The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents a demanding workload for the AMD Radeon RX 6600 paired with the Intel Core i5-10400F. Benchmark results show this combination delivers playable performance at 1080p and 1440p with adjustments, but struggles to maintain a smooth experience at 4K. The data indicates a system where the GPU's 8 GB frame buffer and processing power are the primary constraints, though the CPU's six cores and twelve threads are sufficient for the game's engine demands across all tested settings.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-10400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Core 10th Gen series, built on Intel's Comet Lake architecture and 14 nm process node. With a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz, this chip provides the computational foundation for the system. Its 12 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support (with a 42.7 GB/s memory bandwidth) are typical of its desktop segment. The processor's 68th percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates it is a solid mid-range performer, not a bottleneck for most gaming scenarios.

Benchmark results show the i5-10400F scoring 10283 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 1451 in single-core, with a Geekbench multi-core score of 6257 and single-core score of 1420. These numbers, while not directly translating to game fps, confirm the chip's capability to handle the frame pacing and background processing required by a modern action RPG. In The Technomancer, the CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads are more than enough to feed the GPU; this is evidenced by the scaling pattern across settings and resolutions, where performance drops are more pronounced with GPU-heavy settings rather than CPU-bound tasks.

The processor's 65 TDP and active production status place it as a mainstream part, and its nearest rivals in aggregate benchmark scores include the Intel Xeon 6756E (0.2% faster), Intel Core 7 160UL (0.3% slower), AMD EPYC 7552 (0.5% faster), and AMD Ryzen 3 7320C (0.6% slower). These margins are negligible, showing the i5-10400F sits in a dense performance cluster. For this game, the data indicates the CPU is not the limiting factor: at 1080p Low, the system reaches 130 fps, which is a high ceiling that the GPU can still push against, but the CPU does not prevent high framerates.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

The measured FPS data reveals a clear hierarchy of settings. At 1080p, the Low preset achieves an average of 130 fps, Medium hits 100 fps, High reaches 85 fps, and Ultra drops to 67 fps. At 1440p, the scaling is similar: Low averages 85 fps, Medium 65 fps, High 56 fps, and Ultra 44 fps. At 4K, only the Low preset (47 fps) remains above the 30 fps playability threshold, with Medium at 36, High at 31, and Ultra at 24.

Given these numbers, the best experience balance is the Medium preset at 1080p. It provides an average of 100 fps, which is well above smoothness thresholds, and it also has recorded min/max data showing a range of 85 to 115 fps, indicating steadiness. The High preset at 1080p (85 fps) is also viable, but Medium offers a significant 15% average FPS boost over High with likely minor visual differences in a game that is not GPU-heavy at lower resolutions.

At 1440p, the Medium preset (65 fps) is the highest setting that stays above 60 fps on average. High at 1440p drops to 56 fps, which is still playable but not ideal. For competitive or higher-framerate play, Low at 1440p (85 fps) exceeds the 60 fps threshold, but the visual compromise is substantial. The Ultra preset at any resolution is not recommended: at 1080p it yields 67 fps (still above 60), but at 1440p it drops to 44 fps, and at 4K it's 24 fps, which is stuttering. The data shows diminishing returns from Medium to Ultra, with a 33% average FPS drop from Medium to Ultra at 1080p (100 to 67 fps).

For a 60 fps target, the recommendation is Medium at 1080p or 1440p. For a 30 fps target, High at 4K (31 fps) is borderline, but Medium at 4K (36 fps) is the best 4K preset. Low at 4K (47 fps) is the only 4K preset that gets close to 60 fps, but it sacrifices most visual details. The measured data shows that the game is not well-optimized for Ultra settings on this hardware, and the gap between Medium and Ultra is steep.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The resolution scaling of this combo is revealing. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at Medium settings, the average fps drops from 100 to 65, a 35% reduction. From 1440p to 4K at Medium, fps drops from 65 to 36, a further 45% reduction. The total drop from 1080p to 4K at Medium is from 100 to 36 fps, a 64% decrease. At High settings, 1080p (85 fps) to 1440p (56 fps) is a 34% drop, and 1440p to 4K (31 fps) is a 45% drop again.

This scaling pattern is consistent with a graphics card-bound scenario. The fps drop from 1080p to 1440p is roughly proportional to the pixel count increase (2.25x), but the drop from 1440p to 4K is steeper, indicating that at 4K, the RX 6600's 8 GB frame buffer and memory bandwidth (224.0 GB/s) are being saturated. The GPU's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus is a known limitation for 4K gaming, and the 4K results confirm this: even at Low settings, the average fps is only 47, a 64% drop from 1080p Low (130 fps).

The game is primarily GPU-limited in this configuration. The CPU, while not a bottleneck at 1080p, also shows its limits at high framerates: the i5-10400F's 6 cores are not stressed by this game's engine, as evidenced by the minimal scaling between CPU-bound tests and in-game results. The data indicates that the GPU is the limiting component at all resolutions above 1080p. For 4K, the RX 6600 is not sufficient for smooth play, as even the lowest settings cannot hold a steady 60 fps. The 1080p to 4K scaling shows that the game's rendering pipeline (likely with heavy draw calls and shadows) puts a consistent load on the GPU, with the CPU staying ahead.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

This specific combination of the Intel Core i5-10400F and the AMD Radeon RX 6600 ranks 2872nd out of 3696 tested combos for The Technomancer. This places it in the lower-middle, around the 78th percentile (2872/3696 = 0.777). This ranking is lower than the GPU's individual percentile (63rd among all GPUs) and CPU's percentile (68th), which indicates that the combo underperforms relative to what its components might suggest. The reason is the game's optimization: it favors processors with higher single-thread performance and GPUs with more VRAM, which the RX 6600 lacks.

The combo ranks in the 22nd quartile of tested systems, meaning 78% of tested combinations deliver higher average FPS in this game. This is a notable gap. For example, the RX 6600's nearest GPU rivals in aggregate benchmarks—the NVIDIA Quadro K6000, GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile, Tesla K20m, and RTX 2000 Ada—all have similar overall scores, but in this game, the RX 6600's 8 GB memory is a clear disadvantage at 4K. The CPU's nearest rivals (Xeon 6756E, Core 7 160UL, EPYC 7552, Ryzen 3 7320C) are all within 0.6% of the i5-10400F in synthetic tests, but the game combo rank is more influenced by the GPU.

The rank of 2872nd out of 3696 means that users with this combo should expect a 1080p gaming experience that is above average, but not a high-frame-rate setup for demanding titles. The data shows that to improve the rank, a GPU with more VRAM or higher bandwidth would be needed, as the CPU is not the bottleneck. This combo is a mid-range pairing that is outclassed by many other tested systems, particularly those with newer GPUs.

FAQ

Q: What average FPS does this combo achieve at 1080p with Medium settings?

A: The measured average is 100 fps, with a minimum of 85 fps and a maximum of 115 fps.

Q: Can this system run the game at 4K smoothly?

A: No. The best 4K result is 47 fps on Low settings, which is below the 60 fps target. Medium is 36 fps, High 31 fps, and Ultra 24 fps.

Q: Is the CPU a bottleneck in this game?

A: The data suggests no. At 1080p Low, the CPU allows 130 fps, and the FPS drops are consistent with GPU limitations. The CPU is a 6-core, 12-thread chip with a boost clock of 4.30 GHz, which is not the limiting factor.

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 60 fps experience at 1440p?

A: The Medium preset at 1440p yields an average of 65 fps, which is the only preset above 60 fps. High drops to 56 fps.

Q: How does the RX 6600's memory size affect performance?

A: The 8 GB VRAM is a constraint at 4K. The 4K results show a 64% drop in fps from 1080p at Medium settings, indicating the frame buffer is saturated.

Q: Is this combo better or worse than other tested systems for this game?

A: This combo ranks 2872nd out of 3696 tested combinations, meaning it performs worse than 78% of tested systems for The Technomancer.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The following measured FPS data is from benchmark results for this exact CPU/GPU combination. All values are average FPS unless noted.

1920x1080 (Full HD):

• Low: 130 fps average
• Medium: 100 fps average, with a minimum of 85 and maximum of 115 fps
• High: 85 fps average
• Ultra: 67 fps average

2560x1440 (Quad HD):

• Low: 85 fps average
• Medium: 65 fps average, with a minimum of 56 and maximum of 75 fps
• High: 56 fps average
• Ultra: 44 fps average

3840x2160 (4K UHD):

• Low: 47 fps average
• Medium: 36 fps average, with a minimum of 31 and maximum of 41 fps
• High: 31 fps average
• Ultra: 24 fps average

The data shows a consistent scaling pattern: the Medium preset is the only setting that provides a balanced experience across all resolutions. At 1080p, all presets are above 60 fps, making the game very playable. At 1440p, only Low and Medium exceed 60 fps. At 4K, no preset reaches 60 fps, with the best being Low at 47 fps. The average fps difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 63 fps (130 to 67), while at 4K it's 23 fps (47 to 24), indicating that the GPU's limitations are more pronounced at higher resolutions. For competitive or high-refresh-rate play, the 1080p Low preset's 130 fps is the only option that comes close to 144 Hz, but most players will prefer Medium at 1080p for 100 fps with better graphics.