Downfall

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-14600KF paired with the Intel Arc B370 occupies rank 3429 out of 3716 tested combinations in the database for Downfall. This places the combo in the lower 8th percentile of all tested systems, indicating that while the CPU is a strong performer, the integrated-class GPU severely limits overall gaming capability. The recorded data shows this pairing struggles to deliver smooth frame rates at higher resolutions, and its position near the bottom of the rankings reflects that constraint rather than any deficiency in the processor.

The CPU itself stands in the 90th percentile against all processors in the database, with an average benchmark score of 49394. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 with an average score of 49228, a delta of 0.3 percent, and the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G at 49196, a delta of 0.4 percent. The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 trails by 0.8 percent with a score of 48995. On the other side, the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 388 leads by 0.8 percent with a score of 49796. These margins are small, meaning the i5-14600KF delivers compute performance essentially on par with these alternatives.

The GPU, by contrast, sits in the 5th percentile against all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 1184 from the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test. Its nearest rivals are the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 at 1186, a delta of -0.2 percent, the ATI Radeon HD 5770 at 1190, a delta of -0.5 percent, and the AMD Radeon HD 7650M at 1192, a delta of -0.7 percent. The AMD FirePro M2000 trails by 1.4 percent with a score of 1168. These are older, low-end graphics solutions, which contextualizes the Arc B370 as a very modest graphics processor despite its modern architecture.

The combination of a top-tier CPU with a bottom-tier GPU creates a system where the processor is vastly overqualified for the graphics workload. In Downfall, a horror title from 2016, the bottleneck is unequivocally the GPU. The system ranking reflects this imbalance, and users should expect performance consistent with entry-level integrated graphics rather than the CPU's capabilities.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, no tested preset achieves the 60 FPS playable threshold. The highest average frame rate at this resolution is 43 FPS on Low settings, followed by 35 FPS on Medium, 29 FPS on High, and 18 FPS on Ultra. The verdict data confirms that no settings are playable at 4K, with the best average remaining below 60 FPS across all presets.

At 2560x1440, only the Low preset clears the 60 FPS threshold, delivering an average of 68 FPS. The Medium preset falls short at 56 FPS, High drops to 46 FPS, and Ultra sits at 29 FPS. The verdict identifies Low as the best playable setting at this resolution, with an average of 68 FPS. This means users at 1440p must accept reduced visual quality to maintain smooth gameplay.

At 1920x1080, three presets are playable: Low at 96 FPS, Medium at 78 FPS, and High at 64 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to 40 FPS, below the threshold. The verdict lists High as the best playable setting with an average of 64 FPS, which is the recommended preset for users prioritizing visual fidelity while staying above 60 FPS. The data shows a clear pattern: as resolution decreases, more presets become viable, but the GPU's limits appear quickly even at 1080p.

CPU and GPU Roles

The recorded data indicates that the GPU dominates performance scaling in Downfall. At 3840x2160, the average frame rate ranges from 18 FPS on Ultra to 43 FPS on Low, a spread of 25 FPS across presets. At 2560x1440, the range is from 29 FPS on Ultra to 68 FPS on Low, a spread of 39 FPS. At 1920x1080, the range is from 40 FPS on Ultra to 96 FPS on Low, a spread of 56 FPS. This increasing spread at lower resolutions suggests that the CPU begins to exert some influence when the GPU is less burdened, but the GPU remains the primary constraint.

The CPU's role becomes more apparent when comparing resolutions at the same preset. For Low settings, the average frame rate scales from 43 FPS at 4K to 68 FPS at 1440p to 96 FPS at 1080p. This is a 123 percent increase from 4K to 1080p, which indicates that the GPU is heavily pixel-bound. For High settings, the scaling goes from 29 FPS at 4K to 46 FPS at 1440p to 64 FPS at 1080p, a 121 percent increase. The consistency of these scaling ratios across presets confirms that resolution, not CPU workload, drives the performance differences.

The i5-14600KF, with its 14 cores and 20 threads, has ample headroom for a game like Downfall, which is not CPU-intensive by modern standards. The GPU's 1280 shading units and 20 ROPs, combined with a 25 W TDP, produce a pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 96.00 GTexel/s. These figures are modest, and the FP32 throughput of 6.144 TFLOPS further underscores the GPU's limited capacity. In essence, the CPU is idle much of the time while the GPU works at full capacity, and the frame rates reflect the GPU's ceiling rather than any CPU limitation.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The CPU's nearest rivals in the database provide context for its compute performance. The AMD Ryzen 9 7900 scores 49228, just 0.3 percent lower than the i5-14600KF's 49394. The AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G scores 49196, a 0.4 percent deficit. The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 scores 48995, 0.8 percent lower. The AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 388 scores 49796, which is 0.8 percent higher. For gaming with this GPU, any of these CPUs would behave nearly identically, as the GPU bottleneck dominates. A user swapping the i5-14600KF for the Ryzen 9 7900 would see no meaningful frame rate difference in Downfall.

The GPU's nearest rivals are all older, low-end parts. The ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 scores 1186, essentially matching the Arc B370's 1184. The ATI Radeon HD 5770 scores 1190, and the AMD Radeon HD 7650M scores 1192. The AMD FirePro M2000 scores 1168. These deltas range from -0.7 percent to 1.4 percent, meaning the Arc B370 performs within a rounding error of these legacy GPUs. In practical terms, a system with a Radeon HD 5770 would deliver frame rates nearly identical to the Arc B370 in Downfall, assuming the CPU is not a limiting factor. This is a sobering comparison for a modern integrated GPU, but the benchmark data is unambiguous.

For users considering alternatives, the database suggests that upgrading the GPU would yield far greater gains than swapping the CPU. The CPU is already among the top performers in its class, while the GPU is at the bottom of the distribution. Any GPU with a higher average benchmark score would likely push frame rates up substantially, but the data only supports comparisons within the nearest rivals listed here.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers an average of 96 FPS with no recorded minimum or maximum values. The Medium preset averages 78 FPS with a minimum of 67 and a maximum of 90. The High preset averages 64 FPS with no extremes recorded. The Ultra preset averages 40 FPS with no extremes. These numbers show a steady decline as visual fidelity increases, with the gap between Low and Ultra being 56 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 68 FPS with no extremes recorded. The Medium preset averages 56 FPS with a minimum of 48 and a maximum of 64. The High preset averages 46 FPS with no extremes. The Ultra preset averages 29 FPS with no extremes. The spread from Low to Ultra is 39 FPS, and the minimum at Medium (48 FPS) falls below the 60 FPS threshold, indicating occasional stutters even at that setting.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 43 FPS with no extremes recorded. The Medium preset averages 35 FPS with a minimum of 30 and a maximum of 40. The High preset averages 29 FPS with no extremes. The Ultra preset averages 18 FPS with no extremes. The spread from Low to Ultra is 25 FPS, and the minimum at Medium (30 FPS) is exactly at the edge of playability by some standards, though well below the 60 FPS threshold used here.

The data shows that the Medium presets at 1080p and 1440p are the only settings with recorded minimum and maximum values, providing insight into frame time consistency. At 1080p Medium, the minimum of 67 FPS stays above the playable threshold, while at 1440p Medium, the minimum of 48 FPS dips below it. This suggests that even at settings where the average is near playable, the Arc B370 can experience dips that disrupt smoothness.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate this combo achieves in Downfall?

A: The highest recorded average is 96 FPS at 1920x1080 on Low settings. This is the only preset across all resolutions that exceeds 90 FPS.

Q: Can this system run Downfall at 3840x2160?

A: No. The verdict data shows no playable settings at 4K, with the best average being 43 FPS on Low, which is below the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: Which preset is recommended for 2560x1440?

A: The Low preset is the only playable option at 1440p, delivering an average of 68 FPS. The next preset, Medium, drops to 56 FPS, which fails the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the Arc B370 compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Arc B370 scores 1184 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, which is within 0.7 percent of the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570, the ATI Radeon HD 5770, and the AMD Radeon HD 7650M. It is 1.4 percent ahead of the AMD FirePro M2000.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in Downfall?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor. The i5-14600KF ranks in the 90th percentile among CPUs, while the Arc B370 ranks in the 5th percentile among GPUs. Frame rate scaling across resolutions and presets follows GPU-bound patterns.

Q: What is the best playable preset at 1920x1080?

A: The High preset is the best playable setting at 1080p, averaging 64 FPS. Low and Medium also exceed 60 FPS, but High offers the highest visual quality among playable options.

The Verdict

This PC can run Downfall, but only under specific conditions. At 1920x1080, the system delivers playable frame rates on Low, Medium, and High presets, with the High preset averaging 64 FPS as the best visually demanding option that clears the 60 FPS threshold. The Low preset reaches 96 FPS and Medium reaches 78 FPS, both comfortably above the playable mark. The Ultra preset at 40 FPS is not playable.

At 2560x1440, the system is playable only on the Low preset, which averages 68 FPS. All other settings fall below 60 FPS, with Medium at 56 FPS, High at 46 FPS, and Ultra at 29 FPS. Users at this resolution must sacrifice visual quality to maintain smooth gameplay.

At 3840x2160, the system cannot achieve playable frame rates on any preset. The best average is 43 FPS on Low, which is well below the 60 FPS threshold. The verdict data confirms no playable settings at 4K.

In summary, the Intel Core i5-14600KF and Intel Arc B370 combination is viable for Downfall at 1080p with moderate settings, marginally viable at 1440p with the lowest settings, and not viable at 4K. The GPU's low percentile ranking relative to all GPUs explains this outcome, while the CPU's high percentile ranking ensures that any frame rate limitations are purely graphics-driven. Users with this combo should target 1080p for the best balance of visual quality and performance, or drop to Low at 1440p if higher resolution is a priority.