Evolve

The Intel Core i5-10400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 delivers a performance profile that is heavily skewed by resolution. At 1080p and 1440p, this combination produces frame rates that far exceed the 60 FPS playability threshold, even at the highest settings. At 4K, the pairing remains capable, but the Ultra preset dips just below the 60 FPS line, making High the recommended ceiling. The data shows a system where the RTX 5080 provides immense graphical headroom, while the i5-10400F becomes an increasingly significant factor as resolution drops.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the recorded average frame rates show a clear progression tied to settings. The Low preset averages 135.3 FPS, which is a substantial margin over the Medium preset at 108 FPS. High settings produce an average of 82.6 FPS, while the Ultra preset drops to 59.9 FPS. This means that moving from Low to Ultra at 4K costs roughly 75 FPS on average, a steep penalty for the additional visual fidelity. The gap between Medium and High is 25.4 FPS, while the gap between High and Ultra is 22.7 FPS, indicating that the Ultra preset is disproportionately expensive at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates are considerably higher across the board. The Low preset averages 191.4 FPS, Medium reaches 178.8 FPS, and High hits 143.8 FPS. Ultra settings still manage an average of 100.2 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra here is 91.2 FPS, which shows that the GPU still has enough headroom at 1440p to absorb the settings scaling without falling below the playable threshold. The step from Medium to High is the largest single drop at 35 FPS, while the drop from High to Ultra is 43.6 FPS.

At 1920x1080, the averages are the highest in the dataset. Low settings produce 221.1 FPS, Medium reaches 201.1 FPS, High delivers 183.8 FPS, and Ultra still holds at 151.9 FPS. The total delta between Low and Ultra is 69.2 FPS, which is smaller than the delta at 1440p. This compression of the frame rate range at 1080p suggests that the CPU is beginning to limit the maximum output, preventing the GPU from stretching its legs as far as it does at higher resolutions. Even so, every preset at 1080p clears 150 FPS on average, which is far beyond what most displays can refresh.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is High, with an average of 82.6 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 59.9 FPS, which falls just short of the 60 FPS playability threshold. Medium and Low also clear the threshold, but High offers the best balance of visual quality and performance for 4K. The data indicates that High is the ceiling for this resolution, while Ultra should be avoided if a consistent 60 FPS baseline is the goal.

At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset is fully playable with an average of 100.2 FPS. This is the best visual preset available in the dataset, and it comfortably exceeds the 60 FPS threshold. High, Medium, and Low also clear the threshold, but Ultra is the recommended choice because it delivers the highest fidelity without sacrificing playability. The 100.2 FPS average at Ultra leaves a comfortable margin above the threshold, so even demanding scenes should remain fluid.

At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset averages 151.9 FPS, making it the clear choice for this resolution. All four presets exceed the 60 FPS threshold by a wide margin, with Low reaching 221.1 FPS. The recommendation is straightforward: run Ultra at 1080p. The GPU has enough headroom that even the heaviest settings do not threaten the playability threshold, and the resulting frame rates are suitable for high-refresh-rate displays.

CPU and GPU Roles

The scaling between resolutions and presets reveals how the CPU and GPU divide the workload in this game. At 4K, the GPU is the dominant factor. The frame rate drops steadily as settings increase, from 135.3 FPS at Low to 59.9 FPS at Ultra, which is a classic GPU-bound pattern. The i5-10400F has enough single-thread and multi-thread performance to feed the RTX 5080 at this resolution, as evidenced by the strong averages even at Low settings. The CPU benchmarks support this: the i5-10400F scores 688 in 3dmark single-thread and 4748 in 3dmark 16 threads, which are adequate for a 2015-era FPS title.

At 1440p, the balance shifts slightly. The frame rates are higher than at 4K, but the gap between Low and Ultra grows to 91.2 FPS, suggesting the GPU is still the primary constraint. However, the smaller delta between Low and Medium at 1440p, compared to the delta between Medium and High, hints that the CPU is starting to matter more. The CPU's Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 10283 and single-core score of 1451 indicate that it can handle the game's logic, but the RTX 5080 is clearly the bottleneck at this resolution.

At 1080p, the CPU becomes the limiting factor. The frame rates are high, but the compression of the range between presets, from 221.1 FPS at Low to 151.9 FPS at Ultra, shows that the GPU has more headroom than the CPU can utilize. The i5-10400F, with its 6 cores and 12 threads, caps the maximum output. The data shows that the RTX 5080 is capable of far more at 1080p, but the CPU prevents it from reaching those heights. This is a common pattern for high-end GPUs paired with mid-range CPUs: at lower resolutions, the CPU's instruction throughput becomes the ceiling.

The CPU's nearest rivals in the database reinforce its position. The Intel Xeon 6756E scores 14163, a delta of 0.2 percent from the i5-10400F's average benchmark score of 14185. The AMD EPYC 7552 scores 14115, a delta of 0.5 percent. These are essentially equivalent scores, meaning the i5-10400F is a solid mid-pack performer for this workload. The GPU's nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE, scores 57367, which is 2.2 percent higher than the RTX 5080's average benchmark score of 56083. This puts the RTX 5080 in a competitive position, though the CPU pairing is what ultimately shapes the frame rates at lower resolutions.

FAQ

Q: Can this PC run Evolve at 4K with Ultra settings?

A: No. The Ultra preset at 3840x2160 averages 59.9 FPS, which is just below the 60 FPS playability threshold. High settings average 82.6 FPS and are the best playable option at 4K.

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

A: Ultra is the best choice at 2560x1440, with an average of 100.2 FPS. All four presets exceed the 60 FPS threshold, so the highest visual quality is fully playable.

Q: How much faster is Low compared to Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low averages 221.1 FPS while Ultra averages 151.9 FPS. The difference is 69.2 FPS, and both are far above the 60 FPS threshold.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the main bottleneck at 1080p?

A: The CPU is the limiting factor at 1080p. The frame rate range from Low to Ultra is compressed compared to 1440p, indicating the i5-10400F caps the maximum output before the RTX 5080 can be fully utilized.

Q: Does the RTX 5080 outperform its nearest rival in benchmark scores?

A: The RTX 5080 has an average benchmark score of 56083, which is 2.2 percent lower than the AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE at 57367. It is 0.6 percent higher than the AMD Radeon 8060S at 55757.

Q: What is the playable threshold for this game?

A: The playable threshold in the database is 60 FPS. At 4K, High, Medium, and Low clear it. At 1440p and 1080p, all presets including Ultra clear it.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of an Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 ranks 526 out of 3700 tested combinations in the database for Evolve. That places it in the top 14 percent of all tested combos, which is a strong showing for a CPU from the Comet Lake generation paired with a current-generation GPU. The rank reflects the measured frame rates across all resolutions and settings, and the data shows that the combo is more competitive at higher resolutions where the GPU dominates. At 1080p, the CPU's limitations pull the rank down slightly, but the overall position is still solid.

The CPU itself sits at the 68th percentile when compared to all CPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 14185. Its nearest rival, the Intel Xeon 6756E, scores 14163, a delta of 0.2 percent. The AMD Ryzen 3 7320C scores 14277, a delta of -0.6 percent, meaning the i5-10400F is essentially in a dead heat with several other processors from different segments. This mid-pack positioning explains why the combo rank is not higher, as the CPU holds back the GPU at lower resolutions.

The GPU is at the 87th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 56083. Its nearest rivals are close in score, the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB at 55698 and the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X at 54828. The RTX 5080 is 0.7 percent ahead of the RX 6750 GRE and 2.3 percent ahead of the Pro W5700X. This level of GPU performance is more than sufficient for Evolve, and the combo rank of 526 out of 3700 reflects that the GPU carries the pairing in most scenarios.

The Verdict

This PC can run Evolve, and it can do so at high frame rates across most of the tested configurations. At 1920x1080, every preset is playable, with Ultra averaging 151.9 FPS, High at 183.8 FPS, Medium at 201.1 FPS, and Low at 221.1 FPS. The 60 FPS threshold is cleared by a massive margin at this resolution, making 1080p is a non-issue for this combo. At 2560x1440, the story is similar, with all four presets clearing the threshold, and Ultra averaging 100.2 FPS. The recommendation is to run Ultra at 1440p, as the GPU handles the load without breaking a sweat.

At 3840x2160, the verdict is more nuanced. High is the best playable setting with an average of 82.6 FPS, and Medium at 108 FPS and Low at 135.3 FPS also clear the threshold. The Ultra preset at 59.9 FPS is the only configuration that fails to hit 60 FPS, and it misses by a razor-thin margin. If 4K is the target, High is the recommended setting, and it will still deliver a fluid experience. The data shows that this combo is a capable 4K machine for Evolve, just not at maximum settings. For anyone building around this pairing, the practical takeaway is to prioritize resolution over preset quality. The RTX 5080 provides enough power for 4K High, and the i5-10400F is sufficient for the game's CPU demands at that resolution. At 1440p and below, the system has performance to spare, making it a versatile option for Evolve across a wide range of display configurations.