Thief

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 delivers a robust experience in Thief, a 2014 stealth title. Across the measured configurations, the combination consistently produces high frame rates, with the lowest recorded average being 72 FPS at 4K Ultra settings. The benchmark data indicates that this pairing is well-suited to the game, providing a smooth experience even at the most demanding settings tested. The results show a clear scaling pattern across resolutions and presets, with the system comfortably handling the load in every scenario.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 3700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 ranks 1476 out of 3720 tested combos for Thief. This places it in the top portion of the database, roughly in the 60th percentile of all tested pairings. Such a ranking indicates that while there are many faster combinations, this specific pairing delivers performance that puts it above the majority of systems in the benchmark database.

The ranking becomes more informative when viewed against the individual components' standings in their respective broader benchmark pools. The CPU holds an 84th percentile rank against all tested CPUs, placing it above the vast majority of processors in terms of general computing performance. Meanwhile, the GPU holds an 86th percentile rank against all tested GPUs. The slightly higher percentile rank of the GPU compared to the CPU suggests that the graphics card is the stronger component in this pairing, a typical arrangement for a gaming-focused system.

When examining the CPU's nearest rivals, its average benchmark score is 34260. The AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 and AMD EPYC 4244P are both 0.1% behind, with scores of 34222 and 34220, respectively. The Intel Core i5-13450HX is 0.2% ahead, with a score of 34333, and the Intel Core Ultra 7 165H is 0.5% behind with 34083. These figures show that the Ryzen 7 3700X's performance is very tightly clustered with a group of modern processors. The fact that it sits alongside these newer chips indicates that its 8-core, 16-thread configuration continues to offer competitive general computing performance.

For the GPU, the RTX 4080's average benchmark score is 54247. Its closest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, which is a mere 0.1% faster with a score of 54209. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X is 1.1% behind, the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB is 2.6% behind, and the AMD Radeon 8060S is 2.7% behind. This data shows that the RTX 4080 is at the top of its performance tier, with the only card beating it in this group being its own SUPER variant by a very small margin.

In the context of Thief, the combination's rank of 1476 out of 3720 suggests that its performance in this game is not as strong as its component's markers would imply. The CPU and GPU both rank in the 84th and 86th percentile, respectively, yet the combined rank is around the 60th percentile. This discrepancy can be attributed to the game's specific requirements and how they interact with this particular hardware combination. The data indicates that Thief is not a title that fully utilizes the strengths of this pairing, a common occurrence in older games that may not be well-optimized for the latest generations of hardware.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the Ultra settings preset is generally the most appropriate choice for this hardware. The drop in average frame rate from High to Ultra is minimal, while the visual improvements are often considered worthwhile. At 1080p, the average frame rate is 107 FPS on High and 105 FPS on Ultra, a difference of only 2%. At 1440p, the average drops from 94 FPS on High to 93 FPS on Ultra, a negligible difference of just 1%. The largest difference is at 4K, where the average goes from 76 FPS on High to 72 FPS on Ultra, a 5% decrease.

This small difference between High and Ultra presets at all three resolutions shows that the system has significant headroom to handle the extra load of the Ultra preset. The cost of enabling Ultra in terms of frame rate is minimal, making it the recommended preset for most users. The Ultra preset is the highest tested, and the data shows it is playable on this hardware across all resolutions.

The Medium preset is a middle ground, offering an average frame rate that sits between the Low and High presets. At 1080p, it achieves 118 FPS, which is 12 FPS lower than Low and 11 FPS higher than High. At 1440p, it achieves 104 FPS, which is 11 FPS lower than Low and 10 FPS higher than High. At 4K, it achieves 87 FPS, which is 9 FPS lower than Low and 11 FPS higher than High. The Medium preset's frame rates are consistently around the 87-118 FPS range, making it a solid choice for players with high refresh rate displays at 1080p or 1440p.

The Low preset offers the highest frame rates at every resolution, which is expected. At 1080p it reaches an average of 130 FPS, at 1440p it scores 115 FPS, and at 4K it manages 96 FPS. While these are the highest averages, the visual fidelity of Low is significantly reduced. The data shows that the gap between Low and Ultra is substantial: a 25 FPS difference at 1080p and a 24 FPS difference at 4K. Given that the game is a stealth title where visual clarity can aid in spotting enemies, the extra visual detail of the Ultra preset is likely to be more important than the extra frame rate.

Therefore, the recommendation is to use the Ultra preset for the best balance of visual quality and performance. The data shows that the frame rate at Ultra is well above 60 FPS at all resolutions, ensuring a smooth experience. For players using high-refresh-rate monitors at 1080p or 1440p, the Medium preset can provide a higher frame rate with only a slight reduction in visual quality.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and expected pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases. The system's frame rate drops from a high of 130 FPS at 1080p Low to a low of 72 FPS at 4K Ultra. This scaling is a key indicator of the system's balance between CPU and GPU workload.

At 1080p, the system is likely more CPU-limited, as the GPU is able to render frames quickly. The difference between the Low and Ultra presets at 1080p is 25 FPS, from 130 FPS to 105 FPS. This difference is due to the increased graphical load on the GPU, but the CPU is also more heavily tasked. At 1440p, the same comparison shows a 22 FPS difference (115 to 93). At 4K, the difference is 24 FPS (96 to 72).

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows a consistent drop. For Low settings, the FPS drops from 130 to 115, a 15 FPS decline. For Medium, it drops from 118 to 104, a 14 FPS decline. For High, it drops from 107 to 94, a 13 FPS decline. For Ultra, it drops from 105 to 93, a 12 FPS decline. This pattern shows that the performance cost of moving from 1080p to 1440p is roughly constant across all presets, around 13-15 FPS.

Moving from 1440p to 4K reveals a different pattern. For Low, the FPS drops from 115 to 96, a 19 FPS drop. For Medium, it drops from 104 to 87, a 17 FPS drop. For High, it drops from 94 to 76, an 18 FPS drop. For Ultra, it drops from 93 to 72, a 21 FPS drop. The performance cost of moving to 4K is notably higher than the cost of moving from 1080p to 1440p. This is expected, as the GPU is rendering four times the pixels of 1080p.

The analysis of the relative drop rates shows that the system is more GPU-limited at higher resolutions. The drop from 1440p to 4K is larger than the drop from 1080p to 1440p, indicating that the GPU is becoming the limiting factor as the pixel count increases. At 1080p, the CPU has more influence on the final frame rate, as it is able to feed the GPU at a faster rate. The data suggests that this system is well-balanced for 1440p gaming, as it can maintain high frame rates with the Ultra preset, and even at 4K it remains playable.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for the AMD Ryzen 7 3700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 in Thief is as follows:

At 1920x1080 (1080p), the system achieves the following average frame rates across the four settings presets:

• Low: 130 FPS
• Medium: 118 FPS
• High: 107 FPS
• Ultra: 105 FPS

The 1080p results show a clear performance hierarchy, with the Low preset providing the highest frame rate. The difference between the Low and Ultra presets is 25 FPS. The Medium preset also has a minimum and maximum frame rate recorded, at 100 and 135 FPS respectively. This is the only resolution where the Medium preset data includes min/max values.

At 2560x1440 (1440p), the average frame rates are:

• Low: 115 FPS
• Medium: 104 FPS
• High: 94 FPS
• Ultra: 93 FPS

The 1440p results show a similar pattern to 1080p, with the Low preset being the fastest. The difference between Low and Ultra is 22 FPS. The Medium preset has a minimum of 88 FPS and a maximum of 120 FPS.

At 3840x2160 (4K), the average frame rates are:

• Low: 96 FPS
• Medium: 87 FPS
• High: 76 FPS
• Ultra: 72 FPS

The 4K results show that the system can maintain a playable frame rate at all settings presets. The difference between Low and Ultra is 24 FPS. The Medium preset has a minimum of 74 FPS and a maximum of 100 FPS. This is the most demanding resolution tested, and the frame rates are the lowest of the three resolutions, but they remain above 60 FPS for all presets.

Across all resolutions, the Low preset is the fastest, and the Ultra preset is the slowest. The frame rate drop from Low to Ultra is similar across resolutions, with a difference of 25 FPS at 1080p, 22 FPS at 1440p, and 24 FPS at 4K. The data shows a consistent scaling pattern, with the system delivering a smooth experience in all configurations.

The recorded minimum and maximum frame rates for the Medium preset show that there is some frame time variability. At 1080p, the FPS ranges between 100 and 135. At 1440p, it ranges between 88 and 120. At 4K, it ranges between 74 and 100. These values show that the frame rate can fluctuate, but the average is the primary metric for overall performance.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 is the primary driver of the graphics performance in this configuration. Its key specifications include 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, with a memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s. The card also has 9728 shading units, 304 TMUs, and 112 ROPs. Its base clock is 2205 MHz and the boost clock is 2505 MHz.

In the context of Thief, a game released in 2014, the RTX 4080's specs are much more than sufficient. The 16 GB of GDDR6X memory is a generous allocation, especially for a game of this era. The memory bandwidth of 716.8 GB/s is more than adequate for the textures and geometry in the game. The benchmark data shows that the GPU is able to maintain high frame rates across all settings and resolutions.

The GPU's benchmark performance in the database shows an average score of 54247, with a percentile rank of 86 versus all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, which is just 0.1% faster. The performance of the RTX 4080 in Thief is not limited by the GPU's raw power, as the GPU is able to handle the game easily. The data suggests that the frame rates are likely limited by the CPU or the game's engine at lower resolutions, but at 4K, the GPU becomes more of a factor.

The GPU's role is to render the game at the desired resolution and settings. In Thief, the GPU is capable of maintaining an average frame rate of over 70 FPS at 4K Ultra, which shows its strength. The GPU's architecture, with its RT and Tensor cores, is a feature set that is not particularly important for this game, but the raw computational power ensures a high frame rate. The GPU's 320W TDP and triple-slot design are more than enough to handle the workload, and the data shows no signs of thermal throttling or other limitations.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 3700X is the CPU in this pairing, featuring 8 cores and 16 threads. Its base clock is 3.60 GHz with a boost clock of 4.40 GHz. This CPU is built on the Zen 2 architecture, with a 7 nm process. It has 512 KB of L2 cache per core and 32 MB of L3 cache. The CPU's TDP is 65 W, which is efficient for its performance level.

The Ryzen 7 3700X's benchmark performance is also strong. Its average benchmark score is 34260, placing it in the 84th percentile of all CPUs. The nearest rival is the AMD Ryzen AI 7 350, which is just 0.1% faster, and the Intel Core i5-13450HX, which is 0.2% faster. This shows that the CPU's multi-threaded performance is still competitive with the latest processors.

In Thief, the CPU's role is to handle the game's logic, AI, and physics. The game is a 2014 title, so its CPU requirements are not as demanding as modern AAA titles. With 8 cores and 16 threads, the Ryzen 7 3700X provides more than enough processing power for the game. The high single-thread performance is also important for the game's engine.

The CPU's performance in the game is indicated by the frame rates at 1080p, where the system is likely more CPU-bound. At 1080p Low, the system achieves an average of 130 FPS, which shows that the CPU is able to feed the GPU with enough frames. At 1080p Ultra, the average is 105 FPS, which is a 25 FPS drop due to the increased GPU load.

The Ryzen 7 3700X is a capable CPU for this game. Its multi-core performance is high, and its single-threaded performance is also adequate. The game's engine is likely able to use multiple cores, which is where the 8-core design helps. The data shows that the CPU is not a bottleneck in Thief, as the frame rates are consistently high, especially at higher resolutions where the GPU is more stressed.

The CPU's memory support for DDR4 with a dual-channel bus and a bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s is also a factor. This memory bandwidth is sufficient for the game's requirements. The system overall is well-balanced, with the CPU and GPU both contributing to the high performance in Thief. The CPU's 84th percentile rank indicates that it is a strong performer, and its 8-core, 16-thread configuration is well-suited for modern games, including Thief.