The Medium

The Medium presents a demanding fixed-camera horror experience, and the combination of the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER produces a wide spread of results depending on how you configure it. The data shows a clear pattern: this system is capable of high refresh rates at lower settings, but the Ultra preset pushes it into uncomfortable territory. This analysis focuses purely on the measured performance of this specific pairing, using the provided benchmark results to guide settings, resolution, and expectations.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data clearly indicates that the Ultra preset is not the intended experience for this hardware. At 3840x2160, Ultra yields an average of 39.2 FPS, which is below the smooth threshold for most players. The High preset is the sweet spot if you prioritize visual fidelity. It provides a 48.7 FPS average at 4K, a 63.6 FPS average at 2560x1440, and a 72.6 FPS average at 1920x1080. These numbers suggest a playable, consistent experience that respects the game’s atmosphere without sacrificing too much performance.

If you are chasing higher frame rates, dropping to Medium provides a substantial boost. The jump from High to Medium at 1440p is significant, moving from 63.6 FPS to 91 FPS. At 1080p, the Medium preset delivers 103.1 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors. The Low preset offers the highest performance, but the visual cost in a game like The Medium is often too severe, given the title’s reliance on moody lighting and shadow detail. The data suggests that for a balanced experience, Medium at 1080p or 1440p is the best compromise, while High is viable only if you accept a 60 FPS target at 1440p or below.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER is the dominant component in this pairing for The Medium. The GPU’s 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus provides 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth, which is critical for the game’s high-resolution textures and streaming geometry. The measured performance scaling points directly to the GPU as the bottleneck. When the settings are reduced from Ultra to Low at 4K, the average FPS more than doubles from 39.2 to 109. This dramatic shift is characteristic of a GPU-limited scenario, where the CPU has ample headroom to feed the graphics card.

The GPU’s clock speeds, with a boost of 2475 MHz, keep the Ada Lovelace architecture fed, but the real takeaway from the data is that the RTX 4070 SUPER is not powerful enough to brute-force The Medium at its highest settings. The 56 RT cores and 224 tensor cores are present, but the raw rasterization performance, measured at 35.48 TFLOPS, is what determines the outcome here. The results show that the GPU’s performance ceiling aligns with the High preset at 1440p, where it achieves a respectable 63.6 FPS. Pushing beyond that requires a significant drop in graphical load, confirming that the GPU is the primary limiter.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data across resolutions shows a predictable yet steep decline as pixel count increases. At 1080p with High settings, the combo achieves 72.6 FPS. Moving to 1440p High, the average drops to 63.6 FPS, a reduction of roughly 12%. The jump to 4K High is more punishing, with the average falling to 48.7 FPS, which is a 24% drop from the 1440p result. This scaling pattern indicates that the GPU is struggling to fill the additional pixels, especially at 4K.

The Low preset tells a similar story but with higher absolute numbers. At 1080p Low, the system hits 142.9 FPS, and at 1440p Low, it reaches 139.6 FPS, showing that the CPU can keep up at these lower loads. However, at 4K Low, the average drops to 109 FPS. This 30 FPS reduction from 1440p to 4K at Low settings highlights the GPU’s fill-rate limits, even when the graphical features are minimized. The data suggests that for a locked 60 FPS experience, 1440p is the maximum resolution you should consider, and even then, you’ll need to stay on the High preset or lower. 4K is only playable on the Low preset, where the 109 FPS average is acceptable but the visual quality suffers.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database of tested combinations for The Medium, this pairing of the Ryzen 9 5950X and RTX 4070 SUPER holds a combo rank of 301 out of 1689 tested combos. This places it in the top 18% of all systems tested for this game, which is a solid showing for a high-end, previous-generation CPU paired with a current-gen mid-range GPU. The rank reflects the strong 1080p and 1440p performance, but the 4K Ultra result of 39.2 FPS drags it down from a higher placement.

Looking at the component’s individual standings, the CPU’s performance is excellent, sitting at the 93rd percentile against all CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 49062 puts it nearly level with the Intel Core i5-14600K, which scores 49166, a negligible 0.2% difference. This means the CPU is not holding the system back. The GPU, while solid, is in the 84th percentile against all GPUs, with an average score of 42576. It performs within a hair of the NVIDIA RTX A6000, which scores 42653, a difference of just 0.2%. This confirms that the RTX 4070 SUPER is a capable card, but the game’s heavy demands at 4K Ultra are simply too much for it, as reflected in the overall combo ranking.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run The Medium at 4K with the highest settings?

A: No. The data shows that at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 39.2, which is below the smooth playability threshold. You’ll need to drop to High settings (48.7 FPS) or lower for a better experience at that resolution.

Q: What is the best resolution for a consistent 60+ FPS experience?

A: The benchmark results indicate that 2560x1440 with Medium settings is your best bet, delivering an average of 91 FPS. If you prefer High settings, you’ll need to stay at 1920x1080, where the average is 72.6 FPS.

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X the bottleneck in this setup?

A: No. The CPU’s performance is in the 93rd percentile and its average benchmark score is nearly identical to the Intel Core i5-14600K, with a delta of only -0.2%. The FPS scaling with settings changes points to the GPU as the primary limiting factor.

Q: How does the RTX 4070 SUPER compare to its closest rival in this context?

A: The GPU’s average benchmark score of 42576 is essentially tied with the NVIDIA RTX A6000’s score of 42653, a difference of just 0.2%. This shows that the 4070 SUPER is a solid performer, but it lacks the raw power to handle The Medium at 4K Ultra.

Q: What is the performance cost of enabling Ultra settings over High at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset averages 63.6 FPS, while the Ultra preset drops to 48.3 FPS. That is a significant reduction of over 15 FPS, making Ultra a poor trade-off for the visual gains in this title.

Q: Is the Low preset viable for competitive play or high refresh rates?

A: Yes, for high refresh rates. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system reaches an average of 142.9 FPS, and at 2560x1440 Low, it hits 139.6 FPS. This is more than sufficient for a 144Hz monitor, though it sacrifices visual fidelity.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following table details the exact average FPS measured for each resolution and settings preset.

| Resolution | Settings | Average FPS |

|---|---|---|

| 3840x2160 | High | 48.7 |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 109 |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 67.2 |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 39.2 |

| 2560x1440 | High | 63.6 |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 139.6 |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 91 |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 48.3 |

| 1920x1080 | High | 72.6 |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 142.9 |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 103.1 |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 57.2 |

The data reveals that the RTX 4070 SUPER offers a wide performance envelope. At 1080p, you can achieve over 140 FPS on Low, but that number collapses to 57.2 FPS on Ultra. The 1440p results are the most balanced, with Medium providing a strong 91 FPS average that avoids the compromises of Low while steering clear of the heavy cost of Ultra. At 4K, the system is only comfortable on Low settings, where it still manages a 109 FPS average, but any attempt to increase fidelity results in sub-60 FPS performance. This combo is best utilized at 1440p, where it demonstrates a clear strength in the Medium to High settings range.