Thief

Thief, a 2014 stealth title, responds decisively to the hardware driving it. The benchmark data for the Intel Core i7-14700KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER shows a system with substantial headroom across all tested resolutions and presets. This analysis examines the measured frame rates, component roles, and scaling behavior to characterize where this combination excels and where its limits appear.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i7-14700KF is a 20-core, 28-thread processor from the Raptor Lake Refresh architecture, running on the Intel Socket 1700 platform. Its base clock is 3.40 GHz with a boost clock of 5.60 GHz, and it carries a 33 MB shared L3 cache alongside a 2 MB per-core L2 cache. The CPU's benchmark profile shows a 96th percentile ranking among all tested processors, with an average benchmark score of 70104. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i7-14700K with a deltaPct of 0, the AMD EPYC 9115 at 0.3% ahead, the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X at 0.4% behind, and the Intel Xeon Platinum 8270 at 1.3% behind. In practical terms, this processor sits at the top of the desktop performance tier, with multicore results like 44557 in Cinebench R23 and 18713 in Cinebench R20.

In Thief, the CPU's role is most evident at lower resolutions where the GPU is less strained. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo reaches 218 FPS, which is the highest measured value across the entire dataset. This suggests that the processor's single-thread performance, evidenced by a Geekbench single-core score of 2972 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 6290, is more than adequate to feed the GPU even in a title from 2014. The 20-core configuration provides massive headroom for any background tasks or streaming loads, but the game itself appears to rely on fewer threads. The data indicates that the i7-14700KF is not a bottleneck at any tested setting, as frame rates scale consistently with GPU load rather than showing CPU-limited plateaus.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with the AD104 chip, fabricated on a 5 nm process by TSMC. It features 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU's base clock is 1980 MHz with a boost clock of 2475 MHz, and memory runs at 1313 MHz or 21 Gbps effective. The card's 7168 shading units and 224 tensor cores place it firmly in the upper mid-range of the GeForce 40-series lineup. Its benchmark percentile is 84 among all GPUs, with an average score of 42576. Nearest rivals include the NVIDIA RTX A6000 at 0.2% ahead, the AMD Radeon RX 7650 GRE at 0.3% ahead, the AMD Radeon Pro 580X at 1.4% behind, and the NVIDIA Tesla M40 at 1.6% behind.

For Thief, the RTX 4070 SUPER demonstrates clear scaling with settings. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS is 61.9, which is playable but shows the GPU under load. Dropping to 4K High raises this to 68 FPS, while 4K Medium yields 87.5 FPS and 4K Low jumps to 113.4 FPS. The 12 GB VRAM capacity appears sufficient for all tested presets, as there is no evidence of memory-related stutters or frame drops in the measured data. The GPU's 35.48 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power translates into strong rasterization performance for a game like Thief, which does not utilize ray tracing or DLSS. The card's 220 W TDP and dual-slot design indicate it is a power-efficient solution that maintains high clocks under sustained load, as evidenced by the consistent frame times implied by the average FPS values.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Intel Core i7-14700KF and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER achieves a rank of 122 out of 1642 tested combos in Thief. This places it in the top 7.4% of all configurations in the database, which is a strong showing for a system that pairs a high-end desktop CPU with a mid-to-high-end GPU. The rank reflects the overall performance across all resolutions and settings, weighted toward the higher presets where the GPU becomes the primary determinant.

Relative to other combos, this system outperforms the vast majority of configurations, but it does not reach the absolute top tier. The gap between this combo and the top-ranked systems is likely driven by GPUs with more VRAM or higher compute throughput, as the CPU's 96th percentile ranking suggests it is not the limiting factor. The data shows that at 1080p Ultra, the combo hits 156.7 FPS, while at 1440p Ultra it reaches 106.4 FPS, and at 4K Ultra it drops to 61.9 FPS. These numbers indicate that the combo is well-balanced for high-refresh-rate 1440p gaming and capable of 4K at reduced settings. The rank of 122 also implies that there are 121 combos that achieve higher aggregate scores, likely featuring top-tier GPUs like the RTX 4090 or AMD equivalents, but the i7-14700KF + RTX 4070 SUPER combo remains a formidable pairing for Thief specifically.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo in Thief?

A: The highest average FPS is 218, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS drops to 61.9, which is still playable but close to the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: What is the CPU's percentile ranking among all tested processors?

A: The Intel Core i7-14700KF ranks in the 96th percentile, with an average benchmark score of 70104.

Q: What is the GPU's memory bandwidth and VRAM capacity?

A: The RTX 4070 SUPER has 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested combinations in Thief?

A: It ranks 122 out of 1642 total combos, placing it in the top 7.4% of all configurations.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 1080p Low and 4K Low settings?

A: At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 218, while at 4K Low it drops to 113.4, representing a roughly 48% reduction.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data across resolutions reveals a clear scaling pattern that identifies the GPU as the primary bottleneck at higher resolutions. Starting with Low settings, the frame rate drops from 218 FPS at 1080p to 191.5 FPS at 1440p, then to 113.4 FPS at 4K. This represents a 47.9% drop from 1080p to 4K. For Medium settings, the progression is 196.7 FPS at 1080p, 146.4 FPS at 1440p, and 87.5 FPS at 4K, a 55.5% reduction. High settings show 165.8 FPS at 1080p, 115.9 FPS at 1440p, and 68 FPS at 4K, a 59% reduction. Ultra settings yield 156.7 FPS at 1080p, 106.4 FPS at 1440p, and 61.9 FPS at 4K, a 60.5% reduction.

The pattern indicates that as settings increase, the resolution scaling penalty becomes more severe, which is typical of GPU-bound scenarios. The fact that even at Low settings the 4K frame rate is substantially lower than 1080p suggests that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth are the limiting factors, not the CPU. The CPU's high single-thread performance allows it to maintain high frame rates at 1080p, but the GPU cannot keep pace at higher pixel counts. Notably, the drop from 1440p to 4K is consistently larger than the drop from 1080p to 1440p, which is expected given the 2.25x pixel count increase from 1440p to 4K versus the 1.78x increase from 1080p to 1440p. This behavior confirms that the RTX 4070 SUPER is the component that determines the ceiling for this combo in Thief, especially at 4K.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

The measured FPS rows provide a clear picture of how each settings preset impacts performance, allowing for a data-driven recommendation. At 1080p, all presets exceed 156 FPS, with Low at 218 FPS, Medium at 196.7 FPS, High at 165.8 FPS, and Ultra at 156.7 FPS. Since the minimum frame rates are not measured, the average FPS suggests that even Ultra at 1080p provides a smooth experience well above 144 Hz refresh rates. For 1440p, the situation remains comfortable: Ultra averages 106.4 FPS, High averages 115.9 FPS, Medium averages 146.4 FPS, and Low averages 191.5 FPS. All of these are playable, but Ultra is the only preset that dips below 120 FPS, making it suitable for 60 Hz displays or those with VRR.

At 4K, the choices become more constrained. Ultra averages 61.9 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS target but leaves little headroom for demanding scenes. High averages 68 FPS, providing a modest improvement. Medium averages 87.5 FPS, which is a significant jump and offers a good balance between visual quality and performance. Low averages 113.4 FPS, which gives the best performance but at a substantial visual cost. Based on the data, the recommended preset for 4K is Medium, as it delivers 87.5 FPS while maintaining a reasonable level of visual fidelity. For 1440p, Ultra is the best choice for those with high-refresh-rate monitors, as it stays above 100 FPS. At 1080p, any preset works, but Ultra at 156.7 FPS is the optimal choice for maximizing visual quality without sacrificing smoothness. The data shows that this combo is versatile, but the best experience per the measured rows is achieved by selecting Medium at 4K, Ultra at 1440p, and Ultra at 1080p.