The Technomancer

The Technomancer, a 2016 Action RPG, proves surprisingly demanding even on modern flagship hardware. When paired with the Intel Core i7-14700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D, the benchmark data reveals a system capable of delivering high frame rates but one that is consistently constrained by the graphics card, especially at higher resolutions and settings. The measured FPS shows a clear hierarchy where the GPU is the primary bottleneck, with the CPU providing ample headroom to avoid limiting performance at 1080p.

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

The Intel Core i7-14700KF is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.60 GHz. Its 33 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel memory support for both DDR4 and DDR5 make it a modern high-end desktop part. In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44167 and a single-core score of 6235, placing it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 70163 puts it within 0.2% of the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F and 0.9% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X, while it trails the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K by 1%.

For a game like The Technomancer, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and manage game logic. The data from this pairing shows that at 1920x1080, the lowest resolution tested, the CPU is not a limiting factor. The measured FPS at 1080p with Low settings is 322 FPS, which is the highest average across all tested configurations. This indicates the i7-14700KF has more than enough processing power to handle the game's engine at this resolution, allowing the GPU to run at its full potential. Even at 1080p Ultra, where the frame rate drops to 184 FPS, this is still a very high value, suggesting the CPU is not causing a bottleneck.

The performance delta between the i7-14700KF and its nearest rivals is minimal, with a 0.2% difference from the AMD Ryzen 7 9700F. This means that in a game like The Technomancer, swapping to a similarly performing CPU would not yield a meaningful difference in the measured FPS. The processor's high single-core performance, evidenced by its Geekbench single-core score of 2578, is likely beneficial for the game's main thread, but the overall frame rates are clearly dictated by the GPU, not the CPU. The data consistently shows that as resolution increases, the FPS drops, which is the classic sign of a GPU-bound scenario. The CPU's 20 cores and high boost clock ensure that even in complex scenes, the GPU will be the first component to reach its limit. The processor's Passmark multi-thread score of 52425 further underscores its ability to handle any background tasks without impacting game performance.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is a behemoth of a graphics card, built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm process. It features 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus, providing a massive 1.79 TB/s of memory bandwidth. Its boost clock is 2407 MHz, and it houses 21760 shading units, 680 texture mapping units, and 176 ROPs. This hardware allows for a theoretical FP32 performance of 104.8 TFLOPS. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it scores 14326, and its average benchmark score of 77712 places it in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs. The data shows it is 1.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT and 1.6% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT.

In The Technomancer, the GPU is the definitive performance limiter. The evidence is in the resolution scaling: at 1920x1080 with Low settings, the card produces 322 FPS, but at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, that number plummets to 66 FPS. This 79% drop in performance is directly attributable to the increased rendering load on the GPU. The 32 GB of VRAM is more than sufficient for this game, even at 4K Ultra, and is not a factor in the performance drops. The card's raw compute power is what drives the high frame rates at lower resolutions, but the demands of 4K rendering overwhelm it relative to the 1080p results.

The GPU's clock speed of 2407 MHz boost is a key factor in its 1080p performance. The data shows a clear progression: at 1080p, the average FPS ranges from 184 (Ultra) to 322 (Low), indicating that the card is capable of very high throughput. However, the game's engine appears to scale poorly with the GPU's power at higher resolutions. The 66 FPS at 4K Ultra is still playable, but it is a far cry from the 184 FPS at 1080p Ultra. This pattern suggests that while the RTX 5090 D is powerful, The Technomancer's rendering pipeline becomes a bottleneck at 4K, limiting the card's ability to flex its muscles. The GPU's performance relative to rivals is close, but in this specific game, the 5090 D's advantage is not enough to overcome the engine's 4K limitations.

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

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of how The Technomancer scales with resolution. At 1080p High, the average is 236 FPS. Moving to 1440p High reduces this to 154 FPS, a drop of 82 FPS or roughly 35%. Jumping to 4K High further reduces the average to 85 FPS, a 51 FPS drop from 1440p. This steep decline is a textbook example of GPU-bound scaling; the CPU is capable of maintaining high frame rates, but the GPU's rendering workload increases quadratically with pixel count.

The pattern holds across all settings. At Medium settings, the FPS goes from 276 (1080p) to 180 (1440p) to 99 (4K). At Low settings, it goes from 322 (1080p) to 235 (1440p) to 129 (4K). Even at the lowest settings, the 4K average of 129 FPS is less than half of the 1080p average of 322 FPS. This indicates that the GPU is the limiting component at every resolution, and the CPU is not holding the system back. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the FPS would remain relatively flat across resolutions, which is not the case here.

The difference between 4K and 1080p is stark. At Ultra settings, 4K delivers 66 FPS while 1080p delivers 184 FPS, a 118 FPS difference. This 64% reduction in performance when moving from 1080p to 4K is a massive penalty. This scaling behavior suggests that to achieve a smooth experience at 4K, the user must lower settings. The data shows that 4K Medium (99 FPS) is significantly faster than 4K Ultra (66 FPS), indicating that the Ultra preset imposes a heavy load that the GPU cannot handle efficiently at this resolution. The 1440p resolution offers a balanced middle ground, with High settings hitting 154 FPS, which is high enough for a 144Hz monitor.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution to play The Technomancer with this hardware?

A: The data suggests 2560x1440 is the sweet spot. At High settings, it delivers an average of 154 FPS, which is excellent for a high-refresh-rate display. 4K is playable but requires dropping to Medium settings to reach near 100 FPS, while 1080p offers the highest frame rates but is often overkill for the game's visuals.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-14700KF a bottleneck for the RTX 5090 D in this game?

A: No, the benchmark results indicate the CPU is not a limiting factor. The FPS drops consistently as resolution increases, which is characteristic of a GPU bottleneck. The CPU's high scores, such as a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 44167, show it has ample headroom.

Q: How much of a performance difference is there between Ultra and Low settings at 4K?

A: The average FPS at 4K Ultra is 66 FPS, while at 4K Low it is 129 FPS. This is a 63 FPS difference, meaning Low settings nearly double the frame rate. The Ultra preset is very demanding, and the data shows a significant performance gain from lowering settings.

Q: Can this system achieve a stable 60 FPS at 4K in The Technomancer?

A: Yes, the data shows that at 4K Medium settings, the average FPS is 99, which is well above 60. Even at 4K High, the average of 85 FPS is sufficient. Only the Ultra preset, with an average of 66 FPS, is closer to the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the RTX 5090 D compare to its closest rivals in this game?

A: The RTX 5090 D has an average benchmark score of 77712, which is 1.1% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT and 1.6% lower than the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT. However, these are synthetic benchmark scores; the in-game FPS is determined by the game's specific optimization.

Q: What is the expected frame rate at 1080p with High settings?

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with High settings is 236 FPS. This is a very high frame rate, indicating the game is not demanding on the GPU at this resolution, and the CPU is more than capable of handling it.

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

The following table details the exact measured FPS data for The Technomancer with the Intel Core i7-14700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D.

| Resolution | Settings | Avg FPS | Min FPS | Max FPS |

| :--------- | :------- | :------ | :------ | :------ |

| 1920x1080 | Low | 322 | N/A | N/A |

| 1920x1080 | Medium | 276 | 235 | 317 |

| 1920x1080 | High | 236 | N/A | N/A |

| 1920x1080 | Ultra | 184 | N/A | N/A |

| 2560x1440 | Low | 235 | N/A | N/A |

| 2560x1440 | Medium | 180 | 153 | 207 |

| 2560x1440 | High | 154 | N/A | N/A |

| 2560x1440 | Ultra | 120 | N/A | N/A |

| 3840x2160 | Low | 129 | N/A | N/A |

| 3840x2160 | Medium | 99 | 84 | 114 |

| 3840x2160 | High | 85 | N/A | N/A |

| 3840x2160 | Ultra | 66 | N/A | N/A |

At 1080p, the frame rates are exceptionally high across all settings. The Low preset reaches 322 FPS, which is likely beyond the refresh rate of most monitors. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 235 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay even in demanding scenes. The Ultra preset at 184 FPS is still very high. At 1440p, the performance is also robust, with the Low preset at 235 FPS and the Ultra preset at 120 FPS. The Medium preset at this resolution shows a minimum of 153 FPS. At 4K, the performance drops significantly. The Low preset averages 129 FPS, which is still smooth, but the Ultra preset averages only 66 FPS. The Medium preset provides a more consistent experience with an average of 99 FPS and a minimum of 84 FPS.

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

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings largely depend on the user's target resolution and frame rate preference. For a 1080p monitor with a 144Hz or 240Hz refresh rate, the High preset is the best choice, as it delivers an average of 236 FPS, which is well above the refresh rate of most high-end displays. The Ultra preset at 184 FPS is also viable, but the visual difference between High and Ultra may not justify the 52 FPS performance hit. The Low and Medium presets are unnecessary at this resolution due to the extremely high frame rates they produce.

For 1440p, the High preset is again the recommended choice, offering an average of 154 FPS. This is high enough for a 144Hz monitor and provides a good balance between visual quality and performance. The Medium preset at 180 FPS is also an option for those who prioritize frame rate over visual fidelity, but the High preset's 154 FPS is already exceptionally smooth. The Ultra preset at 120 FPS is also playable and is a good option for users with a 120Hz display. At this resolution, the data shows that High is the best all-around setting.

At 4K, the choices change. The Ultra preset, with its 66 FPS average, is only suitable for users with a 60Hz display and a tolerance for lower frame rates. The High preset at 85 FPS is a better option, but the Medium preset at 99 FPS provides the most consistent and smooth experience. Given that the minimum FPS for Medium is 84, it is more reliable than High, which lacks a measured minimum. Therefore, for a 4K experience, the Medium preset is the recommended setting, as it provides a high average frame rate while minimizing the risk of noticeable stutters. The Low preset at 129 FPS is an option for competitive play, but it sacrifices too much visual quality for the gain. In summary, the data recommends High at 1080p and 1440p, and Medium at 4K for the best balance of performance and visual quality.