Valorant

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600G paired with the Intel Arc B370 delivers a fundamentally CPU-bound experience in Valorant, with the measured frame rates at lower resolutions and settings revealing a performance ceiling imposed by the processor rather than the graphics solution. The data shows that this combination ranks 2645th out of 2883 tested combos in this game, placing it in the lower percentile of system configurations. Despite this low overall ranking, the absolute frame rates remain highly playable, with the system never dropping below 114 FPS in any measured configuration, indicating that while the combo is not competitive for high-refresh-rate esports at maximum quality, it provides a smooth and consistent baseline for competitive play.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a distinct pattern in how this combo scales across resolutions. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system achieves 299 FPS, which is the highest recorded value across all configurations. Moving to 2560x1440 Low drops this to 255 FPS, a reduction of approximately 15%. At 3840x2160 Low, the frame rate falls to 204 FPS, representing a further 20% decrease from the 1440p figure. This scaling pattern—where each resolution step costs roughly 15-20% performance at Low settings—suggests that the rendering workload is increasing with pixel count, but the absolute numbers remain high enough that the GPU is not the primary bottleneck at these settings.

However, the picture changes dramatically when examining the High and Ultra presets. At 1920x1080 High, the system produces 187 FPS, which drops to 160 FPS at 2560x1440 High (a 14% decrease) and then to 128 FPS at 3840x2160 High (a 20% decrease from 1440p). The Ultra preset shows a similar trend: 178 FPS at 1080p, 152 FPS at 1440p, and 122 FPS at 4K. The consistency of these percentage drops across different quality settings indicates that resolution scaling is affecting the GPU workload uniformly, but the relatively modest frame rate differences between Low and Ultra at the same resolution—for example, 299 FPS vs 178 FPS at 1080p—reveal that the CPU is still the dominant limiting factor.

The most telling observation comes from the Medium preset, which is the only configuration with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values. At 1080p Medium, the average is 197 FPS with a minimum of 167 and a maximum of 226. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 168 FPS with a range of 143 to 193. At 4K Medium, the average falls to 134 FPS with a range of 114 to 154. The fact that the minimum frame rates at 1080p Medium (167 FPS) are higher than the average frame rates at 4K Ultra (122 FPS) suggests that resolution is having a compounding effect on performance, but the CPU's ability to feed the GPU becomes increasingly strained as pixel count rises.

The data indicates that this system is not resolution-limited until reaching 4K with higher quality settings. At 1080p and 1440p, regardless of preset, the frame rates remain above 150 FPS, which is sufficient for most displays. The limiting component at these resolutions is clearly the CPU, as evidenced by the fact that dropping from Ultra to Low at 1080p only yields a 40% performance increase (178 to 299 FPS), whereas a GPU-bound system would typically show a much larger gap between quality presets. At 4K, however, the GPU begins to exert more influence, with the gap between Low (204 FPS) and Ultra (122 FPS) narrowing to a 40% difference, indicating that both components are nearing their limits.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate achievable with this combo?

A: The highest recorded average FPS is 299, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: Does this system maintain playable frame rates at 4K resolution?

A: Yes, the data shows all 4K presets produce average FPS above 120, with the lowest being 122 FPS at Ultra settings and the highest being 204 FPS at Low settings.

Q: How does the Medium preset compare to High and Ultra at the same resolution?

A: At 1080p, Medium produces 197 FPS, which is 10 FPS higher than High (187 FPS) and 19 FPS higher than Ultra (178 FPS). This pattern holds across resolutions, with Medium consistently outperforming High by approximately 8-10 FPS and Ultra by 15-20 FPS.

Q: What are the minimum frame rates recorded for this combo?

A: The only configurations with recorded minimum FPS values are the Medium presets: 167 FPS at 1080p, 143 FPS at 1440p, and 114 FPS at 4K.

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

A: The combo ranks 2645th out of 2883 tested combos, placing it in the bottom 8% of all configurations tested for this game.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the primary bottleneck at 1080p?

A: The data suggests the CPU is the limiting factor at 1080p, as the frame rate difference between Low (299 FPS) and Ultra (178 FPS) is only 40%, which is smaller than what would be expected if the GPU were heavily loaded.

Settings Recommendations

For players prioritizing maximum frame rates and competitive responsiveness, the Low preset at 1920x1080 is the clear choice, delivering 299 FPS average. This configuration provides the highest headroom above typical 144Hz or 240Hz displays, ensuring that even demanding combat scenarios with multiple agents and abilities active will not cause noticeable frame drops. The data shows no minimum FPS recorded for this preset, but the high average suggests consistent performance.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset still delivers an excellent 255 FPS average, making it suitable for users with high-refresh-rate 1440p monitors. The Medium preset at 1440p offers a more balanced experience with 168 FPS average and a recorded minimum of 143 FPS, which remains above the 144Hz threshold for most displays. This makes Medium at 1440p a viable option for players who want improved visual quality without sacrificing competitive performance.

For users with 4K displays, the Low preset at 204 FPS is the only configuration that provides frame rates significantly above 144Hz. The Medium preset at 134 FPS average with a 114 FPS minimum is still playable but may dip below 144Hz during intense moments. The High (128 FPS) and Ultra (122 FPS) presets at 4K are only recommended for players with 60Hz or 120Hz displays who prioritize visual fidelity over frame rate consistency. Given that Valorant is a competitive FPS where higher frame rates directly translate to reduced input latency, the Low preset at any resolution is the recommended choice for serious players, with Medium serving as a reasonable compromise for those who want better visuals.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system produces its strongest results across all settings. The Low preset leads with 299 FPS average, followed by Medium at 197 FPS (with a minimum of 167 and maximum of 226), High at 187 FPS, and Ultra at 178 FPS. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a consistent decrease, but the gap between Low and the next tier (Medium) is substantial at 102 FPS, while the difference between Medium, High, and Ultra is much narrower at 10 FPS and 9 FPS respectively.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates scale down proportionally. Low produces 255 FPS, Medium averages 168 FPS (minimum 143, maximum 193), High reaches 160 FPS, and Ultra delivers 152 FPS. The percentage drop from 1080p to 1440p is consistent across settings: Low drops by 15%, Medium by 15%, High by 14%, and Ultra by 15%. This uniformity indicates that resolution scaling affects all quality presets equally, reinforcing the CPU-bound nature of the system at these resolutions.

At 3840x2160, the performance degradation becomes more pronounced. Low yields 204 FPS, Medium averages 134 FPS (minimum 114, maximum 154), High produces 128 FPS, and Ultra drops to 122 FPS. The transition from 1440p to 4K shows a larger relative drop for Medium (20%) compared to Low (20%), but the absolute difference between Low and Ultra at 4K narrows to 82 FPS, compared to 121 FPS at 1080p. This suggests that at 4K, the GPU is beginning to play a more significant role in limiting performance, as the quality settings have a relatively smaller impact on frame rates when the pixel count is high.

The Medium preset's recorded minimum and maximum values provide insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p, the range spans 59 FPS (167 to 226), at 1440p it spans 50 FPS (143 to 193), and at 4K it spans 40 FPS (114 to 154). The narrowing range at higher resolutions indicates that the system becomes more consistent as the GPU becomes more saturated, with fewer extreme spikes in frame times.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 5 5600G and Intel Arc B370 ranks 2645th out of 2883 tested combos in Valorant, placing it in the 8th percentile of all configurations. This low ranking is primarily attributable to the GPU, which itself ranks in the 5th percentile among all GPUs with an average 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1184. The CPU, by contrast, performs much better in general benchmarks, ranking in the 74th percentile among all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 21088.

The GPU's nearest rivals in benchmark scores are the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186, 0.2% faster), ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190, 0.5% faster), AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192, 0.7% faster), and AMD FirePro M2000 (1168, 1.4% slower). These comparisons highlight that the Arc B370's raw GPU compute performance is extremely modest, placing it alongside legacy and low-end mobile parts from over a decade ago. Despite this, the measured FPS in Valorant are much higher than what these rival scores might suggest, indicating that the game's engine is particularly well-optimized for the architecture or that the CPU is compensating for the GPU's limitations.

The CPU's nearest rivals include the Intel Core i3-1220P (21066, 0.1% slower), Intel Core Ultra 7 256V (21112, 0.1% faster), AMD Ryzen 5 7530U (21133, 0.2% faster), and Intel Core Ultra 7 155U (21174, 0.4% faster). These deltaPct values are all within 0.5% of the 5600G's average score, indicating that the CPU is performing at a level consistent with mid-range mobile and desktop processors. The combination of a 74th percentile CPU with a 5th percentile GPU creates a significant imbalance, but in Valorant—a game known for its low graphical demands—the CPU's strength is sufficient to push frame rates well above playable thresholds.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 5600G is a 6-core, 12-thread processor based on the Zen 3 architecture, manufactured on a 7nm process by TSMC. It operates at a base clock of 3.90 GHz and boosts up to 4.40 GHz, with a 65W TDP. The processor features 64 KB of L1 cache per core, 512 KB of L2 cache per core, and 16 MB of shared L3 cache. Its memory support is limited to DDR4 with dual-channel configuration, providing a theoretical memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s.

In synthetic benchmarks, the 5600G demonstrates strong single-threaded and multi-threaded performance. It scores 1409 in Cinebench R23 single-core and 10551 in multi-core, while in Geekbench it achieves 1801 single-core and 8428 multi-core. The 3DMark results show scaling from 872 in single-thread to 5455 in max-threads, indicating good multi-threading efficiency. These scores place the CPU in the 74th percentile overall, with an average benchmark score of 21088.

For Valorant, the CPU's role is critical because the game is known to be CPU-bound at high frame rates. The 6-core, 12-thread configuration with high boost clocks ensures that the main game thread and physics calculations are handled efficiently. The measured FPS data supports this, as the system maintains high frame rates even at Low settings where the GPU has minimal workload. The 299 FPS at 1080p Low is likely limited by the CPU's ability to process game logic and submit draw calls, not by the GPU's rendering capabilities. The fact that dropping from Ultra to Low only increases FPS by 40% (178 to 299) further confirms that the CPU is the primary bottleneck at lower resolutions.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B370 is an integrated graphics solution based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, manufactured on a 3nm process. It features 1280 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 20 raster operation units, along with 10 ray tracing cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 300 MHz and boosts up to 2400 MHz, with a very low TDP of 25W. It relies on system-shared memory for both VRAM and bandwidth, making its performance highly dependent on the host system's memory configuration.

The Arc B370's compute capabilities are modest, with a peak FP32 throughput of 6.144 TFLOPS and a pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184 places it in the 5th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 1184. The nearest rivals in this benchmark are all legacy or low-end parts, including the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 (1186), ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1190), and AMD Radeon HD 7650M (1192), all of which score within 0.7% of the Arc B370.

In Valorant, the GPU's limited raw performance becomes apparent at higher resolutions and quality settings. At 4K Ultra, the system produces 122 FPS, which is significantly lower than the 299 FPS at 1080p Low. This 59% performance drop from the best to worst configuration highlights the GPU's struggle with increased pixel count and shading complexity. However, the fact that the system still maintains above 120 FPS at 4K Ultra reflects Valorant's efficient rendering pipeline and the CPU's ability to compensate. The GPU's system-shared memory architecture means that its bandwidth is dependent on the system's DDR4 memory, which at 51.2 GB/s theoretical maximum is sufficient for this game's modest texture requirements but would likely bottleneck in more graphically intensive titles.