The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, is examined here with the AMD Ryzen 5 5600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER. The benchmark data shows this pairing delivering high frame rates across all tested resolutions and settings, though the game's age relative to the hardware is evident in the CPU's ability to keep pace with the GPU. This analysis walks through the measured FPS, the role of each component, and the practical settings for play.

FAQ

Q: What is the best average FPS this combo achieves at 1920x1080?

A: The highest average FPS recorded at 1920x1080 is 231.7, achieved with the Low settings preset. Even the most demanding Ultra preset at this resolution maintains an average of 151.6 FPS.

Q: Does this combination maintain playable frame rates at 4K (3840x2160)?

A: Yes, the data shows all tested settings at 3840x2160 produce playable averages. The lowest average is 55.5 FPS at Ultra, while High yields 69.4 FPS, Medium 78.7 FPS, and Low reaches 104.4 FPS.

Q: Which component, the CPU or GPU, is closer to its rivals in synthetic benchmark scores?

A: The CPU, AMD Ryzen 5 5600, has a 0.6% score advantage over its closest rival, the Intel Xeon D-1746TER, and a 0.9% deficit to the Intel Core i7-11700F. The GPU, RTX 4080 SUPER, is 0.2% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT and 2.9% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, showing a slightly larger performance gap in its bracket.

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

A: The combination ranks 150th out of 1656 total tested combos, placing it in the top 10% of all systems benchmarked for The Technomancer.

Q: What is the FPS difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 2560x1440?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 191.7 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 96.6 FPS. This represents a performance drop of roughly 95 FPS when moving from the lowest to the highest quality settings.

Q: What is the launch MSRP for the GPU in this test?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER has a launch MSRP of 999 USD. The CPU in the test has a launch MSRP of $199.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture (codename Vermeer). It operates with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. The processor's 32 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support are typical for its generation. Its synthetic benchmark scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 18309 and a single-core score of 2584, indicate a strong balance of multi-threaded and single-threaded performance.

In the context of The Technomancer, a game released in 2016, the CPU's 12 threads are more than sufficient to handle the game's logic and physics. The data suggests that the CPU is not a bottleneck in this configuration. For instance, at 1920x1080 with Low settings, the average FPS is 231.7, which is a very high frame rate. The CPU's single-thread performance, measured by its 3DMark single-thread score of 882, is adequate for the game's engine, which likely does not scale perfectly across many cores.

The processor's performance relative to its direct competitors shows a narrow margin. Its average benchmark score of 21765 is 0.6% higher than the Intel Xeon D-1746TER (21635) and 0.9% lower than the Intel Core i7-11700F (21957). This indicates that while the Ryzen 5 5600 is competitive, there is no significant headroom over its closest rivals in general computing tasks, but its specific architecture is well-suited for gaming workloads. The 65 W TDP and 7 nm process node contribute to efficient operation, but the primary takeaway is that the CPU provides enough throughput for the high frame rates observed in this game.

How This Combo Ranks

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER combination ranks 150th out of 1656 tested combos for The Technomancer. This ranking places the system firmly in the upper echelon of tested hardware. The percentile of 79 for the CPU and 88 for the GPU (relative to all tested parts) supports this high overall ranking. The GPU's high ranking is a major contributor, as the RTX 4080 SUPER's average benchmark score of 53610 is significantly higher than the CPU's average score of 21765.

This rank of 150 suggests that while the system is very fast, there are 149 other combinations that achieve higher average frame rates in this specific game. Those combinations likely include more powerful CPUs (e.g., higher core count or newer generations) that can push even higher FPS at low resolutions, or they may pair the same GPU with a faster CPU. The data shows that the GPU is not the limiting factor, as its performance is in the top 12% of all GPUs. The CPU, while capable, is in the top 21% of all CPUs, meaning there is room for improvement on the CPU side to reach the very top of the combo list.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear view of performance scaling across resolutions and settings.

At 1920x1080, the system produces exceptionally high frame rates. The Low preset averages 231.7 FPS. The Medium preset averages 212 FPS, while the High preset averages 194.1 FPS. The Ultra preset, which is the most demanding, still averages 151.6 FPS. This indicates that at 1080p, the game is easily handled, and the GPU is likely not fully utilized at the lower settings, as the frame rate is limited by the CPU's ability to issue draw calls.

Moving to 2560x1440, the load shifts more to the GPU. The Low preset averages 191.7 FPS, which is still very high. The Medium preset averages 150.8 FPS, and the High preset averages 125.7 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 96.6 FPS, which is a significant drop from the High preset, showing the cost of enabling the highest quality effects. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows a roughly 17% reduction in FPS at the Low preset (from 231.7 to 191.7) and a similar percentage reduction at the High preset (from 194.1 to 125.7).

At 3840x2160 (4K), the GPU becomes the primary bottleneck. The Low preset averages 104.4 FPS, which is still smooth. The Medium preset averages 78.7 FPS, and the High preset averages 69.4 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 55.5 FPS, which is on the lower end of playability for fast-paced action. The scaling from 1440p to 4K is more pronounced; for instance, the High preset drops from 125.7 FPS to 69.4 FPS, a 45% reduction.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER is the dominant component in this pairing, particularly at higher resolutions. Built on the Ada Lovelace architecture and 5 nm process, it features 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus with 736.3 GB/s of bandwidth. Its core clocks are 2295 MHz base and 2550 MHz boost. The GPU's raw compute power is substantial, with 52.22 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 10240 shading units.

In The Technomancer, the GPU's role becomes critical as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the GPU is not fully stressed, as evidenced by the high FPS at all settings. However, at 3840x2160, the GPU's performance dictates the final frame rate. The difference between 104.4 FPS at Low and 55.5 FPS at Ultra at 4K demonstrates the GPU's workload scaling. The 16 GB VRAM is more than enough for this game, even at 4K Ultra, as the game is from 2016 and would not have been designed for such high memory capacities.

The GPU's benchmark scores place it ahead of its immediate rivals. Its average score of 53610 is 0.2% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT (53489) and 2.9% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti (52086). This suggests that the RTX 4080 SUPER offers a slight performance lead over these comparable options in general workloads, which translates to the high frame rates observed in the game's 4K benchmarks.

Settings Recommendations

The benchmark data provides a clear picture of how settings affect performance. For a smooth 60 FPS experience at 3840x2160, the High preset is the best choice, averaging 69.4 FPS. The Medium preset at 78.7 FPS offers a more comfortable margin above 60 FPS, making it a preferable option for maintaining stability. The Ultra preset at 55.5 FPS falls below the 60 FPS threshold, which may be noticeable for some users.

For users with 2560x1440 displays, the Ultra preset is viable, averaging 96.6 FPS. This provides a high-quality experience well above the 60 FPS target. The High preset at 125.7 FPS offers a smoother experience for competitive play or high refresh rate monitors. At 1920x1080, all presets are playable, but for the best balance of visual quality and frame rate, the High preset at 194.1 FPS is recommended. The Ultra preset at 151.6 FPS still provides an excellent experience, especially on high refresh rate displays.

Given the data, the optimal strategy is to prioritize the High or Medium preset at 4K for a consistent experience, while at lower resolutions, the Ultra preset can be enabled without sacrificing playability. The measured rows show no min or max FPS data, so only average performance is considered. The analysis suggests that the High preset at 4K offers the best combination of visual fidelity and performance, with an average of 69.4 FPS, while the Low preset at 1080p is the fastest, but it does not fully utilize the GPU's potential.