The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X and AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT combination delivers a workable but demanding experience in The Medium, with performance that hinges heavily on graphical presets. The data shows a clear ceiling: the GPU is the primary constraint at higher settings and resolutions, while the 8-core CPU provides ample headroom. The combo ranks 1199th out of 1689 tested configurations, placing it in the lower-middle tier for this specific title. This pairing is best suited for players willing to compromise on visual fidelity to maintain smooth frame rates, as the difference between Low and Ultra settings is stark across all resolutions.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution to play The Medium with this hardware?*

A: The data indicates 1920x1080 is the only resolution where the combo consistently achieves playable frame rates across multiple presets. At this resolution, the average FPS ranges from 33.5 on Ultra to 88.7 on Low, with Medium and High landing at 55.9 and 43.5 FPS respectively.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X has an average benchmark score of 28631. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-12600, scores 28654, which represents a negligible 0.1% difference. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600XT is also within 0.1%, while the AMD EPYC 7203P is 0.2% ahead.

Q: Is the RX 6600 XT capable of handling 4K in this game?

A: At 3840x2160, the results are marginal. The Low preset achieves an average of 59.8 FPS, but Medium drops to 36.0 FPS, High falls to 30.2 FPS, and Ultra dips to 23.8 FPS. This suggests 4K is only viable with the lowest settings.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the spread is significant. The Low preset yields 74.7 FPS, while Ultra drops to 29.4 FPS. This represents a 45.3 FPS difference, showing that the Ultra preset is extremely demanding on the GPU.

Q: How much faster is the Ryzen 7 3700X than its closest rival in multi-core tests?

A: In the Cinebench R23 multi-core test, the Ryzen 7 3700X scores 19087. The nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-12600, has an average score of 28654 across all benchmarks, but the deltaPct between the two is only -0.1%, indicating they are statistically tied in overall performance.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM of the RX 6600 XT appear sufficient for this game?

A: The benchmark results suggest that VRAM capacity is not the primary bottleneck. Performance scales consistently with resolution and settings, indicating that the GPU's compute power, rather than memory allocation, is the limiting factor at higher presets.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT is the dominant factor in The Medium's performance profile. With 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus providing 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth, the card has the resources for 1080p and 1440p gaming. The GPU's boost clock of 2589 MHz and game clock of 2359 MHz drive its 10.60 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. The data shows this is not enough for Ultra settings at higher resolutions, where the card's 64 ROPs and 2048 shading units are overwhelmed. The GPU's percentile rank of 71 out of all GPUs places it well above average, but the game's demands are substantial.

The RX 6600 XT's nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070, has an average score of 28238, which is 0.9% higher. This close margin in synthetic benchmarks does not translate to a playable experience at 4K Ultra, where the combo only manages 23.8 FPS. The GPU's 32 ray tracing cores are present, but the game's implementation appears to favor raw rasterization power. The measured FPS data shows a clear pattern: the GPU is the bottleneck at 4K and at Ultra settings, where the frame rate drops below 30 FPS.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the GPU's limitations. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 88.7 at 1920x1080 to 74.7 at 2560x1440, then to 59.8 at 3840x2160. This represents a 32.6% reduction from 1080p to 4K. The scaling is less forgiving at higher presets: High settings drop from 43.5 FPS at 1080p to 32.3 FPS at 1440p and 30.2 FPS at 4K. This indicates the GPU is the limiting component, as the CPU's 8 cores and 16 threads are not saturated by the increased resolution.

The Ultra preset shows the steepest decline, falling from 33.5 FPS at 1080p to 29.4 FPS at 1440p and 23.8 FPS at 4K. The data suggests that the RX 6600 XT's memory bandwidth of 256.0 GB/s becomes a constraint at higher resolutions, particularly with the Ultra preset's increased texture detail. The 4K Low result of 59.8 FPS is notable because it shows the GPU can handle the resolution when the settings are reduced, but the combination of high resolution and high settings quickly overwhelms the card.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo shows its strongest results. The Low preset delivers 88.7 FPS, providing a smooth experience. Medium drops to 55.9 FPS, High falls to 43.5 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 33.5 FPS. The 55.2 FPS spread between Low and Ultra demonstrates the game's sensitivity to settings. The 1080p Medium result of 55.9 FPS is the best balance of fidelity and performance, staying above the 50 FPS threshold.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance degrades across the board. Low remains playable at 74.7 FPS, but Medium drops to 49.5 FPS. High falls to 32.3 FPS, and Ultra reaches just 29.4 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium at 1440p represents a 25.2 FPS reduction, indicating that the Medium preset's additional effects are costly. At 3840x2160, only Low is viable at 59.8 FPS. Medium scores 36.0 FPS, High drops to 30.2 FPS, and Ultra is unplayable at 23.8 FPS. The 4K results show a consistent pattern of the GPU being the limiting factor, with the frame rate roughly halving from Low to Medium.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X provides a solid foundation for this game, with 8 cores and 16 threads based on the Zen 2 architecture. Its base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 4.40 GHz are competitive, and the 32 MB of L3 cache helps with game data. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 19087 and single-core score of 2694 indicate strong throughput. In PassMark tests, the multithread score of 22458 and single-thread score of 2656 show balanced performance. The CPU's percentile rank of 85 places it well above average, and its nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-12600, is only 0.1% different in aggregate benchmark scores.

However, the measured FPS data indicates the CPU is not the bottleneck in The Medium. The frame rates scale primarily with resolution and settings, which are GPU-bound workloads. The CPU's 16 threads are more than sufficient for the game's logic, as evidenced by the 88.7 FPS result at 1080p Low. Even at 4K, where the GPU is heavily loaded, the CPU maintains consistent frame delivery. The Ryzen 7 3700X's 65 W TDP and 7 nm process node contribute to efficient operation, but the game does not appear to stress the CPU beyond its capabilities. The PassMark physics score of 1181 is modest, but it does not translate to a gaming limitation here.

Settings Recommendations

The data points to 1920x1080 with Medium settings as the optimal experience for this combo. The 55.9 FPS average is above the 50 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, and the Medium preset provides a significant visual upgrade over Low. At 1080p, High is also viable at 43.5 FPS, but the 12.4 FPS drop from Medium to High suggests diminishing returns. For players prioritizing frame rate, 1080p Low at 88.7 FPS offers the smoothest experience, but it sacrifices visual detail.

At 2560x1440, the recommendation is more constrained. The Low preset at 74.7 FPS is the only clearly playable option, while Medium at 49.5 FPS is borderline. The High and Ultra presets at 32.3 and 29.4 FPS respectively are not recommended for consistent play. At 3840x2160, only Low at 59.8 FPS is acceptable. The Ultra preset at 23.8 FPS is unplayable, and the High preset at 30.2 FPS hovers at the edge of playability. The data suggests that 4K is only viable with the lowest settings, and even then, the 59.8 FPS result is below the 60 FPS target for many players.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 3700X and AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT ranks 1199th out of 1689 tested combos in The Medium. This places the pairing in the 71st percentile of all tested configurations, meaning roughly 71% of combos perform better. The rank reflects the GPU's limitations at higher settings, as the CPU is above average. The RX 6600 XT's percentile rank of 71 across all GPUs aligns with the combo's in-game rank, confirming the GPU is the primary determinant of performance.

The combo rank of 1199 is consistent with the measured FPS data. At 1080p, the combo performs adequately, but it struggles at 1440p and 4K with higher presets. The 1689 tested combos include many with more powerful GPUs, which explains the relatively low rank. The RX 6600 XT's nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti, has a 0.1% lower average score, indicating the GPU is competitive with older high-end cards. However, the game's demands are high, and the combo's rank suggests it is better suited for 1080p gaming than for high-resolution, high-fidelity play. The data shows that this pairing is a mid-range option that excels at 1080p Low and Medium settings, but it is not designed for the Ultra preset at higher resolutions.