Thief

# Thief Performance Analysis: AMD Ryzen 7 5700G + Intel Arc B370

This pairing of an 8-core AMD Ryzen 7 5700G with the Intel Arc B370 integrated graphics represents an unusual configuration, where a capable desktop CPU is matched with a very low-power GPU solution. The measured frame rates across resolutions tell a clear story about which component dominates in this 2014 stealth title, with the GPU consistently acting as the limiting factor even at lower settings.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is dramatic and revealing. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 45 FPS at 1920x1080 to 31 FPS at 2560x1440, then plummets to 18 FPS at 3840x2160. That represents a 31% reduction when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and another 42% drop going from 1440p to 4K. The scaling pattern strongly indicates that the Intel Arc B370, with its 25 W TDP and 300 MHz base clock, is the bottleneck. The GPU's pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate of 96.00 GTexel/s are simply insufficient for 4K workloads, even in a game from 2014.

Low settings tell an even more telling story. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 78 FPS, which is respectable. But at 1440p Low, that number falls to 53 FPS, and at 4K Low, it drops to just 31 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p (32% decrease) and 1440p to 4K (41% decrease) shows that the GPU is overwhelmed by pixel count rather than by game complexity. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect more consistent frame rates across resolutions, as the Ryzen 7 5700G has ample headroom with its 8 cores and 16 threads.

The Medium settings data includes minimum and maximum FPS values, which provide additional insight. At 1080p Medium, the range is 50-68 FPS with an average of 59. At 1440p Medium, the range narrows to 35-47 FPS with an average of 41. At 4K Medium, the range compresses further to 20-27 FPS with an average of 24. This compression of the FPS range at higher resolutions is characteristic of GPU-bound scenarios, where the frame time is dominated by rendering throughput rather than by CPU-driven gameplay logic.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700G brings substantial processing power to this pairing. With 8 cores, 16 threads, and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz, this Zen 3 architecture chip (codenamed Cezanne) is far more capable than what a 25 W integrated GPU would typically be paired with. The CPU's benchmark results reinforce this: a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 12830.5 and a single-core score of 1494 place it in the 79th percentile among all CPUs. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 6629 and max-thread score of 6627 show strong scaling across cores.

In Thief, the CPU's role appears minimal based on the resolution scaling analysis. The game's stealth gameplay likely involves modest CPU workloads, and the Ryzen 7 5700G's 16 MB of L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support provide more than adequate bandwidth. The CPU's nearest rivals include the Intel Core i9-9900K (average score 27097, deltaPct -0.2%) and the AMD Ryzen AI 7 445 (average score 26936, deltaPct 0.4%), indicating that the 5700G sits in competent company for general processing tasks.

However, the data suggests that in this specific game, the CPU's capabilities are largely untapped. The fact that frame rates drop so steeply with resolution increases, even at Low settings, points to the GPU being the sole limiting factor. At 1080p Low, the 78 FPS average might approach the CPU's ceiling for this game, but even then, the more likely constraint is the GPU's fill rate and shading capabilities. The Arc B370's FP32 performance of 6.144 TFLOPS, while modest, is likely the binding constraint.

FAQ

Q: Why does the frame rate drop so much from 1080p to 4K?

A: The Intel Arc B370 has a very low pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s and texture rate of 96.00 GTexel/s, combined with only 1280 shading units. As resolution increases, the GPU must process exponentially more pixels, and its limited throughput causes average FPS to fall from 78 at 1080p Low to 31 at 4K Low.

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 5700G powerful enough for this game?

A: Yes. The 8-core, 16-thread CPU with a 4.60 GHz boost clock scores 12830.5 in Cinebench R23 multicore and ranks in the 79th percentile among all CPUs. The resolution scaling pattern indicates the GPU, not the CPU, is the limiting factor in Thief.

Q: How does the Arc B370 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B370's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 puts it within 1.4% of the AMD FirePro M2000 (score 1168) and within 0.5% of the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (score 1190). This places it in the 5th percentile among all GPUs, indicating very low absolute performance.

Q: What is the best resolution to play Thief with this combo?

A: Based on the measured data, 1920x1080 is the only resolution where playable frame rates are achieved across all settings, with averages ranging from 43 FPS at Ultra to 78 FPS at Low. At 2560x1440, only Low settings reach 53 FPS, while 4K is largely unplayable.

Q: Does increasing settings from Low to Ultra have a consistent impact?

A: The impact varies by resolution. At 1080p, moving from Low to Ultra costs 35 FPS (78 to 43). At 1440p, the cost is 24 FPS (53 to 29). At 4K, the cost is 14 FPS (31 to 17). The absolute FPS loss shrinks at higher resolutions because the GPU is already saturated.

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

A: This combo ranks 2634 out of 2851 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom 8% of all configurations. This low ranking is driven almost entirely by the GPU's limited performance, as the CPU is in the top 21% of all processors.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 2634 out of 2851 tested configurations places this pairing firmly in the lower tier of all benchmarked systems. This ranking, which represents the bottom 7.6% of all combos, requires careful interpretation given the unusual nature of the pairing. The Ryzen 7 5700G is a capable desktop processor, ranking in the 79th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 27051. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i9-9900K (deltaPct -0.2%) and the Intel Core i5-14400T (deltaPct -0.4%), showing that the CPU is competitive with much more expensive processors.

However, the Intel Arc B370 is an integrated graphics solution with a 25 W TDP, designed primarily for portable devices. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1184 places it in the 5th percentile among all GPUs, and its nearest rivals are all older discrete or mobile parts from a decade ago. The mismatch between a top-quartile CPU and a bottom-quartile GPU creates a system where the GPU is the overwhelming bottleneck in gaming scenarios.

The ranking data suggests that this combo would perform substantially better with a different GPU pairing. The CPU's headroom is evident from the fact that even at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS is just 17, the frame rate limitations are clearly GPU-driven rather than CPU-driven. For users considering this configuration, the data implies that the CPU is future-proof for GPU upgrades, but the current GPU severely limits gaming potential. The 8% rank (2634/2851) is a direct consequence of this imbalance, and any game that is more GPU-intensive than Thief would likely show even worse relative performance.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370, based on the Xe3-LPG architecture and codenamed Panther Lake, is a 3 nm integrated graphics solution with a 25 W TDP. Its specifications reveal a design focused on efficiency rather than performance: 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster output units. The base clock of 300 MHz boosts to 2400 MHz, and memory is system shared, with bandwidth described as "system dependent."

In Thief, the GPU's role is clearly the dominant factor in determining performance. The measured FPS across all resolutions and settings follows a pattern consistent with a GPU that has limited fill rate and shading capacity. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS of 17 represents a 78% reduction from the 1080p Low average of 78 FPS. The GPU's pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s means that at 4K (approximately 8.3 million pixels), the theoretical maximum fill rate would allow only about 5.8 frames per second if the GPU were purely pixel-bound — though actual performance is higher due to the game's rendering characteristics and the boost clock.

The 10 ray tracing cores and DirectX 12 Ultimate support (12_2) are interesting features for a 25 W part, but they have minimal impact on Thief, which was released in 2014 and likely relies on older rendering techniques. The GPU's FP16 performance of 12.29 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio) and FP32 of 6.144 TFLOPS provide context for its compute capabilities, but in this game, the limiting factors are more likely the ROP throughput and memory bandwidth constraints inherent to shared system memory.

The GPU's percentile ranking of 5 places it among the weakest GPUs in the benchmark database. Its nearest rivals — ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (deltaPct -0.2%), ATI Radeon HD 5770 (deltaPct -0.5%), and AMD Radeon HD 7650M (deltaPct -0.7%) — are all parts from roughly 2010-2012. This context suggests that the Arc B370's performance in Thief is comparable to a mid-range discrete GPU from over a decade ago, which explains the significant FPS limitations at higher resolutions.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its best results across all settings. Low settings achieve an average of 78 FPS, which is the highest measured value in the entire dataset. Medium settings produce 59 FPS average with a range of 50-68 FPS, providing a smooth experience. High settings drop to 45 FPS average, while Ultra settings bottom out at 43 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 35 FPS, and even at Ultra, the frame rate is playable for a stealth title.

At 2560x1440, performance degrades noticeably. Low settings average 53 FPS, which is still acceptable, but Medium drops to 41 FPS with a range of 35-47 FPS. High settings achieve 31 FPS, and Ultra falls to 29 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra narrows to 24 FPS, suggesting that at this resolution, the GPU is becoming the primary constraint and settings changes have diminishing returns.

At 3840x2160, the system struggles. Low settings average 31 FPS, which is barely playable. Medium settings average 24 FPS with a range of 20-27 FPS, while High averages 18 FPS and Ultra averages 17 FPS. The difference between High and Ultra is just 1 FPS, indicating that the GPU is completely saturated. The minimum FPS values at Medium settings (20 FPS at 4K, 35 FPS at 1440p, 50 FPS at 1080p) show that frame pacing remains consistent, but the absolute performance is too low for a smooth experience at 4K.

The data shows a clear pattern: each resolution increase halves the available performance headroom. The transition from 1080p to 1440p costs roughly 30-35% of frame rate, while 1440p to 4K costs another 40-45%. This scaling is consistent with a GPU that has fixed pixel throughput and is being asked to render increasing pixel counts.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS values, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution. At 1920x1080, Medium settings offer the best balance of visual quality and performance, with an average of 59 FPS and a minimum of 50 FPS that ensures consistent gameplay. High settings at 45 FPS are also viable, but the 14 FPS drop from Medium to High is significant, and Ultra's 43 FPS provides only marginal visual improvements over High while risking frame rate dips.

At 2560x1440, Low settings are the only option that maintains a comfortable frame rate, averaging 53 FPS. Medium settings at 41 FPS might be acceptable for a stealth game, but the minimum of 35 FPS could cause noticeable stuttering in fast-paced scenes. High and Ultra settings at 31 FPS and 29 FPS respectively are below the threshold for smooth gameplay and are not recommended.

At 3840x2160, none of the settings achieve playable frame rates. Low settings at 31 FPS might be tolerable for a slow-paced stealth game, but the experience would be compromised. Medium at 24 FPS, High at 18 FPS, and Ultra at 17 FPS are all too low for comfortable gameplay. For 4K, the data suggests that this combo should be avoided unless the user is willing to accept significant compromises in visual quality and frame rate.

The overall recommendation is to play at 1920x1080 with Medium settings, which delivers a 59 FPS average with a 50 FPS minimum. This provides a 47% improvement over High settings' average and a 36% improvement over Low settings' average while still maintaining reasonable visual fidelity. For users who prioritize frame rate, Low settings at 78 FPS provide a very smooth experience, but the visual downgrade from Medium is substantial. The Ultra preset, despite being the highest quality option, only offers a 4% FPS improvement over High at 1080p and is not worth the performance cost.