Downfall

The Intel Core i7-14700K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER delivers overwhelming performance in Downfall, a 2016 horror title that is clearly not demanding by modern standards. Benchmark data shows this combination achieves playable frame rates at every resolution and preset tested, with the RTX 4080 SUPER proving to be the dominant factor in determining performance. The measured FPS figures reveal that even at 4K Ultra settings, the system maintains an average of 73.2 FPS, comfortably above the 60 FPS playability threshold. This analysis examines the specific roles of the CPU and GPU, how this combo ranks among tested systems, and provides detailed performance breakdowns for each resolution and settings preset.

FAQ

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

A: The benchmark data shows an average of 73.2 FPS at 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings, which exceeds the 60 FPS playability threshold by a significant margin.

Q: How does performance scale from 1080p to 4K at High settings?

A: At 1920x1080 High settings, the average FPS is 267.7, which drops to 192.4 FPS at 2560x1440, and further to 120.7 FPS at 3840x2160. This represents a 55% reduction in frame rate from 1080p to 4K.

Q: Is the RTX 4080 SUPER the limiting factor in this combo?

A: Yes, the GPU is clearly the bottleneck. At 1080p Low settings, the system achieves 397.9 FPS, while at 4K Ultra it drops to 73.2 FPS. The Intel Core i7-14700K has a 94th percentile ranking among all CPUs, while the RTX 4080 SUPER sits at the 86th percentile among GPUs, indicating the GPU is the weaker component.

Q: What is the best settings preset at 1440p for this combo?

A: The verdict data indicates Ultra settings at 2560x1440 produce an average of 117.6 FPS, making it the best playable preset at that resolution, well above the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the RTX 4080 SUPER compare to its closest rival, the RTX 4080?

A: The RTX 4080 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 54209, while the RTX 4080 scores 54247, a deltaPct of -0.1%. This means the two GPUs perform nearly identically in synthetic benchmarks.

Q: Does the CPU hold back performance at any resolution?

A: The data does not suggest CPU limitation. At 1080p Low settings, the system produces 397.9 FPS, which would require enormous CPU throughput. The Intel Core i7-14700K's nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X, is only 0.2% faster in average benchmark score, indicating the CPU is more than capable for this game.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark results reveal a clear division of labor between the Intel Core i7-14700K and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER in Downfall. At 1920x1080 with Low settings, the system achieves 397.9 FPS, which represents the absolute ceiling of what this hardware can produce. As resolution increases to 2560x1440, the Low preset drops to 284.9 FPS, a 28.4% decrease. Moving to 3840x2160 Low settings yields 177.9 FPS, representing a 55.3% reduction from the 1080p figure. This scaling pattern is characteristic of GPU-bound scenarios, where the rendering workload increases with pixel count.

The GPU's dominance becomes even more apparent when examining the Ultra preset across resolutions. At 1080p Ultra, the system produces 165 FPS, which drops to 117.6 FPS at 1440p (a 28.7% decrease) and 73.2 FPS at 4K (a 55.6% decrease from 1080p). The consistency of these percentage drops across both Low and Ultra presets strongly suggests that the RTX 4080 SUPER is the primary performance driver at all resolution and settings combinations tested.

The CPU's role appears minimal in this title. The Intel Core i7-14700K, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, ranks in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X, has an average benchmark score of 69515 compared to the i7-14700K's 69355, a negligible 0.2% difference. Given that this is a 2016 horror game, the CPU demands are likely modest, and the i7-14700K's single-core performance (2160 in Cinebench R23 single-core) provides more than enough headroom for the game's logic and physics calculations.

The RTX 4080 SUPER, with its 10240 shading units and 52.22 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, demonstrates its capability through the FPS scaling. The transition from Medium to High settings at 4K shows a 15.5% performance drop (142.9 to 120.7 FPS), while High to Ultra shows a 39.4% drop (120.7 to 73.2 FPS). These diminishing returns indicate that Ultra settings impose a significantly heavier graphics workload, further confirming the GPU as the bottleneck component.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i7-14700K + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER combination ranks 272nd out of 3716 tested combos in Downfall, placing it in the top 7.3% of all systems in the database. This ranking reflects the high-end nature of both components, though the position is somewhat surprising given the hardware's capabilities. The RTX 4080 SUPER's 86th percentile ranking among all GPUs and the i7-14700K's 94th percentile CPU ranking suggest the combo should perform better than its 272nd position indicates.

The gap between the component percentiles and the combo ranking suggests that other factors, such as memory configuration or driver optimization, may influence the final ranking. The combo's position among 3716 total combinations means there are 271 systems that perform better, likely featuring even more powerful GPUs like the RTX 4090 or newer generation hardware. The data shows that the RTX 4080 SUPER's nearest rival, the RTX 4080, has an average score of 54247 versus 54209 for the SUPER variant, meaning these two GPUs are virtually interchangeable in performance.

The ranking also reflects the age of the game. Downfall released in 2016, and modern high-end hardware can easily overpower its requirements. The 397.9 FPS at 1080p Low settings demonstrates that the system is far from being stressed, and the combo's rank of 272 is likely more indicative of the database's composition than any limitation in this specific hardware pairing.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The Intel Core i7-14700K's nearest rivals in average benchmark score provide interesting alternatives for users considering this CPU. The AMD EPYC 9115 has an average score of 69288, a deltaPct of 0.1% compared to the i7-14700K's 69355. This server-class processor would offer similar CPU performance, though its platform requirements differ significantly. The AMD Ryzen 9 7950X scores 69515, representing a -0.2% deltaPct, meaning it is essentially equal in performance to the i7-14700K. The Ryzen 9 7940HX (69875, -0.7%) and Ryzen 7 9700F (69996, -0.9%) round out the closest competitors, all within 1% of the i7-14700K's average benchmark score.

For the GPU side, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER's nearest rival is the standard RTX 4080, which scores 54247 against the SUPER's 54209, a deltaPct of -0.1%. This means users with an RTX 4080 would see nearly identical performance in Downfall. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X (54828, -1.1%) and AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (55698, -2.7%) also fall within 3% of the RTX 4080 SUPER's performance, though these are less common gaming choices. The AMD Radeon 8060S (55757, -2.8%) completes the list of comparable GPUs.

When considering this combo as a whole, users with an RTX 4080 instead of the SUPER variant would experience virtually identical frame rates in Downfall, as the 0.1% average benchmark difference translates to less than 1 FPS at the frame rates measured. Similarly, swapping the i7-14700K for a Ryzen 9 7950X would produce no perceptible difference in game performance, given the 0.2% average score delta.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080 resolution, the system delivers exceptional performance across all settings. Low settings produce an average of 397.9 FPS, while Medium settings yield 324.6 FPS, representing a 18.4% reduction. High settings average 267.7 FPS, a 17.5% drop from Medium, and Ultra settings produce 165 FPS, a 38.4% decrease from High. The progression from Low to Ultra at 1080p shows a total performance reduction of 58.5%, yet even the lowest figure of 165 FPS is nearly three times the 60 FPS playability threshold.

At 2560x1440 resolution, the performance scaling follows a similar pattern. Low settings average 284.9 FPS, Medium settings produce 233.2 FPS (an 18.1% reduction), High settings yield 192.4 FPS (a 17.5% drop), and Ultra settings average 117.6 FPS (a 38.9% decrease). The step from 1080p to 1440p at each preset shows reductions of 28.4% for Low, 28.2% for Medium, 28.1% for High, and 28.7% for Ultra, demonstrating consistent scaling with resolution.

At 3840x2160 resolution, the system still maintains excellent performance. Low settings produce 177.9 FPS, Medium settings average 142.9 FPS (a 19.7% reduction), High settings yield 120.7 FPS (a 15.5% drop), and Ultra settings produce 73.2 FPS (a 39.4% decrease). The jump from 1440p to 4K results in reductions of 37.5% for Low, 38.7% for Medium, 37.3% for High, and 37.8% for Ultra, showing that the 4K resolution imposes a consistent additional load across all settings presets.

The Verdict

This PC can absolutely run Downfall at maximum settings across all tested resolutions. The verdict data confirms that at 3840x2160, all four settings presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) are playable, with the best setting being Ultra at an average of 73.2 FPS. At 2560x1440, the same holds true, with Ultra producing 117.6 FPS. At 1920x1080, Ultra settings achieve 165 FPS, nearly three times the 60 FPS threshold.

The 4K Ultra result of 73.2 FPS is particularly noteworthy because it demonstrates that the system exceeds the playability threshold even under the most demanding configuration tested. The 60 FPS playable threshold is cleared by a 22% margin at 4K Ultra, and by much larger margins at lower resolutions. There is no scenario in the measured data where the system falls below 60 FPS, making this combo a definitive recommendation for Downfall players.

The RTX 4080 SUPER's 16 GB of GDDR6X memory and 736.3 GB/s bandwidth provide ample resources for the game's textures and effects at 4K, while the i7-14700K's 33 MB of L3 cache and 5.60 GHz boost clock ensure no CPU-related frame drops. The system's performance headroom is substantial, suggesting it could handle future titles with higher requirements, though this analysis is limited to Downfall data.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that maintains at least 60 FPS is Ultra, with an average of 165 FPS. This provides a 175% margin over the playability threshold, meaning the system has enormous headroom at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, Ultra settings are also the best choice, producing an average of 117.6 FPS. This represents a 96% margin above the 60 FPS threshold, confirming that even the heaviest settings at 1440p are well within the system's capabilities.

At 3840x2160, the best playable setting is again Ultra, achieving 73.2 FPS on average. While this is the lowest FPS figure in the entire dataset, it still exceeds the 60 FPS threshold by 22%, ensuring smooth gameplay. For players seeking maximum visual fidelity at 4K, Ultra settings are the recommended choice, as the system maintains playable frame rates without requiring any compromises in graphics quality.