Modern 3D games require powerful hardware to run smoothly on a PC. The debate between AMD’s Threadripper and Intel’s Core i9 processors for game development is a hot topic. In a recent PCWorld YouTube video, Gordon Ung and Will Smith compared the performance of a Falcon Northwest Talon desktop with an AMD Threadripper 7980X and a custom-built Intel machine with a Core i9-14900KS.
Both systems are top-of-the-line, with similar components such as an RTX 4090 graphics card and Crucial T705 Gen5 SSD. The key difference is the RAM, with the Intel machine having 48GB of Patriot Viper Elite 5 DDR5 and the AMD machine having 128GB of Kingston DDR5.
Will Smith, a former game developer, emphasized the importance of processing power for tasks like compiling code and rendering lightmaps. To test these tasks, Will created a custom map in the Unreal 5 engine and compared the compute times of both machines. The Threadripper outperformed the Core i9 in Unreal Engine tasks, with significant differences in compute times.
While the Threadripper excels in heavy computing tasks, it comes at a higher cost of $5,000 for the CPU alone. For solo developers or small studios, investing in a dedicated render server might be a more cost-effective solution. Additionally, the Threadripper’s focus on heavy workloads may not translate to better gaming performance compared to high-end gaming PCs.
Gordon likened the Intel Core i9 to a wide-market pickup truck and the AMD Threadripper to a giant dump truck, highlighting their different strengths. Ultimately, the choice between Threadripper and Core i9 depends on your specific needs and budget.
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