by Rob Williams on September 10, 2014 in Graphics & Displays
After we were done benchmarking AMD’s $110 Radeon R7 260 last winter, we were impressed enough to call it a “console killer” (thanks in part to the ‘next-gen’ consoles having been released not soon before). Will we be able to say the same thing about the R7 250X, a model a mere one-step down? That’s what we’re going to find out.
For about as long as GPU-accelerated games have existed, 60 frames-per-second has been an ideal performance target. This target framerate, in turn, established the 60Hz monitor as a de facto standard. The 60Hz monitor delivers its best results when the framerate matches its refresh rate. To make sure the monitor’s refresh rate and game’s framerate keep aligned, to avoid visible tearing, VSync should be enabled.
While I believe our Best Playable results will appeal to any gamer, they could especially prove useful to those intrigued by livingroom gaming or console replacements. The goal here is simple: With each game, the graphics settings are tweaked to deliver the best possible detail while keeping us as close to 60 FPS on average as possible.
Because our Metro Last Light and Total War: SHOGUN 2 tests are timedemos, and because this kind of testing is time-consuming, I am sticking to six out of the eight games I test with for inclusion here.
|
Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag |
|
Minimum |
Average |
AMD Radeon R7 260X |
51 |
60 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
AMD Radeon R7 260 |
48 |
58 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
ASUS Radeon R7 250X |
39 |
48 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
When tested with our regular settings, the performance we saw with AC IV: Black Flag from the R7 250X was… well, horrible. Taking a hammer to every single option we have, we’re left with “Low” all over the board, but the game still looks pretty good, and delivers nearly 50 FPS on average.
|
Battlefield 4 |
|
Minimum |
Average |
AMD Radeon R7 260X |
49 |
62 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
AMD Radeon R7 260 |
48 |
58 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
ASUS Radeon R7 250X |
45 |
62 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
While “Low” was the name of the game in AC IV: Black Flag with the R7 250X, the card fared a lot better with Battlefield 4. With half of the settings dialed in to High, and some others to Medium, our system can hit our target of 60 FPS. Once again, the result isn’t too bad, quality-wise.
|
Crysis 3 |
|
Minimum |
Average |
AMD Radeon R7 260X |
36 |
54 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
AMD Radeon R7 260 |
36 |
50 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
ASUS Radeon R7 250X |
32 |
47 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
Crysis 3 follows in AC IV: Black Flag‘s steps: I absolutely had to put everything to Low in order to achieve decent framerates at 1080p. If you’re running a 1440×900 display, I am sure the game would deliver the same sort of framerates with the Medium preset used. This truly is a monster of a game.
|
GRID 2 |
|
Minimum |
Average |
AMD Radeon R7 260X |
50 |
58 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
AMD Radeon R7 260 |
41 |
64 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
ASUS Radeon R7 250X |
37 |
60 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
A lot had to be tweaked to hit 60 FPS here, and admittedly, you could have gone in a different direction than me. You could have left anti-aliasing enabled and decreased some of the Ultras to High or Medium, but the point has been made: You can still have a great-looking GRID 2 along with 60 FPS @ 1080p.
|
Sleeping Dogs |
|
Minimum |
Average |
AMD Radeon R7 260X |
62 |
71 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
AMD Radeon R7 260 |
55 |
63 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
ASUS Radeon R7 250X |
45 |
52 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
For every single GPU I’ve benchmarked since I’ve begun benchmarking Sleeping Dogs, I’ve just had to decrease the anti-aliasing to the smallest level in order to get great framerates. With the R7 250X, I had worried that I’d have to decrease even more than that, but not so. If you really do crave that 60 FPS though, you should decrease the ambient occlusion, and possibly drop the shadow resolution as well.
|
Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Blacklist |
|
Minimum |
Average |
AMD Radeon R7 260X |
51 |
77 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
AMD Radeon R7 260 |
48 |
72 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
ASUS Radeon R7 250X |
48 |
62 |
Graphics Settings
& Ingame ScreenshotResolution: 1920×1080 |
With medium detail levels all-around, and the dropping of AA and AO, Splinter Cell: Blacklist can surpass 60 FPS at 1080p with the R7 250X.
Now, let’s tackle some quick synthetic benchmarks, and then move onto the conclusion.