Downfall

# Can Intel Core Ultra 5 235 + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Run Downfall?

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers overwhelming performance in Downfall, a 2016 horror title with modest system demands. Benchmark data shows this combination exceeds the 60 FPS playability threshold at every resolution and preset tested, from 1920x1080 Low at 442 FPS average down to 3840x2160 Ultra at 82 FPS average. The GPU's Ada Lovelace architecture and 24 GB of GDDR6X memory provide massive headroom, while the CPU's Arrow Lake design with 14 cores and a 5.00 GHz boost clock ensures no bottleneck at even the highest frame rates. This analysis covers component roles, alternative hardware with similar performance, optimal settings per resolution, and a full measured FPS breakdown.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest playable preset at 4K resolution with this combination?

A: Ultra settings at 3840x2160 achieve 82 FPS average, which clears the 60 FPS playability threshold. All four presets (Low, Medium, High, Ultra) are playable at 4K, with Ultra delivering the most demanding visual experience while staying above the threshold.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in overall benchmark scores?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 posts an average benchmark score of 46062, sitting within 0.2% of the AMD EPYC 4364P (45970) and AMD EPYC 7303 (45960). It is 0.1% ahead of the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 (46030) and 0.1% behind the Intel Core i9-13900HX (46098).

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking among all tested graphics cards?

A: The RTX 4090 ranks in the 88th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 60347. Its nearest rival by average score is the Intel Arc Pro A60 at 60326, a difference of 0%.

Q: What frame rates does the RTX 4090 achieve at 1440p with Medium settings?

A: At 2560x1440 with Medium settings, the combination produces 258 FPS average, with a minimum of 219 FPS and a maximum of 297 FPS. This represents a substantial margin over the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested CPU-GPU combinations in Downfall?

A: This specific pairing ranks 109th out of 3716 tested combinations, placing it in the top 3% of all systems benchmarked for this game. The data confirms it is a high-end configuration by any measure.

Q: Does the CPU's single-thread performance support high frame rates?

A: The Core Ultra 5 235 achieves a PassMark single-thread score of 4516 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2085, indicating strong per-core performance. This is sufficient to drive the very high frame rates observed, such as 442 FPS at 1080p Low.

CPU and GPU Roles

The RTX 4090 is the dominant component in this pairing for Downfall, as evidenced by the massive frame rate headroom across all resolutions. The GPU's 82.58 TFLOPS FP32 compute capability and 1.01 TB/s memory bandwidth allow it to process the horror game's visual effects with ease. At 1920x1080 Low, the system reaches 442 FPS average, a figure that is almost certainly GPU-bound only in the sense that the CPU can feed frames fast enough; the Core Ultra 5 235's 14 threads and 5.00 GHz boost clock prevent any significant processor bottleneck.

As resolution increases, the GPU's workload grows disproportionately compared to the CPU's. The data shows a clear scaling pattern: 1080p High delivers 296 FPS, 1440p High drops to 212 FPS (a 28% reduction), and 4K High falls to 132 FPS (a 55% reduction from 1080p). This steep decline with resolution is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, where the RTX 4090's fixed compute resources are spread across more pixels. The CPU's role remains constant across resolutions, so the observed FPS differences directly reflect GPU processing load.

Preset scaling further illustrates the GPU's primary role. At 4K, moving from Low (196 FPS) to Medium (161 FPS) to High (132 FPS) to Ultra (82 FPS) shows a 58% performance drop from the lowest to highest preset. This is consistent with the GPU handling increased shading, texture detail, and post-processing effects. The CPU's contribution is secondary; its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 14769 and PassMark multi-thread score of 37816 are more than adequate for this 2016 title, which predates the CPU's release by nearly a decade.

At 1080p, the CPU's role becomes slightly more pronounced relative to the GPU. The 442 FPS Low result and 361 FPS Medium result suggest that at these extreme frame rates, per-thread performance matters. The CPU's PassMark single-thread score of 4516 places it in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, ensuring that even the highest FPS scenarios remain smooth. However, the fact that 4K Ultra still delivers 82 FPS indicates the GPU remains the limiting factor even at maximum settings.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The RTX 4090's nearest rivals by average benchmark score are professional and workstation graphics cards, which behave similarly in raw compute terms but differ in gaming optimization. The Intel Arc Pro A60 (60326 average score, 0% delta) and AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 (60140, 0.3% delta) are the closest matches, though neither is designed primarily for gaming. The AMD Radeon Pro W6600M (61896, -2.5% delta) scores slightly higher on average, while the AMD Radeon PRO V710 (58657, 2.9% delta) lags by a small margin. In Downfall's actual gameplay, these alternatives would likely produce similar frame rates at lower resolutions, but the RTX 4090's 24 GB memory and dedicated RT cores give it an edge at 4K Ultra where memory bandwidth becomes critical.

On the CPU side, the Core Ultra 5 235's nearest rivals are a mix of mobile and server processors. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 (46030, 0.1% delta) and Intel Core i9-13900HX (46098, -0.1% delta) are laptop-class chips that would behave nearly identically in Downfall, given the game's modest CPU demands. The AMD EPYC 4364P (45970, 0.2% delta) and AMD EPYC 7303 (45960, 0.2% delta) are server processors with similar aggregate scores but different core configurations. For this game, any of these CPUs would support the same FPS range, as the GPU is the primary performance driver. The Core Ultra 5 235's 24 MB L3 cache and dual-channel DDR5 memory support at 102.4 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for the horror title's streaming and physics workloads.

The Verdict

This PC runs Downfall flawlessly at every resolution and preset combination. The verdict data confirms all four presets—Low, Medium, High, and Ultra—are playable at 3840x2160, 2560x1440, and 1920x1080, with average frame rates never dropping below 82 FPS. The playable threshold is 60 FPS, and the lowest recorded average is 82 FPS at 4K Ultra, meaning there is always at least 37% headroom above the minimum. The RTX 4090's 24 GB GDDR6X memory and 16384 shading units handle the game's horror atmosphere, lighting effects, and texture work without strain.

At 1920x1080, the system delivers 442 FPS on Low, 361 FPS on Medium, 296 FPS on High, and 185 FPS on Ultra. These numbers are far beyond what any display can show—a standard 60 Hz or 144 Hz monitor would be the limiting factor, not the hardware. At 2560x1440, the same pattern holds with 315 FPS Low, 258 FPS Medium, 212 FPS High, and 132 FPS Ultra. Even at 4K, the weakest result is 82 FPS on Ultra, which still exceeds the 60 FPS threshold by a comfortable margin. For a game released in 2016, this modern high-end combination is massively overqualified, but for users seeking maximum visual quality at high refresh rates, the performance is exemplary.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that maintains at least 60 FPS is Ultra, which achieves 185 FPS average. This is the highest quality option and provides more than triple the playability threshold. The full range of presets is viable, with Low at 442 FPS, Medium at 361 FPS, and High at 296 FPS. For users with high-refresh-rate monitors, Medium or High would be preferable to reduce GPU load, but Ultra remains the best visual choice.

At 2560x1440, Ultra is again the best setting, delivering 132 FPS average. This comfortably exceeds 60 FPS and even supports 120 Hz displays. The progression from Low (315 FPS) to Medium (258 FPS) to High (212 FPS) shows ample headroom at every step. The minimum recorded frame rate at Medium is 219 FPS, which is still far above the threshold, indicating consistent performance without dips.

At 3840x2160, Ultra provides 82 FPS average, which is the only preset that approaches the playability threshold but still clears it. High (132 FPS), Medium (161 FPS), and Low (196 FPS) all offer higher frame rates, but Ultra is the most demanding option that remains playable. Users prioritizing visual fidelity over frame rate can select Ultra with confidence; those preferring smoother motion for high-refresh 4K displays should drop to High or Medium. The minimum frame rate at 4K Medium is 136 FPS, showing that even the heaviest scenes stay well above 60 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

Among 3716 tested CPU-GPU combinations in Downfall, this pairing ranks 109th, placing it in the top 3% of all systems. This is a strong result for a CPU that was released in January 2025 and a GPU that has been end-of-life since the launch of the GeForce 50 series. The rank reflects the combination's ability to maintain high frame rates across all resolutions and presets, with the RTX 4090's 88th percentile GPU score and the Core Ultra 5 235's 89th percentile CPU score working in concert.

The top 108 combinations presumably feature even more powerful GPUs or CPUs with higher raw scores, but the practical difference in Downfall is negligible given the game's age and modest requirements. The RTX 4090's nearest rivals by average benchmark score are workstation cards like the Intel Arc Pro A60 and AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48, which would likely rank similarly in this game despite their different market positioning. The Core Ultra 5 235's rivals, including the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 and Intel Core i9-13900HX, would produce nearly identical results, as the game is not CPU-limited at these frame rates. This 109th ranking reflects the balanced nature of the pairing—both components are near the top of their respective performance tiers.

Measured FPS Breakdown

1920x1080:

• Low: 442 FPS average
• Medium: 361 FPS average, 307 FPS minimum, 416 FPS maximum
• High: 296 FPS average
• Ultra: 185 FPS average

At 1080p, the system delivers extraordinarily high frame rates across all presets. The Medium preset shows a minimum of 307 FPS and a maximum of 416 FPS, a range of 109 FPS that indicates frame pacing variability but no performance dips below the playable threshold. The gap between Low and Ultra is 257 FPS, reflecting the GPU's heavy workload at maximum settings even at this resolution.

2560x1440:

• Low: 315 FPS average
• Medium: 258 FPS average, 219 FPS minimum, 297 FPS maximum
• High: 212 FPS average
• Ultra: 132 FPS average

At 1440p, frame rates remain exceptionally high. The Medium preset's minimum of 219 FPS ensures smooth gameplay even in demanding scenes. The progression from Low to Ultra shows a 183 FPS drop, consistent with the increased pixel count and settings complexity. The 4K-to-1440p scaling factor for Medium is 1.60x (161 FPS to 258 FPS), indicating that resolution scaling has a predictable effect on performance.

3840x2160:

• Low: 196 FPS average
• Medium: 161 FPS average, 136 FPS minimum, 185 FPS maximum
• High: 132 FPS average
• Ultra: 82 FPS average

At 4K, the RTX 4090 still dominates. Ultra's 82 FPS average is the lowest result across all tests but remains 22 FPS above the playability threshold. The Medium preset's minimum of 136 FPS shows that even the most demanding scenes at 4K stay well within playable territory. The scaling from 1080p to 4K at Ultra is 2.26x (185 FPS to 82 FPS), which reflects the 4x pixel count and the GPU's diminishing returns at extreme resolutions. The 24 GB VRAM capacity is never stressed in this game, as the 2016 title's texture sizes are modest by modern standards. Overall, the data confirms that this combination provides a flawless experience in Downfall, with every resolution and preset option exceeding the 60 FPS threshold by a wide margin.