Downfall

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 combination delivers exceptionally high frame rates in Downfall, a horror title from 2016. The data shows this pairing is far beyond the demands of the game, with all tested presets and resolutions clearing the 60 FPS playability threshold by a wide margin. The following analysis breaks down the benchmark data, comparing this combo to similar hardware, detailing measured performance, and providing optimal settings guidance.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the AMD Ryzen 5 5500 are closely matched in overall average benchmark score. The AMD Ryzen AI 5 430 sits just 0.1% below, while the Intel Core i5-12500 is 0.4% lower. The Intel Core i7-10700F is 0.5% higher, and the Intel Core i5-11600KF leads the group at 0.7% above the Ryzen 5 5500. These deltas are minimal, meaning a user swapping between any of these CPUs would observe nearly identical performance in Downfall, as the game is unlikely to differentiate between such closely matched processors.

For the GPU, the nearest rival to the RTX 4090 is the Intel Arc Pro A60, which scores exactly 0% different. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 is 0.3% higher, and the AMD Radeon PRO V710 is 2.9% lower. The AMD Radeon Pro W6600M is 2.5% higher. Like the CPU side, these differences are negligible in practice. Given the extremely high frame rates this combo achieves, any of these rival GPUs would also produce far more than 60 FPS in Downfall, making the choice between them irrelevant for this specific title.

The CPU’s percentile ranking places it above 73% of all CPUs tested, while the GPU ranks above 88% of all GPUs. This indicates a system that is well above the median, though the GPU is comparatively stronger than the CPU. In a game like Downfall, which is not particularly demanding by modern standards, the GPU's dominance ensures that even the most modest CPU rival would not bottleneck performance.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Downfall at 4K resolution?

A: Yes. At 3840x2160, all four tested settings (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) produce average frame rates above 60 FPS. The lowest average is 82 FPS at Ultra settings, and the highest is 196 FPS at Low.

Q: What is the best setting to use at 1440p for maximum visual quality?

A: Ultra settings at 2560x1440 yield an average of 132 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold. This makes Ultra the recommended choice, as it provides the highest visual fidelity while maintaining a very smooth experience.

Q: How does the RTX 4090 compare to its closest rival in this system?

A: The RTX 4090 has an average benchmark score of 60347, which is essentially tied with the Intel Arc Pro A60 at 0% difference. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 is 0.3% higher, and the AMD Radeon PRO V710 is 2.9% lower. These differences are within noise for gaming performance.

Q: Is the Ryzen 5 5500 a bottleneck for the RTX 4090 in this game?

A: The data suggests not. The system achieves very high frame rates across all resolutions, such as 342 FPS at 1080p Low and 306 FPS at 1440p Low. The CPU’s average benchmark score of 19593 places it near rivals like the Intel Core i5-12500, and the measured FPS shows no signs of CPU limitation.

Q: What is the lowest average frame rate recorded in the benchmark?

A: The lowest average frame rate is 82 FPS, which occurs at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings. This is still significantly above the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: How many total system combinations were tested for Downfall?

A: This specific combo ranks 192 out of 3716 total tested combinations, placing it in the top 5% of all systems benchmarked for this game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The benchmark data provides a complete picture of performance across three resolutions and four settings levels. At 1920x1080, the lowest average FPS is 296 at High settings, while Low settings produce 342 FPS. Medium settings average 319 FPS, with a minimum of 271 and a maximum of 366. Ultra settings at 1080p deliver an average of 185 FPS. These numbers show that even at the highest preset, the system is running nearly three times faster than the 60 FPS threshold.

Moving to 2560x1440, performance remains exceptionally high. Low settings average 306 FPS. High settings drop to 212 FPS, while Medium averages 258 FPS, with a minimum of 219 and a maximum of 297. Ultra settings at 1440p produce an average of 132 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows a reduction of roughly 30-40% in average FPS depending on the preset, which is expected due to the increased pixel count.

At 3840x2160, the system still delivers excellent results. Low settings average 196 FPS. Medium settings average 161 FPS, with a minimum of 136 and a maximum of 185. High settings produce 132 FPS, and Ultra settings average 82 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the only point where the frame rate approaches the 60 FPS line, but it still clears it by 22 FPS. The minimum FPS recorded at 4K Medium is 136, which is still more than double the playable threshold.

The data shows a consistent pattern: performance scales predictably with resolution and settings. The gap between Low and Ultra is most pronounced at 4K, where the average FPS drops from 196 to 82, a reduction of 58%. At 1080p, the same comparison shows a drop from 342 to 185, a 46% reduction. This indicates that the RTX 4090 has ample headroom, and the game's engine scales well with GPU load.

The Verdict

The benchmark results are unambiguous: this PC can run Downfall at every resolution and preset combination tested. The verdict by resolution confirms that all playable settings at 3840x2160, 2560x1440, and 1920x1080 include Low, Medium, High, and Ultra. The best settings at each resolution are Ultra, with average frame rates of 82 FPS at 4K, 132 FPS at 1440p, and 185 FPS at 1080p.

Every single measured average exceeds 60 FPS, and the lowest minimum FPS recorded is 136 at 4K Medium. This means there is no scenario in this benchmark where the system dips below the playable threshold. For a horror game where smoothness is critical for immersion, this combo provides an exceptionally fluid experience at maximum settings, even at 4K.

The system ranks 192 out of 3716 tested combinations, placing it in the top 5.2% of all configurations. This high ranking is primarily driven by the RTX 4090’s massive performance headroom, which allows the system to brute-force the game’s modest requirements. The Ryzen 5 5500, while not a top-tier CPU, is more than sufficient to keep up with the GPU in this title.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which averages 185 FPS. This is the obvious choice for maximum visual quality, as it provides a frame rate three times higher than the threshold. Lower presets like High (296 FPS), Medium (319 FPS), and Low (342 FPS) offer diminishing returns in visual fidelity for marginal FPS gains.

At 2560x1440, Ultra settings remain the best option, averaging 132 FPS. This is more than double the 60 FPS threshold, ensuring a very smooth experience. High settings average 212 FPS, Medium averages 258 FPS, and Low averages 306 FPS, but none of these offer a meaningful advantage over Ultra given the already high frame rate.

At 3840x2160, Ultra settings are still viable, averaging 82 FPS. This is the only resolution where Ultra dips below 100 FPS, but it remains above the 60 FPS playable line by a comfortable margin. High settings average 132 FPS, Medium averages 161 FPS, and Low averages 196 FPS. For players prioritizing frame rate over visual fidelity, dropping to High would provide a 61% increase in average FPS, but it is not necessary to maintain playability.

How This Combo Ranks

This combination of AMD Ryzen 5 5500 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 ranks 192 out of 3716 tested combos for Downfall. This places it in the top 5.2% of all systems benchmarked, indicating that it is among the highest-performing configurations for this game. The rank is likely driven by the GPU’s exceptional raw performance, as the RTX 4090’s average benchmark score of 60347 places it in the 88th percentile of all GPUs.

The CPU’s contribution is more modest, with a percentile rank of 73 and an average score of 19593. However, the game’s performance scaling suggests that the CPU is not a limiting factor. The FPS differences between Low and Ultra settings at each resolution are substantial, which points to GPU-bound performance. The ranking data confirms that this combo is far more capable than the vast majority of systems tested, making it an overkill solution for Downfall’s requirements.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data reveals a clear pattern of GPU-bound performance. At 1080p, dropping from Ultra to Low increases average FPS from 185 to 342, a 85% improvement. At 1440p, the same preset change yields an increase from 132 to 306 FPS, a 132% improvement. At 4K, the increase is from 82 to 196 FPS, a 139% improvement. These large jumps indicate that the game is heavily dependent on GPU processing power, as lowering settings reduces the pixel shading workload.

The CPU’s role is less pronounced. The Ryzen 5 5500 has a boost clock of 4.20 GHz and a multicore score of 16429 in Cinebench R23, which is sufficient to feed the RTX 4090 at all resolutions. The lack of a significant CPU bottleneck is evident in the fact that even at 1080p Low, the system reaches 342 FPS, which would require a very capable processor to maintain. The scaling between resolutions is consistent with GPU-bound behavior: as resolution increases, the FPS drops proportionally, while the CPU workload remains relatively constant.

At higher resolutions, the GPU becomes even more dominant. The difference between 1440p and 4K at Ultra settings is a reduction from 132 to 82 FPS, a 38% drop. This is in line with the 2.25x increase in pixel count, indicating that the GPU is the primary determinant of performance. The CPU’s 6 cores and 12 threads are more than adequate for Downfall, which is a 2016 horror game without extreme CPU demands. In summary, the RTX 4090 is the star of this combo, while the Ryzen 5 5500 provides stable, bottleneck-free support.