Control

The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 combination delivers a playable Control experience at 1080p across all presets, but the GPU becomes the limiting factor at higher resolutions, with only Low settings clearing 60 FPS at 4K.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The CPU and GPU in this combo each sit near distinct performance clusters. The AMD Ryzen 7 7700X, with an average benchmark score of 35,909, is nearly identical to several rivals. The AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5845 scores 35,802, a mere 0.3% difference, making it a direct substitute in gaming workloads. The Intel Core 7 250H trails by 0.5% with 35,728, while the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350 matches that 0.5% delta at 35,719. The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H is the closest high-end alternative at 35,670, just 0.7% behind. All four CPUs would produce indistinguishable frame rates in Control, so any of them paired with the RTX 5050 would yield nearly identical results.

On the GPU side, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 posts an average benchmark score of 21,035, placing it in the 66th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL, scores 21,153, which is 0.6% higher. The AMD Radeon HD 8970M is 1% faster at 21,237, and the NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile leads the group by 1.6% with 21,379. The AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT is the only rival that scores lower, at 20,713, which is 1.6% behind. These deltas are all within a couple of percentage points, meaning any of these GPUs would deliver nearly the same frame rates in Control. Notably, the RTX 5050's nearest rivals include both desktop and mobile parts, but the performance gap is so small that users upgrading from any of these would see minimal difference.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data reveals a clear pattern: the RTX 5050 is the dominant constraint at every resolution, while the Ryzen 7 7700X provides ample headroom. At 1080p, the GPU still governs performance, as evidenced by the scaling from Low to Ultra settings. The average FPS drops from 124 at Low to 68 at Ultra, a 45% reduction that tracks with increased GPU load. The CPU's 8 cores and 16 threads are sufficient to feed the GPU even at 1080p Low, where the frame rate peaks at 124 FPS. The 3DMark 16-thread score of 8,859 and Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 19,088 indicate strong multi-threaded capability, but Control's demands do not tax the CPU to its limit.

At 1440p, the GPU's role intensifies. Average FPS falls from 94 at Low to 52 at Ultra, showing that higher resolutions amplify the GPU bottleneck. The Medium preset delivers 67 FPS with a minimum of 57, which is close to the playable threshold. The CPU remains underutilized; the Ryzen 7 7700X's single-thread performance, measured at 1,987 in Cinebench R23 and 4,190 in Passmark, is more than adequate for Control's game logic and physics. The GPU's 8 GB of GDDR6 memory and 320.0 GB/s bandwidth become the limiting factors, especially at Ultra settings where texture and effects demand more memory bandwidth.

At 4K, the GPU is unequivocally the bottleneck. Average FPS ranges from 63 at Low to 35 at Ultra, with Medium hitting 45 FPS. The CPU's performance is essentially irrelevant at this resolution; even a weaker processor would produce similar results because the RTX 5050's 13.17 TFLOPS of FP32 compute is the hard ceiling. The scaling between resolutions confirms this: at High settings, average FPS drops from 78 at 1080p to 59 at 1440p and 40 at 4K. That is a 49% reduction from 1080p to 1440p and another 32% reduction from 1440p to 4K, consistent with the GPU's pixel throughput limits.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 ranks 2,296th out of 3,720 tested combos for Control. This places it in the lower-middle tier of all possible pairings, which is expected given the RTX 5050's 66th percentile GPU ranking. The CPU's 85th percentile ranking among all CPUs does not boost the combo significantly because the GPU holds performance back. In practical terms, this combo performs better than roughly 38% of tested systems, but it is far from the top tier.

The rank reflects the GPU's limitations more than the CPU's capabilities. Systems with the same GPU but weaker CPUs would likely rank similarly, while systems with the RTX 5050 and a top-tier CPU would see marginal gains. The data shows that Control is GPU-bound at all settings tested, so the combo rank is primarily determined by the RTX 5050's position in the GPU hierarchy. The Ryzen 7 7700X contributes by ensuring no CPU-induced frame drops, but it cannot compensate for the GPU's compute and memory constraints.

The Verdict

This PC can run Control at 60 FPS or higher, but only under specific resolution and preset conditions. At 1920x1080, all four presets—Low, Medium, High, and Ultra—clear the 60 FPS threshold. The Ultra preset averages 68 FPS, making it the best playable option at 1080p. At 2560x1440, only Low and Medium are playable, with Medium averaging 67 FPS and Low hitting 94 FPS. High and Ultra fall short at 59 and 52 FPS respectively. At 3840x2160, only Low settings achieve playable performance, averaging 63 FPS; Medium, High, and Ultra all drop below 60 FPS.

For the best visual experience while maintaining smooth gameplay, the data indicates 1080p Ultra or 1440p Medium are the sweet spots. The 1440p Medium settings deliver 67 FPS on average with a minimum of 57 FPS, which is close enough to the threshold that occasional dips may be noticeable. The 1080p Ultra preset offers a safer margin with 68 FPS average and no reported minimums below 60. At 4K, users must accept Low settings to stay above 60 FPS, which significantly reduces visual fidelity.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the RTX 5050 delivers strong performance across all presets. Low settings average 124 FPS. Medium settings average 88 FPS, with a minimum of 75 and a maximum of 101. High settings average 78 FPS. Ultra settings average 68 FPS. The wide gap between Low and Ultra—56 FPS—shows that Control's higher presets impose substantial GPU load, but even the heaviest preset remains comfortably above 60 FPS.

At 2560x1440, performance drops noticeably. Low settings average 94 FPS. Medium settings average 67 FPS, with a minimum of 57 and a maximum of 77. High settings average 59 FPS, just below the playable threshold. Ultra settings average 52 FPS. The Medium preset's minimum of 57 FPS indicates that even playable settings can dip below 60 FPS during intense scenes, so users seeking a consistent 60 FPS might prefer Low settings at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the GPU struggles. Low settings average 63 FPS, barely clearing the threshold. Medium settings average 45 FPS, with a minimum of 38 and a maximum of 52. High settings average 40 FPS. Ultra settings average 35 FPS. The minimum of 38 FPS at Medium highlights the GPU's inability to maintain smooth frame rates at 4K, and even Low settings likely experience dips below 60 FPS in demanding areas, though no minimum is recorded for that preset.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Control at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, but only at Low settings, which average 63 FPS. Medium, High, and Ultra all fall below 60 FPS, with averages of 45, 40, and 35 FPS respectively.

Q: What is the best settings preset at 1440p for this combo?

A: Medium is the best playable preset, averaging 67 FPS with a minimum of 57 FPS. Low averages 94 FPS, but Medium offers better visual quality while staying near the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the RTX 5050 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RTX 5050 scores 21,035 on average, which is 0.6% below the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL, 1% below the AMD Radeon HD 8970M, and 1.6% below the NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile. It is 1.6% faster than the AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT.

Q: Is the Ryzen 7 7700X strong enough for this game?

A: Yes, the CPU ranks in the 85th percentile of all CPUs with an average benchmark score of 35,909. Its multi-threaded performance, including a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 19,088, ensures it does not bottleneck the GPU in Control.

Q: What frame rates can I expect at 1080p Ultra settings?

A: The Ultra preset averages 68 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold. No minimum or maximum FPS values are recorded for this preset, but the average suggests consistent playability.

Q: At which resolution does this combo fail to reach 60 FPS?

A: At 3840x2160, only Low settings average above 60 FPS. All other 4K presets and the High and Ultra presets at 1440p fall below 60 FPS, with 1440p High averaging 59 FPS and 1440p Ultra averaging 52 FPS.