Valorant

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data for Valorant with the Intel Core i7-13700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti shows a relatively flat performance curve across resolutions, which is typical for a competitive FPS title that is heavily CPU-bound. At the High preset, the average frame rate drops from 528 FPS at 1920x1080 to 450 FPS at 2560x1440, then to 360 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 14.8% performance reduction when moving from 1080p to 1440p, and a further 20% reduction when moving from 1440p to 4K.

The Low preset shows the same pattern with higher absolute numbers: 658 FPS at 1080p, 624 FPS at 1440p, and 574 FPS at 4K. The scaling efficiency here is notable, as the 4K result still maintains 87.2% of the 1080p performance. This indicates that even at 4K resolution with Low settings, the CPU remains the primary limiting factor rather than the GPU.

The Medium preset data provides the only complete frame time information in the database. At 1920x1080, the average FPS is 554 with minimum 471 and maximum 637. At 2560x1440, the average drops to 473 FPS with minimum 402 and maximum 544. At 3840x2160, the average is 378 FPS with minimum 321 and maximum 435. The frame time consistency, measured by the gap between minimum and maximum, remains proportionally similar across resolutions, suggesting the rendering workload scales predictably.

The Ultra preset delivers the lowest frame rates of all settings tested: 503 FPS at 1080p, 429 FPS at 1440p, and 343 FPS at 4K. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 155 FPS, while at 4K this gap narrows to 231 FPS. This widening gap at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU begins to take on more of the workload as pixel count increases, although the absolute numbers remain far above the refresh rates of most monitors.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-13700K is a 16-core, 24-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. The processor features 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 2 MB of L2 cache per core, and 30 MB of shared L3 cache. Its 125 W TDP and unlocked multiplier make it a flexible choice for various workloads, though Valorant's performance characteristics suggest it is rarely stressed to its limits.

The synthetic benchmark data for this CPU places it in the 89th percentile among all tested processors. Its average benchmark score of 46881 sits nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen 9 5900 (46971, delta -0.2%) and the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 (47022, delta -0.3%). It edges out the AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX (46654, delta 0.5%) and the Intel Xeon w3-2535 (46653, delta 0.5%). These near-ties in aggregate scores suggest that the i7-13700K delivers competitive multi-threaded performance, but Valorant's workload is far more dependent on single-thread and low-thread-count performance.

The 3DMark results show the thread scaling pattern: 2-thread score is 2262, 4-thread is 4469, 8-thread is 8193, 16-thread is 10717, and max-thread is 12412. The jump from 8 to 16 threads shows a 30.8% improvement, while the jump from 16 to max threads (which uses all 24 threads) is only 15.8%. This indicates diminishing returns beyond 16 threads, which aligns with Valorant's engine behavior that typically utilizes fewer cores effectively.

Cinebench results reinforce this picture. The R23 multi-core score of 30745 versus single-core score of 2116 yields a ratio of approximately 14.5x, which is substantial but not exceptional for a 16-core processor. The Geekbench multi-core score of 19429 versus single-core of 2529 shows a 7.7x scaling factor. These ratios matter because Valorant's frame generation depends heavily on single-core performance, and the i7-13700K's single-thread score of 1136 in 3DMark and 4333 in Passmark indicates strong per-core capability.

The recorded frame rates in Valorant, even at 4K Ultra with an average of 343 FPS, suggest the CPU is never the sole bottleneck in this configuration. The 16 cores and 24 threads provide ample headroom for background tasks, streaming, or recording software without compromising frame delivery in this competitive title.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti uses the GA104 chip on Samsung's 8 nm process, containing 17,400 million transistors on a 392 mm² die. It operates with a base clock of 1575 MHz and a boost clock of 1770 MHz. The memory subsystem consists of 8 GB of GDDR6X on a 256-bit bus, delivering 608.3 GB/s of bandwidth at 19 Gbps effective speed. The card features 6144 shading units, 192 TMUs, 96 ROPs, 48 RT cores, and 192 tensor cores.

The GPU's synthetic benchmark results place it in the 75th percentile among all GPUs, with an average score of 29945. Its nearest rivals are tightly clustered: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile (29928, delta 0.1%), the AMD Radeon RX 6800 (30095, delta -0.5%), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti (29783, delta 0.5%), and the AMD Radeon RX 6700 (30433, delta -1.6%). These deltas are all within 1.6 percentage points, indicating that the RTX 3070 Ti sits in a competitive performance band where architectural differences matter more than raw compute numbers.

In Valorant specifically, the GPU's role becomes more pronounced at higher resolutions and quality settings. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p is 155 FPS (658 versus 503), but at 4K this gap expands to 231 FPS (574 versus 343). This widening delta demonstrates that the GPU's pixel throughput and memory bandwidth become increasingly relevant as resolution scales. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is not a limiting factor in this game, as even at 4K Ultra the recorded minimum FPS of 321 (at Medium settings) stays well above typical display refresh rates.

The Passmark G3D score of 23356 and the Geekbench Vulkan score of 139541 indicate solid DirectX and Vulkan performance, which matters for Valorant's rendering API. The card's 21.75 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 339.8 GTexel/s texture rate provide substantial headroom for this esports title. The 169.9 GPixel/s pixel rate directly contributes to the 4K performance, where the card still delivers 343 FPS at Ultra settings.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database's measured combinations, this CPU-GPU pairing ranks 627th out of 3708 tested combos in Valorant. This places it in the top 16.9% of all recorded configurations. The rank reflects the combination's ability to sustain high frame rates across all tested resolutions and settings, though it is not in the absolute top tier of results.

The ranking context matters when interpreting the raw FPS numbers. While 658 FPS at 1080p Low and 360 FPS at 4K High are excellent results, the database contains many other combinations that achieve even higher frame rates, particularly those pairing top-tier CPUs with high-end GPUs. The i7-13700K's 89th percentile CPU ranking and the RTX 3070 Ti's 75th percentile GPU ranking combine to place this configuration solidly above average but short of the extreme performance tier.

The gap between this combo's rank and the top performers is more attributable to the GPU than the CPU. Valorant's engine responds strongly to single-thread CPU performance, where the i7-13700K excels, but the RTX 3070 Ti's mid-high tier GPU positioning means that at 4K Ultra, other combinations with faster GPUs will pull ahead. The data shows this combo delivers 343 FPS at 4K Ultra, while higher-ranked combinations likely exceed that threshold by a meaningful margin.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS recorded for this combo in Valorant?

A: The highest recorded average is 658 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in aggregate benchmark scores?

A: The i7-13700K scores 46881 average, which is 0.2% behind the AMD Ryzen 9 5900, 0.3% behind the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375, 0.5% ahead of both the AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX and the Intel Xeon w3-2535.

Q: What are the minimum FPS values recorded at Medium settings?

A: At 1080p Medium, the minimum is 471 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the minimum is 402 FPS. At 4K Medium, the minimum is 321 FPS.

Q: How does the GPU compare to the RTX 2080 Ti in aggregate benchmarks?

A: The RTX 3070 Ti scores 29945 average, which is 0.5% ahead of the RTX 2080 Ti's 29783.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra at 4K?

A: The difference is 231 FPS, with Low averaging 574 FPS and Ultra averaging 343 FPS.

Q: What percentile does the CPU achieve among all tested processors?

A: The i7-13700K places in the 89th percentile, while the RTX 3070 Ti places in the 75th percentile among all GPUs.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides clear guidance for optimizing this configuration in Valorant. At 1080p, the Low preset delivers 658 FPS average, which is the highest recorded value across all settings and resolutions. However, the jump from Low to Medium only costs 104 FPS (554 average), while the jump from Medium to High costs 26 FPS (528 average), and High to Ultra costs 25 FPS (503 average). The frame rate differences between Medium, High, and Ultra are relatively small at 1080p, suggesting that players with 144 Hz or 240 Hz monitors can comfortably use Ultra settings without sacrificing competitive performance.

At 1440p, the same pattern holds. Low averages 624 FPS, Medium 473 FPS, High 450 FPS, and Ultra 429 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is 151 FPS, which is substantial, but the gap between High and Ultra is only 21 FPS. For players using 1440p displays with refresh rates up to 360 Hz, the Medium preset offers the best balance, providing 473 FPS average with a minimum of 402 FPS, ensuring frame delivery stays above even the fastest common refresh rates.

At 4K, the data shows more significant preset sensitivity. Low averages 574 FPS, Medium 378 FPS, High 360 FPS, and Ultra 343 FPS. The drop from Low to Medium is 196 FPS, which is the largest preset-to-preset gap in the entire dataset. The Medium preset's minimum of 321 FPS still exceeds the refresh rate of most 4K gaming monitors, but the Low preset provides substantially more headroom. For competitive play at 4K, Low settings are recommended to maximize frame rate consistency. For visual quality, Medium delivers 378 FPS average with a 321 FPS minimum, which remains sufficient for 240 Hz displays.

The Medium preset consistently provides the most complete performance data, including minimum and maximum frame rates. At every resolution, the Medium preset's minimum FPS stays above 300: 471 at 1080p, 402 at 1440p, and 321 at 4K. This consistency across resolutions makes Medium the safest choice for players who prioritize stable frame times, while Low remains the choice for maximum raw frame rate, and Ultra serves players who prioritize visual fidelity on high-refresh-rate displays.