Thief

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 and Intel Arc B570 pairing delivers a playable, if not always smooth, experience in Thief, with performance that scales predictably across resolutions and settings. This combination sits in the 2296th position out of 2851 tested combos, placing it in the lower half of the database’s rankings for this title. The data reveals a system that is clearly capable of high frame rates at 1080p but struggles to maintain fluid motion at 4K, particularly under higher graphical loads.

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

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 is a 10-core, 10-thread desktop processor built on the Arrow Lake architecture, operating at a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. This configuration, with its 20 MB of shared L3 cache, provides a strong foundation for gaming workloads. In synthetic benchmarks, the chip achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 25891 and a single-core score of 3655, indicating robust performance for both heavily threaded and lightly threaded tasks. Thief, a 2014 stealth title, is not particularly demanding on modern CPUs, and the Ultra 5 225’s high single-thread performance is more than sufficient for the game’s logic and physics calculations.

The processor’s 85th percentile ranking against all CPUs in the database underscores its capability. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F and the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D, with the latter scoring 0.2% lower on average. This proximity in processor performance suggests that the CPU is unlikely to be the primary bottleneck in this pairing. The data shows that the Core Ultra 5 225’s performance is essentially on par with these competitors, meaning any frame rate limitations observed in Thief are more likely attributable to the graphics card rather than the processor. The 10-thread count is adequate for a game from this era, which typically utilises fewer threads, allowing the processor to handle background tasks without impacting the game’s frame pacing.

When examining the measured FPS, the influence of the CPU is most apparent at lower resolutions and settings where the GPU has less work to do. At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 133 FPS, a figure that suggests the CPU is capable of feeding frames well beyond standard monitor refresh rates. However, as the resolution increases to 1440p and 4K, the frame rate drops significantly, indicating that the GPU becomes the limiting factor. The CPU’s role is to maintain a high ceiling for frame rates, which it does effectively; the data shows that at 1080p, the system is never CPU-bound in a way that would prevent high refresh rate gameplay.

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

The Intel Arc B570 is the graphical heart of this system, featuring the Xe2-HPG Battlemage architecture on a 5 nm process. It comes equipped with 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 380.0 GB/s. The GPU runs at a fixed clock speed of 2500 MHz for both base and boost, and its 2304 shading units are capable of producing 11.52 TFLOPS of FP32 compute. This hardware places the B570 in the 65th percentile of all GPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 20556. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile and the Intel Arc A750, with the latter scoring 0.1% lower on average.

The GPU’s memory configuration is a key factor in Thief. The 10 GB frame buffer is ample for a game from 2014, even at 4K resolution. However, the data shows that the card’s raw compute power is the limiting factor at higher resolutions. At 4K with Ultra settings, the system only manages 29 FPS, which is below the threshold for smooth gameplay. The GPU’s 200.0 GPixel/s pixel rate and 360.0 GTexel/s texture rate are clearly taxed by the game’s engine at this resolution. The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is steep, highlighting the B570’s limitations in pixel throughput.

The Arc B570’s performance in Thief is also indicative of its driver maturity and architectural efficiency. The PassMark DirectX 11 score of 118 is particularly relevant, as Thief relies heavily on this API. The GPU’s performance in this benchmark suggests it can handle the game’s rendering calls, but the measured FPS data shows that at 4K, the card is simply not powerful enough to maintain high frame rates. The 10 GB VRAM is not the issue; rather, it is the shader and texture processing capabilities that fall short at extreme resolutions. At 1080p, however, the GPU demonstrates its competence, achieving 73 FPS on Ultra settings, which is a playable experience.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution to play Thief with this hardware?*

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 offers the most consistent performance, with average frame rates ranging from 73 FPS on Ultra to 133 FPS on Low. At 2560x1440, the system still manages 50 FPS on Ultra, but 4K drops to 29 FPS on the same settings.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B570 compare to its nearest rival, the Intel Arc A750?

A: The Arc B570 has an average benchmark score of 20556, which is 0.1% higher than the Arc A750’s score of 20582. This indicates that the two cards are virtually identical in overall performance, with the B570 holding a marginal edge.

*Q: Is the 10 GB of VRAM sufficient for Thief at 4K?*

A: The measured data shows that at 4K with High settings, the system achieves 31 FPS, suggesting that VRAM is not the primary bottleneck. The GPU’s compute performance is the limiting factor, as the frame rate drops further to 29 FPS on Ultra.

*Q: Does the CPU limit performance in Thief at 1080p?*

A: At 1080p with Low settings, the system achieves 133 FPS, which indicates that the CPU is capable of supporting very high frame rates. The Intel Core Ultra 5 225’s single-core performance is strong, and it is not the limiting factor at lower resolutions.

Q: What settings preset provides the best balance of visual quality and performance at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the High preset delivers 53 FPS, while the Medium preset delivers 69 FPS. For a smoother experience, Medium offers a significant frame rate increase with only a moderate reduction in visual fidelity.

*Q: How does this combo rank among all tested configurations in Thief?*

A: The combination ranks 2296th out of 2851 tested combos, placing it in the 20th percentile. This indicates that a majority of other hardware pairings deliver higher frame rates in this game.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo’s rank of 2296 out of 2851 tested configurations places it firmly in the lower quartile of all tested systems for Thief. This is a significant finding, as it suggests that while the individual components are competent, their combination does not yield top-tier results in this specific game. The rank implies that many other CPU-GPU pairings, likely with more powerful graphics cards, achieve higher frame rates. The data indicates that the Intel Arc B570 is the primary factor holding this combo back, as the CPU’s performance is in line with its rivals.

This ranking is not a condemnation of the hardware, but rather a reflection of Thief’s demanding rendering engine at higher resolutions. The combo’s position in the lower half of the rankings means that users should temper their expectations for 4K gaming, where the system struggles to maintain playable frame rates. At 1080p, however, the combo performs much better, and its ranking would likely be higher if evaluated at that resolution alone. The data shows a system that is well-suited for 1080p and capable at 1440p, but it is outclassed by many others in the database when pushed to 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of the system’s capabilities across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the system is at its best. On Low settings, it achieves an average of 133 FPS, which is exceptionally smooth. The Medium preset delivers 101 FPS with a minimum of 86 FPS and a maximum of 116 FPS, indicating a stable experience. High settings reduce the average to 77 FPS, while Ultra brings it down to 73 FPS. These numbers show that the system can handle 1080p gaming with ease, even on the highest settings.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance drops noticeably. The Low preset achieves 91 FPS, which is still smooth, but the Medium preset averages 69 FPS with a min of 59 FPS and max of 79 FPS. High settings yield 53 FPS, and Ultra drops to 50 FPS. These figures demonstrate that 1440p is playable, but users will need to compromise on settings to maintain a consistent 60 FPS experience. The jump from 1080p to 1440p results in a frame rate reduction of roughly 30-40% across all settings, highlighting the GPU’s workload increase.

At 3840x2160, the system’s limitations are fully exposed. The Low preset achieves 54 FPS, which is the only playable option at this resolution. Medium settings drop to 41 FPS with a min of 35 FPS and max of 47 FPS, which is borderline. High settings average 31 FPS, and Ultra drops to 29 FPS, both of which are below the threshold for smooth gameplay. The data shows that 4K is only viable with the Low preset, and even then, the frame rate is not ideal for fast-paced action.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal settings preset depends on the user’s target resolution and preference for visual quality versus frame rate. For a 1080p display, the Ultra preset at 73 FPS is a viable option, offering the best visual experience without sacrificing playability. However, for a more consistent experience with higher frame rates, the High preset at 77 FPS is marginally smoother. The Medium preset at 101 FPS is the best choice for users with high refresh rate monitors, as it provides a significant frame rate boost while maintaining decent visual fidelity.

At 1440p, the Medium preset is the recommended choice, delivering 69 FPS with a minimum of 59 FPS. This is the only preset that consistently stays above the 60 FPS threshold at this resolution. The High preset at 53 FPS is playable but not ideal, and Ultra at 50 FPS may result in noticeable stuttering in busy scenes. For users who prioritize frame rate over visuals, the Low preset at 91 FPS is an option, but the visual reduction is substantial.

For 4K, the data is clear: the Low preset at 54 FPS is the only reasonable choice. The Medium preset at 41 FPS is too slow for a smooth experience, and the High and Ultra presets are not viable. This recommendation is based purely on the measured FPS, which shows that the system’s GPU cannot handle the pixel load at this resolution with higher settings. Users with 4K displays should consider lowering the resolution to 1440p for a better experience.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals the bottleneck in this system. At 1080p, the average FPS across all settings is approximately 96 FPS. At 1440p, this drops to an average of 65.75 FPS, a reduction of about 31%. At 4K, the average FPS falls to 38.75, a further reduction of about 41% from 1440p. This scaling pattern is typical for a GPU-bound system, as the number of pixels increases exponentially with resolution.

The data shows that the Intel Arc B570 is the limiting component in this pairing. The CPU’s performance is sufficient to support high frame rates, but the GPU’s pixel throughput is not. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is significant, but the drop from 1440p to 4K is even more severe, indicating that the GPU is struggling to fill the increasing number of pixels. The 10 GB of VRAM is not the issue, as the game’s textures are likely not exceeding this capacity, even at 4K.

This scaling behavior suggests that the system is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming. At 1080p, the system can deliver high frame rates on all settings, while at 1440p, it can maintain playable frame rates with a slight compromise on settings. The 4K resolution is beyond the capabilities of this GPU, and the data shows that even the Low preset cannot deliver a consistently smooth experience. This analysis confirms that the GPU is the primary factor limiting performance at higher resolutions, and users should adjust their expectations accordingly.