Steamworld Build

Steamworld Build, a city builder from late 2023, presents a specific performance profile when paired with the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and Intel Arc B580. The data shows this combination produces a wide range of frame rates depending on resolution and quality settings, indicating a system that is capable but requires careful configuration to hit the best balance of visual fidelity and smoothness. This analysis breaks down the measured performance, contextualizes it against the system's hardware capabilities, and provides clear guidance for optimal settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the overall rank of this CPU and GPU combination for Steamworld Build?

A: The combo ranks 2170 out of 2924 tested combinations, placing it in the lower half of all tested systems for this specific game.

Q: What is the best average frame rate the system can achieve in Steamworld Build?

A: The highest average frame rate recorded is 184 FPS, which is achieved at the 1920x1080 resolution with the Low settings preset.

Q: At which resolution and settings does the system achieve a 60+ FPS average?

A: The system achieves a 60+ FPS average at 1920x1080 on High (105 FPS), Medium (141 FPS), and Low (184 FPS) settings. At 2560x1440, it achieves 60+ FPS on High (67 FPS), Medium (89 FPS), and Low (117 FPS). At 3840x2160, only the Low preset (62 FPS) breaks the 60 FPS barrier.

Q: How does the Arc B580's benchmark score compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Arc B580 has an average benchmark score of 23021, which is 0.2% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP and 0.6% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080, but it is 0.7% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080.

Q: Is the Arc B580 a high-performance GPU according to the benchmark data?

A: The Arc B580 falls into the 68th percentile of all GPUs. Its benchmark score is comparable to high-end cards from previous generations, like the RTX 2080 and RTX 3080, but it is not at the top of the current performance stack.

Q: What is the maximum frame rate variance seen in the Medium settings tests?

A: At 1920x1080 Medium, the FPS fluctuates between a minimum of 119 and a maximum of 162. At 2560x1440 Medium, the range is between 76 and 103 FPS, and at 3840x2160 Medium, it's between 40 and 54 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data for Steamworld Build shows a clear trade-off between visual quality and performance. The best experience depends heavily on the user's target resolution and preference for smoothness over fidelity. For players with a 1080p display, the High preset at 1920x1080 is the optimal choice, delivering an average of 105 FPS. This provides a significant visual upgrade over the Low preset while maintaining a frame rate well above the 60 FPS threshold, and it is nearly 50% faster than the 71 FPS average of the Ultra preset. The Medium preset at 141 FPS is an option for those with high-refresh-rate monitors, but High offers a better balance of image quality and performance for most.

Moving to 1440p, the High preset remains the recommended starting point, with an average of 67 FPS. This is just above the 60 FPS mark, ensuring smooth gameplay. The data shows that dropping to Medium yields a substantial increase to 89 FPS. If a player is particularly sensitive to frame rate dips, the Medium preset is the safer choice, as the High preset does not have a recorded minimum FPS, while the Medium preset shows a floor of 76 FPS. The Ultra preset at 45 FPS is playable but may feel less smooth in a genre that often involves constant camera movement and zooming.

At 4K, the system is clearly more constrained. The Low preset is the only one that achieves a playable average frame rate, hitting 62 FPS. The Medium preset falls to 47 FPS, and High drops to 35 FPS. For a 4K experience, the Low preset is the only viable option for maintaining a consistent 60 FPS. The step from Low to Medium at this resolution is a 24% performance cost, which is substantial. The data suggests that the Arc B580's 12 GB of VRAM is sufficient in capacity, but the GPU's raw compute power is the limiting factor at this high pixel count. The best experience for a 4K display would be to use the Low preset or to consider lowering the resolution to 1440p to unlock the higher-quality presets.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580's performance is central to the frame rates observed in Steamworld Build. The GPU, based on the Xe2-HPG architecture, has a benchmark score that places it in the 68th percentile of all GPUs, and its average benchmark score of 23021 is nearly identical to that of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 and RTX 3080, indicating a performance class in line with those previous-generation high-end cards. Its 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus provides a bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s, which is a key specification for a city builder that must handle large amounts of texture and geometry data as the city grows.

The GPU's core clocks are listed as a base and boost of 2670 MHz, and its render output units (ROPs) are numbered at 80. These specifications, combined with its 2560 shading units, dictate the raw fill rate and pixel throughput. In Steamworld Build, the impact of these characteristics is visible in the scaling of frame rates. The most telling data point is the significant performance drop at 4K resolution. For instance, the High preset at 3840x2160 yields 35 FPS, a 48% reduction from the 67 FPS at 2560x1440. This substantial drop is a strong indicator that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at high resolutions.

The Arc B580's performance relative to its rivals further clarifies its role. It is 0.2% faster than the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP and 0.6% faster than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080, but 0.7% slower than the RTX 3080. This means in Steamworld Build, the B580 is expected to perform at a level comparable to these cards. The data shows that while the GPU is not the top performer, it is capable of providing excellent frame rates at 1080p and 1440p on medium to high settings. The 4K results, however, show its limits, where even the Medium preset struggles to maintain a smooth experience.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and Intel Arc B580 combination ranks 2170 out of 2924 tested combos for Steamworld Build. This places the system in the 26th percentile of all combinations, meaning about 74% of the tested setups perform better in this specific game. This ranking is a function of both the CPU and GPU, but the benchmark results for this game suggest the GPU is the primary limiter, as the CPU is a high-end part with a strong average benchmark score.

The CPU's performance is top-tier; its average benchmark score of 84003 places it in the 96th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, which is just 0.2% slower, and the AMD EPYC 4584PX, which is 1.1% slower. These are all high-performance processors, indicating that the 290K Plus is not a source of bottleneck in most scenarios. The lower overall combo rank is therefore more attributable to the GPU's position in the 68th percentile. While the Arc B580 is a competent card, it is not a top-tier performer, and when paired with a flagship CPU, the system's overall gaming capability is dictated by the GPU's limits.

This rank is still a positive indicator for this hardware pairing. It shows that the system is capable of running the game, and the measured FPS data confirms it can do so smoothly at 1080p and 1440p. The rank, however, puts the performance into perspective, showing that many other systems, likely with more powerful GPUs, can achieve higher frame rates, especially at higher resolutions and settings. The data suggests that to move up in the rankings, a more powerful GPU would be required, as the CPU already provides a strong foundation.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is a flagship processor, and its specifications suggest it is not a limiting factor in Steamworld Build. With 24 cores and 24 threads, it is a massively parallel processor. Its base clock is 3.70 GHz, which can boost up to 5.80 GHz for single-threaded tasks. In a city builder, the simulation logic and AI for the citizens often rely on single-threaded performance, and the high boost clock of 5.80 GHz is well-suited for that. The data shows a strong single-core performance, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7303 and a Passmark single-thread score of 4823.

The CPU's multi-core performance is also exceptional, as evidenced by a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 51731 and a Passmark multithread score of 60860. These scores are far above what the game would require, as the simulation of a city is not typically a workload that scales perfectly across 24 cores. The CPU's benchmark results place it in the 96th percentile of all CPUs, and its nearest rivals are within a 1.2% performance delta. This confirms that the 290K Plus is a top-tier part.

Given the high level of CPU performance, the FPS data in Steamworld Build can be interpreted as showing a GPU-bound system. When the resolution is increased, the frame rates drop significantly, which is a classic sign of the GPU working at its limit. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the frame rates would be more consistent across resolutions. The fact that the 1080p Low preset hits 184 FPS while the 4K Low preset drops to 62 FPS highlights that the GPU is the component that determines the frame rate ceiling as the resolution scales. The CPU, with its high single-thread performance and massive core count, provides a solid platform that does not hold the GPU back.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a detailed look at the system's performance across three resolutions and four quality settings. At 1920x1080, the system is very capable. The Low preset produces an average of 184 FPS, which is exceptionally smooth. The Medium preset averages 141 FPS, with a minimum of 119 and a maximum of 162 FPS. The High preset yields a strong 105 FPS, while the Ultra preset is the most demanding, dropping to an average of 71 FPS. This shows a clear and consistent scaling across presets at 1080p.

At 2560x1440, the performance is still solid but shows a noticeable dip. The Low preset averages 117 FPS. The Medium preset averages 89 FPS, with a minimum of 76 and a maximum of 103 FPS. The High preset is close behind at 67 FPS, and the Ultra preset drops to 45 FPS. The step from High to Ultra at this resolution is a 33% performance hit, making Ultra a less attractive option. The 67 FPS average on High is just at the edge of what is considered a smooth 60 FPS experience, but the Medium preset at 89 FPS offers more headroom.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly under heavy load. The Low preset is the only one to achieve a playable average frame rate, at 62 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 47 FPS, with a minimum of 40 and a maximum of 54 FPS. The High preset is significantly slower at 35 FPS, and the Ultra preset is not playable, with an average of just 24 FPS. The data shows a steep decline in performance as settings increase at 4K, reinforcing that the High and Ultra presets should only be considered at lower resolutions for this hardware combination.

Resolution Scaling

The resolution scaling in Steamworld Build reveals a classic pattern of GPU-bound performance. Comparing the Low preset across resolutions, the frame rate drops from 184 FPS at 1080p to 117 FPS at 1440p, a 36% decrease, and then to 62 FPS at 4K, a 47% decrease from 1440p. This steep decline with increasing pixel count is a clear indicator that the GPU is the primary bottleneck in this system. The CPU, with its powerful 24 cores and high boost clock, is not limiting the frame rate at these settings, as the performance scales directly with the GPU's workload.

The scaling is even more pronounced at higher settings. For the Medium preset, the frame rate goes from 141 FPS at 1080p to 89 FPS at 1440p and then to 47 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1440p to 4K is a 47% reduction, which is consistent with the Low preset scaling. This consistent ratio across presets further confirms that the GPU is the limiting factor. At 4K, the Arc B580 is being pushed to its limits, and the frame rate is heavily influenced by the GPU's compute and memory bandwidth.

The data shows that the system is well-balanced for 1080p and 1440p gaming. At these resolutions, the powerful CPU ensures that the GPU is fed with enough data to achieve high frame rates. However, the 4K results show that the GPU's capabilities are the ceiling for this system. The substantial frame rate drops at 4K, across all settings, highlight that the Intel Arc B580 is a mid-range performer that is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming. The system's performance is a direct reflection of the GPU's 68th percentile ranking, while the CPU's 96th percentile ranking ensures it is never the limiting factor in this game.