Lockdown Protocol

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, this combination delivers limited frame rates across all tested presets. The High preset produces an average of 25 FPS, while Medium averages 29 FPS with a minimum of 24 and a maximum of 33. Low settings improve the average to 40 FPS, and Ultra drops to 19 FPS. None of these figures approach the 60 FPS playable threshold, indicating that 4K resolution is not viable for this game with this hardware pairing.

Moving to 2560x1440, the results show meaningful improvement but remain constrained. The Low preset reaches an average of 62 FPS, which clears the playable threshold. High settings average 39 FPS, Medium averages 44 FPS with a minimum of 38 and a maximum of 51, and Ultra falls to 29 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium is 18 FPS, suggesting that the step from Low to Medium imposes a substantial load on this GPU configuration.

At 1920x1080, the picture becomes more favorable. Low settings produce an average of 85 FPS, the highest recorded figure across all resolution and preset combinations. Medium settings average exactly 60 FPS, with a minimum of 51 and a maximum of 69, matching the playable threshold at the average level. High settings average 53 FPS, while Ultra drops to 40 FPS. The difference between Low and Medium at 1080p is 25 FPS, and the difference between Medium and High is 7 FPS, showing diminishing returns as settings climb.

The scaling pattern across resolutions is consistent. From 1080p Low (85 FPS) to 1440p Low (62 FPS), there is a 27% reduction in average frame rate. From 1440p Low to 4K Low (40 FPS), the reduction is another 35%. Similarly, at Medium settings, the progression goes from 60 FPS at 1080p to 44 FPS at 1440p to 29 FPS at 4K. The resolution scaling is steep, which is typical for a GPU with this memory bandwidth and pixel throughput.

How This Combo Ranks

The database records this CPU and GPU pairing at rank 3384 out of 3714 tested combinations for Lockdown Protocol. That places it in the lower 9% of all tested systems, meaning roughly 91% of recorded configurations outperform it in this specific game. The rank reflects the GPU's age and performance tier more than the CPU's capability, as the Ryzen 7 9700X is a modern high-end processor while the RX 580 is an end-of-life graphics card.

The percentile data supports this interpretation. The CPU sits at the 86th percentile among all tested processors, indicating strong overall compute performance. The GPU, however, sits at the 53rd percentile among all tested GPUs, which is near the median. When paired together, the GPU becomes the limiting factor for Lockdown Protocol's frame rates, especially at higher resolutions and presets.

The combination's rank of 3384 out of 3714 suggests that while the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU adequately, the GPU's raw throughput caps the achievable frame rates. This is particularly evident at 4K, where even the Low preset cannot reach 40 FPS average. The data shows a system that can handle competitive settings at 1080p but struggles beyond that.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate this combination achieves in Lockdown Protocol?

A: The highest recorded average is 85 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: Can this system run Lockdown Protocol at 1440p?

A: Yes, but only with Low settings, which produce an average of 62 FPS. Medium settings drop to 44 FPS, and High settings average 39 FPS, both below the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: What settings are playable at 1080p?

A: Both Low and Medium settings clear the 60 FPS threshold at 1920x1080. Low averages 85 FPS, and Medium averages exactly 60 FPS with a minimum of 51 FPS.

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

A: The Ryzen 7 9700X has an average benchmark score of 37943. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core i9-14901E, scores 37911, a difference of 0.1%. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 scores 37904, also 0.1% behind, and the Intel Core 5 211E scores 37829, 0.3% behind.

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

A: The RX 580 has an average benchmark score of 12928. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile scores 12940, which is 0.1% higher. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER scores 12986, 0.4% higher. The AMD Radeon 740M scores 12870, 0.5% lower, and the AMD FirePro W5100 scores 12847, 0.6% lower.

Q: Is 4K resolution playable with this hardware?

A: No. At 3840x2160, the best average is 40 FPS on Low settings, and all other presets fall below 30 FPS. The verdict data lists no playable settings at this resolution.

Similar Performance Alternatives

For the CPU, the nearest rivals in the database are all within 0.4% of the Ryzen 7 9700X's average benchmark score. The Intel Core i9-14901E scores 37911 (0.1% lower), the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 scores 37904 (0.1% lower), the Intel Core 5 211E scores 37829 (0.3% lower), and the AMD Ryzen AI Embedded P132 scores 37804 (0.4% lower). In practice, any of these processors would deliver nearly identical CPU-bound performance in Lockdown Protocol, meaning the frame rate differences would be negligible when paired with the same GPU.

For the GPU, the closest alternatives are the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile (12940, 0.1% higher), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER (12986, 0.4% higher), the AMD Radeon 740M (12870, 0.5% lower), and the AMD FirePro W5100 (12847, 0.6% lower). The GTX 1660 SUPER is particularly relevant as a desktop card that would produce nearly identical frame rates in this game. The RTX 3050 Ti Mobile, being a laptop part, would behave similarly but is less likely to be paired with a desktop CPU like the Ryzen 7 9700X in practice.

Systems using any of these CPU or GPU alternatives would land within roughly the same performance envelope for Lockdown Protocol. The recorded FPS values would differ by only a few frames per second at most, and the playable settings at each resolution would remain unchanged. The verdict at 1080p (Low and Medium playable), 1440p (Low playable), and 4K (nothing playable) would hold across all these near-identical components.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, no preset reaches the 60 FPS threshold. The best average is 40 FPS on Low settings, but this falls 20 FPS short of playable. The database records no playable settings for this resolution, so there is no recommended preset.

At 2560x1440, the only playable option is Low settings, which produces an average of 62 FPS. This clears the threshold by 2 FPS, leaving minimal headroom for demanding scenes. The recorded minimum for Low at 1440p is not listed, but the average suggests that frame drops could occasionally push below 60 FPS. Medium settings at 1440p average 44 FPS, so there is no room to increase visual quality while maintaining playability.

At 1920x1080, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Medium, which averages exactly 60 FPS with a minimum of 51 and a maximum of 69. While the average meets the threshold, the minimum of 51 FPS indicates that some scenes will dip below 60. Low settings at 1080p average 85 FPS, providing a much larger safety margin. The database's verdict lists both Low and Medium as playable at 1080p, with Medium being the best setting that still clears the average threshold.

The Verdict

This system can run Lockdown Protocol, but the playable range is narrow. At 1920x1080, both Low and Medium settings clear the 60 FPS average threshold, with Low at 85 FPS and Medium at 60 FPS. The minimum of 51 FPS on Medium means that consistent 60 FPS is not guaranteed, but the average meets the criterion. For a smoother experience, Low settings at 1080p offer the best margin.

At 2560x1440, only Low settings are playable, averaging 62 FPS. This is a marginal pass, and any increase in settings drops the average below the threshold. At 3840x2160, no settings are playable; the best average is 40 FPS on Low, which is well short of the 60 FPS target.

The overall verdict is that this combination is suitable for 1080p gaming with medium or lower presets, marginally suitable for 1440p with low presets, and unsuitable for 4K. Users seeking higher frame rates at 1440p or any playability at 4K would need a more powerful GPU, as the CPU is not the limiting factor in this configuration.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data reveals a clear division of labor between the two components. The Ryzen 7 9700X is a high-end processor with an 86th percentile ranking among all CPUs, while the RX 580 sits at the 53rd percentile among GPUs. For Lockdown Protocol, the GPU is the bottleneck at every resolution and preset combination.

The resolution scaling confirms this. At Low settings, average frame rates drop from 85 FPS at 1080p to 62 FPS at 1440p to 40 FPS at 4K. This steep decline is characteristic of GPU-bound workloads, where increasing pixel count directly taxes the graphics processor's fill rate and bandwidth. The RX 580's 256.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 42.88 GPixel/s pixel rate are the relevant constraints here.

The preset scaling further supports the GPU-bound conclusion. At 1080p, moving from Low to Medium costs 25 FPS, from Medium to High costs 7 FPS, and from High to Ultra costs 13 FPS. The largest drop occurs at the lowest settings step, which is where the GPU's shading units and TMUs become saturated. The CPU, with its 8 cores and 16 threads, has ample headroom for this game's demands at all tested configurations.

At 1440p, the pattern is similar: Low to Medium costs 18 FPS, Medium to High costs 5 FPS, and High to Ultra costs 10 FPS. At 4K, Low to Medium costs 11 FPS, and Medium to High costs 4 FPS, with Ultra dropping 6 FPS below High. The diminishing impact of preset changes at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU is increasingly pixel-bound rather than shader-bound.

The CPU's role becomes more relevant at lower resolutions and lower presets, where frame rates are higher and the GPU has less work per frame. At 1080p Low (85 FPS), the CPU must feed frames quickly enough to sustain that rate. The Ryzen 7 9700X's single-thread score of 1280 in 3DMark and 2211 in Cinebench R23 indicate it is more than capable of this task. The GPU remains the limiting factor even at 1080p Low, but the CPU headroom ensures that frame pacing does not introduce additional stutter.

In summary, the RX 580 dictates the playable settings and resolutions for Lockdown Protocol. The Ryzen 7 9700X provides a strong foundation that does not constrain the GPU at any tested setting, but it cannot compensate for the GPU's age and bandwidth limitations. Users upgrading this system would benefit most from a GPU replacement, as the CPU has substantial performance reserves for future graphics upgrades.