The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER combination in The Medium presents a fascinating study in hardware scaling, particularly given the game's reliance on fixed-camera angles and heavy post-processing. The data reveals a system that is clearly GPU-bound at higher settings, yet shows surprising CPU headroom at lower presets, making it a versatile pairing for this horror title.

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

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700 is an 8-core, 16-thread processor based on the Zen 4 architecture, codenamed Raphael. It operates on the AMD Socket AM5 platform and features a base clock of 3.80 GHz with a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. This is a 65 W TDP part, built on a 5 nm process at TSMC, and it supports DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus. The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 64 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and a shared 32 MB L3 cache, which is critical for gaming workloads that demand rapid data access.

In synthetic benchmarks, the 7700 shows strong multi-threaded prowess, scoring 29,302 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 4,136 in single-core. Its Passmark multi-thread score is 34,470, and it achieves 40,468 in average benchmark score, placing it in the 91st percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals in the database are the AMD Ryzen 9 7940H (deltaPct 0.1), the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 (deltaPct 0.5), the Intel Core i9-13905H (deltaPct -0.6), and the Intel Core Ultra 5 235T (deltaPct 1.2). These are all extremely close, indicating that the 7700 sits in a performance cluster where no single processor has a decisive lead.

For The Medium, the CPU's role is primarily to feed the RTX 4070 Ti SUPER with draw calls and physics calculations. The game is not known for being heavily CPU-bound, and the measured FPS data confirms this. When we examine the 1080p Low preset, which is the most CPU-sensitive scenario in this dataset, the system achieves 167.7 FPS. This high frame rate suggests that the 7700's 8 cores and 16 threads are more than sufficient to handle the game's logic and scene management, even at lower graphical loads where the GPU is not the bottleneck. The 3DMark scores, such as 8,484 for 16 threads and 1,049 for single-thread, reinforce that the processor has both the multi-thread capacity and the single-core speed needed for consistent frame pacing.

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

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain a high refresh rate experience?

A: Based on the measured data, 2560x1440 at Low settings yields an average of 152.2 FPS, which is ideal for high refresh rate monitors. The 1920x1080 Low preset is even faster at 167.7 FPS, but the 1440p resolution offers a better balance of visual clarity and performance for this pairing.

Q: How does the CPU's multi-threaded performance compare to its closest rivals?

A: The Ryzen 7 7700 has an average benchmark score of 40,468. It is 0.1% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 7940H, 0.5% ahead of the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365, and 1.2% ahead of the Intel Core Ultra 5 235T. It trails the Intel Core i9-13905H by 0.6%, showing that all four processors are within a tight performance envelope.

Q: Is the RTX 4070 Ti SUPER's 16 GB VRAM sufficient for ultra settings at 4K?

A: The data shows that at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 42.3. While the VRAM capacity (16 GB of GDDR6X) is not explicitly tested, the low frame rate suggests that the GPU's compute power, rather than memory capacity, is the limiting factor at this extreme setting.

Q: What is the FPS cost of moving from High to Ultra at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset averages 67.9 FPS, while Ultra drops to 55.9 FPS. This represents a 12 FPS decrease (or about 17.7% lower performance) for the visual uplift of Ultra settings, which may not be worth the hit to smoothness.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested configurations for this game?

A: The combination of the Ryzen 7 7700 and RTX 4070 Ti SUPER ranks 148th out of 1,689 tested combos in The Medium, placing it in the top 8.8% of all systems tested, which is a strong showing for a high-end pairing.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combo's rank of 148 out of 1,689 tested configurations places it in the upper echelon of systems for The Medium. This is a percentile ranking of roughly 91.2%, meaning it outperforms the vast majority of other CPU-GPU pairings in the database. The high rank is unsurprising given the hardware on offer, but it is notable that it does not break into the top 100. This suggests that there are about 147 other combos that deliver higher average frame rates, likely featuring even more powerful GPUs like the RTX 4090 or higher-end CPUs with more cache or higher boost clocks.

The ranking implies that while this system is excellent for most gaming scenarios, it is not the absolute pinnacle for this specific title. The gap between this combo and the top-ranked ones is likely due to the GPU's positioning; the RTX 4070 Ti SUPER has an average benchmark score of 48,704 and sits in the 86th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA CMP 50HX (deltaPct -0.7) and the Intel Arc A550M (deltaPct -2.1), are mixed, but none of them are top-tier cards. The data indicates that the combo is consistently strong across resolutions, but the 4K Ultra result of 42.3 FPS shows its limits.

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

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of performance scaling. At 1920x1080, the system delivers 167.7 FPS on Low, 108.4 FPS on Medium, 76.5 FPS on High, and 65.3 FPS on Ultra. Moving to 2560x1440, the averages drop to 152.2 FPS on Low, 92.9 FPS on Medium, 67.9 FPS on High, and 55.9 FPS on Ultra. At 3840x2160, the results are 116.4 FPS on Low, 72.8 FPS on Medium, 54.6 FPS on High, and 42.3 FPS on Ultra.

The pattern is consistent: each resolution step down from 1080p to 4K costs a significant number of frames, but the relative performance between settings remains proportional. For instance, at 1440p, the Medium preset (92.9 FPS) is roughly 36% faster than High (67.9 FPS), while at 1080p, Medium (108.4 FPS) is about 42% faster than High (76.5 FPS). The Ultra preset is consistently the most demanding, with the 4K Ultra result of 42.3 FPS being the lowest in the entire dataset, indicating that this setting is only viable for 30 FPS console-level experiences or for users who prioritize visuals over smoothness.

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

Examining the scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a classic GPU-bound signature. At Low settings, the FPS drops from 167.7 at 1080p to 152.2 at 1440p (a 9.2% decrease) and then to 116.4 at 4K (a 30.6% decrease from 1440p). The drop from 1080p to 4K at Low is a 30.6% reduction in frame rate, which is substantial but not as severe as the drop at higher settings. At High settings, the FPS goes from 76.5 at 1080p to 67.9 at 1440p (an 11.2% decrease) and then to 54.6 at 4K (a 19.6% decrease from 1440p). The total drop from 1080p to 4K at High is 28.6%.

The fact that the FPS decreases as resolution increases, even when the CPU is capable of higher frame rates (as seen at 1080p Low), points directly to the GPU as the primary limiting component. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see similar FPS numbers across resolutions, as the CPU's workload does not scale with pixel count. Instead, the data shows a clear inverse relationship between resolution and FPS, which is the hallmark of a GPU-bound scenario. The RTX 4070 Ti SUPER's 16 GB of GDDR6X memory and 672.3 GB/s bandwidth are taxed more heavily at 4K, leading to the observed performance drop.

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

For the best overall experience, the Medium preset at 1440p appears to be the sweet spot. It delivers 92.9 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, while still providing a significant visual upgrade over Low. The High preset at 1440p (67.9 FPS) is also playable, but it drops closer to the 60 FPS line, and any demanding scene could push it lower. At 1080p, the High preset (76.5 FPS) is a strong choice for those who prioritize visual fidelity, as it maintains a comfortable margin above 60 FPS.

At 4K, the options are more constrained. The Low preset (116.4 FPS) is the only one that provides a high-refresh experience, but it sacrifices the game's atmospheric lighting and shadow quality. The Medium preset (72.8 FPS) is a viable compromise, offering a smooth experience with better visuals. The High preset (54.6 FPS) is borderline, and Ultra (42.3 FPS) should be avoided unless the user has a 120 Hz display with VRR and can tolerate lower frame rates. For most users, the data suggests that 1440p Medium is the best balance of performance and visual quality, as it uses the GPU's capabilities effectively without pushing it to its limits.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with the AD103 chip. It has a base clock of 2340 MHz and a boost clock of 2610 MHz, with memory running at 1313 MHz (21 Gbps effective). The GPU features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 672.3 GB/s of bandwidth. It has 8,448 shading units, 264 TMUs, 96 ROPs, 66 RT cores, and 264 tensor cores. The card's pixel rate is 250.6 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 689.0 GTexel/s, with an FP32 performance of 44.10 TFLOPS.

In The Medium, the GPU's role is dominant. The measured FPS data shows that the card is the limiting factor at all resolutions above 1080p Low. The 16 GB VRAM is likely sufficient for the game's textures, as the card does not show signs of memory-related stuttering in the average FPS data. The GPU's 86th percentile ranking and average benchmark score of 48,704 indicate that it is a high-performing part, but not the fastest available. Its nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA CMP 50HX (deltaPct -0.7) and the NVIDIA RTX A2000 (deltaPct 1.6), are not directly comparable in gaming scenarios, but they show that the 4070 Ti SUPER is competitive within its class. The card's performance in The Medium is consistent with its specifications: it excels at 1080p and 1440p with high settings, but struggles to maintain 60 FPS at 4K Ultra, which is a reasonable expectation for a mid-to-high-end GPU from the GeForce 40-series.