Thief

The Intel Core i5-11400F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 lands at rank 654 out of 1642 tested combinations in Thief. That places this combo in the top 40% of all systems tested, a solid mid-pack result for a 2014 stealth title. The pairing is balanced enough that neither component becomes a glaring liability, though the data reveals where the bottlenecks sit as resolution climbs. With a CPU that ranks in the 75th percentile against all processors and a GPU in the 79th percentile, the hardware is evenly matched on paper; the measured frames confirm that symmetry in practice.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 654 out of 1642 reflects a system that handles Thief comfortably across all tested settings. That rank means roughly 988 other combinations outperform it, but many of those will be running far newer or more expensive hardware. The i5-11400F's average benchmark score of 17181 sits within 0.2% of its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U, and 0.2% behind the Intel Core i7-1260P. The RX 9070's average score of 34780 is similarly tight against its nearest competitor, the NVIDIA A2, which trails by 0.2%. In practical terms, this combo sits in a performance band where the CPU and GPU are both capable but not class-leading.

What matters for Thief specifically is that the game is old enough to be heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads are sufficient for the game's stealth AI and physics, and the benchmark data shows no sign of CPU strangulation even at 1080p. The combo rank reflects a system that delivers playable frame rates at every resolution tested, from 119.4 FPS at 1080p Ultra to 52.3 FPS at 4K Ultra. The spread between best and worst measured result is 91.9 FPS, which shows the GPU has enough headroom to scale with resolution changes.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 carries 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 644.6 GB/s of bandwidth. That memory configuration is overkill for Thief, a game from 2014 that will never approach the 16 GB ceiling even at 4K Ultra. The GPU's 3584 shading units and 128 ROPs do the heavy lifting here, with a boost clock of 2520 MHz and a game clock of 2070 MHz. The pixel rate of 322.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 564.5 GTexel/s are the specs that translate directly into fill-rate performance for a game like Thief, which relies on dense indoor environments and shadow-heavy scenes.

The GPU's compute throughput of 36.13 TFLOPS FP32 is far beyond what Thief demands, but it explains why the card sustains high frame rates even at 4K. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 6290 and Passmark G3D score of 25381 are strong indicators of raw graphics capability. In Thief specifically, the GPU's role becomes dominant as resolution increases. At 1080p, the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra is only 24.8 FPS, suggesting the CPU can feed the GPU adequately. At 4K, that same difference grows to 47.4 FPS, confirming the GPU is the limiting factor at higher pixel counts.

Resolution Scaling

The measured data shows a clear pattern of GPU-bound scaling. Dropping from 1080p to 1440p at Ultra settings costs 31.0 FPS, and going from 1440p to 4K at Ultra costs another 36.1 FPS. That consistent drop-off indicates the RX 9070 is working progressively harder as pixel count rises, with no sudden cliff that would suggest a CPU bottleneck. At Low settings, the scaling is even smoother: 144.2 FPS at 1080p, 128.7 FPS at 1440p, and 99.7 FPS at 4K. The 44.5 FPS total drop from 1080p Low to 4K Low is proportionally smaller than the 67.1 FPS drop from 1080p Ultra to 4K Ultra, which is typical for a GPU that has more headroom at lower settings.

The limiting component shifts clearly with resolution. At 1080p, the i5-11400F's single-thread performance, evidenced by a 3DMark single-thread score of 868 and Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2029, is enough to keep the GPU fed. The frame rates at 1080p Low (144.2 FPS) and 1080p High (121.2 FPS) suggest the CPU can push beyond 144 FPS in this title. At 4K, the GPU's raw throughput becomes the wall. The 4K Ultra result of 52.3 FPS is the lowest measured, and the gap between 4K Medium (72.8 FPS) and 4K High (56.8 FPS) shows how quickly the GPU's fill rate gets taxed by higher detail settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers playable-to-smooth performance across all settings. Low settings produce 144.2 FPS, Medium hits 131.5 FPS, High reaches 121.2 FPS, and Ultra maintains 119.4 FPS. The delta between Low and Ultra is just 24.8 FPS, meaning even maxed-out settings stay above 100 FPS. This resolution is clearly CPU-bound at the low end, as the GPU has enough headroom to render the simpler scenes quickly.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates drop but remain strong. Low settings yield 128.7 FPS, Medium produces 115.8 FPS, High averages 97.3 FPS, and Ultra holds 88.4 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is most pronounced at High settings, a 23.9 FPS loss, while Low only loses 15.5 FPS. This resolution is the sweet spot for the combo, as even Ultra stays above 60 FPS with room to spare.

At 3840x2160, the GPU begins to show its limits. Low settings still produce a solid 99.7 FPS, but Medium drops to 72.8 FPS, High falls to 56.8 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 52.3 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium at 4K is 26.9 FPS, the largest jump between any adjacent settings at any resolution. This indicates that the medium preset's additional texture and shadow work hits the GPU's fill rate hard. For 4K gaming, the data suggests sticking to Low or Medium settings for a smooth experience.

FAQ

Q: Is this combo good enough for 4K gaming in Thief?

A: Yes, but only at lower settings. The measured 4K Low result of 99.7 FPS is smooth, while 4K Medium drops to 72.8 FPS. High and Ultra at 4K fall to 56.8 FPS and 52.3 FPS respectively, which are playable but not ideal for fast-paced stealth sequences.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rival in this build?

A: The i5-11400F has an average benchmark score of 17181, which is 0% different from the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U and 0.2% behind the Intel Core i7-1260P. The performance delta is negligible, meaning the CPU is not a differentiator in Thief's frame rates.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo?

A: 1440p offers the best balance. At 1440p Ultra the combo holds 88.4 FPS, and at 1440p High it averages 97.3 FPS. These are above 60 FPS with visual quality that takes advantage of the GPU's 16 GB memory and 2520 MHz boost clock.

Q: Does the GPU bottleneck the CPU at any resolution?

A: Yes, at 4K. The frame rate drops consistently from 1080p to 4K, and the large gap between 4K Low (99.7 FPS) and 4K Ultra (52.3 FPS) shows the RX 9070's fill rate is the limiting factor. At 1080p, the CPU's 12 threads can keep up, as evidenced by the narrow 24.8 FPS spread between Low and Ultra.

Q: How does the GPU rank against its closest competitor?

A: The RX 9070's average benchmark score of 34780 is 0.3% ahead of the NVIDIA Quadro GV100 and 0.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon HD 7970. The card sits in the 79th percentile of all GPUs, which is reflected in its ability to maintain 100+ FPS at 1080p and 1440p in Thief.

Q: Should I use the Ultra preset or dial it back?

A: At 1080p and 1440p, Ultra is viable with 119.4 FPS and 88.4 FPS respectively. At 4K, Ultra drops to 52.3 FPS, so the High preset at 56.8 FPS is marginally better but still below 60 FPS. For 4K, the Medium preset at 72.8 FPS is the better choice.

Settings Recommendations

For 1080p and 1440p displays, the Ultra preset is the clear choice. The measured 119.4 FPS at 1080p Ultra and 88.4 FPS at 1440p Ultra are well above the 60 FPS threshold, and the frame rates stay consistent enough for smooth stealth gameplay. The 24.8 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is small enough that there is no reason to compromise visuals for speed.

At 4K, the Medium preset delivers the best experience. The 72.8 FPS at 4K Medium is the only 4K setting above 60 FPS aside from Low, and it offers substantially better visual fidelity than Low's 99.7 FPS. The High preset at 56.8 FPS and Ultra at 52.3 FPS are both below 60 FPS, which can cause noticeable stutter in a game that relies on precise timing for stealth sections. Choosing Medium at 4K sacrifices some shadow quality and texture detail but keeps the frame rate smooth.

For players with high-refresh 1080p monitors, the High preset at 121.2 FPS is a balanced option, though Low at 144.2 FPS will better exploit a 144 Hz display. The 1440p Medium setting at 115.8 FPS is also a strong candidate for high-refresh 1440p panels. In all cases, the data shows this combo has enough headroom to prioritize visual quality at lower resolutions and should reserve performance presets for 4K output.