Thief

# Thief: Intel Core Ultra 7 155H + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 — Benchmark Analysis

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 delivers a playable but resolution-sensitive experience in Thief, with the data indicating that the GPU becomes the primary constraint as resolution climbs, while the CPU's 16-core/22-thread configuration provides ample headroom at lower settings. This pairing ranks in the 60th percentile of all tested combos (2242nd out of 3720), placing it firmly in the mid-range tier for this 2014 stealth title.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a clear and predictable scaling pattern as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K, with the RTX 4060's 8 GB GDDR6 memory and 128-bit bus becoming the limiting factor at higher pixel counts. At 1080p with High settings, the combo achieves 95 FPS, which drops to 65 FPS at 1440p and further to 38 FPS at 4K — representing a 31.6% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and a 60% reduction from 1080p to 4K. This steep decline indicates that the GPU's 272.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is saturated as resolution increases, with the frame rate nearly halving at each major resolution step.

The scaling pattern becomes even more pronounced when examining the Low settings tier. At 1080p Low, the system produces 164 FPS, which falls to 113 FPS at 1440p (31.1% drop) and 66 FPS at 4K (59.8% drop). The consistency of these percentage reductions across settings tiers suggests a uniform GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions, rather than any CPU bottleneck emerging at lower settings. The Core Ultra 7 155H's 3.80 GHz base and 4.80 GHz boost clocks, combined with its 24 MB shared L3 cache, clearly provide sufficient processing power to feed the GPU even at 1080p Low where frame rates exceed 160 FPS.

At 4K Ultra, the combo manages only 36 FPS — a frame rate that falls below the generally accepted 40 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay in a stealth title. The gap between 4K Low (66 FPS) and 4K High (38 FPS) demonstrates that the GPU's 15.11 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 118.1 GPixel/s pixel rate are stretched thin by the combination of high resolution and demanding settings. The data suggests that 1440p represents the practical ceiling for this combo when aiming for 60+ FPS, with the 1440p Medium result of 86 FPS providing comfortable headroom.

How This Combo Ranks

With a combo rank of 2242 out of 3720 tested configurations, this pairing sits in the 60.3rd percentile of all combinations tested in Thief. This places it ahead of roughly 60% of all tested combos while remaining behind the top 40%, a positioning that reflects the RTX 4060's mid-range standing (61st percentile among all GPUs) combined with the Core Ultra 7 155H's strong 83rd percentile among all CPUs.

The CPU's benchmark performance helps contextualize this ranking. With an average benchmark score of 32697, the Core Ultra 7 155H sits nearly identical to its nearest rivals: the Intel Core i5-14600T (32707, deltaPct 0%), AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360 (32662, deltaPct 0.1%), AMD Ryzen 5 7400F (32750, deltaPct -0.2%), and AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850H (32812, deltaPct -0.4%). These deltaPct values, all within ±0.4%, indicate that the CPU's computational throughput is virtually indistinguishable from these competing processors, meaning the combo's game-specific ranking is driven primarily by GPU performance rather than CPU differentiation.

The GPU's average benchmark score of 17639 places it in a tight cluster with its nearest rivals: AMD Radeon HD 7790 (17666, deltaPct -0.2%), AMD Radeon 780M (17588, deltaPct 0.3%), AMD Radeon Pro 560 (17551, deltaPct 0.5%), and AMD Radeon Pro 460 (17509, deltaPct 0.7%). This grouping shows that the RTX 4060's raw compute performance is comparable to older discrete GPUs and modern integrated graphics, despite its architectural advantages in features like ray tracing and DLSS — features that Thief, as a 2014 title, does not utilize.

The combination of a high-percentile CPU with a mid-percentile GPU results in a combo rank that underperforms what the CPU alone would suggest, confirming that Thief's rendering workload is firmly GPU-bound in this configuration. The 3720 total combos tested provides a broad comparison base, and the 2242 rank indicates that users seeking higher frame rates in Thief would benefit more from GPU upgrades than CPU changes.

FAQ

Q: What is the maximum average FPS achievable with this combo in Thief?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 164, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This drops to 125 FPS at Medium, 95 FPS at High, and 90 FPS at Ultra for the same resolution.

Q: Can this system maintain 60+ FPS at 1440p in Thief?

A: Yes, the data shows 113 FPS at Low, 86 FPS at Medium, and 65 FPS at High settings for 2560x1440 resolution. However, Ultra settings drop to 62 FPS, which still exceeds the 60 FPS threshold but with minimal margin.

Q: How does the 4K performance compare across different settings presets?

A: At 3840x2160, the combo delivers 66 FPS on Low, 50 FPS on Medium, 38 FPS on High, and 36 FPS on Ultra. Only the Low preset achieves a consistently playable frame rate above 60 FPS at this resolution.

Q: What is the difference between the Medium preset's minimum and maximum FPS?

A: For the Medium preset, the measured data shows a minimum FPS of 106 and maximum of 143 at 1080p, 73 and 98 at 1440p, and 43 and 58 at 4K respectively. These ranges indicate frame time consistency that degrades as resolution increases.

Q: How does the CPU's multi-core performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Core Ultra 7 155H scores 15028 in Cinebench R23 multi-core, with an average benchmark score of 32697. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-14600T, scores 32707 (0% delta), while the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360 scores 32662 (0.1% delta) — all within statistical noise.

Q: What is the GPU's standing relative to all tested graphics cards?

A: The RTX 4060 holds the 61st percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 17639. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon HD 7790, scores 17666, a -0.2% delta, indicating nearly identical raw performance in the benchmark suite.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete measured FPS dataset for this combo in Thief reveals a consistent hierarchy across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the system delivers 164 FPS on Low, 125 FPS on Medium (with min/max of 106/143), 95 FPS on High, and 90 FPS on Ultra. This 1080p tier shows that even the most demanding settings preset stays well above the 60 FPS threshold, with the gap between Low and Ultra being 74 FPS — a 45% reduction that reflects the GPU's compute limits under full graphical load.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates settle into a more moderate range: 113 FPS on Low, 86 FPS on Medium (73/98 min/max), 65 FPS on High, and 62 FPS on Ultra. The delta between Low and Ultra shrinks to 51 FPS (45.1% reduction), maintaining the same proportional scaling as 1080p. Notably, the 1440p Ultra result of 62 FPS is only 3 FPS below the 1440p High result, suggesting that the Ultra preset's additional graphical features have diminishing returns at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops dramatically: 66 FPS on Low, 50 FPS on Medium (43/58 min/max), 38 FPS on High, and 36 FPS on Ultra. The Low-to-Ultra delta is 30 FPS (45.5% reduction), maintaining the consistent proportional scaling observed at lower resolutions. However, the absolute frame rates at 4K reveal that only the Low preset approaches playable smoothness, while Medium, High, and Ultra all fall below the 60 FPS target. The min FPS of 43 at 4K Medium indicates that even the preset's average of 50 FPS includes moments of sub-45 FPS performance, which could impact gameplay fluidity in a stealth title requiring precise timing.

The data shows that the RTX 4060's 8 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for Thief's requirements at all tested settings, as no memory-related stuttering or crashes are indicated by the FPS measurements. Instead, the scaling pattern points to raw GPU compute and memory bandwidth as the limiting factors, with the 272.0 GB/s bandwidth proving insufficient to maintain high frame rates at 4K resolutions regardless of settings preset.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal experience for this combo in Thief depends heavily on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For 1080p displays, the High preset at 95 FPS provides the best balance of visual quality and performance, as the Ultra preset's 90 FPS represents only a 5.3% reduction for what is likely a marginal visual improvement. The Medium preset at 125 FPS offers a significant performance boost (31.6% over High) for users prioritizing frame rate over visual fidelity, while the Low preset's 164 FPS is only recommended for competitive play or high-refresh-rate displays where every frame counts.

At 1440p, the High preset's 65 FPS is just above the 60 FPS threshold, making it the highest-quality setting that maintains smooth gameplay. The Ultra preset's 62 FPS is technically playable but leaves minimal headroom for frame drops in demanding scenes, while the Medium preset's 86 FPS provides a comfortable cushion with a 32.3% performance advantage over High. For users with 1440p displays, Medium is the recommended preset for consistent performance, with High as an option for those who accept occasional dips below 60 FPS.

At 4K, the data indicates that only the Low preset (66 FPS) delivers acceptable performance, while Medium (50 FPS), High (38 FPS), and Ultra (36 FPS) all fall short of smooth gameplay standards. Users with 4K displays should either run the game at Low settings or consider downscaling to 1440p, where the Medium preset offers 86 FPS — a 72% improvement over 4K Medium. The 4K Low result demonstrates that the GPU can handle the resolution when graphical complexity is minimized, but the visual quality trade-off is substantial.

Overall, the best experience across all resolutions is achieved by selecting the highest settings preset that maintains at least 60 FPS average: High at 1080p (95 FPS), Medium at 1440p (86 FPS), and Low at 4K (66 FPS). This tiered approach maximizes visual quality while ensuring smooth gameplay, with the Medium preset at 1440p emerging as the sweet spot for this combo in Thief.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 155H's specifications — 16 cores, 22 threads, 3.80 GHz base clock, and 4.80 GHz boost clock — provide substantial processing headroom for Thief, a game released in 2014 that was designed for the multi-core CPUs of that era. The CPU's 24 MB shared L3 cache and 89.6 GB/s memory bandwidth ensure that data can be fed to the GPU without becoming a bottleneck, as evidenced by the consistent FPS scaling pattern across resolutions. The Cinebench R23 scores of 15028 multi-core and 1743 single-core place this processor well above the requirements for a 2014 title, confirming that the CPU is not the limiting component in this configuration.

The 7 nm Meteor Lake architecture, with its dual-channel DDR5 memory support and PCIe Gen 5 connectivity (8 lanes CPU-only), provides a modern platform that can fully utilize the RTX 4060's PCIe 4.0 x8 interface. The CPU's 83rd percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 32697, places it in the upper tier of mobile processors, capable of handling both gaming and productivity workloads without issue.

In Thief specifically, the CPU's role is largely supportive, as the game's rendering workload is dominated by the GPU. The fact that FPS scales consistently with resolution — from 164 FPS at 1080p Low to 66 FPS at 4K Low — indicates that the CPU can maintain frame delivery even at high frame rates, with no evidence of CPU-related frame drops or stuttering in the measured data. The 22 threads provide ample parallelism for any CPU-bound tasks within the game engine, while the 4.80 GHz boost clock ensures strong single-threaded performance for game logic and physics calculations.

The CPU's nearest rivals — the Intel Core i5-14600T, AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360, AMD Ryzen 5 7400F, and AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850H — all achieve nearly identical average benchmark scores (within ±0.4%), indicating that any of these processors would yield essentially the same gaming performance in Thief when paired with the RTX 4060. This reinforces the conclusion that the combo's 2242nd rank out of 3720 is determined by GPU performance, with the CPU providing more than sufficient computational resources for this title. The 28 W TDP of the Core Ultra 7 155H also makes it an efficient choice for mobile platforms, though this efficiency does not translate into higher frame rates in GPU-bound scenarios like Thief at high resolutions.