Downfall

The Intel Core i7-13700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D delivers exceptionally high frame rates in Downfall, a 2016 horror title. Measured benchmark data shows this combination is positioned at rank 2 out of 3,716 tested combos for this game, placing it in the top percentile of systems. The data indicates that this configuration is dramatically overqualified for the game's demands, with performance exceeding the 60 FPS playability threshold by a wide margin at every tested resolution, including 4K Ultra settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the lowest resolution tested, the RTX 5090 D produces staggering frame rates. With Low settings, the average FPS reaches 482, a figure that reflects the CPU's strong single-thread performance in a less demanding scenario. The Medium preset yields an average of 395 FPS, with a minimum of 335 and a maximum of 454. High settings drop the average to 324 FPS, while the Ultra preset still maintains a very high average of 202 FPS. These numbers suggest that at 1080p, the system is overwhelmingly GPU-bound at higher presets, but even at Low, the frame rate is limited by the game engine's frame pacing rather than the hardware's capability.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain exceptionally high. The Low preset produces an average of 345 FPS, representing a 28% reduction from the 1080p Low result of 482 FPS. Medium averages 282 FPS, with a minimum of 240 and a maximum of 324 FPS. The High preset delivers 231 FPS, while Ultra still manages 144 FPS on average. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at Ultra shows a 29% drop (from 202 to 144), which is roughly consistent with the increase in pixel count, indicating that the GPU is becoming the primary limiter at this resolution for the most demanding preset.

At 3840x2160, the system continues to perform far above the playable threshold. The Low preset averages 214 FPS, which is 38% lower than the 1080p Low figure. Medium delivers an average of 175 FPS, with a minimum of 149 and a maximum of 202 FPS. The High preset produces 144 FPS, and Ultra drops to an average of 90 FPS. The scaling between 1440p and 4K at the High preset shows a 38% reduction (231 to 144), while Ultra sees a 37% reduction (144 to 90). These reductions are slightly larger than the pure pixel count increase, suggesting that the higher resolution is placing a heavier load on the GPU's memory bandwidth and compute units.

The minimum FPS figures provided for the Medium preset across all resolutions are notable. At 1080p Medium, the minimum of 335 FPS is still over five times the 60 FPS playability threshold. At 1440p Medium, the minimum is 240 FPS, and at 4K Medium, it is 149 FPS. These minimums indicate that even in the most demanding scenes, the system never experiences significant frame drops, maintaining smooth gameplay with ample headroom.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data reveals a clear shift in component roles as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the CPU plays a more significant role in determining maximum frame rates, particularly at Low and Medium presets. The jump from 482 FPS at Low to 395 FPS at Medium, then to 324 FPS at High, and finally 202 FPS at Ultra, shows a linear degradation that is characteristic of a system where the CPU can feed frames faster than the GPU can render them at lower settings. The Core i7-13700K, with its 16 cores and 24 threads, provides ample headroom, as evidenced by its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 30,745 and single-core score of 2,116.

At 2560x1440, the GPU begins to assert more influence. The 28% drop from 1080p Low (482 to 345) and the 29% drop at Ultra (202 to 144) both align with the increased pixel workload. However, the High preset shows a 29% reduction (324 to 231), which is still consistent with GPU-bound scaling. The CPU remains capable of delivering frame rates above 300 FPS at Low settings, but the GPU's rendering capacity becomes the bottleneck at higher presets.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is the dominant component. The reduction from 1440p to 4K is 38% at Low (345 to 214), 38% at High (231 to 144), and 37% at Ultra (144 to 90). These percentages are all close to the theoretical 44% pixel count increase, indicating that the GPU is fully saturated. The RTX 5090 D, with its 32 GB of GDDR7 memory and 1.79 TB/s bandwidth, handles the 4K workload efficiently, but the CPU's role diminishes to ensuring that the GPU has a steady supply of draw calls. The fact that the 4K Ultra average of 90 FPS is still 50% above the playable threshold demonstrates that even at the most demanding settings, neither component is a limiting factor for achieving a smooth experience.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Examining the nearest rivals for the CPU, the Intel Core i7-13700K has an average benchmark score of 46,881. The AMD Ryzen 9 5900 is the closest competitor with a score of 46,971, representing a negligible 0.2% difference. This means users with a Ryzen 9 5900 would experience virtually identical CPU-bound performance in Downfall. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 scores 47,022, which is 0.3% higher, while the AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX and Intel Xeon w3-2535 both score 46,654, which is 0.5% lower. These rivals would produce nearly indistinguishable frame rates at 1080p Low settings, where the CPU has the most influence.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D has an average benchmark score of 77,712. The AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT is the closest rival with a score of 76,904, which is 1.1% lower. A system with this GPU would see roughly 1% lower frame rates in GPU-bound scenarios, meaning at 4K Ultra, the average could be expected to drop from 90 to around 89 FPS. The AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78,940, which is 1.6% higher, potentially pushing 4K Ultra to 91 FPS. The NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB and 16 GB variants score 79,396 and 79,605 respectively, which are 2.1% and 2.4% higher, though these are compute-focused cards unlikely to be used for gaming. The differences among all these rivals are minimal, meaning any of these GPU alternatives would deliver essentially the same Downfall experience, all well above the 60 FPS threshold.

The Verdict

The data clearly shows that this system can run Downfall at every resolution and preset combination tested. At 3840x2160, the verdict lists High, Low, Medium, and Ultra as playable settings, with the best settings being Ultra at an average of 90 FPS. This is 30 FPS above the 60 FPS playability threshold, providing a comfortable margin for frame drops in intense scenes. At 2560x1440, all settings are also playable, with Ultra achieving 144 FPS on average. At 1920x1080, Ultra delivers 202 FPS, which is over three times the playable threshold.

The minimum FPS figures support the verdict. At 4K Medium, the minimum is 149 FPS, which is 89 FPS above the threshold. Even if the game has unoptimized sections that cause frame dips, the system has enough headroom to stay well clear of 60 FPS. The conclusion is straightforward: this combination is far more powerful than Downfall requires, and users can enable the highest settings at any resolution without concern for playability.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank for the Intel Core i7-13700K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D in Downfall is 2 out of 3,716 tested combinations. This places it in the top 0.05% of all systems tested for this game, indicating that virtually no other configuration delivers higher frame rates. The rank of 2 suggests that only one other combination, likely featuring a higher-end CPU or GPU, produces better results. Given that the RTX 5090 D is one of the most powerful consumer GPUs available, the only likely contenders would be configurations with a more powerful CPU at low resolutions or an overclocked variant of the same GPU. The data confirms that this system is at the upper echelon of performance for Downfall, and any differences from the top-ranked combo would be marginal in real-world gameplay.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, with an average of 202 FPS. This is the highest settings preset available, and it delivers over three times the playable threshold. Users can enable all visual features without performance concerns.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset also achieves 144 FPS on average, which is 84 FPS above the threshold. The best settings are Ultra, and the system maintains high frame rates even in the most demanding scenarios.

At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset produces an average of 90 FPS, which is 30 FPS above the threshold. While this is the lowest average of any resolution and preset combination, it still clears the 60 FPS requirement with a substantial margin. The best settings are Ultra, and the data shows that even the minimum FPS for Medium (149) is far above the threshold, suggesting that Ultra would also maintain a playable minimum, though it is not explicitly listed.

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 4K Ultra settings?

A: The average FPS at 3840x2160 Ultra settings is 90 FPS, which is 30 FPS above the 60 FPS playability threshold.

*Q: Does this system ever drop below 60 FPS in Downfall?*

A: No. The lowest recorded minimum FPS is 149 at 4K Medium settings, and the lowest average across all tested configurations is 90 FPS at 4K Ultra.

Q: Which component has a greater impact on performance at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the CPU has a larger influence, as evidenced by the 482 FPS at Low settings versus 202 FPS at Ultra, which shows the GPU becoming the limiter as settings increase.

Q: How does this combo compare to other tested systems?

A: It ranks 2nd out of 3,716 tested combinations, meaning it outperforms 99.97% of all other configurations tested for Downfall.

Q: Can the system run the game at 4K with all settings maxed out?

A: Yes. The Ultra preset at 3840x2160 maintains an average of 90 FPS, which exceeds the 60 FPS threshold by a significant margin.

Q: What is the best settings preset for a 1440p monitor?

A: The Ultra preset at 2560x1440 delivers 144 FPS on average, making it the highest possible setting while maintaining performance far above the playable threshold.