Thief

# Thief with Intel Core i7-14700F + Intel Arc B390: A Benchmark Analysis

The Intel Core i7-14700F paired with the Intel Arc B390 represents a fundamentally unbalanced configuration for Thief, a 2014 stealth title that remains surprisingly demanding on modern integrated graphics. The data shows this combo ranks 2534th out of 2851 tested combinations, placing it in the bottom 11% of all systems tested for this game. The Arc B390, an integrated GPU based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, delivers a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482, which places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs—a figure that explains the consistently low frame rates observed across all resolutions and settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the best average frame rate this combination achieves in Thief?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 86, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. This is the only configuration in the measured data that approaches a truly smooth experience, though it still falls short of high-refresh displays.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B390 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B390 scores 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, which is 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX (1463), 1.5% ahead of the GeForce 800M (1460), 2.5% ahead of the GT 625 OEM (1446), and 2.7% ahead of the GT 710 (1443). These are extremely small margins, indicating the B390 sits at the very bottom of the discrete GPU performance spectrum.

Q: What is the impact of switching from Low to Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the average FPS drops from 86 on Low to 48 on Ultra, a reduction of 38 FPS or roughly 44%. The Medium preset yields 66 FPS, while High delivers 50 FPS, showing a steep performance cliff as settings increase.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-14700F a high-performing CPU in general benchmarks?

A: Yes, the i7-14700F scores 35,122 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 4,958 in single-core, placing it in the 91st percentile of all CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 53,620 is nearly identical to the Intel Xeon 6505P (53,701, -0.2%) and slightly ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X (53,288, +0.6%).

Q: Does the Arc B390 have dedicated VRAM?

A: No, the Arc B390 uses System Shared memory for both its memory size and type. Its memory bandwidth is described as "System Dependent," meaning performance scales with the host system's RAM configuration rather than a fixed VRAM allocation.

Q: What frame rates can be expected at 4K with this setup?

A: At 3840x2160, the average FPS ranges from 19 on Ultra to 35 on Low. The Medium preset shows 26 FPS average with minimums of 22 and maximums of 30, indicating the GPU is severely underpowered for 4K gaming in Thief.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics solution built on the Xe3-LPG architecture, fabricated on Intel's 3nm process node. Its clock speeds are modest: a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz. The GPU contains 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 render output units, along with 12 ray tracing cores. These specifications translate to a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s, with FP32 performance rated at 7.680 TFLOPS.

The most critical limitation for gaming is the memory configuration. The B390 uses System Shared memory, meaning it draws from the host system's RAM rather than dedicated VRAM. The memory bus width is also System Shared, and bandwidth is System Dependent. This architecture creates a significant bottleneck in Thief, a game that was designed in 2014 when dedicated graphics memory was standard even for entry-level discrete GPUs. The shared memory approach means the i7-14700F's DDR4/DDR5 dual-channel memory bandwidth is shared between CPU and GPU workloads, potentially causing contention during gameplay.

The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1482 confirms the B390's position at the bottom of the GPU hierarchy. With a 9th percentile ranking among all GPUs, it sits just ahead of decade-old discrete graphics cards like the GeForce GT 520MX and GT 710, which were low-end parts even at their release. In Thief, this translates to average frame rates that never exceed 86 FPS even at the lowest settings and resolution, and drop to single-digit territory at higher loads.

Resolution Scaling

The measured data reveals a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases, with the GPU becoming the dominant limiting factor at higher pixel counts. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 86 FPS average. Moving to 1440p Low drops this to 59 FPS, a reduction of 27 FPS or roughly 31%. At 4K Low, the average falls to 35 FPS, representing a 59% decrease from the 1080p figure.

The scaling pattern is consistent across all settings. At Medium quality, 1080p yields 66 FPS, 1440p drops to 45 FPS, and 4K falls to 26 FPS—a 61% reduction from 1080p to 4K. High settings show 50 FPS at 1080p, 34 FPS at 1440p, and 20 FPS at 4K, while Ultra produces 48 FPS, 33 FPS, and 19 FPS respectively.

These numbers indicate that Thief is heavily GPU-bound at every resolution tested. The i7-14700F, with its 20 cores and 28 threads boosting to 5.40 GHz, is more than capable of feeding the B390's relatively modest geometry and pixel throughput requirements. The fact that 1080p to 1440p scaling produces substantial FPS drops—between 22% and 31% depending on settings—suggests the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth are the primary constraints. The relatively smaller additional drop from 1440p to 4K (around 40-44%) indicates the GPU is already saturated at 1440p, and the additional pixel count at 4K cannot be processed efficiently.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the complete settings sweep provides a clear picture of the GPU's capabilities. Low settings deliver an average of 86 FPS, the only measured configuration that approaches mainstream playability. Medium settings drop to 66 FPS average, with a minimum of 56 and maximum of 75 FPS, showing some frame-time variance but remaining playable. High settings reduce the average to 50 FPS, while Ultra bottoms out at 48 FPS. The delta between High and Ultra is minimal—just 2 FPS—suggesting that Ultra's additional effects are not particularly demanding relative to the High preset.

At 2560x1440, performance becomes marginal for smooth gameplay. Low settings average 59 FPS, which is technically playable but with little headroom. Medium averages 45 FPS with a range of 38 to 52 FPS, indicating noticeable frame-time spikes. High drops to 34 FPS, and Ultra falls to 33 FPS. The 1440p results show that the B390 cannot maintain a consistent 60 FPS experience at this resolution, even on the lowest settings.

At 3840x2160, the system is effectively unplayable for most users. Low settings average 35 FPS, Medium averages 26 FPS with a 22-30 FPS range, High averages 20 FPS, and Ultra averages 19 FPS. These numbers fall below the threshold for smooth motion in a stealth game, where precise timing and visual clarity are essential. The 4K results confirm that the B390's shared memory architecture and limited shading units cannot handle the pixel throughput required at this resolution.

The medium preset at each resolution is the only one with complete min/max data: 56-75 FPS at 1080p, 38-52 FPS at 1440p, and 22-30 FPS at 4K. This data suggests that frame pacing is relatively consistent, with no extreme spikes, but the overall averages are too low for competitive or fast-paced gameplay.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured frame rates, the optimal configuration for this system is 1920x1080 with Low settings, delivering 86 FPS average. This is the only combination that provides a frame rate clearly above the 60 FPS threshold, which is generally considered the minimum for smooth gameplay in a stealth title where quick reactions may be required. The Low preset at 1080p is the recommended choice for players who prioritize responsiveness.

For players willing to accept lower frame rates in exchange for visual quality, 1080p Medium at 66 FPS average is a reasonable compromise. The minimum of 56 FPS means the experience rarely drops below playable levels, and the visual improvements over Low may be noticeable in Thief's atmospheric environments. This configuration offers the best balance between visual fidelity and playability within the measured data.

At 1440p, the Low preset at 59 FPS is technically playable but leaves no headroom for demanding scenes. The Medium preset at 45 FPS average, with a minimum of 38 FPS, may cause noticeable stuttering during intense gameplay moments. Higher settings and resolutions should be avoided entirely; the 4K results, with averages between 19 and 35 FPS, are below acceptable thresholds for a game that requires stealth and precision.

The data indicates that the Ultra preset offers virtually no benefit over High at any resolution—the difference is consistently 1-2 FPS. Players should avoid Ultra settings entirely, as they provide negligible visual improvement while consuming the same limited performance headroom. The High preset at 1080p, at 50 FPS, may be acceptable for players who prioritize visual quality over frame rate, but the 44% drop from Low to High at 1080p demonstrates the steep cost of higher settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 20-core, 28-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, built on Intel's 10nm process. It has a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz, with 33 MB of shared L3 cache and 2 MB of L2 cache per core. The CPU supports both DDR4 and DDR5 memory in dual-channel configuration, with ECC memory support as an additional feature. Its 65W TDP and active production status make it a mainstream desktop part, with a launch MSRP of $359.

In general benchmarks, the i7-14700F performs exceptionally well. It scores 35,122 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 4,958 in single-core, 14,751 in Cinebench R20 multi-core, and 3,540 in Cinebench R15 multi-core. Geekbench results show 19,620 multi-core and 2,429 single-core scores. PassMark tests reveal strong integer math performance (155,808) and floating-point math (107,005), with a multithread score of 41,317 and single-thread score of 4,257. The CPU's 91st percentile ranking among all CPUs confirms its position as a high-end desktop processor.

However, in Thief, the CPU's capabilities are largely irrelevant to the observed frame rates. The game's 2014 release date means it was designed for the CPU architectures of that era, and the i7-14700F's modern architecture and high clock speeds provide far more processing power than Thief can utilize. The measured FPS data shows a consistent pattern of GPU-limited performance, with frame rates scaling directly with resolution and settings rather than showing any CPU-related bottlenecks.

The nearest CPU rivals further illustrate the i7-14700F's position: the Intel Xeon 6505P scores 53,701 (0.2% higher), the Intel Xeon Phi 7290 scores 53,469 (0.3% lower), the AMD Ryzen 9 7900X scores 53,288 (0.6% lower), and the AMD EPYC 7313P scores 53,206 (0.8% lower). These differences are negligible, placing the i7-14700F in a tie with several server-class processors. In Thief, this CPU horsepower goes unused; the B390's integrated graphics architecture and System Shared memory create a bottleneck that no amount of CPU performance can overcome.