Is Rocket Lake better at gaming than Comet Lake? Early benchmarks are in!

Is Rocket Lake better at gaming than Comet Lake? Early benchmarks are in!

Is Rocket Lake better at gaming than Comet Lake? Early benchmarks are in! 

Thanks to the German retailer MindFactory, Intel’s i7-11700K processor has been released to consumers before the processor’s official reveal, allowing the processor to be tested by the enthusiasts that are willing to pay for it.

The creator of CapFrameX, one of the best PC game benchmarking applications, has managed to get a hold of one of these pre-launch i7-11700K processors and has compared it to Intel’s i9-10900K in gaming applications. These tests give us an early look at Rocket Lake’s gaming performance and how Intel’s new Cypress Cove architecture benefits gamers. 

Intel promised users a double-digit IPC uplift over their Comet Lake architecture, granting them more single-threaded CPU performance than their last-generation counterparts. Looking at CapFrameX’s data, Intel’s Rocket Lake CPUs provide gamers with a modest performance boost, though it is worth remembering that only three games have been tested. 

CapFrameX tested Intel’s i7-11700K using “relatively new BIOS” and faster memory than Intel’s i9-10900K. Intel’s Rocket Lake CPUs officially support 3200MHz DDR4 memory, giving them a memory performance advantage in it’s “stock” state. Right now, it is unclear how much of Rocket Lake’s gaming boost can be attributed to memory performance. However, it is worth remembering that the move from 2933MHz to 3200MHz only represents a 9.1% memory clock speed boost. 
  

Is Rocket Lake better at gaming than Comet Lake? Early benchmarks are in!  

Is Rocket Lake worth it for gamers? 

Ultimately, we will need to wait for further testing. Still, if CapFrameX‘s results are indicative of a wider performance trend, it looks like Intel’s 11th Generation Rocket Lake CPUs will only deliver gamers a modest framerate uplift over Intel’s 10th generation Comet Lake processors.

While new BIOS revisions may increase Rocket Lake’s gaming performance, it is unlikely that such a change will occur. Yes, Rocket Lake is in a pre-launch state, but it is rare for Intel to release performance increasing BIOS revisions for its hardware platforms. 

You can join the discussion on the gaming performance of Intel’s Rocket Lake architecture on the OC3D Forums.Â