The Long Drive

The Long Drive pairs a Zen 4 desktop processor with an Ada Lovelace flagship GPU, and the benchmark data shows a configuration that is heavily skewed toward high-refresh-rate 1440p and 1080p play. The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 deliver a combination that is rarely the bottleneck at lower resolutions, but the scaling curve reveals where the balance of power shifts.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frames per second reveal a dramatic scaling curve from 1080p to 4K. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces an average of 358 FPS. Moving to 1440p Low drops that to 235 FPS, a reduction of roughly one-third. At 4K Low, the average falls to 131 FPS, which is less than half of the 1080p result. This scaling pattern suggests that at 1080p, the system is likely constrained by the CPU or by the game's engine overhead, since the GPU has ample headroom to render far more frames than the processor can feed.

The gap between resolutions widens significantly at higher settings. With Ultra settings, the averages are 127 FPS at 1080p, 84 FPS at 1440p, and 47 FPS at 4K. The 1080p to 1440p drop is 43 FPS, while the 1440p to 4K drop is 37 FPS, indicating that the RTX 4080's rendering load scales almost linearly with pixel count when the settings demand maximum fidelity. The data implies that the limiting component shifts from the CPU at 1080p to the GPU at 4K, which is typical for a high-end card paired with an eight-core processor.

Comparing the Low and Ultra presets at each resolution shows the GPU's influence. At 1080p, Low yields 358 FPS and Ultra yields 127 FPS, a 231 FPS difference that points to the GPU becoming the primary constraint even at this resolution when settings are maxed. At 4K, the difference is 84 FPS (131 vs 47), confirming that the RTX 4080 is fully engaged at this resolution. The scaling from Medium to High also shows a consistent pattern: at 1440p, Medium averages 194 FPS while High averages 121 FPS, and at 4K, Medium averages 108 FPS while High averages 67 FPS. This suggests that the High preset introduces rendering features that disproportionately impact frame rate compared to the step from Low to Medium.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for The Long Drive, this specific pairing ranks 223rd out of 3,725 combos, placing it in the top percentile of all tested configurations. The percentileVsAllGpus score for the RTX 4080 is 86, and the percentileVsAllCpus for the Ryzen 7 7700 is 87, indicating that both components sit near the top of their respective performance distributions. This ranking is consistent with a system that delivers playable frame rates at all tested resolutions and settings, though it does not claim the top spot.

The combo rank of 223 out of 3,725 means there are 222 configurations that achieve higher average FPS in this game. Given the measured data, those higher-ranked combos likely pair even more powerful GPUs or CPUs, or they leverage settings that favor frame rate over visual fidelity. The data shows that this combo is competitive but not dominant; for example, at 4K Ultra, the 47 FPS average is below the 60 FPS threshold that many players consider smooth, which could explain why other combos rank higher. The ranking reflects a system that excels at high refresh rates but struggles to maintain maximum fidelity at 4K.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 is an eight-core, sixteen-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. The benchmark results show strong multi-threaded performance, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 18,760 and a single-core score of 1,930. The PassMark multithread score is 34,470, and the 3DMark 16-thread score is 8,484, which indicates the CPU can handle the physics and simulation workloads typical of a driving game.

In The Long Drive, the CPU's role is most evident at 1080p Low, where the frame rate reaches 358 FPS. This is substantially higher than the 4K Low result of 131 FPS, and the gap is too large to be explained by pixel count alone. The data suggests that at 1080p, the GPU is not the bottleneck; instead, the CPU's single-thread performance, measured at 4,063 in PassMark single-thread, allows the game logic to run at very high speeds. The boost clock of 5.30 GHz is likely the key factor, as it provides the low-latency single-thread performance that many game engines require.

The CPU's 32 MB of L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support with 83.2 GB/s bandwidth also contribute to the results. The game's simulation elements, such as vehicle physics and world interactions, benefit from the high multi-threaded scores, but the frame rates at 1080p Low indicate that the CPU can push far beyond what the GPU can render at higher resolutions. The 3DMark 8-thread score of 6,933 and 4-thread score of 3,931 show that the CPU scales well with thread count, which helps maintain consistent frame times when the game spawns multiple objects. The 65 W TDP and 5 nm process node from TSMC mean the CPU generates minimal heat, allowing sustained boost clocks during long play sessions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured averages span a wide range. Low settings produce 358 FPS, Medium averages 294 FPS with a minimum of 250 and a maximum of 339, High averages 184 FPS, and Ultra averages 127 FPS. This shows that at 1080p, even the Ultra preset delivers over 120 FPS, making the resolution ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors. The Medium preset's minimum of 250 FPS indicates that frame pacing remains consistent, with no major dips.

At 2560x1440, the results are still high but show a clear step down. Low averages 235 FPS, Medium averages 194 FPS with a minimum of 165 and a maximum of 223, High averages 121 FPS, and Ultra averages 84 FPS. The Medium minimum of 165 FPS is still above the 144 Hz refresh rate, but the Ultra preset falls below 100 FPS, which may be noticeable on high-refresh displays. The High preset at 121 FPS is playable but not as smooth as the 1080p results.

At 3840x2160, the frame rates drop considerably. Low averages 131 FPS, Medium averages 108 FPS with a minimum of 91 and a maximum of 124, High averages 67 FPS, and Ultra averages 47 FPS. The Medium preset is the only one that maintains an average above 100 FPS at 4K, while the High preset is borderline for a 60 FPS target, and Ultra falls below it. The minimum of 91 FPS in Medium suggests that even this preset has occasional dips, but it remains playable. The data shows that 4K requires careful settings selection to maintain smooth gameplay.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture, featuring 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus with a bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s. The GPU has a base clock of 2205 MHz and a boost clock of 2505 MHz. The PassMark G3D score is 34,457, and the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 6,567, which are strong indicators of raw rasterization performance.

In this game, the GPU's role becomes dominant as resolution and settings increase. The 16 GB VRAM is sufficient for the High and Ultra presets at all resolutions, as the data does not show any VRAM-related stutters or crashes. The memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s supports the high texture loads at 4K, allowing the High preset to average 67 FPS without dropping below the playable threshold.

The RTX 4080's compute capabilities, measured at 48.74 TFLOPS for FP32, are evident in the scaling from Medium to High. At 1440p, the step from Medium (194 FPS) to High (121 FPS) is a 73 FPS drop, which is larger than the step from Low to Medium (41 FPS). This suggests that the High preset enables effects like advanced lighting or shadows that stress the GPU's shading units and ray tracing cores. The GPU's 76 RT cores are not likely to be fully utilized in a driving simulation, but the 304 tensor cores provide headroom for any AI-based upscaling features. The 320 W TDP and triple-slot cooler allow the GPU to sustain its boost clock during extended sessions, which is reflected in the consistent averages across multiple runs.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data points strongly toward Medium settings as the optimal balance for most users. At 1080p, Medium averages 294 FPS with a 250 FPS minimum, which exceeds the refresh rate of nearly all monitors. At 1440p, Medium averages 194 FPS with a 165 FPS minimum, still high enough for 165 Hz displays. At 4K, Medium averages 108 FPS with a 91 FPS minimum, which is above the 60 FPS threshold and provides a smooth experience on 4K displays.

For players with 1080p or 1440p monitors, the High preset is also viable, with averages of 184 FPS and 121 FPS, respectively. However, the step up to Ultra at 1440p (84 FPS) and 4K (47 FPS) is not recommended for competitive or fast-paced driving, as the frame rate drops below 100 FPS. The Low preset is unnecessary for this hardware, as it yields 358 FPS at 1080p and 235 FPS at 1440p, which are far beyond what any display can show, and the visual quality sacrifice is not justified by the performance gain.

The Ultra preset at 4K, with an average of 47 FPS, is the only setting that produces a sub-60 FPS result. Given the data, players who prioritize visual fidelity at 4K should consider the Medium preset, which offers an average of 108 FPS and a minimum of 91 FPS, ensuring no significant frame drops. The High preset at 4K (67 FPS) is borderline, and the minimum FPS data is not available, so Medium provides the safest experience for 4K gaming. For the best overall experience across all resolutions, Medium settings deliver the highest frame rates without compromising the smoothness that the game's driving simulation requires.