Thief

The AMD Radeon 8060S paired with the Intel Core Ultra 5 135H delivers a surprisingly robust 1080p experience in Thief, but the data reveals a sharp performance cliff as resolution increases, placing this combo in the 55th percentile of all tested configurations. While the integrated GPU’s raw compute is impressive for its class, the system’s shared memory architecture and the CPU’s mobile-focused design create a bottleneck that becomes increasingly apparent at higher pixel counts.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable degradation as resolution climbs, but the rate of that decline tells a compelling story about where the system’s limits lie. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo produces 99 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440 High drops that to 68 FPS, a 31% reduction. Pushing further to 3840x2160 High yields just 40 FPS, which is a 59% drop from the 1080p baseline. This scaling pattern is steeper than what pure GPU-bound behavior would suggest, indicating that the system’s memory bandwidth constraints are compounding the load.

The Low preset reveals an even more dramatic scaling curve. At 1080p Low, the combo hits 171 FPS, which is excellent. At 1440p Low, it drops to 117 FPS, a 32% decrease. At 4K Low, it falls to 69 FPS, which is a 60% reduction from 1080p. The consistency of these percentage drops across settings—roughly 31-32% from 1080p to 1440p and 59-60% from 1080p to 4K—suggests a uniform scaling penalty that is largely resolution-driven rather than settings-driven. This points toward the GPU’s fill rate and memory subsystem being the primary limiting factors, as the CPU’s workload does not scale with pixel count.

The Medium preset, which includes min and max FPS data, further illuminates the bottleneck. At 1080p Medium, the average is 130 FPS with a min of 110 and max of 149. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 89 FPS with min 76 and max 102. At 4K Medium, the average is 52 FPS with min 45 and max 60. The min FPS values scale proportionally with the averages, indicating that frame pacing remains stable even under load. However, the gap between 1440p and 4K on Medium—a 42% performance drop—is larger than the gap between 1080p and 1440p, which is only 32%. This nonlinear degradation at higher resolutions is a classic sign of memory bandwidth saturation.

The data implies that the Radeon 8060S, despite its 2560 shading units and 64 ROPs, cannot sustain its throughput as the pixel workload expands because it relies on system shared memory. The GPU’s memory bandwidth is listed as "System Dependent," which means it is constrained by the CPU’s dual-channel DDR5 interface rated at 89.6 GB/s. This is a fraction of what a discrete GPU with dedicated VRAM would offer, and Thief’s texture-heavy scenes likely exacerbate this limitation. The result is a combo that excels at 1080p but struggles to maintain playable framerates at 4K, especially on higher presets.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s overall rank in Thief is 1586 out of 2851 tested combinations, placing it just past the halfway point of the database. This rank reflects the system’s balanced but not exceptional performance profile. The GPU alone sits in the 87th percentile of all GPUs, while the CPU sits in the 81st percentile of all CPUs. Yet the combined rank of 1586 suggests that Thief’s specific workload does not fully leverage the strengths of either component.

Comparing the GPU to its nearest rivals provides context for its in-game behavior. The Radeon 8060S has an average benchmark score of 55757, which is 0.1% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB and 0.6% lower than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080. These deltas are negligible, meaning the 8060S performs competitively with those discrete cards in synthetic benchmarks. However, the RX 6750 GRE has dedicated 12 GB of VRAM, while the 8060S relies on shared system memory. In Thief, this difference likely manifests in the 4K results, where the shared memory bottleneck becomes the dominant factor.

The CPU’s nearest rivals paint a similar picture of near-parity. The Core Ultra 5 135H averages 29093 in benchmark scores, which is 0.1% behind the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X and 0.5% ahead of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600XT. The Intel Core i5-13500HX is 0.6% ahead. These tiny margins suggest that the CPU is not the limiting factor in most scenarios, as its compute capabilities are competitive with desktop-class parts from a few generations ago. Yet the combo rank of 1586 implies that Thief is not CPU-bound at lower resolutions, where the GPU is clearly the constraint.

The rank also indicates that many combos with weaker individual components achieve better results in Thief. This suggests that the game’s engine, released in 2014, may favor certain architectural features that the Radeon 8060S lacks. The GPU’s RT cores, 40 in total, are unlikely to matter for a game that predates hardware ray tracing. The shading units and TMUs are more relevant, and while their counts are high, the memory bandwidth limitation undercuts their potential. The combo’s mid-pack rank is therefore a nuanced outcome: strong synthetic performance does not automatically translate to strong gaming performance in this specific title.

FAQ

Q: Does the AMD Radeon 8060S outperform the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 in Thief?

A: The data does not show direct in-game comparisons, but the synthetic benchmark scores are nearly identical. The Radeon 8060S scores 55757 on average, which is 0.6% lower than the RTX 5080’s 56083. In Thief’s measured FPS, the 8060S reaches 171 FPS at 1080p Low, but the RTX 5080’s performance is not listed in the measured data.

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

A: The measured data shows that 1920x1080 provides the most comfortable experience. At High settings, the combo delivers 99 FPS, and at Medium it delivers 130 FPS with a minimum of 110. At 2560x1440, High drops to 68 FPS, which is still playable but noticeably less smooth. At 3840x2160, High falls to 40 FPS, which is below the typical 60 FPS target.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck at 4K resolution?

A: The data strongly suggests the GPU is the primary bottleneck at 4K. The CPU’s 14 cores and 18 threads provide ample compute for Thief’s AI and physics, but the GPU’s shared memory bandwidth limits its ability to process the increased pixel workload. The FPS drops from 1080p to 4K are consistent across settings, which is a hallmark of GPU-bound behavior.

Q: How does the Radeon 8060S compare to the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB?

A: In synthetic benchmarks, the 8060S scores 55757, which is 0.1% higher than the RX 6750 GRE’s 55698. However, the RX 6750 GRE has dedicated 12 GB of VRAM, while the 8060S uses system shared memory. In Thief, this could mean the RX 6750 GRE maintains more stable framerates at high resolutions, though direct measured comparisons are not provided.

Q: What framerate can I expect at 1440p with Medium settings?

A: The measured data shows an average of 89 FPS at 2560x1440 with Medium settings, with a minimum of 76 FPS and a maximum of 102 FPS. This is a smooth experience for most gameplay scenarios, though the minimum suggests occasional dips during intense scenes.

Q: Does the combo’s 1586 rank out of 2851 mean it is a poor performer?

A: No, it places the combo in the middle of the pack, which is reasonable given the mobile CPU and integrated GPU design. The rank reflects that Thief is not fully optimized for this hardware combination, but the 1080p results at 171 FPS on Low and 99 FPS on High are solidly playable.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo demonstrates its strongest performance. Low settings yield an average of 171 FPS, which is the highest recorded across all resolutions and settings. Medium settings produce 130 FPS average, with a minimum of 110 and maximum of 149. High settings drop to 99 FPS, while Ultra settings yield 94 FPS. The 1080p results show that the system has headroom to spare, as even the Ultra preset stays above 90 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance drops are significant but manageable. Low settings deliver 117 FPS, which is still excellent for 1440p. Medium settings provide 89 FPS average, with a min of 76 and max of 102. High settings fall to 68 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 65 FPS. The 1440p results indicate that the system can handle high-refresh-rate gaming on lower presets, but the higher presets begin to strain the GPU.

At 3840x2160, the combo struggles to maintain smooth framerates. Low settings produce 69 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for a 4K display. Medium settings yield 52 FPS average, with a min of 45 and max of 60. High settings drop to 40 FPS, and Ultra settings fall to 38 FPS. The 4K results show that the system is not well-suited for this resolution, as even Low settings barely exceed 60 FPS.

The data reveals an interesting pattern in the min FPS values for Medium settings. At 1080p, the min is 110 FPS, which is 85% of the average. At 1440p, the min is 76 FPS, which is 85% of the average. At 4K, the min is 45 FPS, which is 87% of the average. This consistency suggests that the system maintains stable frame pacing regardless of resolution, which is a positive sign for gameplay smoothness. However, the absolute values at 4K are low enough that stutter becomes noticeable even if the pacing is consistent.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon 8060S is a mobile integrated GPU based on the RDNA 3.5 architecture, built on a 4 nm process. Its 2560 shading units and 160 TMUs provide substantial compute power, but the 64 ROPs are a potential limiting factor for pixel-heavy workloads like Thief. The GPU’s boost clock of 2900 MHz is high, which helps with single-threaded rendering tasks, but the base clock of 1295 MHz indicates significant dynamic range.

The most critical aspect of this GPU is its memory configuration. The memory size, type, and bus width are all listed as "System Shared," meaning the GPU draws from the CPU’s DDR5 memory pool. This is a fundamental difference from discrete GPUs like the RX 6750 GRE, which has dedicated 12 GB of VRAM. The system’s memory bandwidth is rated at 89.6 GB/s, which is shared between the CPU and GPU. In Thief, this shared bandwidth becomes a bottleneck at higher resolutions, as the GPU must compete with the CPU for memory access.

The GPU’s performance in synthetic benchmarks is strong, with a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2162 and a Geekbench OpenCL score of 84626. These numbers place it in the 87th percentile of all GPUs, which is remarkable for an integrated solution. However, Thief’s 2014 engine may not fully utilize the GPU’s modern features. The GPU supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, but Thief likely uses an older API, which could limit the GPU’s efficiency.

The GPU’s pixel rate of 185.6 GPixel/s and texture rate of 464.0 GTexel/s are theoretical maximums that are unlikely to be achieved in real-world gameplay. The measured FPS data shows that the GPU cannot sustain its peak throughput in Thief, particularly at 4K where the average FPS drops to 38-69 depending on settings. This suggests that the memory bandwidth, rather than raw compute, is the primary constraint.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the best experience for this combo is at 1920x1080 with Medium settings. This configuration delivers 130 FPS average, with a minimum of 110 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The min FPS of 110 ensures that even the most demanding scenes remain fluid, and the headroom above 130 FPS allows for minor fluctuations without perceptible stutter.

For players with 1440p displays, the Low preset is the recommended choice. At 2560x1440 Low, the combo produces 117 FPS, which is still high enough for a responsive experience. The Medium preset at 1440p yields 89 FPS, which is also playable, but the min FPS of 76 indicates that some scenes may dip below 80 FPS. Given that the visual difference between Low and Medium in a 2014 game may be minimal, the performance margin of Low makes it the safer option.

For 4K displays, the system is not well-suited for this game. The Low preset at 3840x2160 produces 69 FPS, which is the only 4K configuration that approaches playability. The Medium preset drops to 52 FPS, and High and Ultra fall to 40 and 38 FPS respectively. If a 4K display is the only option, Low settings are the practical choice, but the experience will be suboptimal. The data suggests that 1080p is the intended resolution for this combo in Thief.

The High and Ultra presets offer diminishing returns at all resolutions. At 1080p, High yields 99 FPS and Ultra yields 94 FPS, which are both acceptable but lower than Medium’s 130 FPS. At 1440p, High and Ultra drop to 68 and 65 FPS, which are close to the 60 FPS threshold. The performance cost of these presets is not justified by the likely visual improvements, making Medium or Low the optimal settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 135H is a 14-core, 18-thread mobile processor based on the Meteor Lake architecture, built on a 7 nm process. Its base clock of 3.60 GHz and boost clock of 4.60 GHz are competitive for a mobile chip, and its 28 W TDP indicates a power-efficient design. The CPU’s cache hierarchy includes 112 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 18 MB of shared L3 cache, which provides ample fast storage for game data.

In synthetic benchmarks, the CPU scores 11875.5 in Cinebench R23 multi-core and 1700 in single-core. These scores place it in the 81st percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 29093. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X, which scores 29123 (0.1% higher), and the Intel Core i5-13500HX, which scores 29270 (0.6% higher). The CPU’s performance is competitive with desktop-class parts, but Thief’s workload is unlikely to stress all 14 cores.

Thief is a stealth game from 2014, and its CPU demands are moderate by modern standards. The game’s AI pathfinding and physics calculations are largely single-threaded, which means the CPU’s single-core performance is more important than its multi-core capabilities. The CPU’s single-core score of 1700 in Cinebench R23 is solid, but it may not be the decisive factor in this combo’s performance. The measured FPS data shows that the system scales poorly with resolution, which is a GPU bottleneck rather than a CPU bottleneck.

The CPU’s memory support is DDR5, dependent on the motherboard, with a dual-channel bus and bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s. This memory bandwidth is shared with the GPU, creating a potential conflict in memory-intensive scenarios. In Thief, the CPU’s need to stream textures and geometry competes with the GPU’s need for the same memory resources. This shared bandwidth is likely the reason why the combo’s rank in Thief (1586 out of 2851) is lower than what the individual component percentiles suggest.

The CPU’s integrated graphics, Arc Xe-LPG 96EU, are not used in this combo, as the system relies on the discrete Radeon 8060S. However, the CPU’s design as a mobile part with a 28 W TDP means it is optimized for power efficiency rather than sustained high performance. This is acceptable for Thief, which is not a demanding CPU title, but it does limit the system’s overall potential in more modern games.