AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D Game Performance
On the following pages, we are going to review the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D CPU in gaming performance, focused on game performance only, at 1080p with the highest in-game graphics settings. We will be using an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Founders Edition video card with each CPU, and our comparison CPUs are the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X, AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D, AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D, and Intel Core Ultra 9 285K. A manual run-through is being used in each game being tested below for real-world gaming performance data, and the games are listed in alphabetical order. All data in this review has been benchmarked fresh on each CPU for this review with updated drivers, BIOS, and game versions.
Alan Wake 2
In Alan Wake 2 we are running at 1080p with the highest in-game settings, using a manual run-through. We can see that the new AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D performs at the top of the charts in performance, beating all over CPUs and matching performance with the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Zen 5 CPU as well. Compared to the previous generation, the new AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is 10% faster than the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D for a generational uplift from Zen 4. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D also offers faster performance than the Zen 5 Ryzen 9 9950X, the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is 17% faster than the Ryzen 9 9950X non-X3D part. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is also 26% faster than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K.
Cyberpunk 2077
In Cyberpunk 2077, we are running at 1080p Ultra settings and are using a manual run-through for testing. In this game, the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D single-CCD X3D part does slightly beat out the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D by 2%, but that is very, very close. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is still at the top of the charts, beating every other CPU here with ease. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is 9% faster than the previous generation AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D for a generational uplift. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D has a very big performance jump over the non-X3D 9950X, the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D offers 26% more performance than the Ryzen 9 9950X in gaming performance here, which also means it is 26% faster than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K as well. Surprisingly, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K has the same performance in this game now compared to the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X.
Dying Light 2
In Dying Light 2 we are running at 1080p with the high-quality option and DX12 enabled with ASYNC turned on using a manual run-through. In this game, the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D takes the performance lead, it’s interesting how it can offer more performance over the 9950X3D, here by 7%, which is a pretty decent lead. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D still wins compared to every other CPU of course, offering a 13% performance uplift from the previous generation AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D in gaming performance. It is also a whopping 33% faster than the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X and 40% faster than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K.
F1 24
In F1 24, we are running at 1080p and Ultra settings, but for this game we did use the built-in benchmark. The results are much closer in this game compared to all other games, but take note that this was done with the built-in benchmark, not a manual run-through, so that could make a difference. The AMD Ryzen Zen 5 CPUs are packed kind of close together, but the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D does match the Ryzen 7 9800X3D in performance and is at the top of the chart. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is 18% faster than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K.
Hogwarts Legacy
In Hogwarts Legacy, we are running at 1080p with the Ultra quality preset, and we are using a manual run-through in this game. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is clearly at the top of the charts once again, taking a commanding lead over every other CPU. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is very close to Ryzen 7 9800X3D CPU performance once again, with the Ryzen 7 9800X3D taking a slight 1.4% performance lead. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is a pretty big 20% faster than the previous generation AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D, showing a big generational uplift, and that CPU was no slouch either in this game until now. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is 31% faster than the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D non-X3D part, which really shows how great that X3D cache is. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is 38% faster than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K.
Horizon Forbidden West
In Horizon Forbidden West we had some interesting results, to say the least. Firstly, we are running this game at 1080p with the highest settings, and we are using a manual run-through. It seems the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K really likes this game, with performance matching that of the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D. Now, this is completely an outlier, as this is the only game that this happened out of our 12-game testing suite. It was a consistent result, for whatever this game does, and the Intel CPU does, it just really gells with that CPU and thus in this game, and this game only, they match performance, but this was unique.
Otherwise, the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D takes the performance lead by a good bit; the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is 7% faster than the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D. Now, it is possible that there needs to be some kind of core parking or X3D optimization in this game because we do see the X3D working to an advantage here, but maybe it can be optimized further on the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D.
The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is 9% faster than the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D for a generational uplift, so it is faster but maybe not as high of an uplift as some other games. We actually see the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X outperforming the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D, which is unusual and could indicate again some sort of core parking or X3D issue where it isn’t throwing the game over to the CCD with the cache. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is, therefore 8% faster than the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X.