Thief

# How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-13700K paired with the Intel Arc B370 ranks 2,634 out of 2,851 tested combos in Thief, placing it in the bottom 8% of all configurations. This is a decisive verdict: the combo sits near the tail end of the performance distribution, and the bottleneck is overwhelmingly the GPU. The CPU itself is a top-tier part—its average benchmark score of 46,881 places it in the 89th percentile of all CPUs—but the Arc B370's average benchmark score of 1,184 puts it in the 5th percentile of all GPUs. That mismatch defines the entire experience.

The data shows a combo that is functional but fundamentally limited. At 1080p Low, the pair manages 78 FPS, which is playable, but every step up in resolution or settings drops the frame rate sharply. The combo's rank reflects this reality: it is not competitive with mainstream gaming rigs, and its position in the bottom 8% is consistent with a GPU whose nearest rivals are legacy parts like the ATI Radeon HD 5770 and the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570. The CPU's headroom is largely wasted in this pairing, as the GPU caps performance across all measured configurations.

For context, the CPU's nearest rivals—the AMD Ryzen 9 5900, the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375, the AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX, and the Intel Xeon w3-2535—are all within 0.5% of the i7-13700K's average score. This indicates the CPU is in elite company, but that pedigree does not translate to playable frame rates in Thief when paired with this GPU. The combo's rank is a clear signal: this is a low-end configuration for this game, and expectations should be set accordingly.

# GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is the decisive component in this pairing, and its specifications explain the measured results. The GPU features a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2400 MHz, with 1,280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster output units. It also includes 10 ray tracing cores. The memory configuration is "System Shared" in size, type, and bus width, with bandwidth listed as "System Dependent"—meaning the GPU relies on the host system's memory rather than dedicated VRAM, which is a critical limitation for a game like Thief.

The GPU's compute rates are modest: 6.144 TFLOPS for FP32 and 12.29 TFLOPS for FP16 (2:1). Its pixel rate is 48.00 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 96.00 GTexel/s. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 1,184, which is the only GPU benchmark available, and it places the Arc B370 at the 5th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1,186, 0.2% faster), the ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1,190, 0.5% faster), the AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1,192, 0.7% faster), and the AMD FirePro M2000 (1,168, 1.4% slower). These are all older, low-power parts, which contextualizes the Arc B370's standing.

In Thief, the GPU's limitations manifest directly in the measured FPS. At 3840x2160 Ultra, the average frame rate is 17 FPS, which is effectively unplayable. Dropping to 1080p Low yields 78 FPS, but that is the only configuration that approaches smooth gameplay. The shared memory architecture means the GPU cannot leverage dedicated high-bandwidth VRAM, and the "System Dependent" bandwidth further constrains performance. The 25 W TDP and integrated form factor (IGP, slot width) indicate this is not designed for demanding gaming, and the data confirms that.

The GPU's role is to be the limiting factor. The CPU has ample headroom—its multi-threaded scores are strong, as detailed later—but the Arc B370 cannot translate that into frame rate. This is a textbook case of a CPU-bound system being dragged down by a GPU that is percentile 5 overall.

# FAQ

Q: Is this combo capable of running Thief at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, the best average FPS is 31 on Low settings. Medium averages 24 FPS (min 20, max 27), High averages 18 FPS, and Ultra averages 17 FPS. None of these are smooth, so 4K is not a viable option for this pairing.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Thief?

A: The data shows 1920x1080 as the only resolution where playable frame rates are achievable. At Low settings, the average is 78 FPS; Medium averages 59 FPS (min 50, max 68); High averages 45 FPS; and Ultra averages 43 FPS. 2560x1440 peaks at 53 FPS on Low, which is borderline.

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

A: The Arc B370's average benchmark score is 1,184. The ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 scores 1,186 (0.2% faster), the ATI Radeon HD 5770 scores 1,190 (0.5% faster), the AMD Radeon HD 7650M scores 1,192 (0.7% faster), and the AMD FirePro M2000 scores 1,168 (1.4% slower). These are all within a narrow band.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU in this configuration?

A: No. The CPU is far more powerful than the GPU. The i7-13700K's average benchmark score of 46,881 is in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, while the GPU is in the 5th percentile. The data indicates the GPU is the limiting factor, not the CPU.

Q: What settings should I use to get the highest frame rates?

A: At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the combo achieves 78 FPS average. At 2560x1440 Low, it drops to 53 FPS. At 3840x2160 Low, it falls to 31 FPS. The best experience by frame rate is 1080p Low.

Q: Is this combo ranked high or low among tested configurations?

A: It ranks 2,634 out of 2,851 tested combos in Thief, placing it in the bottom 8%. This is a low ranking, consistent with the GPU's weak benchmark performance.

# Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of performance across resolutions and settings. At 3840x2160, the results are uniformly poor. Low settings average 31 FPS. Medium averages 24 FPS, with a minimum of 20 and a maximum of 27. High averages 18 FPS. Ultra averages 17 FPS. The step from Low to Medium is a 7 FPS drop, and from Medium to High is another 6 FPS drop, with Ultra adding a negligible 1 FPS reduction. This suggests the GPU is saturated even at Low settings at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, performance improves but remains marginal. Low settings average 53 FPS. Medium averages 41 FPS, with a minimum of 35 and a maximum of 47. High averages 31 FPS. Ultra averages 29 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is 12 FPS, and between Medium and High is 10 FPS, indicating that settings have a more pronounced effect at this resolution. Ultra is only 2 FPS below High, showing diminishing returns at the top end.

At 1920x1080, the results are the most usable. Low settings average 78 FPS, which is the highest measured average across the entire dataset. Medium averages 59 FPS, with a minimum of 50 and a maximum of 68. High averages 45 FPS. Ultra averages 43 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium is 19 FPS, from Medium to High is 14 FPS, and from High to Ultra is just 2 FPS. This pattern indicates that the GPU handles 1080p Low comfortably but struggles as settings increase.

The minimum and maximum FPS values are only provided for Medium settings at each resolution. At 4K Medium, the range is 20 to 27 FPS, a 7 FPS spread. At 1440p Medium, the range is 35 to 47 FPS, a 12 FPS spread. At 1080p Medium, the range is 50 to 68 FPS, an 18 FPS spread. The widening range at lower resolutions suggests frame time consistency improves as resolution drops, but even at 1080p, the variance is significant.

Overall, the data shows a clear pattern: resolution is the primary lever, with settings secondary. At 4K, no setting yields playable frame rates. At 1440p, only Low approaches playability. At 1080p, Low and Medium are viable, with High and Ultra borderline.

# CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-13700K is a 16-core, 24-thread processor from the Core 13th Gen series, based on the Raptor Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, with a TDP of 125 W. The cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 30 MB of shared L3. It supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory in dual-channel mode and features integrated UHD Graphics 770. The CPU's launch MSRP is $409.

Benchmark results show the CPU's strength. In Cinebench R23, it scores 30,745 in multi-core and 2,116 in single-core. In Cinebench R20, it scores 16,292 multi-core and 2,299 single-core. Geekbench results are 19,429 multi-core and 2,529 single-core. The 3DMark tests show 12,412 at max threads, 10,717 at 16 threads, 8,193 at 8 threads, 4,469 at 4 threads, 2,262 at 2 threads, and 1,136 at single thread. These scores place the CPU at the 89th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 46,881.

The CPU's nearest rivals are all within a fraction of a percent. The AMD Ryzen 9 5900 scores 46,971 (0.2% faster), the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 scores 47,022 (0.3% faster), the AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX scores 46,654 (0.5% slower), and the Intel Xeon w3-2535 scores 46,653 (0.5% slower). This grouping shows the i7-13700K is squarely in the high-end desktop and mobile workstation class.

In Thief, the CPU's role is to provide more than enough computational headroom. The game is not CPU-bound in this configuration; the measured FPS at 1080p Low (78 FPS) is likely limited by the GPU, not the CPU. The CPU's high single-thread score (2,529 in Geekbench, 1,136 in 3DMark single-thread) and strong multi-thread performance (30,745 in Cinebench R23) mean it can handle the game's logic and physics without breaking a sweat. However, this headroom is unused because the GPU cannot keep up.

The CPU's memory support for DDR4 and DDR5, along with dual-channel operation, is relevant to the GPU's "System Dependent" bandwidth. Since the Arc B370 uses shared system memory, the CPU's memory controller can influence GPU performance. The i7-13700K's support for fast memory is a positive, but the GPU's low compute throughput remains the limiting factor.

# Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides a clear hierarchy for settings in Thief. At 1920x1080, Low settings deliver the best experience with an average of 78 FPS. This is the only configuration in the entire dataset that exceeds 60 FPS, and it does so by a comfortable margin. Medium settings at 1080p average 59 FPS, with a minimum of 50 and a maximum of 68, which is playable but with occasional dips below 60. High and Ultra at 1080p average 45 FPS and 43 FPS respectively, which are borderline and not recommended for smooth gameplay.

At 2560x1440, Low settings average 53 FPS, which is playable but not smooth. Medium averages 41 FPS, High averages 31 FPS, and Ultra averages 29 FPS. None of these are ideal, and the data suggests that 1440p is only viable on Low settings for a playable experience. At 3840x2160, no settings are viable; the highest average is 31 FPS on Low, which falls below the playability threshold.

The best experience per the measured rows is unequivocally 1920x1080 with Low settings. This yields 78 FPS average, which is the highest measured value in the dataset. If visual quality is a priority, Medium at 1080p is the next best option, with 59 FPS average and a 50 FPS minimum, which stays within a playable range. High and Ultra at 1080p are not recommended, as they drop to the mid-40s, which is a noticeable step down in smoothness.

For users willing to trade resolution for quality, 1440p Low is the only reasonable choice at that resolution, with 53 FPS. However, the data suggests that 1080p Medium provides a better balance: 59 FPS average versus 53 FPS, with the added benefit of higher graphical fidelity. The recommendation is to prioritize 1080p, use Low for maximum frame rate, or Medium for a balanced experience. Avoid 4K entirely, as all settings produce sub-30 FPS averages.