The Medium

The Medium is a demanding horror title that stresses both processor and graphics hardware, and the combination of an AMD Ryzen 7 9700F with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 produces a wide range of performance depending on the resolution and quality preset. The measured data reveals a system that is capable of smooth 1080p play but struggles to maintain high frame rates at 4K, with the RTX 4060 acting as the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. The Ryzen 7 9700F, with its 8 cores and 16 threads from the Zen 5 architecture, provides ample headroom for the game’s CPU demands, while the 8 GB VRAM and clock speeds of the RTX 4060 become limiting factors as pixel count increases. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS across all resolutions and settings, interprets the scaling behavior, and offers recommendations based solely on the provided benchmark data.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and clearly indicates the GPU becomes the limiting component as resolution increases. At High settings, the average FPS falls from 49 at 1920x1080 to 41 at 2560x1440, a reduction of 8 FPS, and then plummets to 32 at 3840x2160, representing a 35% drop from the 1080p result. This scaling pattern is typical for a GPU with an 8 GB memory buffer and a 128-bit memory bus, as the RTX 4060’s 272.0 GB/s bandwidth is increasingly taxed by the higher pixel throughput demanded at 4K.

The gap between Low and Ultra settings widens dramatically at higher resolutions, further confirming the GPU bottleneck. At 1080p, the difference between Low (108 FPS) and Ultra (39 FPS) is 69 FPS, while at 4K, the same settings comparison shows Low (72 FPS) versus Ultra (25 FPS), a 47 FPS spread. The absolute FPS at 4K Ultra (25) is below playable thresholds for most users, while 4K Low (72) remains surprisingly fluid, suggesting that the game’s visual effects at Ultra place an outsized burden on the RTX 4060’s shading units and ROPs.

The Medium’s fixed camera angles and pre-rendered backgrounds in many scenes do not alleviate the GPU load; the data shows that the RTX 4060’s 15.11 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is insufficient for 4K Ultra, which requires more raw compute than the card can deliver. Interestingly, the scaling from 1440p to 4K at Medium settings shows a 12 FPS drop (57 to 45), which is proportionally smaller than the 1080p to 1440p drop at the same settings (68 to 57, an 11 FPS reduction). This non-linear scaling suggests that at Medium, the game’s memory footprint is closer to the 8 GB VRAM limit, and the RTX 4060’s 272.0 GB/s bandwidth becomes a more consistent constraint rather than a sudden cliff.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F provides a strong foundation for The Medium, with its 8 cores and 16 threads ensuring that CPU-side frame pacing is not a limiting factor in the measured results. The processor’s base clock of 3.80 GHz and boost clock of 5.50 GHz, combined with the Zen 5 architecture, deliver strong single-thread performance, as evidenced by its Passmark single-thread score of 4691. This is relevant because The Medium’s scripting and AI systems often rely on a few heavily loaded threads, and the 9700F’s high boost clock helps maintain consistent frame times.

The CPU’s overall throughput is also ample, with a Passmark multithread score of 36470 and an average benchmark score of 69996, placing it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. When compared to its nearest rivals, the 9700F is essentially tied with the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (deltaPct of 0.2%) and the Intel Core i7-14700KF (deltaPct of -0.2%), meaning that in general compute tasks, these processors are interchangeable. For The Medium specifically, the 9700F’s 32 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support (with 89.6 GB/s bandwidth) ensure that asset streaming and level transitions do not cause hitches, even when the GPU is pushing high frame rates at low settings.

The data shows that at 1080p Low, where the GPU has the least work, the average FPS reaches 108, a figure that is likely near the game’s engine frame rate cap or the point where CPU draw call submission becomes the upper bound. However, since the CPU’s Passmark physics score is 2122 and its integer math score is 120788, there is no evidence of a CPU core being saturated; the 9700F’s performance headroom means the RTX 4060 is always the first component to hit its limit in this configuration. The 65W TDP of the 9700F also indicates that thermal throttling is unlikely to affect sustained gameplay, allowing the processor to maintain its boost clocks during long sessions.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is the definitive performance ceiling for this combination in The Medium, and its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory is the most critical specification for high-resolution play. The GPU’s memory bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s, derived from a 128-bit bus and 17 Gbps effective memory clock, is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p at most settings, but the 4K Ultra result (25 FPS) highlights the card’s inability to handle the game’s largest textures and effects simultaneously. The RTX 4060’s boost clock of 2460 MHz and base clock of 1830 MHz provide the compute throughput, but the 15.11 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is simply not enough for the pixel shader workload at 3840x2160.

The GPU’s benchmark scores place it in the 61st percentile of all GPUs, with a Passmark G3D score of 19545 and an average benchmark score of 17639. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon HD 7790, is just 0.2% behind, while the AMD Radeon 780M integrated graphics is 0.3% behind, indicating that the RTX 4060 is a mid-range performer that excels at 1080p but is outclassed by higher-tier cards at 4K. The 8 GB VRAM is the binding constraint: at 4K High (32 FPS) and 4K Ultra (25 FPS), the game likely exceeds the memory buffer, causing the GPU to swap assets, which explains the disproportionate performance drop compared to the 1440p results (41 FPS High and 32 FPS Ultra).

The RTX 4060’s 24 RT cores and 96 tensor cores are present but do not appear to provide a meaningful advantage in The Medium, as the game’s measured FPS at 4K Ultra (25) is below the 30 FPS threshold often cited as a minimum for playability. The card’s 118.1 GPixel/s pixel rate and 236.2 GTexel/s texture rate are adequate for 1080p, where the data shows 49 FPS at High settings, but these figures are halved in practical effect at 4K, where the GPU must process four times as many pixels. The GPU’s 115W TDP and suggested 300W PSU indicate that power delivery is not a concern, but the architectural limits of the AD107 chip, with 3072 shading units and 48 ROPs, are the primary reason for the 4K performance ceiling.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data suggests that Medium settings offer the best balance of visual quality and frame rate for most users, particularly at 1440p and 4K. At 1920x1080, the Medium preset delivers 68 FPS with a minimum of 58 FPS, which is comfortably above the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay, while the High preset drops to 49 FPS and Ultra falls to 39 FPS. For users with 1080p monitors, the High preset is still playable, but the 68 FPS at Medium provides a more consistent experience with less variance.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset yields 57 FPS with a minimum of 49 FPS, making it the recommended choice for this resolution, as High (41 FPS) and Ultra (32 FPS) both dip below the 50 FPS threshold where motion becomes noticeably less fluid. The Low preset at 1440p (91 FPS) is excessively fast and suggests that the visual compromises are not necessary for a playable experience. For 4K, the Medium preset (45 FPS) is the only viable option for a semi-smooth experience, as High (32 FPS) and Ultra (25 FPS) are too choppy, while Low (72 FPS) sacrifices too much visual fidelity for the resolution.

The data indicates that the RTX 4060’s 8 GB VRAM is the deciding factor for settings selection. The jump from Medium to High at 4K (45 to 32 FPS) is a 29% drop, which is larger than the drop from Low to Medium (72 to 45 FPS, a 37% drop) but still demonstrates that the game’s High preset likely increases texture resolution beyond the VRAM capacity. Therefore, the Medium preset is the sweet spot across all three measured resolutions, offering the highest frame rate that remains above 40 FPS at 4K and above 55 FPS at 1440p and 1080p.

FAQ

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

A: Based on the measured data, 1920x1080 at Medium settings provides 68 FPS, which is the most fluid experience. At 2560x1440, the Medium preset delivers 57 FPS, which is also playable, while 3840x2160 at Medium drops to 45 FPS, which is borderline acceptable for slower-paced horror gameplay.

Q: Can this system run The Medium at 4K?

A: Yes, but only at Low settings (72 FPS) or Medium settings (45 FPS). The High preset (32 FPS) and Ultra preset (25 FPS) are not recommended, as the average frame rates fall below 30 FPS, which is generally considered the minimum for playable performance.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the main bottleneck in The Medium?

A: The GPU is the clear bottleneck, especially at higher resolutions. The RTX 4060’s 8 GB VRAM and 272.0 GB/s bandwidth limit performance at 4K, while the Ryzen 7 9700F’s 8 cores and 16 threads provide ample headroom, as evidenced by the CPU’s 94th percentile ranking among all processors.

Q: How does the RTX 4060 compare to its nearest rivals in terms of benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 4060 has a Passmark G3D score of 19545, which is 0.2% below the AMD Radeon HD 7790 and 0.3% above the AMD Radeon 780M. This indicates the RTX 4060 is a mid-range GPU, with performance that is competitive with older discrete cards and high-end integrated graphics.

Q: What frame rates can I expect at 1080p with Ultra settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings is 39 FPS. This is playable but not ideal for fast-paced action, and the Medium preset at the same resolution offers a significant improvement to 68 FPS with minimal visual compromise.

Q: Does the 8 GB VRAM on the RTX 4060 cause issues in The Medium?

A: Yes, the 8 GB VRAM appears to be a limiting factor at 4K resolutions. The significant FPS drop between Medium (45 FPS) and High (32 FPS) at 3840x2160 suggests that the High preset exceeds the memory buffer, forcing the GPU to use slower memory fallbacks.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the full range of settings shows a linear progression with the RTX 4060. The Low preset achieves an average of 108 FPS, which is the highest measured value across all configurations. The Medium preset drops to 68 FPS, with a minimum of 58 FPS and a maximum of 78 FPS, indicating stable frame pacing. The High preset averages 49 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 39 FPS, with no minimum or maximum data provided for these two settings.

Moving to 2560x1440, the same settings hierarchy continues but with lower absolute numbers. Low settings yield 91 FPS, which is still highly fluid. Medium settings average 57 FPS, with a minimum of 49 FPS and a maximum of 66 FPS, making it the most consistent option at this resolution. High settings drop to 41 FPS, and Ultra settings fall to 32 FPS, both of which are below the 60 FPS threshold but may be acceptable for a horror title with slower pacing.

At 3840x2160, the performance ceiling becomes apparent. Low settings still manage 72 FPS, which is surprisingly high for 4K. Medium settings average 45 FPS, with a minimum of 38 FPS and a maximum of 52 FPS, providing a playable but not perfectly smooth experience. High settings drop to 32 FPS, and Ultra settings bottom out at 25 FPS, making these presets impractical for 4K gaming. The data across all resolutions confirms that the Medium preset is the most balanced choice, offering the highest frame rate that remains above 40 FPS at every resolution tested.