To The Core

The Intel Core i9-14900K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 combination delivers exceptional performance in To The Core, an idle game that places unusual demands on both processor and graphics hardware. The data shows a system capable of crushing even 4K Ultra settings, with frame rates that far exceed display refresh rates. This analysis breaks down the measured FPS, the role each component plays, and how this specific pairing ranks against other tested configurations.

The i9-14900K is a 24-core, 32-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process. It features a base clock of 3.20 GHz and a boost clock of 6.00 GHz, making it one of the highest-clocked desktop CPUs available. Its cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and a substantial 36 MB of shared L3 cache. In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 39399.5 and a single-core score of 2262.5, along with a Geekbench multi-core score of 21697 and single-core score of 2655. These numbers place the i9-14900K in the 95th percentile of all CPUs tested. Its nearest rivals in aggregate benchmark score include the Intel Core i9-14900KF, which scores 79371 (a -0.3% delta), and the Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus at 79574 (-0.6% delta). The AMD EPYC 7413 scores 80041 (-1.2%), while the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 trails at 77740 (+1.7% delta from the i9's perspective). For an idle game, the CPU's raw multi-threaded power is largely irrelevant, but its exceptional single-thread performance and high boost clock ensure that game logic, simulation ticks, and UI updates are never a bottleneck. The 125 W TDP and support for DDR4 and DDR5 memory make it a versatile platform, though the data does not indicate that memory bandwidth is a limiting factor in this title.

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

In To The Core, the CPU's role is primarily to handle the game's background simulation and UI responsiveness. The i9-14900K's 24 cores and 32 threads are overkill for an idle game, but the data indicates that this excess power translates into headroom rather than a performance ceiling. The boost clock of 6.00 GHz is the more critical specification here, as idle games often have single-threaded bottlenecks for logic updates. With a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2262.5 and a Passmark single-thread score of 4697, the i9-14900K ranks in the 95th percentile of all CPUs, which means it is among the top 5% of processors for handling the kind of serialized tasks that idle games rely on. The L3 cache of 36 MB is shared across all cores, and while the game's data footprint is unknown, the large cache likely reduces memory latency for frequently accessed game state variables. Compared to its nearest rival, the i9-14900KF, the i9-14900K scores nearly identically in aggregate benchmarks (a -0.3% delta), so the integrated UHD Graphics 770 is the only meaningful difference between them, but that iGPU is not used when the RTX 4070 is present. The data shows no scenario where the CPU becomes the limiting factor; at 1080p Low, the system achieves 432 FPS, which suggests that even at extremely high frame rates, the CPU can feed the GPU without stalling. The processor's performance in Passmark integer math (210622) and floating-point math (152975) further indicates that any computational task the game throws at it is handled with massive headroom. The 95th percentile ranking versus all CPUs means this processor outperforms 95% of all tested CPUs, which is consistent with the observed frame rates in a game that is not particularly CPU-intensive.

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

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070, based on the AD104 chip and Ada Lovelace architecture, is the primary driver of visual output in this configuration. It features 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU has a base clock of 1920 MHz and a boost clock of 2475 MHz, with memory running at 1313 MHz (21 Gbps effective). Its 5888 shading units, 184 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs provide a solid foundation for rendering, and it supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, Vulkan 1.4, and OpenGL 4.6. In synthetic benchmarks, the RTX 4070 scores 3854 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 and 26927 in Passmark G3D, placing it in the 81st percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals show it is closely matched with the NVIDIA Tesla P4 (delta +0.1%) and AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 (delta +0.4%), while it trails the RTX 4080 Mobile by 1.3% and leads the AMD Radeon PRO W6400 by 1.3%. For To The Core, the GPU's 12 GB VRAM is more than sufficient for the game's assets, and the 504.2 GB/s bandwidth ensures that texture streaming is never a bottleneck at any resolution. The boost clock of 2475 MHz is the key to maintaining high frame rates, as the GPU can scale its frequency under load. The data shows that at 4K Ultra, the system still delivers 98 FPS, which is playable, but the scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals that the GPU becomes progressively more stressed as resolution increases. The RTX 4070's TDP is 200 W, and it requires a 550 W power supply, but the data does not include power consumption measurements during gameplay. The GPU's 81st percentile ranking indicates that it outperforms 81% of all GPUs tested, which aligns with its position as a high-end mainstream card.

FAQ

*Q: What is the maximum average FPS this combo achieves in To The Core?*

A: The highest average FPS recorded is 432 at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The lowest average FPS is 98 at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings.

Q: How does the i9-14900K compare to its closest rival, the i9-14900KF?

A: The i9-14900KF has an average benchmark score of 79371, which is a -0.3% delta from the i9-14900K's average score of 79097. This means the two processors perform nearly identically in aggregate.

Q: Does the RTX 4070 outperform the RTX 4080 Mobile in this game?

A: The data shows the RTX 4070 has an average score of 37648, while the RTX 4080 Mobile scores 38135, a -1.3% delta. This means the RTX 4080 Mobile is slightly ahead in aggregate benchmarks, but the in-game FPS for To The Core is not directly compared.

Q: What is the FPS difference between 1080p and 4K at High settings?

A: At 1920x1080 High, the average FPS is 316. At 3840x2160 High, the average FPS is 122. This represents a 61% reduction in frame rate when moving from 1080p to 4K.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested combinations for this game?

A: The combo ranks 860 out of 3725 tested combinations, placing it in the top 23% of all systems tested for To The Core.

Q: Does the game ever drop below 100 FPS in the measured data?

A: Yes, but only at 4K Ultra, where the average FPS is 98. At 4K Medium, the average is 140, and at 4K High it is 122. All other resolutions and settings exceed 100 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i9-14900K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 ranks 860th out of 3725 tested combos for To The Core. This places it in the top 23.1% of all configurations, which is a strong result given that the list includes many higher-end GPUs like the RTX 4090 and RTX 4080. The rank reflects a balance between the CPU's 95th percentile performance and the GPU's 81st percentile performance. In a game like To The Core, where the GPU is the more likely bottleneck at high resolutions, the RTX 4070's 81st percentile ranking is the more relevant metric. The data shows that this combo outperforms the majority of systems, but it is not at the very top, which is expected given that the RTX 4070 is not the flagship card in the 40-series lineup. The rank of 860 out of 3725 suggests that there are 859 combos that deliver higher average FPS, likely featuring more powerful GPUs. However, the measured FPS figures show that this combo is never below 98 FPS even at 4K Ultra, which means the rank is more about raw performance ceilings than playability. For a game that runs at such high frame rates, the rank indicates that this system is more than adequate for smooth gameplay, and the difference between rank 860 and rank 1 is unlikely to be perceptible in an idle game context. The data also shows that the i9-14900K's nearest rival, the i9-14900KF, would likely achieve a similar rank if paired with the same GPU, given the -0.3% delta in CPU scores.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K, which is typical for a GPU-bound workload. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 432 FPS, while at 4K Low, it drops to 166 FPS, a 61.6% reduction. This scaling is consistent across all settings, but the magnitude of the drop varies. At High settings, the FPS drops from 316 at 1080p to 213 at 1440p, a 32.6% decrease, and then to 122 at 4K, a further 42.7% decrease from 1440p. The Medium settings show a similar trend: 365 FPS at 1080p, 245 at 1440p, and 140 at 4K. The Ultra settings exhibit the largest absolute drop, from 255 FPS at 1080p to 171 at 1440p, and finally to 98 at 4K. This pattern indicates that the RTX 4070 is the limiting component as resolution increases, because the number of pixels to render quadruples from 1080p to 4K, while the CPU's workload remains relatively constant. The fact that the FPS at 4K Ultra (98) is still above 60 FPS suggests that the GPU has enough headroom to handle the game's graphics demands, but the steep decline from 255 to 98 FPS shows that the GPU is heavily taxed at 4K Ultra. The data does not provide frame time consistency, but the min FPS values at Medium settings (310 at 1080p, 209 at 1440p, and 119 at 4K) suggest that frame pacing remains stable even at the highest resolutions. The resolution scaling indicates that for this game, the RTX 4070 is the primary performance limiter at 4K, while at 1080p, the CPU and GPU are both capable of delivering extremely high frame rates without any evident bottleneck.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across three resolutions and four settings levels.

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates. With Low settings, the average FPS is 432. Medium settings yield an average of 365 FPS, with a minimum of 310 and a maximum of 420. High settings produce an average of 316 FPS. Ultra settings drop the average to 255 FPS. This shows that even at the highest preset, the system maintains over 250 FPS, which is far beyond typical monitor refresh rates.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance scales down proportionally. Low settings average 290 FPS. Medium settings average 245 FPS, with a minimum of 209 and a maximum of 282. High settings average 213 FPS. Ultra settings average 171 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is approximately 33% across all settings, which aligns with the increase in pixel count from 2.07 million to 3.69 million.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 4070 begins to show its limits, though the frame rates remain highly playable. Low settings average 166 FPS. Medium settings average 140 FPS, with a minimum of 119 and a maximum of 161. High settings average 122 FPS. Ultra settings average 98 FPS. The transition from 1440p to 4K represents a 43% reduction in FPS for High settings, from 213 to 122, which is consistent with the 2.25x increase in pixel count from 1440p to 4K. The data shows that the system can handle 4K Ultra at nearly 100 FPS, which is remarkable for an idle game, and the minimum FPS at 4K Medium (119) indicates that there are no severe frame drops even under load. The overall breakdown confirms that this combo is overkill for 1080p and 1440p gaming, and it provides a smooth 4K experience at all settings, with the only potential concern being the 98 FPS at 4K Ultra, which is still well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.