Lockdown Protocol

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus paired with the Intel Arc B580 delivers a clear, resolution-dependent performance story in Lockdown Protocol. At 1080p, this combination is fully capable of running the game at maximum settings with headroom above the 60 FPS playability threshold. Stepping up to 1440p requires a modest settings reduction to maintain smooth gameplay, while 4K is only viable at the lowest preset. The benchmark data shows a system that scales predictably with resolution, though the GPU becomes the primary constraint as pixel count increases.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this combo covers three resolutions and four settings presets, providing a complete picture of performance scaling. At 1920x1080, the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and Intel Arc B580 combination starts strong with 154 average FPS on Low settings. The Medium preset yields 109 average FPS with a minimum of 93 and maximum of 126, indicating consistent frame delivery. High settings produce 95 average FPS, while Ultra drops to 72 average FPS. All 1080p presets clear the 60 FPS threshold comfortably, with even the most demanding Ultra preset maintaining a 20% margin above the playability line.

Moving to 2560x1440, performance degrades as expected but remains respectable. Low settings deliver 113 average FPS, a significant drop from the 1080p Low result but still far above the threshold. Medium settings produce 80 average FPS with a minimum of 68 and maximum of 92, keeping frames above 60 even in the worst-case measurements. High settings yield 70 average FPS, which remains playable but with less headroom. The Ultra preset falls to 52 average FPS, missing the 60 FPS target by a noticeable margin.

At 3840x2160, the Arc B580's 12 GB GDDR6 memory and 192-bit bus begin to show limitations. Low settings still deliver 73 average FPS, making 4K playable only at the lowest quality tier. Medium settings drop to 52 average FPS with a minimum of 44 and maximum of 59, indicating that even the minimum frame rate falls well below the threshold. High settings produce 45 average FPS, while Ultra bottoms out at 34 average FPS. The 4K results show a steep performance cliff between Low and Medium, suggesting that the GPU's fill rate and bandwidth become critical factors at this resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

The data indicates this combination ranks 2795 out of 3714 tested combos for Lockdown Protocol, placing it in the lower-middle tier of the benchmark database. This ranking reflects the Arc B580's position relative to other GPUs — it sits at the 68th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23021. The nearest GPU rivals show a tight cluster: the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP scores 23061 (a -0.2% delta), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 scores 22895 (a 0.6% delta), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 scores 23172 (a -0.7% delta). This tells a clear story: the Arc B580 performs within a narrow band of these established cards, but none of them are modern high-end parts.

The CPU side paints a different picture. The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus ranks in the 96th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 93785. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Xeon 6520P at 93786 (a 0% delta), the AMD EPYC 4564P at 95183 (a -1.5% delta), and the AMD EPYC 9175F at 95615 (a -1.9% delta). The CPU is clearly not the bottleneck in this system — its 24 cores, 24 threads, and 5.50 GHz boost clock provide far more compute headroom than the game demands. The combo's overall rank of 2795 out of 3714 suggests that while the CPU is exceptional, the GPU holds the system back from higher placement.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Lockdown Protocol at 60 FPS on 1080p Ultra settings?

A: Yes. The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 Ultra is 72, which clears the 60 FPS playable threshold by 12 frames. This is the most demanding preset that stays playable at this resolution.

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

A: High settings at 1440p produce an average of 70 FPS, making it the highest quality preset that maintains playability. The Ultra preset at this resolution drops to 52 average FPS, below the threshold.

Q: Is 4K gaming viable with this combination?

A: Only at Low settings. The 3840x2160 Low preset achieves 73 average FPS, but Medium drops to 52 average FPS and High falls to 45 average FPS. The Ultra preset yields just 34 average FPS.

Q: How does the Arc B580 compare to the RTX 2080 in raw benchmark scores?

A: The Arc B580 scores 23021 on average benchmarks, while the RTX 2080 scores 22895. This represents a 0.6% delta in favor of the B580, placing them in essentially the same performance class.

Q: Which component is the limiting factor for this game at higher resolutions?

A: The GPU. The CPU ranks in the 96th percentile among all CPUs, while the GPU ranks in the 68th percentile. The steep FPS drops from 1440p to 4K — from 70 average FPS at 1440p High to 45 average FPS at 4K High — indicate the Arc B580 is the bottleneck.

Q: What is the lowest FPS measured across all tested configurations?

A: The 3840x2160 Ultra preset produces the lowest average at 34 FPS. In terms of minimum frame rates, the 4K Medium preset shows a minimum of 44 FPS, while the 1440p Medium shows a minimum of 68 FPS and the 1080p Medium shows a minimum of 93 FPS.

The Verdict

The verdict by resolution is clear and decisive. At 1920x1080, this system can run Lockdown Protocol at Ultra settings with an average of 72 FPS, well above the 60 FPS threshold. All four presets — Low at 154 FPS, Medium at 109 FPS, High at 95 FPS, and Ultra at 72 FPS — are playable. At 2560x1440, the system maintains playability across three presets: Low at 113 FPS, Medium at 80 FPS, and High at 70 FPS. The Ultra preset at 52 FPS falls short. At 3840x2160, only the Low preset at 73 FPS clears the threshold; Medium at 52 FPS, High at 45 FPS, and Ultra at 34 FPS are all unplayable by the 60 FPS standard.

For users targeting 1080p, this combo delivers a fully playable experience at maximum settings with room to spare. For 1440p, it offers a good experience at High settings, but pushing to Ultra requires accepting sub-60 FPS performance. At 4K, the system is only suitable for Low settings, making it a marginal choice for high-resolution gaming. The data shows that the Arc B580's 12 GB memory and 456.0 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for 1080p and 1440p gaming in this title, but the GPU's raw compute power — 13.67 TFLOPS FP32 — becomes the limiting factor at 4K.

CPU and GPU Roles

The CPU and GPU roles in Lockdown Protocol shift depending on resolution. At 1920x1080, the CPU's strength is evident in the high frame rates across all presets. The transition from Low to Ultra shows a scaling pattern: 154 FPS to 72 FPS, a 53% reduction. This indicates that at 1080p, the game is still partially CPU-bound at lower presets, where the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus's 24 threads and high boost clock can push frame rates beyond what the GPU can sustain.

At 2560x1440, the GPU begins to assert its influence. The Low preset drops from 154 FPS at 1080p to 113 FPS at 1440p, a 27% decline. The Ultra preset drops from 72 FPS to 52 FPS, a 28% decline. This consistent scaling suggests that the GPU is now the primary constraint, as the CPU has more than enough headroom to handle the increased resolution's draw calls and physics calculations. The Arc B580's 80 ROPS and 213.6 GPixel/s pixel rate are the likely limiting factors here.

At 3840x2160, the GPU bottleneck becomes severe. The Low preset drops from 113 FPS at 1440p to 73 FPS at 4K, a 35% decline. The Medium preset drops from 80 FPS to 52 FPS, a 35% decline. The Ultra preset drops from 52 FPS to 34 FPS, a 35% decline. The consistent 35% scaling across 1440p to 4K indicates that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth — 456.0 GB/s — are being saturated. The CPU's role at 4K is minimal, as the frame rates are entirely dictated by the GPU's ability to render pixels at this resolution.

Best Settings per Resolution

The most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS at each resolution is as follows:

At 1920x1080, the best settings are Ultra, with an average FPS of 72. This is the highest quality preset that maintains playability, and it does so with a 12 FPS margin above the threshold. Users can also choose High at 95 FPS, Medium at 109 FPS, or Low at 154 FPS for higher refresh rates.

At 2560x1440, the best settings are High, with an average FPS of 70. This preset offers a 10 FPS margin above the threshold. Medium at 80 FPS provides more headroom, while Low at 113 FPS is available for maximum frame rates. The Ultra preset at 52 FPS is not recommended for playable performance.

At 3840x2160, the best settings are Low, with an average FPS of 73. This is the only preset that clears the 60 FPS threshold at 4K, and it does so with a 13 FPS margin. Medium at 52 FPS, High at 45 FPS, and Ultra at 34 FPS all fall below the playability line. Users who prioritize visual quality over frame rate may consider Medium at 52 FPS, but the data clearly shows Low is the only playable option at this resolution.