average, which falls to 103 FPS at 2560x1440 and 55 FPS at 3840x2160. That represents a 66% reduction from 1080p to 4K at Low settings, a steep decline that points directly at the GPU’s pixel throughput limits rather than any CPU bottleneck.

The scaling pattern is consistent across all quality presets. At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 93 FPS at 1080p to 59 FPS at 1440p and 31 FPS at 4K. The Medium preset shows a similar trajectory: 124 FPS at 1080p, 79 FPS at 1440p, and 42 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset is the most punishing, with 63 FPS at 1080p falling to 40 FPS at 1440p and just 21 FPS at 4K.

The resolution scaling data reveals that the i7-14700KF’s 20 cores and 28 threads are not the constraint here. The CPU’s Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44167 places it in the 94th percentile among all CPUs, and its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (0.9% slower) and Intel Core Ultra 7 265K (1% faster). At 1080p Low, the 162 FPS result suggests the CPU can feed the GPU adequately, but the rapid frame rate collapse at 1440p and 4K indicates the Arc B570’s 10 GB GDDR6 memory and 160-bit bus are overwhelmed by the increased pixel load.

The frame time consistency also degrades at higher resolutions. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 106 FPS and maximum of 143 FPS at 1080p, a 37 FPS spread. At 1440p Medium, the spread narrows to 24 FPS (67-91), and at 4K Medium it narrows further to 13 FPS (35-48). This tightening range at lower average frame rates suggests the GPU is consistently saturated rather than experiencing sporadic spikes, which is typical of a memory-bandwidth-limited scenario.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this CPU-GPU combo in Steamworld Build?

A: The data shows 1920x1080 as the only resolution where all presets remain playable, with Low at 162 FPS, Medium at 124 FPS, High at 93 FPS, and Ultra at 63 FPS. At 2560x1440, only Low (103 FPS) and Medium (79 FPS) stay above 60 FPS, while High drops to 59 FPS and Ultra to 40 FPS.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-14700KF or the Intel Arc B570 the limiting component?

A: Benchmark results indicate the GPU is the primary constraint. The CPU’s 94th percentile ranking and 44167 Cinebench R23 multi-core score show substantial headroom, while the GPU’s 65th percentile ranking and 14195 Passmark G3D score suggest it is the weaker link. The frame rate drops of 50-66% from 1080p to 4K across all presets are consistent with GPU-bound behavior.

Q: How does the Arc B570 compare to its nearest GPU rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Arc B570’s average benchmark score of 20556 is essentially tied with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile (0.1% faster) and Intel Arc A750 (0.1% slower). The AMD Radeon R9 M390X trails by 0.5%, while the NVIDIA Quadro M4000M is 0.4% slower.

Q: What is the playable frame rate ceiling for this combo at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, the only preset that maintains an average above 30 FPS is Low at 55 FPS. Medium averages 42 FPS, High drops to 31 FPS, and Ultra falls to 21 FPS. The minimum frame rate recorded at 4K is 35 FPS on Medium settings.

Q: Does the CPU’s 125W TDP or the GPU’s 150W TDP affect thermal performance in this game?

A: The measured FPS data does not include thermal or power consumption figures. The CPU’s TDP is 125W and the GPU’s is 150W, with the latter requiring a 450W suggested PSU and a single 8-pin power connector. No thermal throttling data is available in the benchmark results.

Q: How does the i7-14700KF’s single-core performance influence this game’s results?

A: The CPU’s Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6235 and Geekbench single-core score of 2578 place it well above average, but the game’s scaling pattern suggests single-core performance is not the bottleneck. The consistent frame rate drops with resolution indicate the GPU’s rendering pipeline is the limiting factor.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-14700KF with Intel Arc B570 ranks 2320 out of 2924 tested combos in Steamworld Build, placing it in the bottom 21% of all configurations. This ranking is surprisingly low given the CPU’s high percentile standing, but it reflects the GPU’s comparatively modest position in the overall hierarchy.

The combo’s rank is heavily influenced by the Arc B570’s 65th percentile among all GPUs, which drags down the overall score despite the i7-14700KF’s 94th percentile CPU ranking. The data shows that in a city builder like Steamworld Build, which scales poorly with massive core counts, the GPU becomes the dominant factor in determining playability. The CPU’s nearest rivals—AMD Ryzen 7 9700F (0.2% faster), AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (0.4% faster), AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (0.9% faster), and Intel Core Ultra 7 265K (1% slower)—all have similar synthetic scores, yet the combo’s in-game performance is capped by the GPU.

The rank of 2320 out of 2924 suggests that many combinations with weaker CPUs but stronger GPUs outperform this pairing in Steamworld Build. This is consistent with the resolution scaling data, which shows the CPU has significant headroom even at 1080p Low where the combo produces 162 FPS. The GPU’s 10 GB VRAM and 380.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for 1080p but become strained at higher resolutions, limiting the combo’s overall standing.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest results. Low settings produce 162 FPS average, Medium reaches 124 FPS with a range of 106-143 FPS, High achieves 93 FPS, and Ultra drops to 63 FPS. All presets exceed 60 FPS, making 1080p the sweet spot for this pairing.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance drops are significant but manageable. Low settings still produce 103 FPS, Medium averages 79 FPS with a 67-91 FPS range, High falls to 59 FPS, and Ultra drops to 40 FPS. The Medium preset remains playable, but High and Ultra require compromises for smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles. Low settings average 55 FPS, Medium drops to 42 FPS with a 35-48 FPS range, High falls to 31 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 21 FPS. Only Low settings maintain a consistent 60 FPS-capable experience, and even that is marginal. The Ultra preset at 4K is effectively unplayable with an average below 30 FPS.

The frame rate deltas between presets are consistent across resolutions. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 99 FPS. At 1440p, that gap narrows to 63 FPS, and at 4K it shrinks to 34 FPS. This compression at higher resolutions further confirms that the GPU is the limiting factor, as the preset scaling becomes less impactful when the GPU is already saturated.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B570’s specifications directly explain the measured performance in Steamworld Build. The GPU features 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus with 380.0 GB/s bandwidth, which is adequate for 1080p but becomes a bottleneck at 1440p and 4K. The 19.6 billion transistors on a 272 mm² die (TSMC 5 nm process) provide 2304 shading units, 144 TMUs, and 80 ROPs, delivering 11.52 TFLOPS FP32 performance.

The GPU’s clock behavior is notable: both base and boost clocks are fixed at 2500 MHz, with memory running at 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective). This flat clock curve means the GPU cannot dynamically boost to compensate for increased load, which likely contributes to the steep performance drop at higher resolutions. The 18 ray tracing cores and DirectX 12 Ultimate support are present but do not appear to significantly impact this city builder’s workload.

The Arc B570’s nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile, scores 0.1% higher in synthetic benchmarks, yet the Arc B570’s 10 GB VRAM and 160-bit bus are more limited than what the RTX 3070 Mobile typically offers. The Intel Arc A750, scoring 0.1% lower, is a direct predecessor and shows similar performance characteristics. The GPU’s 65th percentile ranking places it in the mid-range tier, which aligns with the observed frame rates in Steamworld Build.

The 380.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is a critical constraint. At 4K, the game requires more texture data to be streamed, and the 160-bit bus cannot keep pace. This is evident in the 55 FPS Low result at 4K versus 162 FPS at 1080p Low—a 66% reduction that far exceeds the 4x pixel count increase, indicating memory bandwidth saturation rather than raw compute limits.

Settings Recommendations

For 1920x1080, the data supports using Ultra settings for the best visual experience, as the 63 FPS average remains above the 60 FPS threshold. If higher frame rates are preferred, High settings at 93 FPS provide a substantial improvement with only a minor visual trade-off. Medium at 124 FPS is the choice for competitive or fast-paced play, while Low at 162 FPS is unnecessary unless targeting very high refresh rates.

At 2560x1440, the recommendation shifts to Medium settings, which produce 79 FPS average with a 67-91 FPS range. High settings at 59 FPS are playable but may experience occasional dips below 60 FPS. Low settings at 103 FPS are the safest option for consistent smoothness, while Ultra at 40 FPS should be avoided unless visual fidelity takes absolute priority.

For 3840x2160, only Low settings are recommended, yielding 55 FPS average. Medium at 42 FPS is borderline playable but will feel sluggish, and High at 31 FPS or Ultra at 21 FPS are not viable for a city builder where camera movement and UI interactions require smoothness. The data suggests that 4K gaming with this combo is only feasible at the lowest quality preset.

The optimal experience across all resolutions is Medium at 1080p, which balances the 124 FPS average with a 106-143 FPS range that remains smooth and consistent. For users prioritizing visual quality, High at 1080p (93 FPS) is the best compromise, offering a significant upgrade over Medium without the 50% frame rate penalty of Ultra. The measured data shows no scenario where Ultra settings provide a better experience than High at the same resolution, given the substantial frame rate losses.