The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 action RPG, places substantial demands on both processor and graphics memory. In this configuration, the AMD Ryzen 5 5500 (6 cores, 12 threads, base 3.60 GHz boost 4.20 GHz, 16 MB L3 cache) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB (4 GB GDDR6, 128-bit, 192 GB/s, base clock 1545 MHz, boost 1740 MHz) deliver 101 FPS average at 1080p Low, scaling down to 24 FPS at 4K High. The combination ranks 3240th out of 3696 tested combos in this game, placing it in the lower 12th percentile. Despite the CPU's strong multi-threaded capabilities (Cinebench R23 multi-core score 16429), the GPU's small 4 GB VRAM and 128-bit bus dominate the performance scaling curve.

Resolution Scaling

The measured frame rates show how this combination's behavior changes as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the RTX 3050 manages an average of 101 FPS on Low, 77 FPS on Medium, 66 FPS on High, and 52 FPS on Ultra. At 2560x1440, those numbers fall to 66 FPS (Low), 50 FPS (Medium), 43 FPS (High), and 34 FPS (Ultra). Moving to 3840x2160, the GPU drops to 36 FPS at Low, 28 FPS at Medium, 24 FPS at High, and only 18 FPS at Ultra.

The scaling pattern reveals that the graphics card is the decisive limiting factor. From 1080p to 1440p, the Low preset Drops from 101 FPS to 66 FPS – a large absolute reduction of 35 FPS. From 1440p to 4K, even the Low preset can only hold 36 FPS, showing the RTX 3050's 4 GB VRAM capacity. The memory bandwidth of 192.0 GB/s is relatively limited; the team claims that at 4K, the pixel rate demand (55.68 GPixel/s) exceeds what the buffer bandwidth can sustain, and the low clocks (base 1545 MHz, boost 1740 MHz) offer few extra headroom.

The CPU does not appear to be the limiting agent at higher resolutions. At 1080p Low, the average of 101 FPS indicates that the CPU can feed the GPU enough frames. The Ryzen 5 5500's per-core metrics – single-thread Cinebench R23 score 2319 and Geekbench single-core 1730 – are sufficient. But when resolution climbs, the frame rate drop is purely graphic-card bound, with 4K High producing only 24 FPS. A clear pattern: every resolution step divides FPS by roughly 1.5 from the previous resolution, while altering the CPU load one. This symptom is consistent with a GPU holding a 4 GB buffer.

FAQ

Q: What FPS can I expect at 1080p Medium?

A: The measured average is 77 FPS, with a minimum of 66 FPS and a maximum of 89 FPS. That shows a stable frame time at the cost of some detail.

Q: Is the game playable at 1440p with this combo?

A: At 2560x1440, Low preset yields 66 FPS, but Medium reduces to 50 FPS and High to 43 FPS. For most players, High (43 FPS) is on the edge; Medium (50 FPS) provides a more consistent experience.

Q: Why does 4K perform so poorly?

A: At 3840x2160, the average FPS ranges from 36 (Low) down to 18 (Ultra). The RTX 3050 4 GB's VRAM and 128-bit memory bus cannot feed the high demands of 4K, resulting in severe frame rate collapse beyond 1080p.

Q: Does the Ryzen 5 5500 bottleneck the GPU?

A: No. In this mix, the CPU's twelve threads achieve a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 16429, and at 1080p Low the GPU reaches 101 FPS. The CPU has headroom; the GPU walls out at 3 GHz effective memory clock (12 Gbps effective) and 192 GB/s.

Q: Which preset gives a consistent frame pacing?

A: According to the min/max data, 1080p Medium produces a min of 66, max of 89, average 77 – a narrow spread. At 1440p, Medium shows a min 43, max 58, and average 50.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the collected data rows, the most appropriate preset depends on the target resolution. At 1920x1080, the Low preset produces 101 FPS average, but the visual quality is barebone. A better trade-off is Medium, which yields 77 FPS with a comfortable minimum of 66, and still holds a high frame rate while preserving a moderate range of shadows and effects. For those pairing a 60 Hz monitor, High at 1080p offers 66 FPS – exactly at the refresh rate – and it retains more detail than Medium. Ultra at 1080p, at 52 FPS, is below 60 FPS and thus not recommended for smooth covering.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset is the balanced choice, producing 50 FPS with a minimum of 43, which translates into a near-60Hz experience or VRR. The High preset (43 FPS) may also be acceptable if one locks to 40 Hz, but Ultra (34 FPS) is too sluggish. At 3840x2160, Low achieves 36 FPS, and everything above Low falls below 30 FPS. Since 4K demands exceed the card's capabilities, the recommendation is to play at 1080p or 1400p if any resolution above 1920, unless your layout is able to tolerate.

Set the preset to Medium for the best compromise. The measured variance at Medium is the smallest of all (max-min spreads 23 FPS at 1080, 15 at 1440). This reduces frame time spikes and makes the experience feel more consistent.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination's overall position in this game is 3240th out of 3696 tested configurations, which places it in the bottom 12%. Only about one-in-eight tested laptops/systems tested worse than this combo. This is a difficult result for an assembly with a senior CPU and a near-entry-level GPU.

Compared to PC gamers with older CPUs, the Ryzen 5 5500 itself is able to compete. Its average benchmark score is 19593, putting it in the 73rd percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen AI5 430 (average score 19617, -0.1% delta) and Intel Core i5-12500 (score 19668, -0.4% delta). But the GPU's average benchmark score is zero and the percentile vs all GPUs is only 50, meaning it sits at the median. That contrast – a powerful CPU (73rd percentile) falls to 13th percentile in this game – indicates the game is heavily GPU-limited and possibly VRAM sensitive.

The measured FPS at 1080p High (66 FPS) is consistent with other titles that rely more on CPU, but The Technomancer is a game that pushes shadows and occlusion; thrown entirely to VRAM. The rank shows that this con─ a 10 MMBcpu from 200 clicks of any time.

GPU Role

The RTX 3050 4 GB includes 2048 shading units, 64 texture mapping units, 32 ROPs, 16 ray-tracing cores, 64 tensor cores, a texture rate of 111.4 GTexel/s, and a pixel rate of 55.68 GPixel/s. The frame rate pattern is directly tied to its 4 GB memory capacity. At 1920x1080, the balancer can utilize 4 GB, so the frame rates remain high. At 2560x1440, the frame demand rises, and at 3840x2160, the 4 GB capacity is exhausted, dropping FPS to Low 36, Medium 28, High 24.

The 12 Gbps effective memory clock over a 128-bit bus (192 GB/s) is a decisive limit. Compare the measured data: 1080p Low 101 FPS, 4K Low 36 FPS – a difference of exactly 2.8 times. This ratio is exactly the relation between 4K's pixel count (8.3M pixels) and 1080p's (2.1 M) – 4x, but the effective memory bandwidth gain is only the same. Since the VRAM is also only 4 GB, the frames stutter. The GPU's 90 W TDP and 250 W PSU suggestion show it is not a high-power part, but the FPS results show it as a limiting binder.

The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the FPS drops to 18, which is merely one bit at a wait. The bus width of 128 bit is the bottleneck, and the 1660's ROP count determines.

Measured FPS Breakdown

Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS | Min FPS | Max FPS

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

1920x1080 | Low | 101 | not given | not given

1920x1080 | Medium | 77 | 66 | 89

1920x1080 | High | 66 | not given | not given

1920x1080 | Ultra | 52 | not given | not given

2560x1440 | Low | 66 | not given | not given

2560x1440 | Medium | 50 | 43 | 58

2560x1440 | High | 43 | not given | not given

2560x1440 | Ultra | 34 | not given | not given

3840x2160 | Low | 36 | not given | not given

3840x2160 | Medium | 28 | 24 | 32

3840x2160 | High | 24 | not given | not given

3840x2160 | Ultra | 18 | not given | not given

The exact measurements show that the Low preset at 1080p reaches 101 FPS, meaning the game is definitely playable at ultra-close. The Medium preset at 1440p, 50 FPS, is roughly at the borderline for smoothness. With High that dip to 43, and 4K High only 24, it's clear that higher res is not for heavy spawn.

Complete frame data is available only for Medium, showing the min-max values: at 1080p Medium (66-89), 1440p Medium (43-58), 4K Medium (24-32). This indicates that even with the same relative frame range, the variation is nearly constant in absolute FPS (23, 14, 8) – thus the relative variance is 30%, 23%, 29% of the average, so user perception changes.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 belongs to the 5000 series with 6 cores / 12 threads. It has a base of 3.60 GHz and boost of 4.20 GHz. It supports DDR4-3200 with dual channel, producing 51.2 GB/s (but memory bandwidth is a fraction compared to the GPU's 192 GB/s). The CPU's benchmark scores – Cinebench R23 multi 16429, single 2319, Geekbench multi 7976, single 1730, and 3dmark max threads 5411 – show it is a middle multi-tasker for gaming.

In this specific game The Technomancer, the CPU rarely becomes the bottleneck because the game is well-threadrounded. At 1080p Low, the cap is 101 FPS, meaning the CPU can push further if given faster GPU. The 3DMark 16-thread score is 4093, and 8-thread 4593 – the scaling is nearly linear (8 to 16 threads), so game's multi-threaded uses the 6 cores fully.

A good indicator: At 1080p High the frame is 66 FPS. If the CPU were limiting, we'd see the same FPS at 1440p and 4K for the High preset. But it drops 66 → 43 → 24, showing the GPU is the wall. The CPU only needs to render each frame's physics and logic; the GPU must process the textures. The game's CPU usage is not extreme, so the 5500 holds.

The L3 is 16 MB and L2 per core 512k KB, so the chip has enough cache. The 7 nm TSMC process gives a good thermal profile, but no thermal throttling data for this game. The power consumption is 65 W, so inconsistent with a 250 W PSU requirement – the extra watts are for the GPU.

In short, the CPU is a solid partner for this game at 1080p and 1440p; it is the GPU that cannot keep up at 4K. The RTX 3050's 4 GB VRAM and 128-bit bus directly cause the fps drop.