Downfall

Measured FPS Breakdown

The recorded data for Downfall with the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 and Intel Arc B370 shows a clear performance curve that falls sharply as resolution increases. At 1920x1080, the combination delivers playable frame rates across most presets. The Low preset averages 96 FPS, Medium averages 78 FPS with a minimum of 67 FPS and a maximum of 90 FPS, and High averages 64 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to 40 FPS average, which falls below the 60 FPS playability threshold.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance picture weakens considerably. Low settings still clear the threshold with an average of 68 FPS. Medium averages 56 FPS, with the recorded range showing 48 FPS minimum and 64 FPS maximum. High settings drop to 46 FPS average, and Ultra falls to 29 FPS average. The gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 39 FPS, indicating that preset selection has an outsized impact on the experience.

At 3840x2160, none of the presets reach the 60 FPS threshold. Low settings produce the best result with 43 FPS average. Medium averages 35 FPS, with a recorded range of 30 to 40 FPS. High settings manage 29 FPS average, while Ultra bottoms out at 18 FPS average. The scaling from 1080p Low to 4K Low shows a reduction of 53 FPS, which points to the GPU being the limiting factor as pixel count rises.

The measured data includes full min/max readings only for the Medium preset at each resolution. At 1080p Medium, the spread between minimum and maximum is 23 FPS. At 1440p Medium, the spread narrows to 16 FPS. At 4K Medium, the spread is 10 FPS. This compression of frame time variance at higher resolutions suggests the system becomes more consistently bound by the graphics pipeline rather than fluctuating with scene complexity.

CPU and GPU Roles

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 is a 10-core, 10-thread processor from the Core Ultra Series 2 line, built on the Arrow Lake architecture using a 3 nm process. It posts a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 25891 and a single-core score of 3655, placing it in the 85th percentile among all CPUs in the database. The Arc B370, by contrast, sits in the 5th percentile among all GPUs with a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1184. This massive disparity in relative standing explains the performance pattern in Downfall.

At 1920x1080, the CPU has enough headroom to feed the GPU adequately, and the frame rates scale smoothly across presets. The jump from Low to Medium at 1080p costs 18 FPS, and the jump from Medium to High costs another 14 FPS. These are moderate penalties that reflect the GPU handling increased shading and texture work. The drop from High to Ultra is larger, 24 FPS, which suggests the Ultra preset introduces effects that disproportionately burden the Arc B370.

At 2560x1440, the GPU becomes the dominant constraint. The Low preset still delivers 68 FPS, but every step up in quality produces a steeper penalty than at 1080p. Medium loses 12 FPS from Low, High loses another 10 FPS, and Ultra loses another 17 FPS. The total spread from Low to Ultra at 1440p is 39 FPS, compared to a 56 FPS spread at 1080p. As resolution climbs, the GPU approaches its ceiling, and the CPU's role diminishes further.

At 3840x2160, the Arc B370 is clearly overwhelmed. The difference between Low and High at 4K is only 14 FPS, and the difference between Medium and Ultra is 17 FPS. The frame rates cluster in a narrow band between 18 and 43 FPS, which indicates that the GPU is saturated regardless of how much load is removed by lowering settings. The Core Ultra 5 225 has ample compute capacity, as shown by its PassMark multi-thread score of 30459 and integer math score of 65345, but this capacity goes unused when the GPU cannot render frames fast enough to consume it.

The scaling data across resolutions reinforces this interpretation. At Low settings, dropping from 1080p to 1440p reduces the average by 28 FPS, and dropping from 1440p to 4K reduces it by another 25 FPS. At High settings, the same transitions cost 18 FPS and 17 FPS respectively. The fact that the frame rate penalty for resolution increases shrinks as the preset gets heavier suggests that the GPU is already near its limit at lower resolutions and cannot maintain the same relative performance as pixel count grows.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the best preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is High, with an average of 64 FPS. This is the most visually demanding option among the playable presets at this resolution, and it clears the threshold by 4 FPS. Medium also qualifies with 78 FPS, and Low qualifies with 96 FPS, but High represents the best balance of quality and playability according to the recorded data.

At 2560x1440, the only preset that reaches the 60 FPS threshold is Low, with an average of 68 FPS. Medium falls short at 56 FPS, High at 46 FPS, and Ultra at 29 FPS. The verdict data confirms Low as the best settings choice at this resolution, with an average FPS of 68.

At 3840x2160, no preset achieves 60 FPS. The verdict by resolution lists no playable settings at this resolution. The closest option is Low with 43 FPS, but it remains well below the playability threshold. Users targeting 4K would need to consider lower internal resolutions or accept a frame rate that does not meet the 60 FPS standard.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the Intel Core Ultra 5 225 are closely clustered. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600F has an average benchmark score of 36945, which is 0% different from the Core Ultra 5 225's average score of 36938. The AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D scores 37018, a delta of -0.2%. The AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 450 scores 37093, a delta of -0.4%. The Intel Core i9-12900T scores 37112, a delta of -0.5%. In practical terms, any of these CPUs would deliver nearly identical CPU-bound performance in Downfall, and the frame rates recorded for this combo would remain essentially unchanged if one of these processors were substituted.

The nearest rivals for the Intel Arc B370 are all older or lower-tier GPUs. The ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5570 scores 1186, a delta of -0.2% from the Arc B370's 1184. The ATI Radeon HD 5770 scores 1190, a delta of -0.5%. The AMD Radeon HD 7650M scores 1192, a delta of -0.7%. The AMD FirePro M2000 scores 1168, a delta of 1.4%. These deltas are all within 2% of the Arc B370, which means the measured FPS in Downfall would be nearly identical with any of these GPUs installed. The Arc B370's 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 1184 places it in a performance tier that is effectively interchangeable with these rivals for this game.

The Verdict

This PC can run Downfall, but only under specific conditions. At 1920x1080, the system delivers playable performance on High, Medium, and Low presets, with High averaging 64 FPS. This is the strongest result in the measured data and represents the recommended configuration for a 60 FPS experience. At 2560x1440, only Low settings clear the threshold, with an average of 68 FPS. At 3840x2160, no preset reaches 60 FPS, and the best available option is Low at 43 FPS, which falls short of the playability standard.

The verdict by resolution confirms this assessment. For 1920x1080, the playable settings are High, Low, and Medium, with High as the best settings option at 64 FPS average. For 2560x1440, Low is the only playable setting, averaging 68 FPS. For 3840x2160, there are no playable settings. The verdict data lists no best settings for 4K because no preset meets the 60 FPS requirement.

The limiting factor is unambiguously the GPU. The Arc B370's 5th percentile ranking among all GPUs, combined with its 6.144 TFLOPS FP32 throughput and 20 ROPs, explains why the system struggles as resolution increases. The Core Ultra 5 225, with its 85th percentile CPU ranking and strong single-thread score of 3655 in Cinebench R23, is not the bottleneck in this configuration. Users who want to play Downfall at higher resolutions or presets would need a more capable GPU than the Arc B370, while the CPU could remain unchanged without affecting the outcome.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 paired with the Intel Arc B370 ranks 3429 out of 3716 tested combinations in the database for Downfall. This places the combo in the bottom 8% of all tested systems, which is consistent with the GPU's low percentile ranking. The CPU's strong benchmark performance does not compensate for the GPU's limited rendering capability in this title.

The rank reflects the measured FPS data across all resolutions and presets. The combo's inability to reach 60 FPS at 4K on any setting, and its restricted options at 1440p, drag the overall ranking down despite the playable 1080p results. The system is best suited for 1080p gaming in Downfall, where it can achieve 60 FPS on High settings, but it cannot extend that performance to higher resolutions. For users with 1080p displays, this combination is adequate for the game. For users with 1440p or 4K displays, the data indicates that the Arc B370 is the limiting component and would need to be replaced to achieve a satisfactory experience.