Downfall

The Intel Core i5-14600KF paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D is a high-end combination that places near the top of the database for Downfall, a 2016 horror title. The data shows this combo holds the 22nd rank out of 3,716 tested combinations, placing it in the top 1% of all recorded configurations. With the game’s playable threshold set at 60 FPS, this pairing delivers performance that is not merely sufficient but overwhelmingly excessive across all tested resolutions and presets, making it a definitive choice for max-settings gameplay.

How This Combo Ranks

In the benchmark database for Downfall, this CPU-GPU pairing achieves a combo rank of 22 out of 3,716 tested combinations. This places the system in the 99.4th percentile of all recorded hardware pairings, indicating that only a small fraction of tested systems outperform it. The ranking reflects the combined strength of the Intel Core i5-14600KF and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D, both of which are near the top of their respective hardware categories.

The CPU itself holds a percentile rank of 90 among all tested processors, with an average benchmark score of 49,394. Its closest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 7900, scores 49,228, a difference of just 0.3 percent. The gap to the next rival, the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G, is similarly narrow at 0.4 percent. This tight clustering suggests that the Core i5-14600KF is statistically equivalent to these alternatives in raw processing power, meaning the choice between them would not meaningfully alter Downfall performance.

On the GPU side, the RTX 5090 D holds a percentile rank of 92 among all graphics cards, with an average benchmark score of 77,712. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT, scores 76,904, placing it just 1.1 percent behind. Interestingly, the RTX 5090 D sits slightly below the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT, which scores 78,940 and leads by 1.6 percent. The NVIDIA Tesla P100 variants also outpace it by 2.1 to 2.4 percent. These differences are minor, but they indicate that the RTX 5090 D is not the absolute fastest GPU in the database, despite being a top-tier card.

For Downfall specifically, the combo’s rank of 22 is driven primarily by the GPU’s ability to render frames at very high rates, as the game is not CPU-intensive at the resolutions tested. The CPU’s 14 cores and 20 threads, with a boost clock of 5.30 GHz, provide ample headroom, but the benchmark results show that frame rates scale more directly with resolution and settings changes than with CPU load.

FAQ

Q: What is the best settings preset for Downfall at 4K resolution?

A: At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset delivers an average of 90 FPS, which is the highest playable setting. The High preset runs at 144 FPS, Medium at 175 FPS, and Low at 214 FPS, all well above the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the RTX 5090 D compare to its nearest GPU rival?

A: The RTX 5090 D has an average benchmark score of 77,712, which is 1.1 percent higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT (76,904) but 1.6 percent lower than the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT (78,940). The NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB and 16 GB outperform it by 2.1 and 2.4 percent, respectively.

Q: Is the Core i5-14600KF a bottleneck for the RTX 5090 D in this game?

A: The data does not indicate a bottleneck. At 1080p Low settings, the combo reaches 476 FPS, and at 4K Ultra it stays at 90 FPS. The CPU’s nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 7900, scores nearly identically (0.3 percent difference), suggesting CPU performance is not a limiting factor.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 1080p and 4K at Ultra settings?

A: At 1920x1080 Ultra, the average FPS is 202. At 2560x1440 Ultra, it drops to 144 FPS. At 3840x2160 Ultra, it falls further to 90 FPS. This shows a clear scaling pattern as pixel count increases.

Q: Can this system run Downfall at 60 FPS on all settings?

A: Yes. The verdict data shows all four settings presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) are playable at every resolution tested, with the lowest average being 90 FPS at 4K Ultra.

Q: How does the RTX 5090 D perform in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The GPU scores 44,065 in Passmark G3D and 14,326 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. It also achieves 310,674 in Geekbench OpenCL and 376,915 in Geekbench Vulkan, indicating strong compute performance.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for Downfall covers three resolutions and four settings presets, providing a complete picture of performance scaling. At 1920x1080, the lowest resolution tested, the system produces extremely high frame rates. The Low preset averages 476 FPS, the Medium preset averages 395 FPS with a minimum of 335 FPS and a maximum of 454 FPS, the High preset averages 324 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 202 FPS. These numbers demonstrate that even the most demanding preset at 1080p leaves massive headroom above the 60 FPS threshold.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain very high but show the expected decline from 1080p. The Low preset averages 345 FPS, the Medium preset averages 282 FPS with a minimum of 240 FPS and a maximum of 324 FPS, the High preset averages 231 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 144 FPS. The consistency between the minimum and maximum values at Medium settings indicates stable frame pacing, with the 240 FPS minimum still being four times the playable threshold.

At 3840x2160, the system continues to deliver playable performance across all presets. The Low preset averages 214 FPS, the Medium preset averages 175 FPS with a minimum of 149 FPS and a maximum of 202 FPS, the High preset averages 144 FPS, and the Ultra preset averages 90 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the lowest average in the entire dataset, but it remains 30 FPS above the playable threshold, showing that this combination is not challenged even at the highest resolution and settings.

The data reveals a consistent pattern: each step up in resolution reduces average FPS by roughly 30 to 40 percent, while each step up in settings within a resolution reduces FPS by a similar margin. The Medium preset at each resolution provides the only min/max data, and those figures show that the system maintains a narrow frame time distribution, with the minimum never falling below 149 FPS at 4K or 240 FPS at 1440p.

Similar Performance Alternatives

For the CPU, the nearest rivals to the Intel Core i5-14600KF are all within a narrow performance band. The AMD Ryzen 9 7900 scores 49,228, a 0.3 percent difference from the Core i5’s 49,394. The AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G scores 49,196, just 0.4 percent lower, and the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 scores 48,995, 0.8 percent lower. The AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 388 scores 49,796, which is 0.8 percent higher. These deltas are so small that in Downfall, where the CPU is not the limiting factor, any of these processors would produce nearly identical frame rates.

On the GPU side, the RTX 5090 D’s nearest rivals present a more varied picture. The AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT scores 76,904, which is 1.1 percent lower, meaning it would likely deliver frame rates within a few percent of the RTX 5090 D. The AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78,940, 1.6 percent higher, suggesting it could offer a slight edge in GPU-bound scenarios. The NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB and 16 GB score 79,396 and 79,605 respectively, outperforming the RTX 5090 D by 2.1 and 2.4 percent. However, these Tesla cards are not gaming-focused hardware, and their higher synthetic scores may not translate directly to Downfall performance.

For a user selecting alternative hardware, the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 with an AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT would be the closest match in overall performance, with the CPU being statistically tied and the GPU offering a marginal 1.6 percent advantage. Conversely, pairing the Intel Core i5-14600KF with an AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT would yield a slight GPU deficit of 1.1 percent, which in real-world terms would likely mean a few FPS difference at most.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that maintains at least 60 FPS is Ultra, which averages 202 FPS. The data shows that even this highest setting leaves vast headroom, as the next step down, High, runs at 324 FPS. There is no scenario at 1080p where this system approaches the playable threshold.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset again qualifies, averaging 144 FPS. This is more than double the playable threshold, indicating that the system could theoretically handle even more demanding settings if they existed. The High preset runs at 231 FPS, showing a significant drop from Ultra but still far above 60 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset remains the best choice, averaging 90 FPS. This is the only resolution where the system begins to show any signs of effort, though 90 FPS is still 50 percent above the threshold. The High preset at 144 FPS and Medium at 175 FPS offer even more headroom, but for users seeking maximum visual quality, Ultra is viable and playable.

Across all three resolutions, the Ultra preset is the recommended setting, as it is the most demanding option that stays at or above 60 FPS. The margin decreases with higher resolution, but even at 4K the system maintains a 30 FPS buffer above the playable limit.

The Verdict

Based on the verdict data, this computer can unequivocally run Downfall at playable frame rates. At 3840x2160, all four settings presets—Low, Medium, High, and Ultra—are marked as playable, with the best settings being Ultra at an average of 90 FPS. This means the system clears the 60 FPS threshold by a comfortable margin even at the most demanding configuration.

At 2560x1440, the same holds true: all presets are playable, and Ultra runs at 144 FPS. This is more than double the playable threshold, providing a smooth experience on high-refresh-rate monitors. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset averages 202 FPS, which is over three times the threshold and suitable for the fastest gaming displays.

The verdict is clear: this system is not merely capable of running Downfall, it is overqualified. The lowest recorded average FPS across all tested combinations is 90 FPS at 4K Ultra, which is still 30 FPS above the playable threshold. Users can select any resolution and settings combination without concern for performance drops.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data for Downfall reveals a clear division of labor between the CPU and GPU, with the GPU playing the dominant role at higher resolutions. The scaling from 1080p to 4K at the same settings shows this effect: at Ultra settings, the average FPS drops from 202 at 1080p to 144 at 1440p to 90 at 4K. This represents a 55 percent reduction in frame rate from 1080p to 4K, which is consistent with a GPU-bound workload where pixel count directly impacts performance.

The CPU’s role is more evident at lower resolutions. At 1080p Low, the system reaches 476 FPS, which is likely approaching the CPU’s maximum frame delivery capability. However, even at this extreme, the CPU does not become a bottleneck, as the 14-core design with a 5.30 GHz boost clock provides ample single-thread performance. The CPU’s single-core Cinebench R23 score of 4,594 and Geekbench single-core score of 2,445 indicate strong per-thread performance, which is what matters for older game engines like the one powering Downfall.

As resolution increases, the GPU becomes the sole limiting factor. At 4K, the difference between Low and Ultra settings is 124 FPS (214 vs. 90), a 57 percent drop. This is a larger relative change than the 26 percent drop seen at 1080p (476 vs. 202), confirming that the GPU is doing more work per frame at higher resolutions. The CPU’s performance remains constant regardless of resolution, so the frame rate decline at 4K is entirely attributable to GPU rendering load.

The data suggests that in Downfall, the RTX 5090 D is the critical component for achieving high frame rates at 4K, while the Core i5-14600KF is more than sufficient even at 1080p. Users upgrading from a weaker GPU would see the largest gains at higher resolutions, while those with a slower CPU might notice limitations only at very low settings and 1080p, where frame rates exceed 400 FPS.