Downfall

FAQ

Q: Can the Intel Core i5-14600K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 run Downfall at 1080p?

A: Yes. The combination clears 60 FPS at every preset tested at 1920x1080. The highest preset, Ultra, averages 71.2 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: What is the best preset available at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is High, with an average of 80.8 FPS. Ultra dips below the threshold at 49.4 FPS.

Q: Is 4K Ultra playable with this hardware?

A: No. At 3840x2160, Ultra averages only 33.1 FPS, well below the 60 FPS threshold. The highest playable preset at 4K is Medium, which averages 62.4 FPS.

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

A: The RTX 2060's average benchmark score is 15290. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580, scores 15283 (a 0% delta). The AMD Radeon 680M scores 15270 (0.1% higher), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM scores 15199 (0.6% higher), and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 scores 15171 (0.8% higher). This puts the RTX 2060 in the 58th percentile among all GPUs.

Q: How does the i5-14600K compare to its nearest CPU rivals?

A: The i5-14600K has an average benchmark score of 48618, placing it in the 90th percentile among all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H, scores 48698 (0.2% higher). The AMD EPYC 4345P scores 48470 (0.3% lower), the Intel Core Ultra 5 245HX scores 48287 (0.7% lower), and the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 scores 48995 (0.8% higher).

Q: What does the combo ranking indicate?

A: The database ranks this CPU and GPU combination at 2970 out of 3716 tested combos for Downfall. This places it in the lower-middle portion of all tested configurations, reflecting that the GPU is the limiting factor at higher presets.

CPU and GPU Roles

The recorded data for Downfall shows a clear pattern: the GPU becomes the dominant constraint as resolution increases, while the CPU's headroom remains largely untapped. At 1920x1080, the i5-14600K's strong single-thread performance (Geekbench single-core score of 2491, Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2064) allows the RTX 2060 to operate near its full potential. The frame rate scales dramatically with preset changes at this resolution: Low averages 174.7 FPS, Medium drops to 146 FPS, High to 114.4 FPS, and Ultra to 71.2 FPS. This 103.5 FPS spread across presets indicates that pixel throughput, not CPU logic, is the bottleneck.

Moving to 2560x1440, the GPU's workload increases substantially. Low averages 122.8 FPS, Medium 104 FPS, High 80.8 FPS, and Ultra falls to 49.4 FPS. The relative drop from Low to Ultra is about 60%, compared to roughly 59% at 1080p, showing a consistent GPU-bound scaling. The CPU, with 14 cores and 20 threads, has ample headroom here; the game's horror genre typically relies on moderate CPU loads, and the i5-14600K's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 24491 suggests no CPU limitation at these settings.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the sole limiting factor. Low averages 77.4 FPS, Medium 62.4 FPS, High 50.9 FPS, and Ultra collapses to 33.1 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is 53.6% lower than the 1080p Ultra result, a severe penalty that no CPU upgrade could mitigate. The RTX 2060's 6 GB GDDR6 memory and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth are also factors at 4K, where texture data exceeds what the GPU can efficiently handle at higher presets. The data shows that resolution scaling is nearly linear with GPU workload, while preset scaling at each resolution follows the same pattern, confirming the GPU as the primary determinant.

The CPU's role is best described as enabling, not limiting. The i5-14600K's PassMark single-thread score of 4270 and Geekbench multi-core score of 16673 place it far above what Downfall requires. Even at 1080p Low with 174.7 FPS, the CPU does not bottleneck, as evidenced by the smooth scaling across presets. For this game, the RTX 2060's 58th percentile GPU ranking versus the i5-14600K's 90th percentile CPU ranking makes the hierarchy unambiguous: the GPU dictates playability, and the CPU simply provides a stable foundation.

Best Settings per Resolution

The data identifies the most demanding preset that maintains at least 60 FPS average at each resolution.

1920x1080: Ultra is the best playable preset, averaging 71.2 FPS. This is the only resolution where the maximum preset clears the threshold. High averages 114.4 FPS, Medium 146 FPS, and Low 174.7 FPS, all comfortably above 60 FPS.

2560x1440: High is the best playable preset, averaging 80.8 FPS. Medium averages 104 FPS and Low 122.8 FPS, both also playable. Ultra falls short at 49.4 FPS, so it must be avoided at this resolution.

3840x2160: Medium is the best playable preset, averaging 62.4 FPS, just above the threshold. Low averages 77.4 FPS and is also playable. High averages 50.9 FPS and Ultra 33.1 FPS, both below the 60 FPS requirement.

These results show a consistent pattern: each resolution step down allows one additional preset tier. At 1080p, all four presets work. At 1440p, the top three work. At 4K, only the bottom two work. The margins matter: 4K Medium at 62.4 FPS is only 2.4 FPS above the threshold, so users should expect occasional dips during intense scenes. 1440p High at 80.8 FPS offers a more comfortable buffer, while 1080p Ultra at 71.2 FPS provides the full visual experience without sacrificing smoothness.

The Verdict

This PC can run Downfall, but the playable envelope depends heavily on resolution and preset choices. The verdict by resolution is clear:

• 3840x2160: Playable on Low (77.4 FPS) and Medium (62.4 FPS). High (50.9 FPS) and Ultra (33.1 FPS) do not clear the 60 FPS threshold.
• 2560x1440: Playable on High (80.8 FPS), Medium (104 FPS), and Low (122.8 FPS). Ultra (49.4 FPS) is not playable.
• 1920x1080: Playable on all presets: Ultra (71.2 FPS), High (114.4 FPS), Medium (146 FPS), and Low (174.7 FPS).

The verdict is unequivocally positive for 1080p and 1440p gaming. At 1080p, the full Ultra experience is achievable with a 71.2 FPS average, which is more than sufficient for a horror title where frame pacing matters for atmosphere. At 1440p, High settings at 80.8 FPS deliver a strong experience with only the top preset excluded. At 4K, the system is playable only on Medium or lower, and the 62.4 FPS average on Medium is a borderline result that may not hold in every scene.

The bottleneck is clearly the RTX 2060. Its 6 GB VRAM and 192-bit memory bus limit 4K performance, and its 58th percentile GPU ranking explains why Ultra presets fail at higher resolutions. The i5-14600K is not the constraint; its 90th percentile CPU ranking provides ample headroom. Users who prioritize 1080p or 1440p will find this combination fully capable, while 4K enthusiasts would need a stronger GPU.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the RTX 2060 provide a useful reference for expected behavior. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 has an average score of 15283, essentially identical (0% delta). Despite being an older architecture, it should deliver comparable frame rates in Downfall. The AMD Radeon 680M scores 15270 (0.1% higher), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM scores 15199 (0.6% higher), and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 scores 15171 (0.8% higher). All four alternatives fall within 1% of the RTX 2060's average score of 15290, so users swapping between these GPUs should see nearly identical performance in this game.

For the CPU, the i5-14600K's nearest rivals are all within 1% of its average score of 48618. The Intel Xeon Gold 5318H scores 48698 (0.2% higher), the AMD EPYC 4345P scores 48470 (0.3% lower), the Intel Core Ultra 5 245HX scores 48287 (0.7% lower), and the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 scores 48995 (0.8% higher). Since Downfall is GPU-bound at the resolutions where this combo is playable, these CPU differences will have negligible impact on frame rates. The bottleneck remains the GPU in all cases.

The practical takeaway from the rival data is that this system sits in a dense performance cluster. Neither the CPU nor the GPU has a standout advantage or disadvantage relative to its nearest competitors. The combination's behavior in Downfall, as measured by the 2970 rank out of 3716 combos, reflects this middling position. Users upgrading from any of the rival GPUs should expect no meaningful change in Downfall performance, while CPU swaps among the listed rivals would be imperceptible.

How This Combo Ranks

The database ranks this specific CPU and GPU combination at 2970 out of 3716 tested combos for Downfall. This places it in the 20th percentile of all tested systems, meaning roughly 80% of tested combinations perform better in this game. The rank reflects the RTX 2060's position as the limiting component: its 58th percentile GPU ranking drags down a system whose CPU ranks in the 90th percentile.

The gap between the CPU's high percentile and the GPU's mid-range percentile explains the overall ranking. In a horror game like Downfall, which relies on atmospheric rendering and lighting effects, the GPU's capabilities directly determine preset headroom. The 2970 rank indicates that while the system is fully playable at 1080p and 1440p, it cannot compete with combinations pairing the i5-14600K with higher-tier GPUs. The data suggests that the i5-14600K has substantial unused potential in this pairing, and a GPU upgrade would yield significant frame rate improvements across all resolutions.

For context, the combo rank of 2970 out of 3716 means this system outperforms only about 746 other tested combinations. This is a below-median result, driven almost entirely by the GPU. At 1080p Ultra, the 71.2 FPS average is respectable, but many other combos in the database achieve higher frame rates at this preset. The verdict is straightforward: the system runs the game well at mainstream resolutions, but its overall standing in the database reflects a hardware pairing where the GPU is the clear weak link.