Lockdown Protocol

Similar Performance Alternatives

The Intel Core i5-11400F sits in a dense performance cluster. Its average benchmark score of 17,177 places it within 1% of several very different processors. The AMD EPYC 7H12 scores 17,120, a 0.3% delta, meaning the 6-core desktop chip and this server-class EPYC deliver nearly identical aggregate benchmark results. The Intel Core i5-12450H scores 17,239, just 0.4% higher, so laptop buyers or those comparing mobile parts would see similar CPU-bound behavior. The AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 8300G scores 17,278, a 0.6% delta, slightly ahead. The Intel Core Ultra 7 164U scores 17,074, a 0.6% delta, slightly behind. In practical terms, any of these CPUs would produce nearly indistinguishable frame pacing in CPU-limited scenarios for Lockdown Protocol.

The GPU side is more constrained. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti has an average benchmark score of 4,193, sitting at the 25th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are all older or entry-level parts. The AMD Radeon R5 M330 scores 4,170, a 0.6% delta, essentially identical. The NVIDIA Quadro K2100M scores 4,151, a 1% delta. The NVIDIA Quadro K3000M scores 4,241, a 1.1% delta, slightly faster. The AMD Radeon Vega 3 scores 4,268, a 1.8% delta, the fastest of the immediate neighbors. None of these alternatives would meaningfully change the gaming experience; all are in the same performance tier. The GTX 1050 Ti, with its 4 GB GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus and 112.1 GB/s bandwidth, represents the floor of acceptable modern gaming hardware.

CPU and GPU Roles

Lockdown Protocol is heavily GPU-bound for this combination. The data shows that dropping from 3840x2160 to 1920x1080 at the same settings produces massive FPS gains, which is the classic signature of GPU limitation. At High settings, the 3840x2160 average is 16.2 FPS, while 2560x1440 reaches 27.2 FPS and 1920x1080 reaches 39 FPS. That is a 141% improvement from 4K to 1080p at High settings. At Low settings, the jump is even larger: 29.1 FPS at 3840x2160, 44.4 FPS at 2560x1440, and 61.4 FPS at 1920x1080, a 111% gain from 4K to 1080p. If the CPU were the limiting factor, resolution changes would produce much smaller FPS deltas because the CPU workload stays roughly constant across pixel counts.

The CPU still matters for maintaining playable frame rates at lower resolutions. The i5-11400F, with 6 cores, 12 threads, a 4.40 GHz boost clock, and 12 MB of shared L3 cache, is more than capable of feeding this GPU. Its single-thread score of 868 in 3DMark and 2,024 in Cinebench R23 single-core indicate strong per-core performance. The GPU becomes the bottleneck at every resolution above 1920x1080 Low. At 2560x1440, even Low settings only produce 44.4 FPS, which is far below the GPU's potential if the CPU were limiting. The pattern across all settings and resolutions confirms that the GTX 1050 Ti is the primary constraint. The CPU percentile ranking at 71% of all CPUs versus the GPU at 25% of all GPUs further reinforces this imbalance.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the only resolution with any playable setting, the measured averages are as follows. Low settings deliver 61.4 FPS average, which clears the 60 FPS playable threshold by a slim 1.4 FPS margin. Medium settings drop to 46.5 FPS. High settings reach 39 FPS. Ultra settings fall to 28.2 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p is severe: Ultra produces 54% fewer frames than Low. No minimum or maximum FPS values were recorded for this resolution, so the data only reflects average performance.

At 2560x1440, all settings fall below playable. Low settings average 44.4 FPS. Medium averages 29.8 FPS. High averages 27.2 FPS. Ultra averages 21.4 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium at 1440p is 14.6 FPS, while the gap between Medium and High is only 2.6 FPS, suggesting diminishing returns from Medium to High. The jump from High to Ultra costs another 5.8 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the results are uniformly poor. Low settings average 29.1 FPS. Medium averages 22 FPS. High averages 16.2 FPS. Ultra averages 15.7 FPS. Even the best case, Low at 4K, delivers less than half the 60 FPS target. The difference between High and Ultra at 4K is only 0.5 FPS, indicating that Ultra settings add negligible visual load beyond High. The overall pattern shows that this combination is only viable at 1080p with Low settings, and even then barely.

FAQ

Q: Can this combination run Lockdown Protocol at 60 FPS at 1920x1080?

A: Yes, but only at Low settings. The measured average at 1080p Low is 61.4 FPS, which exceeds the 60 FPS playable threshold by 1.4 FPS. Medium settings fall to 46.5 FPS, so there is no headroom for higher quality presets.

Q: What is the best settings preset for 2560x1440?

A: There is no playable preset at 1440p. The highest average FPS recorded at this resolution is 44.4 FPS at Low settings. Medium, High, and Ultra all produce averages below 30 FPS, making the resolution unsuitable for this hardware.

Q: How does the GTX 1050 Ti compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The GTX 1050 Ti scores 4,193 on average. The AMD Radeon R5 M330 is 0.6% slower, the NVIDIA Quadro K2100M is 1% slower, the NVIDIA Quadro K3000M is 1.1% faster, and the AMD Radeon Vega 3 is 1.8% faster. All five GPUs are within a 3% performance band.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the bottleneck in Lockdown Protocol?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor at all resolutions and settings. Evidence includes the large FPS gains when lowering resolution: at High settings, 1080p produces 39 FPS versus 16.2 FPS at 4K, a 141% improvement. The CPU, ranked at the 71st percentile of all CPUs, is substantially stronger than the GPU, which sits at the 25th percentile.

Q: What average FPS does Ultra settings produce at 1920x1080?

A: Ultra settings at 1080p average 28.2 FPS. This is 33.2 FPS below the 60 FPS threshold and 33.2 FPS below the Low preset average, showing that Ultra is not viable on this hardware.

Q: What is the best playable setting at 3840x2160?

A: There is no playable setting at 4K. The highest average is 29.1 FPS at Low settings, which is less than half the 60 FPS target. All other presets at 4K fall below 22 FPS.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 1920x1080, the only playable preset is Low, which averages 61.4 FPS. This is the most demanding setting that stays at or above 60 FPS, and it is the only setting that does so. Medium, High, and Ultra all fail the threshold. The margin is tight: 1.4 FPS above the playable line. Any additional background load or driver overhead could push this below 60 FPS.

At 2560x1440, no setting achieves 60 FPS. The best case is Low at 44.4 FPS, which is 15.6 FPS below the threshold. There is no "best settings" recommendation because playability is not achievable.

At 3840x2160, no setting achieves 60 FPS. The best case is Low at 29.1 FPS, which is 30.9 FPS below the threshold. This resolution is entirely outside the capability of this hardware.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core i5-11400F plus NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti combination ranks 3,656 out of 3,714 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This places it in the bottom 1.6% of all tested systems. Only 58 combinations rank lower. The percentile position aligns with the component-level data: the CPU is at the 71st percentile of all CPUs, but the GPU is at the 25th percentile, and the game is GPU-bound. The low ranking reflects the GPU's inability to drive acceptable frame rates at any resolution above 1080p Low.

For context, this combo is effectively at the bottom of the playable spectrum. It can run Lockdown Protocol at 1080p Low with an average of 61.4 FPS, but it has no headroom for quality improvements or resolution scaling. The 4 GB VRAM and 112.1 GB/s memory bandwidth of the GTX 1050 Ti are the structural limits. The CPU, by contrast, would not prevent a much stronger GPU from achieving significantly higher frame rates. Any upgrade path should focus on the GPU first, as the i5-11400F has sufficient headroom to support a faster graphics card without becoming the new bottleneck.