Control

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 represents a modern processor combined with a previous-generation graphics card. For a game like Control, which pushes both directX 12 rendering and physics-based destruction, the balance between these two components is critical. The recorded data provides a clear picture of how this combination handles the game’s demands across common resolutions and quality presets.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160 (4K), the combination struggles to maintain smooth gameplay. At Low settings, the average frame rate is 55 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS target. Moving to Medium settings drops the average to 39 FPS, with a minimum of 33 FPS and a maximum of 45 FPS. High settings yield an average of 35 FPS, while Ultra settings produce an average of 30 FPS. None of these 4K presets reach the playable threshold.

At 2560x1440, the situation improves noticeably. Low settings deliver an average of 81 FPS, making it the only preset at this resolution to clear the 60 FPS barrier. Medium settings produce an average of 58 FPS, with a minimum of 49 FPS and a maximum of 66 FPS. High settings average 51 FPS, and Ultra settings average 45 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is substantial, indicating that the RTX 2060’s 6 GB memory buffer and 192-bit bus are heavily taxed by the higher quality assets.

At 1920x1080, the combination performs much more convincingly. Low settings reach an average of 107 FPS. Medium settings average 76 FPS, with a minimum of 65 FPS and a maximum of 88 FPS. High settings average 68 FPS, which is still comfortably above the 60 FPS target. Ultra settings drop to an average of 59 FPS, just missing the playable threshold. The data shows that 1080p is the resolution where this hardware can express its full potential, with High settings being the most demanding preset that remains playable.

How This Combo Ranks

The database places this CPU and GPU pairing at rank 2950 out of 3720 tested combinations for Control. This places it in the lower half of all recorded combos, which is consistent with the measured results at higher resolutions. The RTX 2060 sits at the 58th percentile of all GPUs, while the Core Ultra 5 225 is at the 85th percentile of all CPUs. The stark difference in these percentile positions suggests that the graphics card is the limiting factor in this pairing.

The combo rank implies that while the processor is capable of feeding the GPU with data, the RTX 2060 cannot translate that into high frame rates at demanding resolutions. For a game like Control, which features heavy use of async compute and ray-traced reflections on its Ultra preset, the GPU’s 6 GB VRAM and 1920 shading units become the bottleneck. The rank of 2950 out of 3720 indicates that users should expect performance similar to mid-range systems from several years ago, not modern high-end configurations.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, no preset achieves the 60 FPS target. The database records no playable settings at this resolution. The best case is Low settings at 55 FPS, which still falls short. Users with a 4K display would need to reduce resolution or accept sub-60 FPS gameplay.

At 2560x1440, the only playable preset is Low, which achieves 81 FPS on average. This is the best settings option at this resolution. Medium settings at 58 FPS are close but do not meet the threshold. The jump from Medium to Low provides a 23 FPS improvement, showing that the game’s medium preset introduces effects that heavily impact the GPU.

At 1920x1080, the most demanding playable preset is High, which delivers 68 FPS on average. Medium settings provide 76 FPS, and Low settings provide 107 FPS. Ultra settings at 59 FPS are not playable by the database’s standard. The High preset at 1080p offers the best visual quality while maintaining a playable frame rate, making it the recommended choice for this resolution.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the CPU’s nearest rivals, the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 performs nearly identically to the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, with a delta of 0 percent. The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D is 0.2 percent slower, the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 is 0.4 percent slower, and the Intel Core i9-12900T is 0.5 percent slower. These processors would all produce very similar frame rates in Control when paired with the same RTX 2060, as the game is not heavily CPU-bound at these settings.

For the GPU, the nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580, which matches the RTX 2060’s average score with a 0 percent delta. The AMD Radeon 680M is 0.1 percent faster, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM is 0.6 percent faster, and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 is 0.8 percent faster. These GPUs would deliver nearly identical performance in Control. The RTX 3050 OEM and RX 7600 being only slightly faster in synthetic benchmarks suggests that real-world frame rates in Control would be within a few FPS of each other. Users with these alternative GPUs should expect the same general playability profile: comfortable at 1080p, limited at 1440p, and unplayable at 4K.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data reveals an interesting split in workload distribution. At 1920x1080, the CPU’s high percentile ranking (85th) compared to the GPU’s (58th) suggests that the RTX 2060 is the primary constraint. The frame rate drops from 107 FPS at Low to 68 FPS at High, a 36 percent reduction, which is entirely attributable to GPU workload. The CPU has ample headroom to feed frames even at Low settings.

At 2560x1440, the scaling between presets shows a similar pattern. Low settings at 81 FPS drop to Medium at 58 FPS, a 28 percent reduction. This indicates that the GPU is still the bottleneck, as the resolution increase from 1080p to 1440p already taxes the memory bandwidth. The 336.0 GB/s bandwidth of the RTX 2060 becomes strained at this resolution, particularly with Medium and High presets.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is overwhelmingly the limiting factor. The frame rates across all presets are tightly clustered between 30 and 55 FPS. The difference between Low and Ultra is only 25 FPS, showing that even at the lowest settings, the GPU cannot render enough frames. The 6 GB VRAM is likely exhausted by the texture data at this resolution, forcing constant swapping. The CPU’s role here is minimal, as it could easily push more frames if the GPU allowed.

The evidence points to a system where the Core Ultra 5 225 is never the limiting factor in Control. Its 10 cores and 20 MB of shared L3 cache provide more than enough compute for the game’s physics and AI. The RTX 2060, with its 1920 shading units and 6 GB of GDDR6 memory, determines the playability ceiling at every resolution.

The Verdict

This PC can run Control, but only at specific settings and resolutions. At 1920x1080, the system delivers playable frame rates on Low, Medium, and High presets. The High preset at 68 FPS is the best visual option that remains above the 60 FPS threshold. Medium at 76 FPS provides a smoother experience, while Low at 107 FPS offers the highest frame rates for competitive or high-refresh-rate play.

At 2560x1440, the system can only run the game at Low settings, achieving 81 FPS. This is playable but requires significant visual compromises. Medium settings at 58 FPS are just below the threshold and may be playable for some users, but the database does not classify them as such.

At 3840x2160, the system cannot run the game at any preset with acceptable frame rates. The best case is Low at 55 FPS, which fails the 60 FPS requirement. Users with 4K displays should not expect a playable experience with this combination. Overall, this system is a capable 1080p gaming machine for Control, a marginal 1440p option at reduced settings, and not viable at 4K.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest preset that maintains 60 FPS at 1920x1080?

A: High settings achieve an average of 68 FPS, making it the most demanding playable preset at this resolution. Ultra settings fall to 59 FPS, just below the threshold.

Q: Can this system run Control at 2560x1440?

A: Yes, but only at Low settings, which produce an average of 81 FPS. Medium settings average 58 FPS, which is not classified as playable.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The RTX 2060 matches the GTX 580 with a 0 percent delta. The Radeon 680M is 0.1 percent faster, the RTX 3050 OEM is 0.6 percent faster, and the RX 7600 is 0.8 percent faster.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for this game?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor at all resolutions. The RTX 2060 sits at the 58th GPU percentile, while the Core Ultra 5 225 is at the 85th CPU percentile. Frame rates scale with resolution and preset changes, indicating GPU-bound performance.

Q: What is the best frame rate recorded for this combination?

A: The highest average frame rate is 107 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The maximum frame rate recorded is 88 FPS at 1080p Medium settings.

Q: Is Ultra settings playable at any resolution?

A: No. At 1920x1080, Ultra averages 59 FPS. At 2560x1440, Ultra averages 45 FPS. At 3840x2160, Ultra averages 30 FPS. None of these meet the 60 FPS playable threshold.