The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F paired with the Intel Arc B390 delivers a severely GPU-bound experience in The Medium, with the integrated graphics solution acting as the definitive bottleneck across all tested configurations. The data indicates that this combo ranks in the 11th percentile of all tested combinations, achieving playable frame rates only at 1080p with Low settings, and struggling to maintain responsiveness at higher resolutions or quality presets. The Ryzen 5 5600F’s six Zen 3 cores and 12 threads are more than sufficient for this title’s demands, but the Arc B390’s performance class limits the entire system to a narrow operational window.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, operating from a 3.00 GHz base clock up to a 4.00 GHz boost clock. This CPU sits in the 85th percentile of all processors, with an average benchmark score of 36,945, placing it directly alongside rivals like the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 (36,938) and the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D (37,018). In the context of The Medium, a horror title that relies on fixed camera angles and scripted sequences, the CPU’s single-thread performance — evidenced by a Passmark single-thread score of 2,872 — is adequate for maintaining game logic and physics calculations.

However, the measured FPS data reveals a critical insight: the CPU is never the limiting factor in this configuration. At 1080p Low, the system produces 51 FPS, but at 1080p Ultra, it drops to 18 FPS — a 65% reduction that cannot be attributed to core count or clock speed. The Ryzen 5 5600F’s 32 MB of shared L3 cache and 20 PCIe Gen 4 lanes provide ample bandwidth for feeding frames, yet the Arc B390’s performance ceiling is reached long before the CPU’s capabilities are taxed. The processor’s Passmark multithread score of 19,236 and integer math score of 59,339 suggest it could handle far more demanding scenarios, but the GPU’s 7.680 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is the hard boundary.

The 6-core/12-thread configuration is overkill for The Medium’s engine, which typically scales well beyond four cores but rarely needs more than eight threads to maintain frame pacing. The data shows that even at 4K Ultra, where the CPU would theoretically face more draw calls, the system only manages 12 FPS — a figure that points squarely at the GPU’s inability to process the increased pixel workload. The Ryzen 5 5600F’s 65W TDP and 7nm process node keep power draw low, but this efficiency does not translate into higher frame rates when the graphics processor is the weak link.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this CPU-GPU pairing?

A: The only configuration that achieves a playable average frame rate is 1920x1080 with Low settings, producing 51 FPS. All other tested combinations fall below 43 FPS, with 4K Ultra delivering just 12 FPS.

Q: How does the Arc B390 compare to its closest performance rivals?

A: The Intel Arc B390 has an average benchmark score of 1,482, placing it just 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1,463) and 2.7% ahead of the GeForce GT 710 (1,443). This places the GPU in the 9th percentile of all graphics cards, indicating entry-level performance.

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 5600F holding back the system in this game?

A: No. The CPU scores in the 85th percentile and is statistically tied with the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 (0% delta) and the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D (-0.2% delta). The FPS drops between Low and Ultra settings at every resolution are far too steep to be caused by the processor.

Q: What frame rate can be expected at 1440p with Medium settings?

A: The measured data shows an average of 27 FPS at 2560x1440 with Medium settings, with a minimum of 23 FPS and a maximum of 31 FPS. This is below the smooth threshold for a horror game that benefits from consistent pacing.

Q: Does the 4K resolution provide any usable performance?

A: At 3840x2160, even Low settings only yield 34 FPS, while High drops to 15 FPS and Ultra to 12 FPS. None of these results are suitable for real-time gameplay, suggesting the Arc B390 cannot handle 4K workloads in this title.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested systems?

A: This configuration ranks 2,581 out of 2,911 tested combos, placing it in the bottom 11.3% of all systems. This rank reflects the GPU’s limitations rather than the CPU’s capabilities, as the processor’s percentile ranking is much higher.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The resolution scaling data provides a clear diagnostic of where the bottleneck resides. At Low settings, moving from 1920x1080 (51 FPS) to 2560x1440 (43 FPS) represents a 15.7% performance drop, while moving from 1440p to 3840x2160 (34 FPS) shows a further 20.9% reduction. This progressive decline with increasing pixel count is the classic signature of a GPU-limited scenario — the CPU’s workload remains relatively constant, but the graphics processor must shade and rasterize exponentially more pixels.

At Ultra settings, the scaling is even more pronounced: 1080p yields 18 FPS, 1440p drops to 15 FPS (a 16.7% reduction), and 4K plummets to 12 FPS (a 20% drop from 1440p). The consistency of these percentage decreases across different quality presets indicates that the Arc B390’s fill rate and pixel throughput are the absolute constraints. The GPU’s 24 ROPs and 60.00 GPixel/s pixel rate are simply too low to handle 4K workloads, regardless of the CPU’s ability to feed it draw calls.

The Medium settings row provides additional insight. At 1080p Medium, the system averages 32 FPS with a minimum of 27 FPS; at 1440p Medium, it drops to 27 FPS with a minimum of 23 FPS; and at 4K Medium, it falls to 21 FPS with a minimum of 18 FPS. The minimum frame rates scale almost linearly with resolution, confirming that the GPU’s memory bandwidth — listed as "System Dependent" and sharing system memory — cannot keep pace with the increased data requirements of higher resolutions. This is not a situation where the CPU stutters or fails to provide frames; it is a pure graphics throughput limitation.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F + Intel Arc B390 combination ranks 2,581 out of 2,911 tested combos in The Medium, placing it in the bottom 11.3% of all systems. This rank is primarily a reflection of the GPU’s performance class, as the Arc B390 sits in the 9th percentile of all graphics cards with an average 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1,482. To contextualize this, the GPU’s nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1,463, 1.3% slower) and the GeForce 800M (1,460, 1.5% slower) — both are legacy integrated or entry-level discrete parts from over a decade ago.

The CPU, by contrast, is a mid-range performer in the 85th percentile, meaning the processor alone would likely place a system much higher in the rankings. The discrepancy between the CPU’s percentile (85) and the combo’s rank (11th percentile) illustrates the stark imbalance in this pairing. If the Ryzen 5 5600F were paired with a more capable GPU, the system would likely rank in the top half of all combos, as the processor’s benchmarks are competitive with the Intel Core i9-12900T (37,112, -0.5% delta) and AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 (37,093, -0.4% delta).

The combo rank of 2,581 out of 2,911 means that 330 tested configurations performed worse, which is a small number given that the database includes a wide range of low-end hardware. This suggests that while the Arc B390 is a weak performer, it is not the absolute worst — it still edges out the GT 520MX and GT 710 in synthetic benchmarks. However, in The Medium specifically, the game’s horror atmosphere and heavy use of volumetric lighting and post-processing effects appear to disproportionately penalize the GPU’s limited compute resources, resulting in the low rank.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the only viable configuration for this combo is 1920x1080 with Low settings, which produces an average of 51 FPS. This is the sole preset that exceeds the 30 FPS threshold typically considered minimally playable for a slow-paced horror game. All other settings at 1080p fall short: Medium averages 32 FPS (with a minimum of 27 FPS), High drops to 23 FPS, and Ultra falls to 18 FPS. While 32 FPS at Medium might be tolerable for some users, the minimum of 27 FPS risks noticeable stutter during scene transitions.

At higher resolutions, even Low settings become problematic. 1440p Low averages 43 FPS, which is technically playable but requires a significant visual downgrade from what the CPU could theoretically support. 4K Low averages 34 FPS but the frame pacing is inconsistent enough that the experience would feel choppy. Given that the Arc B390 has 12 ray tracing cores and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, the hardware is capable of modern effects, but the raw performance is insufficient to enable them at playable rates.

The recommendation is to accept the visual compromise: run at 1080p Low to prioritize frame rate stability. The alternative — 1440p Medium at 27 FPS — offers better image quality but risks dipping below 25 FPS in demanding scenes, which can break immersion in a horror game. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as it yields 18 FPS at 1080p, 15 FPS at 1440p, and 12 FPS at 4K, all of which are unplayable. The data clearly shows that the Arc B390’s 80W TDP and integrated design are not meant for high-fidelity gaming, so users should optimize for smoothness over fidelity.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

1920x1080 (1080p):

• Low: 51 FPS average — the only playable configuration in this entire dataset.
• Medium: 32 FPS average, with a minimum of 27 FPS and maximum of 37 FPS.
• High: 23 FPS average — borderline, but likely to cause frustration in action sequences.
• Ultra: 18 FPS average — not recommended for any gameplay scenario.

2560x1440 (1440p):

• Low: 43 FPS average — playable if the user accepts the lower resolution and detail.
• Medium: 27 FPS average, with a minimum of 23 FPS and maximum of 31 FPS.
• High: 19 FPS average — too low for consistent interaction with the game world.
• Ultra: 15 FPS average — effectively a slideshow for a game that requires exploration.

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: 34 FPS average — technically above 30 FPS, but the minimum frame rate is not reported, indicating instability.
• Medium: 21 FPS average, with a minimum of 18 FPS and maximum of 24 FPS.
• High: 15 FPS average — unplayable.
• Ultra: 12 FPS average — the worst measured result, confirming the GPU cannot handle 4K.

The pattern across all resolutions is consistent: Low settings provide roughly 2.4x to 2.8x the frame rate of Ultra settings. At 1080p, the jump from Low (51 FPS) to Ultra (18 FPS) is a 64.7% reduction; at 1440p, it is a 65.1% reduction (43 to 15 FPS); and at 4K, it is a 64.7% reduction (34 to 12 FPS). This uniformity suggests that the quality presets scale the same set of GPU-heavy effects — likely shadows, reflections, and volumetric fog — which the Arc B390 cannot accelerate efficiently. The Medium settings at all resolutions show a consistent ~37% drop from Low, indicating that the middle preset adds moderate load without delivering proportional visual gains for this hardware.