To The Core

To The Core is an idle game that, on the surface, would seem unlikely to stress modern hardware, yet the measured frame rates from the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and Intel Arc B580 combination reveal a title that is surprisingly sensitive to both resolution and graphical presets. The data indicates a system that is capable of delivering exceptionally high refresh rates at 1080p, but which begins to show its limitations as pixel count and visual fidelity increase. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS, the scaling behavior, and the respective roles of the CPU and GPU in producing these results, with all figures derived directly from the benchmark database.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 provides a clear picture of where the performance bottleneck lies for this specific pairing. At the High preset, the average frame rate drops from 187 FPS at 1080p to 126 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of 61 FPS. Moving further to 4K, the average falls to 72 FPS, which is a 115 FPS drop from the 1080p baseline. This steep decline, particularly the 54 FPS loss between 1440p and 4K, is a classic indicator of a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions. The Intel Arc B580, with its 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, is working progressively harder to fill the additional pixels, and the frame rate suffers accordingly.

The scaling pattern is consistent across all settings presets. For the Low preset, the averages are 255 FPS at 1080p, 172 FPS at 1440p, and 98 FPS at 4K. The Medium preset yields 216, 145, and 83 FPS respectively. The Ultra preset, which is the most demanding, produces 150, 101, and 58 FPS. The relative drop from 1080p to 4K is similar in each case, hovering around a 62-63% reduction in average FPS. This consistency suggests that the limiting factor is not a sudden architectural quirk, but rather the raw pixel throughput required at 4K, which scales predictably with resolution.

This data reveals that at 1080p, the system is likely not fully GPU-limited, as the frame rates are exceptionally high, suggesting the CPU is keeping pace. However, the transition to 1440p and then 4K shows a clear and progressive shift towards a GPU-bound state. The performance delta between the Low and Ultra presets at 4K is 40 FPS (98 vs 58), which is significant, but the bigger story is the resolution scaling itself. For a game in the Idle genre, the fact that 4K Ultra still manages an average of 58 FPS is notable, but the scaling indicates that users seeking the highest refresh rates will need to consider lower resolutions or settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the average frame rate at 1440p with Medium settings?

A: The measured average FPS for the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X and Intel Arc B580 combination at 2560x1440 with Medium settings is 145 FPS, with a minimum of 123 FPS and a maximum of 167 FPS.

Q: How does the 4K Ultra performance compare to 1080p Ultra?

A: At 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 58. At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the average FPS is 150. This represents a 92 FPS drop when moving to 4K.

Q: Is the system capable of 4K 60 FPS gameplay?

A: Yes, the data shows that at 4K with High settings, the average FPS is 72, which exceeds 60 FPS. Even at Medium settings, the average is 83 FPS. However, at the Ultra preset, the average drops to 58 FPS.

Q: Which resolution provides the highest average frame rate?

A: The highest average frame rate recorded is 255 FPS, which occurs at 1920x1080 with the Low settings preset.

Q: What are the minimum and maximum FPS recorded for 1080p Medium?

A: For 1920x1080 with Medium settings, the measured minimum FPS is 183 and the maximum FPS is 248, with an average of 216 FPS.

Q: How much faster is the Low preset compared to Ultra at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Low preset achieves an average of 172 FPS, while the Ultra preset achieves an average of 101 FPS. The Low preset is 71 FPS faster on average.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B580 is the primary driver of the frame rate differences observed across resolutions and settings. Its specifications include a base and boost clock of 2670 MHz, a 12 GB GDDR6 memory pool, and a 192-bit memory bus yielding a bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s. These figures are directly relevant to the game's performance scaling. The high memory bandwidth is likely a key factor in maintaining playable frame rates at 4K, where texture data and frame buffer demands are high.

The GPU's compute capabilities, measured at 13.67 TFLOPS for FP32, are substantial for a card in its class. The benchmark data shows the Arc B580's percentile ranking at 68 among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23021. Its nearest rivals in the database include the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080, and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080, with delta percentages of -0.2, 0.6, and -0.7 respectively. This indicates that its raw compute performance is in a similar tier to these cards, despite being from a different generation.

The frame rate data confirms that at lower resolutions, the GPU has headroom, allowing the CPU to push the frame rate higher. As resolution increases to 4K, the GPU's pixel fill rate and shading capacity become the limiting factor. The drop from 126 FPS to 72 FPS at High settings between 1440p and 4K is a direct consequence of the GPU's workload increasing. The 12 GB of VRAM is sufficient for this game at all tested settings, as there are no indications of memory-related stutters in the data, and the minimum FPS values at Medium settings (71 at 4K, 123 at 1440p, 183 at 1080p) show reasonable consistency.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The complete dataset for this combination provides a detailed view of its performance characteristics.

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest performance. With Low settings, the average FPS is 255. Moving to Medium, the average is 216 FPS, with a minimum of 183 and a maximum of 248. High settings yield an average of 187 FPS. The Ultra preset, while still very fast, brings the average down to 150 FPS. The spread between Low and Ultra is 105 FPS, showing that even at 1080p, the graphical preset has a substantial impact.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show a clear step down. Low settings produce an average of 172 FPS. Medium settings average 145 FPS, with a minimum of 123 FPS and a maximum of 167 FPS. High settings average 126 FPS. Ultra settings average 101 FPS. The delta between Low and Ultra here is 71 FPS, which is a smaller absolute difference than at 1080p, but the percentage drop is similar.

At 3840x2160, the system is firmly GPU-limited. Low settings average 98 FPS. Medium settings average 83 FPS, with a minimum of 71 FPS and a maximum of 95 FPS. High settings average 72 FPS. Ultra settings average 58 FPS. The minimum FPS at 4K Medium is 71, which is close to the average for High, indicating that frame pacing remains stable. The Ultra preset's 58 FPS average is the only result below the 60 FPS threshold, making it the only setting where a consistent 60+ FPS experience is not guaranteed.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for To The Core, the pairing of the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X with the Intel Arc B580 ranks at position 2790 out of 3725 total combos. This places it in the lower third of all tested systems, with a percentile ranking that can be calculated as roughly 25th from the top. This is a notable data point because the individual components are not low-end; the CPU is in the 81st percentile among all CPUs, and the GPU is in the 68th percentile among all GPUs.

The low combo ranking suggests that while the components are individually capable, their combined performance in this specific game does not translate to a top-tier result. This could be due to the nature of To The Core being an Idle game, which may not heavily utilize all the resources of this hardware, or it may be that other combinations simply produce higher frame rates. The rank of 2790 out of 3725 means that 935 other combinations performed better. This doesn't invalidate the absolute performance numbers, which are high, but it provides context that this is not a chart-topping configuration for this title.

The discrepancy between the individual component rankings and the combo ranking is an interesting analytical point. It indicates that the game's performance is not solely dependent on raw CPU or GPU power, but perhaps on other factors such as driver optimization or specific architectural efficiencies. The data shows that the combo is capable of very high frame rates, but in the broader landscape of all tested systems, it is positioned in the lower quartile.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 9600X is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture, with a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. In the context of To The Core, an Idle game, the CPU's role is likely secondary to the GPU, but it must be sufficient to feed the graphics card, especially at lower resolutions. The benchmark data for the CPU shows a single-thread score of 1253 in 3dmark and a multi-thread score of 7590 at max threads. Its Geekbench scores are 2923 for single-core and 14438 for multi-core.

The CPU's percentile ranking is 81, with an average benchmark score of 29713. Its nearest rivals in the database are the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755GE, AMD Ryzen 7 7840H, AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT, and AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS, with delta percentages of 0.2, -0.5, -0.6, and -0.8 respectively. This indicates that the 9600X is slightly more powerful than these alternatives in general benchmark terms.

In the measured FPS data, the CPU's capability is most evident at 1080p, where the system achieves an average of 255 FPS on Low settings. This high frame rate suggests that the CPU is not a bottleneck at this resolution. If the CPU were limiting, we would expect to see similar frame rates across different resolutions, as the CPU workload would remain constant. However, the data shows a clear decline with resolution, confirming that the GPU becomes the limiting factor. The CPU's 32 MB of L3 cache and 89.6 GB/s memory bandwidth are likely sufficient for the game's data requirements, and the 12 threads are more than adequate for an Idle game's logic.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend on the user's display and performance goals. For users with a 1080p display, the High preset is recommended as a balanced choice, delivering an average of 187 FPS. This is well above the refresh rate of most high-end monitors and offers better visual quality than the Low or Medium presets. The Ultra preset at 1080p still delivers 150 FPS, which is excellent, but the visual uplift may not justify the 37 FPS drop from High.

For 1440p displays, the Medium preset is the strongest recommendation. It achieves an average of 145 FPS with a minimum of 123 FPS, ensuring smooth gameplay even in demanding scenes. The High preset at 126 FPS is also viable, but the Medium preset provides a better balance of frame rate and visual quality, as the difference between Medium and High is 19 FPS, which is noticeable. The Ultra preset at 101 FPS is playable, but it represents a significant drop from the other options.

For 4K displays, the High preset is the best choice for a consistently smooth experience, with an average of 72 FPS. This is above the 60 FPS target and should provide a good experience. The Medium preset at 83 FPS is even smoother and could be preferred if the user prioritizes frame rate over visual fidelity. The Ultra preset at 58 FPS is just below the 60 FPS threshold and may result in occasional dips, so it is not recommended for a locked 60 FPS experience. The Low preset at 98 FPS is the fastest, but the visual compromise is significant at this resolution. The data supports prioritizing High settings at 4K to stay comfortably above 60 FPS.