The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 action RPG, presents a demanding workload that clearly separates CPU and GPU responsibilities. This analysis examines the measured performance of the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X paired with the Intel Arc B390, based on benchmark data. The combination yields a specific performance profile that is heavily skewed by the graphics processor, as the data reveals a significant bottleneck.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for this combo shows a steep and consistent decline as resolution increases, a classic indicator of a GPU-bound scenario. At 1080p with High settings, the average frame rate is 52 FPS. Moving to 1440p High, the average drops to 34 FPS, a reduction of approximately 35%. Pushing further to 4K High, the average plummets to 19 FPS, which is less than half of the 1080p figure. This scaling pattern is not linear, but rather shows a compounding loss as pixel count increases, which strongly suggests that the Intel Arc B390 is the primary limiting factor.

The data set shows that the transition from 1080p to 1440p is less punishing than the jump from 1440p to 4K. For instance, at Medium settings, the average FPS drops from 61 at 1080p to 40 at 1440p, and then to 22 at 4K. This indicates that while the GPU struggles at all resolutions above 1080p, its performance ceiling is catastrophically low at 4K, rendering the game nearly unplayable at that resolution. The gap between Low and Ultra settings also widens with resolution, showing that the GPU's limited compute resources are overwhelmed when asked to render more pixels.

The scaling from Low to Ultra at each resolution is also telling. At 1080p, the spread is 39 FPS (from 79 at Low to 40 at Ultra). At 1440p, this spread narrows to 26 FPS (52 to 26). At 4K, the spread is just 13 FPS (28 to 15). This compression of frame rates at higher resolutions is a definitive sign of a GPU bottleneck; the settings have less impact because the GPU is already saturated with the sheer volume of pixels, leaving little headroom for additional visual effects. The CPU, an 8-core part, is not the constraint here; its role is to feed the GPU, and it appears to be doing so without holding back the graphics card at these resolutions.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X is a Zen 3 architecture processor with 8 cores and 16 threads. Its base clock is 3.40 GHz and it boosts to 4.60 GHz. This is a powerful multi-threaded processor, evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 13184 and Geekbench multi-core score of 10779. In the context of The Technomancer, a title from 2016, the CPU's capabilities are more than sufficient to handle the game's logic and physics. The benchmark data implies that the CPU is not the bottleneck, as the FPS does not improve at lower resolutions in a way that would indicate a CPU limitation; instead, it scales with the GPU's workload.

The processor's single-thread performance is also robust, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1499 and a Geekbench single-core score of 2016. This is relevant because many games, even action RPGs, rely heavily on a single primary thread for game logic. The Ryzen 7 5700X's strong single-core performance ensures that this thread is unlikely to be the limiting factor. The processor's 32 MB of shared L3 cache is another asset, providing a large pool of fast memory for game data that needs to be accessed frequently by the cores.

Given the GPU's performance, the CPU appears to be operating in a state of relative ease. The measured FPS is consistently low, and the differences between settings at a given resolution are moderate. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect to see similar frame rates regardless of resolution or graphics settings. Instead, the data shows a clear dependency on GPU load. The Ryzen 7 5700X has a 79th percentile ranking among all CPUs, and its average benchmark score of 27578 is on par with rivals like the Intel Core i5-12600K and AMD Ryzen 5 7600X. This positions it as a high-end part that is far ahead of what a game like The Technomancer requires from a CPU standpoint.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated GPU based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on a 3 nm process. It has 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 ROPs. Its boost clock is 2500 MHz, and it can reach a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s. Its FP32 performance is listed at 7.680 TFLOPS. However, its performance in the benchmark data is very low. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 1482, placing it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. This is a very low score, and its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 and NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM, which are entry-level components from over a decade ago.

This GPU is the clear bottleneck in this pairing. The measured FPS in The Technomancer confirms this. At 1080p Low, it can only manage 79 FPS, which is playable but not high-refresh territory. At 1080p Ultra, it drops to 40 FPS. The GPU's memory is "System Shared," meaning it uses a portion of the system's main memory (DDR4 in this case) for video memory. This is a significant disadvantage compared to a dedicated graphics card with its own high-speed VRAM. The bandwidth is "System Dependent," which further limits performance, especially at higher resolutions where memory bandwidth demands increase.

The data shows that the Arc B390 is not capable of providing a smooth experience at 1440p or 4K for this title. The average FPS at 1440p High is 34, and at 4K High it is 19. These are not playable frame rates for a smooth action RPG experience. The GPU's architecture and specifications, while modern, do not translate into sufficient raw performance for this game. The 9th percentile ranking is a stark indicator of its relative position in the market, and the measured FPS data in The Technomancer is consistent with that lowly standing.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of the system's capabilities across different settings and resolutions. At 1920x1080, the lowest tested resolution, the system performs at its best. With Low settings, it achieves an average of 79 FPS. Medium settings yield 61 FPS with a minimum of 52 and a maximum of 70. High settings produce 52 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 40 FPS. This resolution is the only one where the game approaches a consistently playable state, and even then, only at the lower settings presets.

At 2560x1440, the performance degrades significantly. Low settings average 52 FPS, which is a 34% drop from the 1080p Low result. Medium settings average 40 FPS, with a minimum of 34 and a maximum of 46. High settings average 34 FPS, and Ultra settings fall to 26 FPS. None of these averages are ideal for a smooth gaming experience, and the minimum FPS values suggest potential for stuttering in more demanding scenes.

At 3840x2160, the highest tested resolution, the system is overwhelmed. Low settings average 28 FPS. Medium settings average 22 FPS, with a minimum of 19 and a maximum of 25. High settings average 19 FPS, and Ultra settings average only 15 FPS. These results are uniformly poor, and the game is effectively unplayable at this resolution with this hardware combination. The data shows a clear pattern: the system can handle 1080p at lower settings, struggles at 1440p, and fails to provide a usable experience at 4K.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run The Technomancer at 1080p?

A: Yes, the data shows it can. At 1080p with Low settings, the average FPS is 79. With Medium settings, it drops to 61 FPS, and with High settings, it is 52 FPS. Ultra settings yield 40 FPS. For a 60 FPS target, Medium settings are the highest that can consistently meet that goal.

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X or the Intel Arc B390 the limiting factor?

A: The benchmark data indicates the Intel Arc B390 is the limiting factor. The FPS scales dramatically with resolution and settings, which is a hallmark of a GPU bottleneck. The CPU, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, has a 79th percentile ranking and is not likely to be the constraint in this 2016 title.

Q: What is the performance difference between Low and Ultra settings at 4K?

A: At 4K, the average FPS on Low settings is 28. On Ultra settings, it drops to 15 FPS. This is a 13 FPS difference, which is relatively small, showing that the GPU is so heavily burdened at this resolution that even reducing settings has a limited impact.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B390 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Arc B390 has a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, with a score of 1463, and the NVIDIA GeForce 800M, with a score of 1460. The Arc B390 is 1.3% faster than the GT 520MX.

Q: What is the best resolution for a playable experience?

A: Based on the measured FPS, 1920x1080 is the only resolution that provides a consistently playable experience. At this resolution, even High settings achieve an average of 52 FPS, which is acceptable for a single-player action RPG, though Medium settings at 61 FPS is a safer choice for smoother gameplay.

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 5700X a high-performance CPU?

A: Yes, the data shows it is. It has an average benchmark score of 27578, which is on par with the Intel Core i5-12600K and AMD Ryzen 5 7600X. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 13184, and its single-core score is 1499, placing it in the 79th percentile of all CPUs.

Settings Recommendations

For this combination of AMD Ryzen 7 5700X and Intel Arc B390, the optimal settings are a compromise between visual fidelity and playable frame rates. The data clearly shows that 1080p is the target resolution. At 1080p, the Medium preset is the recommended choice. It delivers an average of 61 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS target for smooth gameplay, and it maintains a minimum of 52 FPS, which should prevent significant stuttering. The High preset, at 52 FPS average, is also viable if visual quality is prioritized over a locked 60 FPS, but it carries a higher risk of drops.

At 1440p, the Low preset is the only one that approaches a playable state, with an average of 52 FPS. However, this is the same average as 1080p High, meaning you are sacrificing significant visual detail for the higher resolution. The Medium preset at 1440p averages 40 FPS, which is not smooth enough for an action title. At 4K, no setting is recommended. Even the Low preset only achieves 28 FPS, which is below the threshold for a playable experience. The data suggests that users should stick to 1080p for this game. Choosing between Medium and High comes down to a preference for frame rate stability versus visual quality, but Medium is the safer recommendation to ensure a consistently fluid experience.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X and the Intel Arc B390 ranks 2500th out of 2825 tested combinations for The Technomancer. This places it in the bottom 12% of all tested systems, indicating that it is a low-performing combo for this specific game. This low ranking is almost entirely attributable to the graphics processor. The CPU is a high-end part, but it is paired with a GPU that has a 9th percentile ranking in the database. The result is a system that is severely bottlenecked by its graphics component.

This ranking is consistent with the measured FPS data. A rank of 2500 out of 2825 means that the vast majority of other system configurations will deliver higher frame rates in this game. The data shows that this combo is only suitable for 1080p gaming at low-to-medium settings. For a game like The Technomancer, which is an action RPG that benefits from smooth gameplay, this is a significant limitation. The performance is not competitive with more balanced system builds, and users seeking a better experience would need to consider a more powerful discrete GPU.