The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, shows surprisingly demanding performance characteristics on modern hardware. The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti delivers a wide range of frame rates depending on resolution and settings, from highly playable at 1440p to challenging at 4K Ultra. This analysis breaks down the measured data to guide settings choices and explain where the bottleneck lies.

FAQ

Q: What is the strongest performance result for this CPU-GPU combo?

A: The highest average frame rate recorded is 285.5 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This indicates the combo is massively overqualified for 1080p gaming in this title, even at the lowest quality preset.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations?

A: The combo ranks 140th out of 1656 tested combinations, placing it in the top 8.5% of all systems benchmarked for this game. This is a strong overall position, reflecting the high-end nature of both components.

Q: What is the difference in performance between the Ryzen 7 9700X and its closest CPU rival?

A: The Ryzen 7 9700X has an average benchmark score of 36029, which is 0.2% higher than the Intel Core i5-14500HX. It also trails the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H by -0.4%, showing these CPUs are effectively in a dead heat in synthetic tests.

Q: How does the RTX 5070 Ti compare to the RTX 4080?

A: The RTX 5070 Ti's average benchmark score is 52086, which is exactly 0% different from the RTX 4080's score of 52085. In practical terms, these two GPUs are performance twins based on the aggregate data.

Q: What is the frame rate drop from 1080p to 4K at High settings?

A: At High settings, the average frame rate drops from 184.7 FPS at 1920x1080 to 65.1 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 64.7% reduction in frame rate when moving from 1080p to 4K.

Q: Is the RTX 5070 Ti's 16 GB of VRAM sufficient for this game?

A: The 16 GB GDDR7 memory is more than adequate for The Technomancer, a game from 2016. Even at 4K Ultra settings, the game maintains an average of 53.3 FPS, and there is no data suggesting VRAM capacity is a limiting factor in any of the measured configurations.

GPU Role

The RTX 5070 Ti is the primary driver of frame rates in this pairing, and its 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus provides 896.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This is a substantial amount of memory bandwidth for a game from 2016, and it shows in the high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p. The GPU's boost clock of 2452 MHz, alongside its 8960 shading units, is clearly capable of pushing well over 100 FPS at 1440p in most settings.

The data reveals that the GPU's performance scaling is strongly tied to resolution. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 285.5 FPS, but at 4K Ultra, it falls to 53.3 FPS. This indicates that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions, as the CPU is likely not the limiting factor given the Ryzen 7 9700X's 8 cores and 16 threads. The GPU's 43.94 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is being fully utilized as resolution increases, and the 4K Ultra settings clearly stress the render pipeline.

The RTX 5070 Ti's position relative to the RTX 4080 (0% delta) suggests that this card is a direct successor in terms of raw performance. For a game that is not known for being particularly GPU-intensive, the 5070 Ti is overkill at 1080p, where it is likely held back by other system constraints or the game's engine limits. However, at 4K, the GPU's capabilities are the deciding factor between a smooth 60 FPS and a stuttery experience.

Resolution Scaling

The measured data shows a clear and predictable pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases. At Low settings, the average frame rate drops from 285.5 FPS at 1080p to 183.2 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 99 FPS at 4K. This represents a 65.3% drop from 1080p to 4K, indicating that the GPU is scaling its workload heavily with pixel count.

At High settings, the scaling is similar but with lower absolute numbers: 184.7 FPS at 1080p, 125 FPS at 1440p, and 65.1 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 4K here is 64.7%. This consistency suggests that the game's rendering load is highly pixel-bound, and the RTX 5070 Ti's performance scales predictably with resolution.

The most telling result comes from the Ultra preset. At 1080p, the combo manages 144.2 FPS, which is still very high. At 1440p, it drops to 96 FPS, and at 4K, it falls to 53.3 FPS. The fact that 4K Ultra is the only configuration that dips below 60 FPS indicates that the game's highest settings introduce effects that are particularly costly at high resolutions. The scaling from 1440p to 4K at Ultra is a 44.5% drop, which is more severe than the 31.2% drop seen at High settings between the same resolutions, showing that Ultra settings amplify the resolution penalty.

How This Combo Ranks

With a rank of 140 out of 1656 tested combos, this pairing sits in the 91.5th percentile of all configurations. This is a strong showing, placing it firmly in the top tier of gaming systems for The Technomancer. The Ryzen 7 9700X, with its 89th percentile ranking among all CPUs, provides a solid foundation, while the RTX 5070 Ti's 87th percentile ranking among GPUs ensures that the graphics side is equally well-equipped.

The combo's rank is likely boosted by the CPU's excellent multi-threaded performance, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multicore score of 31588. However, the game's performance is more dependent on the GPU, and the 5070 Ti's 0% delta with the RTX 4080 means that this combo would perform nearly identically to one using that previous-generation flagship. The system is well-balanced, with neither component being a clear weak point, which is why it achieves such a high rank against a large pool of other combinations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers exceptional performance across all presets:

• Low: 285.5 FPS
• Medium: 220.4 FPS
• High: 184.7 FPS
• Ultra: 144.2 FPS

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain very high, ensuring a smooth experience on high-refresh-rate monitors:

• Low: 183.2 FPS
• Medium: 142.3 FPS
• High: 125 FPS
• Ultra: 96 FPS

At 3840x2160, the GPU begins to show its limits, especially with the highest settings:

• Low: 99 FPS
• Medium: 77 FPS
• High: 65.1 FPS
• Ultra: 53.3 FPS

The data shows a consistent hierarchy: Low is always fastest, followed by Medium, High, and Ultra. The gap between Low and Ultra is substantial at every resolution, but it narrows slightly at 4K, where the GPU's raw compute becomes the limiting factor rather than the specific settings. The 1080p results are so high that they are likely beyond the refresh rate of most monitors, making them more academic than practical for gaming.

Settings Recommendations

For 4K gaming, the High preset is the best choice if you want to stay above 60 FPS, as it delivers 65.1 FPS. The Medium preset offers a more comfortable 77 FPS, which is a 18.3% improvement over High and is a better option for maintaining a stable frame rate. Ultra at 4K is not recommended, as the 53.3 FPS average will result in noticeable stutter and an inconsistent experience on most displays.

At 1440p, the Ultra preset is the sweet spot, providing 96 FPS. This is well above the 60 FPS threshold and allows you to enjoy the game's highest visual fidelity without sacrificing smoothness. The High preset at 125 FPS is a great alternative for those with 120Hz or 144Hz monitors, but Ultra is the recommended choice for maximum visual quality.

At 1080p, any preset will result in a high frame rate, but the Ultra preset at 144.2 FPS is still the best option. The difference between Low and Ultra is a 49.5% frame rate reduction, but 144.2 FPS is still high enough for any display. Choosing High at 184.7 FPS might be preferable for competitive play, but for a single-player Action RPG, the visual improvements of Ultra are worth the performance cost.

The overall recommendation is to use High settings for 4K, Ultra for 1440p, and Ultra for 1080p. This balances visual fidelity with playable frame rates, ensuring the RTX 5070 Ti is utilized effectively without pushing the system into unplayable territory.