Lockdown Protocol

Measured FPS Breakdown

The recorded data for Lockdown Protocol with this Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 combination shows a clear scaling pattern across resolutions and presets. At 3840x2160, the system delivers an average of 38 FPS on High settings, 62 FPS on Low, 44 FPS on Medium, and 29 FPS on Ultra. The Medium preset at 4K has the only complete min/max data in this resolution: minimum 37 FPS and maximum 50 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 4K is substantial, with the Ultra preset falling to less than half the frame rate of Low.

Moving to 2560x1440, the averages improve noticeably. High settings produce 59 FPS, Low reaches 96 FPS, Medium hits 68 FPS, and Ultra drops to 45 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p shows a minimum of 58 FPS and a maximum of 78 FPS, indicating that even the playable presets have some frame-time variance near the lower bound. The step from Medium to Ultra at this resolution costs 23 FPS on average, which is a steep penalty for the additional visual fidelity.

At 1920x1080, the system performs comfortably across all tested presets. High averages 81 FPS, Low averages 131 FPS, Medium averages 93 FPS, and Ultra averages 61 FPS. The Medium preset at 1080p records a minimum of 79 FPS and a maximum of 107 FPS, showing a tighter frame-time distribution than the higher resolutions. The jump from 1440p to 1080p at the same preset yields roughly 22 to 35 FPS gains depending on the quality level, with Low showing the largest absolute improvement.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Lockdown Protocol at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, but only on Low settings. The recorded average at 3840x2160 with Low is 62 FPS, which clears the 60 FPS playable threshold. Medium averages 44 FPS, High averages 38 FPS, and Ultra averages 29 FPS, all below the threshold.

Q: What is the best preset at 2560x1440 that stays above 60 FPS?

A: Medium is the most demanding preset at 1440p that remains playable, with an average of 68 FPS and a minimum of 58 FPS. High falls just short at 59 FPS average, and Ultra averages only 45 FPS.

Q: Does the Ultra preset ever reach 60 FPS at any resolution?

A: Yes, at 1920x1080. The Ultra preset averages 61 FPS at 1080p, which just clears the playable threshold. At 1440p Ultra averages 45 FPS, and at 4K Ultra averages 29 FPS.

Q: How large is the performance gap between Low and Ultra at 1080p?

A: The difference is 70 FPS on average. Low runs at 131 FPS while Ultra runs at 61 FPS, meaning Ultra delivers less than half the frame rate of Low despite still being playable.

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

A: The lowest recorded minimum is 37 FPS, which occurs at 3840x2160 with Medium settings. The other Medium preset measurements show a minimum of 58 FPS at 1440p and 79 FPS at 1080p.

Q: Is the 4K Medium preset close to the 60 FPS threshold?

A: No, it is 16 FPS short. The average is 44 FPS with a minimum of 37 FPS, so the frame rate consistently sits well below the playable threshold.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark results indicate that the GPU is the dominant constraint at higher resolutions, while the CPU provides sufficient headroom for lower resolutions and presets. The CPU, an Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus with 24 cores and 24 threads, ranks in the 96th percentile among all tested CPUs and has a multicore Cinebench R23 score of 51731. The GPU, a GTX 1070 from the Pascal architecture, ranks in the 47th percentile among all GPUs with a Passmark G3D score of 13498. This disparity in relative standing suggests the graphics card is the limiting factor in most scenarios.

The scaling between resolutions confirms this interpretation. At 1920x1080, the system achieves 131 FPS on Low, which indicates the CPU can feed the GPU with frames faster than the GPU can render at higher quality settings. When moving from 1080p Low to 1440p Low, the average drops from 131 to 96 FPS, a 27% reduction. From 1440p Low to 4K Low, the average drops from 96 to 62 FPS, another 35% reduction. This consistent degradation with increasing pixel count points to GPU-bound behavior.

The preset scaling at each resolution also supports the GPU-limited conclusion. At 1080p, raising settings from Low to Ultra reduces the average from 131 to 61 FPS, a 53% loss. At 1440p, the same preset change reduces the average from 96 to 45 FPS, a 53% loss. At 4K, the reduction is from 62 to 29 FPS, also a 53% loss. The consistent proportional penalty across resolutions indicates that the GPU's shading and memory bandwidth are the bottlenecks, not the CPU's processing capability.

The CPU's role becomes more apparent at low settings and 1080p, where the frame rate reaches 131 FPS. This level of performance suggests the CPU can sustain high instruction throughput without becoming a limiting factor. The CPU's single-thread score of 7303 in Cinebench R23 and Passmark single-thread score of 4823 indicate strong per-core performance, which matters for game logic and draw call submission. However, since the GPU cannot maintain playable frame rates at 4K Ultra, the CPU's headroom is not the deciding factor for the highest quality settings.

The Verdict

The data shows that this PC can run Lockdown Protocol, but the playable range depends heavily on the chosen resolution and preset. At 1920x1080, all four tested presets clear the 60 FPS threshold: High averages 81 FPS, Low averages 131 FPS, Medium averages 93 FPS, and Ultra averages 61 FPS. This makes 1080p the only resolution where users have full freedom to select any quality level.

At 2560x1440, two presets are playable: Low at 96 FPS and Medium at 68 FPS. High barely misses the threshold at 59 FPS, and Ultra falls well short at 45 FPS. The Medium preset at 1440p has a minimum of 58 FPS, which is slightly below the threshold, so users seeking a strict 60 FPS floor may prefer Low. At 3840x2160, only Low is playable with an average of 62 FPS. Medium, High, and Ultra at 4K all fall below the threshold, with averages of 44, 38, and 29 FPS respectively.

The verdict by resolution is clear: 1080p is fully playable at every preset, 1440p is playable at Low and Medium, and 4K is playable only at Low. The system does not have enough graphics performance for 4K gaming at higher quality levels, but it can handle 1080p Ultra with a small margin above the 60 FPS threshold.

Best Settings per Resolution

For 3840x2160, the best settings are Low, which delivers an average of 62 FPS. This is the only preset at 4K that stays at or above the 60 FPS playable threshold. The margin is narrow, only 2 FPS above the threshold, so users should expect occasional dips below 60 FPS during intense scenes.

For 2560x1440, the best settings are Medium, which delivers an average of 68 FPS. This preset provides a comfortable 8 FPS margin above the threshold. The measured minimum of 58 FPS indicates some frame-time variance, but the average stays playable. Users who prioritize a strict 60 FPS minimum should consider Low, which averages 96 FPS and has no recorded minimum below threshold.

For 1920x1080, the best settings are Ultra, which delivers an average of 61 FPS. This preset clears the threshold by just 1 FPS, making it a borderline choice. High settings at 81 FPS provide a safer margin, but Ultra is technically playable. The recorded data does not include a minimum FPS for Ultra at 1080p, so the frame-time consistency is unknown.

How This Combo Ranks

This CPU and GPU combination ranks 3068 out of 3714 tested combos in Lockdown Protocol. This places the system in the lower 18% of all tested configurations, which is consistent with the GPU's age and the demanding nature of the game at higher resolutions. The rank reflects the GPU's 47th percentile standing among all GPUs, which drags down the overall combo performance despite the CPU's strong 96th percentile ranking.

The combination's ranking suggests that most other tested systems deliver higher frame rates in this game. The CPU alone is not the issue, as its average benchmark score of 84003 places it in the top 4% of all CPUs. The bottleneck is clearly the GTX 1070, which has an average benchmark score of 9780 and ranks near the middle of all GPUs. For users considering this combo, the data indicates that upgrading the GPU would yield larger performance gains in Lockdown Protocol than upgrading the CPU.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Based on the nearest rivals in the database, several CPUs and GPUs would behave similarly to this combination. On the CPU side, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K has an average score of 83807, which is 0.2% lower than the 290K Plus. The AMD EPYC 4584PX scores 83090, 1.1% lower, and the AMD EPYC 9135 scores 82980, 1.2% lower. The AMD EPYC 7F72 scores 85072, which is 1.3% higher than the 290K Plus. These CPUs would produce nearly identical frame rates in Lockdown Protocol, since the game is likely GPU-bound in most configurations.

On the GPU side, the AMD FirePro W5000 has an average score of 9803, which is 0.2% higher than the GTX 1070's 9780. The NVIDIA Quadro M2000M scores 9832, 0.5% higher. The NVIDIA Tesla M10 scores 9724, 0.6% lower, and the NVIDIA Tesla C2070 scores 9716, 0.7% lower. These GPUs would deliver frame rates within a few percent of the GTX 1070, meaning users with any of these cards would experience similar playability in Lockdown Protocol: fully playable at 1080p across all presets, playable at 1440p up to Medium, and only playable at 4K on Low.

The practical implication is that swapping the CPU to a 285K or EPYC processor would not change the gaming experience, because the GPU remains the limiting factor. Swapping the GPU to a W5000 or Quadro M2000M would also produce nearly identical performance, as the benchmark scores are within 1% of the GTX 1070. Users looking for better frame rates in Lockdown Protocol would need to move to a significantly faster GPU, not one of these near-equivalent alternatives.