Control

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 delivers a wide performance envelope in Control, ranging from a locked-feeling 149 FPS at 1080p Low to a demanding 42 FPS at 4K Ultra. The measured data shows a system that comfortably clears the 60 FPS playable threshold at 1080p and 1440p across every tested preset, while 4K requires a significant settings reduction to maintain smooth frame rates. This analysis breaks down the exact measured performance, the balance of CPU versus GPU workload, and how this specific combination ranks against other tested hardware.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which produces an average of 82 FPS. This is the highest quality setting available in the test data, and the system clears the playable threshold with a 22 FPS margin. The High preset at this resolution yields 94 FPS, Medium 106 FPS, and Low 149 FPS, but since Ultra already exceeds 60 FPS, it is the recommended maximum.

Moving to 2560x1440, the best settings also land on Ultra, with an average of 62 FPS. This is a narrow margin of just 2 FPS above the 60 FPS playable threshold, indicating that 1440p Ultra is playable but leaves little headroom for demanding scenes. The High preset produces 71 FPS, Medium 80 FPS, and Low 113 FPS, all comfortably above the threshold. For users prioritizing stability over absolute quality, the High preset at 71 FPS offers a more comfortable buffer.

At 3840x2160, the situation changes dramatically. The most demanding preset that maintains at least 60 FPS is Low, which averages 76 FPS. The Medium preset drops to 54 FPS average (with a minimum of 46 FPS), and High falls to 48 FPS. Ultra is the most demanding at 42 FPS. The data indicates that 4K gaming with this combo requires Low settings to hit the playable threshold, and even then, the 76 FPS average is the only 4K result above 60 FPS.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark results reveal a clear shift in component bottleneck as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the spread between Low (149 FPS) and Ultra (82 FPS) is 67 FPS, a 45% performance drop from the lowest to highest quality preset. This large scaling indicates the GPU is the primary limiter even at 1080p, since raising settings increases pixel and shading workload significantly. The CPU, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 14769 and single-core score of 2085, provides ample headroom to feed the RTX 5060 at these frame rates.

At 2560x1440, the scaling from Low (113 FPS) to Ultra (62 FPS) is 51 FPS, a 45% reduction. The absolute frame rates are lower than 1080p across all settings, confirming the GPU is doing more work per frame. The CPU's role diminishes further, as the 14-core, 14-thread design (with a 5.00 GHz boost clock) is unlikely to bottleneck at 62-113 FPS. The PassMark single-thread score of 4516 and multi-thread score of 37816 reinforce that processor performance is not the constraining factor here.

At 3840x2160, the scaling from Low (76 FPS) to Ultra (42 FPS) is 34 FPS, a 45% drop. The absolute frame rates are the lowest of any resolution, and the gap between Low and Ultra narrows in percentage terms only because the baseline is lower. The GPU is overwhelmingly the dominant component at 4K. The RTX 5060's 8 GB GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus with 448.0 GB/s bandwidth is taxed heavily at this resolution. The GPU's PassMark G3D score of 20891 and 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 3628 provide context: this is a mid-range card (72nd percentile among all GPUs) that cannot sustain high-quality 4K rendering in Control.

The data shows a consistent pattern: the CPU is rarely the bottleneck. Even at 1080p Low with 149 FPS, the Core Ultra 5 235's 14 threads and 24 MB L3 cache are sufficient. The GPU's workload scales predictably with resolution, making it the performance ceiling for this combo.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1920x1080:

• Low: Average 149 FPS. No min/max data provided, but this is the highest frame rate measured for this combo.
• Medium: Average 106 FPS, minimum 90 FPS, maximum 122 FPS. The 90 FPS minimum indicates stable performance even in demanding scenes.
• High: Average 94 FPS. No min/max data.
• Ultra: Average 82 FPS. No min/max data.

2560x1440:

• Low: Average 113 FPS. No min/max data.
• Medium: Average 80 FPS, minimum 68 FPS, maximum 92 FPS. The 68 FPS minimum stays above the 60 FPS threshold.
• High: Average 71 FPS. No min/max data.
• Ultra: Average 62 FPS. No min/max data. This is the only 1440p setting without a recorded minimum, but the average is barely above the playable threshold.

3840x2160:

• Low: Average 76 FPS. No min/max data. This is the only 4K setting above 60 FPS.
• Medium: Average 54 FPS, minimum 46 FPS, maximum 62 FPS. The minimum drops to 46 FPS, indicating noticeable stutter in heavy scenes.
• High: Average 48 FPS. No min/max data.
• Ultra: Average 42 FPS. No min/max data.

The only presets with recorded min/max values are Medium at each resolution. This data shows that at 1080p Medium, the frame time variance is tight (90-122 FPS). At 1440p Medium, the range is 68-92 FPS, maintaining playability throughout. At 4K Medium, the range of 46-62 FPS confirms that this setting is borderline unplayable, with dips well below the 60 FPS threshold.

Similar Performance Alternatives

For the CPU, the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 (average benchmark score 46062, 89th percentile) sits within 0.2% of several alternatives. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 scores 46030, a delta of 0.1% — effectively identical performance. The Intel Core i9-13900HX scores 46098, also a 0.1% delta. The AMD EPYC 4364P (45970) and AMD EPYC 7303 (45960) are both 0.2% slower. In Control, any of these CPUs would produce nearly identical frame rates, as the game is not CPU-bound at the tested settings.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 (average benchmark score 26331, 72nd percentile) has rivals within 1.2%. The AMD Radeon 860M scores 26401, which is 0.3% higher, making it a near-perfect match. The NVIDIA GeForce MX550 scores 26421, also 0.3% higher. The AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary scores 26553, 0.8% higher, while the AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT scores 26011, 1.2% lower. In practical terms, all of these GPUs would deliver frame rates within 1-2 FPS of the RTX 5060 in Control at the same settings. The RX 6750 XT's 1.2% deficit translates to roughly 1 FPS difference at 1080p Ultra (82 FPS) and less than 1 FPS at 4K Low (76 FPS).

The Verdict

The data is clear: this PC can run Control at playable frame rates in most scenarios. At 1920x1080, all four settings — Low (149 FPS), Medium (106 FPS), High (94 FPS), and Ultra (82 FPS) — exceed the 60 FPS threshold. The verdict for 1080p is Ultra at 82 FPS, providing the best visual quality with a comfortable margin.

At 2560x1440, all settings also remain playable, but the margin narrows. Low (113 FPS), Medium (80 FPS), High (71 FPS), and Ultra (62 FPS) all clear 60 FPS. The verdict is Ultra at 62 FPS, though this leaves only 2 FPS of headroom. Users sensitive to frame drops may prefer High at 71 FPS.

At 3840x2160, only Low at 76 FPS is playable. Medium (54 FPS), High (48 FPS), and Ultra (42 FPS) all fall below the 60 FPS threshold. The verdict for 4K is Low settings, which means sacrificing most visual quality to maintain smooth gameplay. The data indicates that 4K gaming is technically possible but not recommended for this combo unless the user accepts Low presets.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Control at 60 FPS on Ultra settings?

A: Yes, at 1920x1080 (82 FPS) and 2560x1440 (62 FPS). At 3840x2160, Ultra only reaches 42 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: What is the best 4K setting for this combo?

A: Low, which produces an average of 76 FPS. Medium drops to 54 FPS average with a 46 FPS minimum, making it unsuitable for consistent 60 FPS gameplay.

Q: How much performance is lost between 1080p and 1440p?

A: At Medium settings, the average drops from 106 FPS at 1080p to 80 FPS at 1440p, a 26 FPS reduction. At Ultra, it drops from 82 FPS to 62 FPS, a 20 FPS reduction.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in this game?

A: The GPU is the primary bottleneck. The CPU's performance (Cinebench R23 multi-core 14769) is sufficient to drive frame rates up to 149 FPS at 1080p Low, and the scaling between resolutions and settings follows GPU workload patterns.

Q: What GPU would perform similarly to the RTX 5060 in this game?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT is 1.2% slower, the AMD Radeon 860M is 0.3% faster, and the NVIDIA GeForce MX550 is 0.3% faster. All would produce nearly identical frame rates in Control.

Q: Does the RTX 5060's 8 GB memory capacity affect 4K performance?

A: The measured data shows 4K Medium (54 FPS) and High (48 FPS) both fall below 60 FPS, while Low (76 FPS) succeeds. The 448.0 GB/s bandwidth and 8 GB GDDR7 capacity are sufficient for Low settings but not for higher presets at 4K resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

Among all tested CPU-GPU combinations in the benchmark database, this pairing of Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 ranks 1665th out of 3720 tested combos for Control. This places it in the 55th percentile of all tested systems, meaning it outperforms a slight majority of configurations. The CPU's 89th percentile standing among all CPUs and the GPU's 72nd percentile among all GPUs combine to produce a mid-pack result for this specific game. The ranking reflects the balanced nature of this combo: neither component is a top-tier performer, but together they deliver consistent 60+ FPS gameplay at 1080p and 1440p, which aligns with the measured FPS data showing playable results across most settings at those resolutions. The 4K limitation (only Low settings playable) is consistent with the 55th percentile ranking, as higher-ranked combos would likely maintain higher settings at 4K.