Lockdown Protocol

Measured FPS Breakdown

The recorded data for Lockdown Protocol with the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 covers three resolutions and four settings presets. At 3840x2160, the combination produces an average of 22 FPS on High, 26 FPS on Medium, 36 FPS on Low, and 17 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset at this resolution is the only one with a recorded variance range: minimum 22 FPS and maximum 29 FPS. These figures place every 4K preset well below the 60 FPS playability threshold.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages improve but remain sub-60 across the board. High settings deliver 35 FPS, Medium delivers 40 FPS, Low delivers 56 FPS, and Ultra delivers 26 FPS. The Medium preset again provides the only min/max data: 34 FPS minimum and 46 FPS maximum. The Low preset at 1440p comes closest to the threshold, but its 56 FPS average still misses the mark by a meaningful margin.

At 1920x1080, the picture changes significantly. Low settings produce an average of 76 FPS, which clears the 60 FPS threshold with headroom. Medium settings average 54 FPS, with a recorded range of 46 FPS minimum and 62 FPS maximum. High settings average 47 FPS, and Ultra settings average 35 FPS. The data shows a clear pattern: only the lowest preset at the lowest tested resolution achieves playable performance, and even that result is not a landslide victory given the min/max data is absent for Low.

The scaling from 1080p to 1440p is steep. At Low settings, the average drops from 76 FPS to 56 FPS, a reduction of 26%. At High settings, the drop is from 47 FPS to 35 FPS, a 26% reduction as well. From 1440p to 4K, Low settings fall from 56 FPS to 36 FPS, a 36% reduction. The pattern is consistent across presets: each resolution step costs roughly a quarter to a third of the frame rate, and at 4K the GPU is clearly overwhelmed.

CPU and GPU Roles

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is a 20-core, 20-thread processor with a boost clock of 5.30 GHz and a 65 W TDP. Its benchmark scores are strong, including a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42216 and a single-core score of 5960. On PassMark, the multi-thread score is 49682 and the single-thread score is 4689. The processor sits in the 93rd percentile among all CPUs, indicating it has ample headroom for almost any gaming workload.

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650, by contrast, is a much older and weaker component. It has 896 shading units, 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus, and a boost clock of 1665 MHz. Its PassMark G3D score is 7880, placing it in the 40th percentile among all GPUs. The FP32 throughput is 2.984 TFLOPS, and the memory bandwidth is 128.1 GB/s. These specifications suggest a GPU that was modest at launch and is now far below modern gaming demands.

The FPS data indicates that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at every resolution and preset. The CPU is capable of far more than the GPU can feed it. Evidence comes from the resolution scaling: at 1080p Low, the combo reaches 76 FPS, but at 1440p Low it drops to 56 FPS, and at 4K Low it falls to 36 FPS. This scaling pattern is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario, where the rendering resolution directly dictates the frame rate because the graphics card is the limiting factor.

The CPU's role is not entirely negligible, but its influence is secondary. The Core Ultra 7 265 maintains high single-thread and multi-thread scores, which means it will not cause frame drops in CPU-limited scenes such as large firefights or complex physics calculations. However, the GTX 1650's modest fill rate and memory bandwidth cap the overall performance. The gap between the CPU's 93rd percentile ranking and the GPU's 40th percentile ranking is stark, and the measured FPS reflects that imbalance.

Across presets at a fixed resolution, the FPS drops as settings increase, which again points to GPU-bound behavior. At 1080p, Low scores 76 FPS, Medium scores 54 FPS, High scores 47 FPS, and Ultra scores 35 FPS. The consistent step-down pattern is exactly what one expects when the GPU's shading units and memory bandwidth are saturated by higher quality textures and effects. The CPU could handle Ultra settings without issue, but the GPU cannot.

FAQ

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

A: Yes, but only on Low settings. The recorded average FPS at 1080p Low is 76, which clears the 60 FPS playability threshold. At Medium, the average drops to 54 FPS, which is below the threshold.

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

A: None of the presets at 1440p achieve 60 FPS. The closest is Low with an average of 56 FPS. Medium averages 40 FPS, High averages 35 FPS, and Ultra averages 26 FPS. The database lists no playable settings for this resolution.

Q: How does the GTX 1650 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The GPU's average benchmark score is 7472. The nearest rival is the Intel Arc A310 with an average score of 7550, which is 1% ahead. The AMD Radeon HD 8850M scores 7447, which is 0.3% behind. The Intel UHD Graphics 750 scores 7441, also 0.3% behind. The AMD Radeon R7 350 scores 7425, which is 0.6% behind.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor?

A: The GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU scores in the 93rd percentile among all CPUs, while the GPU scores in the 40th percentile among all GPUs. The FPS drops sharply as resolution increases, which indicates GPU-bound performance.

Q: What are the minimum and maximum FPS at 1080p Medium?

A: The recorded minimum is 46 FPS and the maximum is 62 FPS, with an average of 54 FPS. This means even at the peak, the frame rate barely touches the 60 FPS threshold, and dips go well below it.

Q: Does the GTX 1650 support modern APIs needed for this game?

A: Yes, the GPU supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The API support is not the bottleneck; the raw performance is.

The Verdict

The question is whether this PC can run Lockdown Protocol. The answer depends entirely on resolution and settings. At 3840x2160, the answer is no. The highest average FPS at 4K is 36 on Low settings, and Ultra drops to 17 FPS. None of the 4K presets come close to the 60 FPS playability threshold. At 2560x1440, the answer is still no. The best result is 56 FPS on Low, which is below the threshold. Medium, High, and Ultra all fall further behind, with averages of 40, 35, and 26 FPS respectively.

At 1920x1080, the answer is a qualified yes. The Low preset achieves an average of 76 FPS, which clears the threshold with 16 FPS of headroom. However, Medium drops to 54 FPS, High drops to 47 FPS, and Ultra drops to 35 FPS. This means the system can run the game at 1080p only if the user is willing to accept the lowest quality settings. The database lists Low as the sole playable setting at 1080p, with an average FPS of 76.

The verdict is clear: this is a 1080p Low-settings machine for Lockdown Protocol. The GPU's age and modest specifications prevent anything beyond that. The CPU is not the issue, but it cannot compensate for the GPU's limitations. Users with a 1440p or 4K monitor will need to lower resolution or upgrade the graphics card. The data shows no playable settings at 1440p or 4K, so the only path to 60 FPS is 1080p with minimal graphical fidelity.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the CPU's nearest rivals, the Intel Core Ultra 7 265F is the closest match, with an average benchmark score of 64438 versus the 265's 64640, a delta of 0.3%. The AMD EPYC 4464P scores 64823, which is 0.3% ahead. The AMD EPYC 7343 scores 64202, 0.7% behind, and the AMD EPYC 9124 scores 65104, 0.7% ahead. For gaming, any of these CPUs would perform nearly identically in Lockdown Protocol, since the GPU is the bottleneck. The Core Ultra 7 265F is the most direct substitute, being the same architecture minus integrated graphics.

For the GPU, the nearest rivals are all within 1% of the GTX 1650's average score of 7472. The Intel Arc A310 scores 7550, which is 1% ahead. The AMD Radeon HD 8850M scores 7447, 0.3% behind. The Intel UHD Graphics 750 scores 7441, 0.4% behind. The AMD Radeon R7 350 scores 7425, 0.6% behind. None of these alternatives would meaningfully change the FPS in Lockdown Protocol. The Intel Arc A310 might offer a marginal improvement, but the difference is within measurement noise. Users with any of these GPUs should expect similar performance, meaning 1080p Low is the ceiling for 60 FPS.

The combination of a high-end CPU with a low-end GPU is unusual, and the alternatives reflect that. If the GPU were swapped for a stronger model, the CPU would not be the limiting factor. But among the recorded rivals, there is no GPU that would push this combo to 1440p or 4K playability. The data shows that the GTX 1650's performance class is firmly in the 1080p Low tier for this game.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, no settings preset achieves 60 FPS. The best average is 36 FPS on Low, but that is still far below the threshold. The database lists no playable settings at 4K, so the recommendation is to avoid this resolution entirely for Lockdown Protocol.

At 2560x1440, the situation is identical. No preset reaches 60 FPS. The closest is Low at 56 FPS, which misses the threshold by 4 FPS. Medium, High, and Ultra are progressively worse. The database records no playable settings at 1440p, so users should not expect a smooth experience at this resolution.

At 1920x1080, the best playable setting is Low, with an average of 76 FPS. This is the only preset that clears the 60 FPS threshold. Medium averages 54 FPS, which is below the threshold, and High and Ultra are even lower at 47 and 35 FPS respectively. The verdictByResolution data confirms that Low is the best settings choice at 1080p, with an average FPS of 76. Users who prioritize frame rate over visual quality should select Low and enjoy a playable experience. Users who insist on Medium or higher will need to accept sub-60 FPS performance.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 plus NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 combination ranks 3580 out of 3714 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This places it in the bottom 4% of all tested systems. The rank is unsurprising given the GPU's age and performance class. The GTX 1650 was released in 2019 and is now end-of-life, with a PassMark G3D score in the 40th percentile. The CPU is new and powerful, but it cannot overcome the GPU's limitations in a graphics-intensive game.

The low rank is driven entirely by the GPU. The CPU's 93rd percentile ranking among all CPUs is excellent, but the combo's overall performance is dragged down by the GTX 1650. In a game like Lockdown Protocol, where the GPU is the bottleneck at all resolutions, the CPU's strength is irrelevant to the final FPS. The rank of 3580 reflects the reality that this system is only suitable for 1080p Low settings, and even then, it barely exceeds the 60 FPS threshold.

For context, the GPU's nearest rivals all score within 1% of its average benchmark score, meaning any of those alternatives would produce a similar rank. The CPU's nearest rivals are also close, with deltas under 1%. This combo is representative of a class of systems where a modern CPU is paired with an entry-level or older GPU, resulting in GPU-bound performance. The data suggests that upgrading the GPU would be the only meaningful path to a higher rank and better playability at higher resolutions.