The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, presents a demanding workload that clearly exposes the limits of this particular pairing. The combination of an Intel Core i7-14700F and an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti shows a system where the GPU is the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions, while the CPU provides ample headroom. This analysis breaks down the measured performance data to show exactly how this combo handles the game across different settings and resolutions.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep and reveals the GPU's limitations. At 1080p High settings, the combo achieves an average of 73.6 FPS. Moving to 1440p High drops that to 49.7 FPS, a significant 32.5% reduction. Pushing further to 4K High yields just 27 FPS, which is a 63.3% drop from the 1080p result. This scaling pattern is a clear indicator that the GTX 1660 Ti is the limiting component; the rendering load increases with pixel count faster than the GPU can process it.

The trend holds across all settings. At Low settings, the frame rate goes from 113.5 FPS at 1080p, to 72.1 FPS at 1440p, and down to 37.7 FPS at 4K. This is a consistent and predictable decline. The data suggests that the game is heavily GPU-bound at resolutions above 1080p. The CPU is not the limiting factor here, as the frame rate scales almost perfectly with the number of pixels being rendered. For a playable experience at 4K, the settings must be dropped significantly, but even then, the 37.7 FPS average at Low settings is below the 60 FPS target most gamers prefer. The 1440p resolution offers a more balanced compromise, with Medium settings delivering a playable 55.4 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of all tested hardware combinations for The Technomancer, this pairing lands in the lower percentile. The data shows this combo ranks 1419 out of 1656 total combinations. This places it firmly in the bottom 15% of tested systems, indicating that it is not a high-performance configuration for this specific title. While it is not the absolute worst, it is a long way from the top-tier setups that can max out the game at high resolutions.

This ranking is a direct consequence of the GPU's age and tier. The Core i7-14700F is a modern, high-end processor, but it is paired with an older, mid-range graphics card. The benchmark results suggest that the GPU's performance ceiling prevents the system from achieving higher frame rates, especially at higher resolutions. The system is capable of running the game, but it will not deliver the smooth, high-fidelity experience that more powerful GPUs can provide. The ranking reflects a system that is balanced for 1080p gaming but will struggle to maintain high frame rates at 1440p and 4K.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a powerhouse processor that is not the bottleneck in this pairing. It features 20 cores and 28 threads, with a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. This is a Raptor Lake Refresh architecture built on a 10 nm process. Its multi-threaded performance is substantial, as indicated by a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35443 and a Geekbench multi-core score of 16571. The processor's capabilities are far beyond what The Technomancer requires.

The game, released in 2016, is not known for being heavily multi-threaded. The i7-14700F's single-core performance is also strong, with a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 5003, which is more relevant for gaming. The data shows that this CPU is more than capable of feeding the GTX 1660 Ti with data. The frame rate drops when moving from 1080p to 4K are almost entirely due to the GPU's rendering speed, not the CPU's processing power. The processor sits in the 94th percentile compared to all CPUs, proof of its overall capability. When compared to its nearest rivals, it is within 1.7% of the AMD EPYC 7313P and only 0.6% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 9900X, showing it is a top-tier part.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of the system's capabilities at different settings and resolutions. At 1080p, the system performs admirably. With Low settings, it achieves an average of 113.5 FPS, which is very fluid. High settings still deliver a solid 73.6 FPS, while Medium settings hit 84.1 FPS. Pushing to Ultra settings brings the average down to 58.5 FPS, which is still playable but shows the strain on the GPU.

Moving to 1440p, the performance drops are noticeable. Low settings yield 72.1 FPS, which is still smooth. High settings drop to 49.7 FPS, and Medium settings are close behind at 55.4 FPS. Ultra settings at 1440p become more demanding, resulting in an average of 38 FPS. This is a playable frame rate for a slower-paced RPG, but it is not ideal for fast action. At 4K, the system is clearly out of its depth. Low settings produce an average of 37.7 FPS, while Medium and High settings drop to 31.3 FPS and 27 FPS respectively. Ultra settings at 4K are nearly unplayable, with an average of just 19.2 FPS. The data illustrates that 1080p is the target resolution for this combo, with 1440p being a viable option if settings are adjusted.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti is the definitive limiting factor in this configuration. It is a Turing-architecture GPU built on a 12 nm process at TSMC, featuring 1536 shading units. It comes with 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s. The GPU has a base clock of 1500 MHz and a boost clock of 1770 MHz. While these specs were respectable for its time, they are not sufficient for the demands of modern gaming at high resolutions.

The GPU's performance percentile is 55, placing it just above the median of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 570X, is only 0.4% slower, and it is 0.7% faster than the NVIDIA Tesla K10. This data confirms that the GTX 1660 Ti is a mid-range part. The benchmark scores, such as a Passmark G3D score of 12871 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1061, reflect its capabilities. The 6 GB of VRAM is also a potential concern for modern titles at 4K, which often require more memory for high-resolution textures. The combination of the GPU's limited compute power and memory capacity makes it the primary reason the system's performance falls off a cliff at 4K. The CPU is waiting, but the GPU cannot keep up with the rendering demands.