Thief

Resolution Scaling

The recorded data for Thief with the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 shows a clear progression of average frame rates as resolution increases. At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the combination delivers 134 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 at the same preset, the average drops to 103 FPS, a reduction of 31 FPS. At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset yields 60 FPS, which is 43 FPS below the 1080p result and 74 FPS below the 1080p Low setting result.

The scaling pattern across all presets indicates that the GPU becomes the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions. From 1080p to 1440p, the average FPS drop for Low settings is 19 FPS (from 166 to 147). From 1440p to 4K, the same Low preset drops by 37 FPS (from 147 to 110). This acceleration in performance loss at 4K is consistent across every preset. For Medium settings, the drop from 1080p to 1440p is 17 FPS (150 to 133), and from 1440p to 4K it is 50 FPS (133 to 83). For High settings, the 1080p to 1440p drop is 28 FPS (136 to 108), and the 1440p to 4K drop is 45 FPS (108 to 63).

The data shows that the RTX 5070 maintains playable frame rates at 4K for all presets, but the margin narrows considerably at Ultra. The 60 FPS average at 4K Ultra sits exactly at the common display refresh threshold, while the 63 FPS at 4K High is essentially identical. The measured minimum FPS values are only recorded for Medium settings, where 4K shows a minimum of 71 FPS and 1440p shows 113 FPS. These minimums indicate that even at 4K Medium, the frame pacing remains above 60 FPS, suggesting the combination handles the game's demands without severe dips.

The resolution scaling behavior points to a GPU-bound scenario at 4K. The Ryzen 7 5700X, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, provides sufficient headroom at lower resolutions, where the frame rates exceed 130 FPS at 1080p. The fact that 1080p Ultra (134 FPS) and 1080p High (136 FPS) are nearly identical suggests the CPU is not the bottleneck even at the highest settings at that resolution. The gap between 1080p Low (166 FPS) and 1080p Ultra (134 FPS) is 32 FPS, which is a modest spread for a game from 2014, indicating that the GPU still has performance to spare at 1080p.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 uses 12 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 672.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The base clock is 2325 MHz with a boost clock of 2512 MHz. The memory clock is 1750 MHz, effective at 28 Gbps. These specifications directly influence the measured frame rates in Thief, particularly at 4K where memory bandwidth and fill rate become more critical.

The RTX 5070's 80 ROPs and 192 TMUs contribute to a pixel rate of 201.0 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 482.3 GTexel/s. For a game like Thief, which was released in 2014 and uses DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) APIs, these resources are more than adequate. The measured data confirms that even at 4K Ultra, the GPU sustains 60 FPS average. The low preset at 4K reaches 110 FPS, demonstrating that the GPU has substantial headroom when pixel shading requirements are reduced.

The 12 GB VRAM capacity is not a limiting factor in this game at any measured resolution or preset. The recorded frame rates do not show any signs of memory capacity throttling. The bandwidth figure of 672.0 GB/s is sufficient for the texture-heavy scenes typical of stealth games, and the 192-bit bus width does not appear to constrain performance in this title.

The GPU's benchmark scores place it in the 82nd percentile among all GPUs in the database. Its average benchmark score is 40377, which is nearly identical to the AMD Radeon Pro 580 (40318, a 0.1% difference) and the AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100 (40063, a 0.8% difference). The RTX 5070 is 1.2% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 (40870) and 2% ahead of the NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile (39568). These rival comparisons show that the RTX 5070's synthetic performance is closely matched by several workstation-oriented GPUs, but its real-world gaming performance in Thief, as measured here, shows strong scaling across resolutions.

The boost clock of 2512 MHz is the operative frequency during gaming loads. The measured FPS data reflects this sustained boost behavior. The GPU's FP32 throughput of 30.87 TFLOPS provides ample compute for the game's lighting and shadow calculations, which are computationally intensive in the Thief engine.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance on preset selection for this CPU and GPU combination. At 1920x1080, all presets deliver frame rates above 130 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 134 FPS, which is only 2 FPS lower than High (136 FPS) and 16 FPS lower than Medium (150 FPS). The gap between Low (166 FPS) and Ultra (134 FPS) is 32 FPS, but even the lowest result is well above any standard 60 Hz or 120 Hz display refresh rate. At 1080p, the Ultra preset is the sensible choice because it delivers a 134 FPS average with no measurable downside relative to lower presets.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset averages 103 FPS, while High averages 108 FPS, a difference of only 5 FPS. Medium averages 133 FPS, and Low averages 147 FPS. The 103 FPS at Ultra remains comfortably above 60 FPS and is suitable for high-refresh displays. The difference between Ultra and Medium is 30 FPS, which is more pronounced than at 1080p. For users prioritizing maximum frame rates, Medium provides a 30 FPS advantage over Ultra. For visual fidelity, Ultra at 103 FPS is still a strong option.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes. Ultra averages 60 FPS, which is exactly at the standard 60 Hz refresh boundary. High averages 63 FPS, nearly identical. Medium averages 83 FPS with a minimum of 71 FPS, which is the only preset at 4K with recorded minimum FPS data. Low averages 110 FPS. The measured data indicates that at 4K, the Medium preset offers the best balance between visual quality and frame rate stability. The 83 FPS average with a 71 FPS minimum provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS, whereas Ultra and High both sit at or near the 60 FPS boundary with no recorded minimums to confirm stability.

The database shows that the game's engine responds predictably to preset changes across all resolutions. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p reduces FPS by 19.2%, at 1440p by 29.9%, and at 4K by 45.5%. This increasing sensitivity to settings at higher resolutions is typical for GPU-bound scenarios. The recorded minimum FPS values for Medium settings show that 4K maintains a stable 71 FPS minimum, while 1440p holds 113 FPS and 1080p holds 128 FPS.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings?

A: The average FPS at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings is 134 FPS. This is the highest setting measured at the lowest resolution.

Q: Does the RTX 5070 maintain 60 FPS at 4K with the highest preset?

A: Yes, the Ultra preset at 3840x2160 averages 60 FPS. The High preset averages 63 FPS. The Medium preset averages 83 FPS with a minimum of 71 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X has an average benchmark score of 27578. The Intel Core i5-12600K matches this score with a 0% delta. The AMD Ryzen 7 5800 scores 27535, a 0.2% difference. The AMD Ryzen 5 7600X scores 27636, a -0.2% difference. The Intel Core Ultra 5 125H scores 27507, a 0.3% difference.

Q: What is the FPS difference between 1080p Low and 4K Low?

A: The 1080p Low preset averages 166 FPS, while the 4K Low preset averages 110 FPS. This is a difference of 56 FPS, or a 33.7% reduction when moving from 1080p to 4K.

Q: Which preset at 4K provides the highest frame rate?

A: The Low preset at 3840x2160 delivers the highest average FPS at 110 FPS. The Medium preset follows at 83 FPS, then High at 63 FPS, and Ultra at 60 FPS.

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking among all GPUs in the database?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 ranks in the 82nd percentile among all GPUs. Its average benchmark score is 40377.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 ranks 882nd out of 3720 tested combinations in Thief. This places the combo in the top 23.7% of all recorded configurations. The rank reflects the overall performance across all measured resolutions and settings.

The CPU's percentile ranking is 79th among all CPUs, and the GPU's percentile ranking is 82nd among all GPUs. The combo's game-specific rank of 882 out of 3720 suggests that while both components are individually strong, the game's engine does not fully utilize the available hardware capabilities. Thief, released in 2014, may not scale perfectly with modern multi-core processors or the latest GPU architectures.

The combo rank data indicates that many other CPU and GPU combinations achieve higher frame rates in this specific title. Given that the CPU and GPU both sit in the upper percentile ranges of their respective categories, the 882nd rank suggests the game's engine characteristics, rather than raw hardware limitations, are the determining factor. The measured FPS values, particularly at 1080p where the combo delivers 134 FPS at Ultra, are still high in absolute terms.

The nearest rival comparisons for the CPU show that the Intel Core i5-12600K matches the Ryzen 7 5700X's average benchmark score exactly at 27578. The AMD Ryzen 7 5800 is 0.2% behind, the AMD Ryzen 5 7600X is 0.2% ahead, and the Intel Core Ultra 5 125H is 0.3% ahead. These small deltas indicate that the CPU's performance is tightly clustered with its direct competitors, which means the game's rank is more sensitive to GPU selection than CPU choice.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 7 5700X uses the Zen 3 architecture on the Vermeer codename, built on a 7 nm process at TSMC. It has 8 cores and 16 threads, with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 4.60 GHz. The cache hierarchy includes 64 KB L1 per core, 512 KB L2 per core, and 32 MB shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR4 memory in dual-channel configuration with a memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s. It uses PCIe Gen 4 with 20 lanes from the CPU.

The CPU's benchmark scores show strong multi-threaded performance. In Cinebench R23, it scores 13184 in multi-core and 1499 in single-core. In Geekbench, it scores 10779 in multi-core and 2016 in single-core. The PassMark multithread score is 26612, with a single-thread score of 3385. The 3DMark 16-thread score is 6858, and the single-thread score is 921. These scores place the CPU in the 79th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 27578.

In Thief, the CPU's role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and game logic. The measured FPS at 1080p, where the GPU is less likely to be the bottleneck, shows that the CPU can sustain frame rates above 130 FPS at all presets. The 1080p Ultra average of 134 FPS and 1080p High average of 136 FPS are nearly identical, suggesting the CPU is not limiting the GPU at these settings. The 1080p Low average of 166 FPS indicates that the CPU can push even higher frame rates when the GPU workload is reduced.

The CPU's 8-core, 16-thread configuration is well-suited to the game's threading model. The 32 MB L3 cache reduces memory latency for frequently accessed data, which is beneficial for a stealth game with complex AI and environmental interactions. The boost clock of 4.60 GHz provides strong single-thread performance, which is still important for older game engines. The CPU's TDP of 65 W means it operates within a modest power envelope, allowing the GPU to draw up to its 250 W TDP without concerns about overall system power delivery.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete set of measured FPS values for the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 in Thief is as follows.

At 1920x1080:

• Low: 166 FPS average
• Medium: 150 FPS average, 128 FPS minimum, 173 FPS maximum
• High: 136 FPS average
• Ultra: 134 FPS average

At 2560x1440:

• Low: 147 FPS average
• Medium: 133 FPS average, 113 FPS minimum, 152 FPS maximum
• High: 108 FPS average
• Ultra: 103 FPS average

At 3840x2160:

• Low: 110 FPS average
• Medium: 83 FPS average, 71 FPS minimum, 96 FPS maximum
• High: 63 FPS average
• Ultra: 60 FPS average

The data shows a consistent ordering of presets at every resolution, with Low always delivering the highest FPS and Ultra always delivering the lowest. The Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values, providing additional insight into frame pacing. At 1080p Medium, the minimum of 128 FPS and maximum of 173 FPS represent a 45 FPS spread. At 1440p Medium, the spread is 39 FPS (113 to 152). At 4K Medium, the spread is 25 FPS (71 to 96). This narrowing spread at higher resolutions suggests the GPU evens out frame times as it becomes more heavily loaded.

The largest FPS drop between consecutive presets at any resolution occurs at 4K between Medium (83 FPS) and High (63 FPS), a 20 FPS reduction. The smallest drop is at 1080p between High (136 FPS) and Ultra (134 FPS), just 2 FPS. These extremes indicate that the High to Medium transition at 4K carries a significant performance cost, while the High to Ultra transition at 1080p is nearly free in terms of frame rate.

The ratio of 4K Ultra FPS to 1080p Ultra FPS is 60/134, or 44.8%. This means the combination retains less than half of its 1080p performance when moving to 4K at the highest settings. The ratio for Low settings is 110/166, or 66.3%, showing that lower settings scale much better across resolutions. This behavior is consistent with a GPU that becomes increasingly fill-rate limited at higher pixel counts, especially when shader complexity increases with higher presets.