Minimum

The AMD Ryzen 5 5500 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 presents a stark contrast in hardware tiers, but for the 2014 third-person shooter Minimum, the combination yields exceptionally high frame rates across all tested configurations. The measured data indicates that this system never falls below the 60 FPS playable threshold at any resolution or preset, with performance scaling predictably from 1080p up to 4K.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system delivers triple-digit average frame rates in every preset. The Low settings produce an average of 325.9 FPS, while Medium reaches 293.8 FPS. High settings drop slightly to 253.8 FPS, and the most demanding Ultra preset still maintains an average of 192 FPS. These numbers suggest that the CPU becomes a limiting factor at this resolution, as the gap between Low and Ultra is relatively modest compared to higher resolutions.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain exceptionally high but show a clearer separation between presets. Low settings average 254.5 FPS, Medium hits 191.4 FPS, and High reaches 162.2 FPS. Ultra settings at 1440p produce 124.1 FPS average, which is still more than double the playable threshold. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p shows a reduction of roughly 20-25% across most presets, indicating that the GPU is beginning to take on more responsibility.

At 3840x2160, the RTX 4090’s workload increases substantially. Low settings still deliver a strong 135 FPS average, while Medium drops to 102.4 FPS. High settings fall to 85.7 FPS, and Ultra settings bottom out at 65.2 FPS. Even at 4K Ultra, the system remains above the 60 FPS threshold, though the margin narrows considerably compared to lower resolutions. The transition from 1440p to 4K reduces performance by approximately 47% at Ultra settings, from 124.1 to 65.2 FPS, demonstrating the GPU’s increasing dominance.

The data shows no minimum or maximum FPS values were recorded, leaving only average frame rates for analysis. The consistency between resolution steps suggests the game scales efficiently with GPU load, and the Ryzen 5 5500’s six cores and twelve threads are sufficient to keep the RTX 4090 fed at all tested settings.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark results indicate a clear division of labor between the AMD Ryzen 5 5500 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 depending on resolution. At 1080p, the CPU’s role is more prominent, as evidenced by the relatively small performance delta between Low and Ultra settings (325.9 vs 192 FPS). This 41% drop suggests that the Ryzen 5 5500’s single-thread performance, measured at 836 in 3DMark single-thread and 3058 in PassMark single-thread, is sufficient to drive high frame rates but begins to cap the GPU’s output at lower graphical loads.

As resolution increases to 1440p, the GPU takes on more work, and the spread between presets widens. The difference between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 130.4 FPS (254.5 vs 124.1), a 51% reduction. At 4K, the gap grows further: Low produces 135 FPS while Ultra yields 65.2 FPS, a 52% reduction. This pattern confirms that the RTX 4090’s raw throughput, with its 82.58 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 1.01 TB/s memory bandwidth, becomes the primary bottleneck as pixel count rises.

The scaling between resolutions at the same preset reinforces this analysis. At Low settings, moving from 1080p to 1440p reduces performance by 22% (325.9 to 254.5 FPS), while moving to 4K reduces it by 59% (325.9 to 135 FPS). At Ultra settings, the same transitions show reductions of 35% (192 to 124.1 FPS) and 66% (192 to 65.2 FPS). The larger percentage drops at Ultra settings indicate that the GPU’s shading units and texture units are more heavily taxed as both resolution and graphical complexity increase.

The Ryzen 5 5500’s 16 MB of L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory bandwidth of 51.2 GB/s are adequate for this title, but the data suggests that at 4K Ultra, the system is operating near the CPU’s limit for maintaining frame pacing. The GPU’s 24 GB of GDDR6X memory provides ample headroom, as Minimum is unlikely to consume even a fraction of that capacity, but the sheer computational demand at 4K Ultra pushes the combination to its lowest recorded average.

Similar Performance Alternatives

Looking at the CPU’s nearest rivals, the AMD Ryzen AI 5 430 scores 19617 in average benchmark performance, a 0.1% delta from the Ryzen 5 5500’s 19593. This indicates near-identical CPU-bound behavior in Minimum. The Intel Core i5-12500 scores 19668, performing 0.4% better, while the Intel Core i7-10700F scores 19499, trailing by 0.5%. The Intel Core i5-11600KF scores 19723, leading the Ryzen 5 5500 by 0.7%. Any of these processors would deliver virtually indistinguishable frame rates in this game when paired with the RTX 4090, since the GPU dominates at higher resolutions and the CPU differences are within a single percentage point.

For the GPU side, the RTX 4090’s nearest rivals show remarkably tight performance clustering. The Intel Arc Pro A60 matches the RTX 4090 with a 0% delta, scoring 60326 against 60347. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 scores 60140, a 0.3% difference, while the AMD Radeon PRO V710 trails by 2.9% with a score of 58657. The AMD Radeon Pro W6600M leads by 2.5% with a score of 61896. These deltas are small enough that in a GPU-bound scenario like 4K Ultra in Minimum, the frame rate differences would be minimal—likely only a few FPS at most.

In practical terms, swapping the RTX 4090 for any of these rivals would keep the system well above 60 FPS at all tested settings. The nearest rival GPU’s performance delta of at most 2.9% translates to roughly 2-3 FPS difference at 4K Ultra, where the RTX 4090 averages 65.2 FPS. The CPU side is even less impactful, with rivals differing by less than 1%, meaning the Ryzen 5 5500’s performance in this game is representative of a broad range of mid-range processors.

The Verdict

This system can run Minimum at every resolution and preset combination tested, with all 12 measured configurations clearing the 60 FPS playable threshold. The verdict data confirms that all four settings—Low, Medium, High, and Ultra—are playable at 1920x1080, 2560x1440, and 3840x2160.

At 1080p, the system delivers overwhelming performance, with even Ultra settings averaging 192 FPS, which is more than triple the playable threshold. At 1440p, Ultra settings produce 124.1 FPS, providing a comfortable margin for high-refresh-rate displays. At 4K, the system remains playable at all settings, though Ultra averages 65.2 FPS, leaving only a small buffer above the 60 FPS minimum. For gamers prioritizing visual fidelity at 4K, Ultra settings are viable, but the 85.7 FPS average at High settings offers a more comfortable cushion.

The combination’s rank of 177 out of 3712 tested combos places it in the top 4.8% of all CPU-GPU pairings tested for this game, reflecting the RTX 4090’s 88th percentile standing among all GPUs and the Ryzen 5 5500’s 73rd percentile among all CPUs. The data is measured rather than estimated, adding confidence to these results.

FAQ

*Q: Can this PC run Minimum at 4K Ultra settings?*

A: Yes. The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 Ultra is 65.2 FPS, which clears the 60 FPS playable threshold, though the margin is slim.

Q: What is the best settings preset at 1920x1080?

A: Ultra settings are playable and recommended, producing an average of 192 FPS, which is the highest quality preset available.

Q: How much performance drops when moving from 1080p to 4K at High settings?

A: High settings average 253.8 FPS at 1080p and 85.7 FPS at 4K, representing a 66% reduction.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important at 1440p?

A: The GPU becomes more dominant at 1440p, as shown by the 51% gap between Low (254.5 FPS) and Ultra (124.1 FPS), compared to a 41% gap at 1080p.

Q: Would a similar CPU like the Intel Core i5-12500 perform noticeably differently?

A: No. The i5-12500 has an average benchmark score 0.4% higher than the Ryzen 5 5500, which would translate to less than 1 FPS difference in Minimum.

Q: Does the system ever drop below 60 FPS in any tested configuration?

A: No. The lowest recorded average is 65.2 FPS at 3840x2160 Ultra, which remains above the playable threshold.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, with an average of 65.2 FPS. This is the only resolution where the margin is tight, but the data confirms playability.

At 2560x1440, Ultra settings are again the best choice, delivering 124.1 FPS average. This provides ample headroom above the 60 FPS threshold while offering the highest visual quality.

At 1920x1080, Ultra settings yield 192 FPS average, making it the clear recommendation. The system has so much performance at this resolution that even the most demanding preset leaves a massive buffer, and users could comfortably target high-refresh-rate displays or enable additional graphical enhancements without risking frame rate stability.