Minimum

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Medium. The recorded average at this setting is 70.5 FPS, which clears the playable threshold with a modest margin. High at 4K drops to 59.7 FPS, just below the 60 FPS floor, so it cannot be recommended for a stable experience. Ultra at 4K falls further to 43.8 FPS, which is noticeably below the threshold and not suitable for smooth gameplay. Low at 4K delivers 88.3 FPS, but since Medium is both more visually demanding and still above 60 FPS, Medium is the correct choice for this resolution.

At 2560x1440, all four presets are playable. The best setting is Ultra, which averages 82 FPS. This is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold, and it is the most demanding preset available. High at this resolution delivers 107.7 FPS, Medium 125.9 FPS, and Low 166.8 FPS. Since even Ultra holds at 82 FPS, there is no reason to compromise on visual quality here. The headroom is sufficient for a high-refresh experience, though not enough to push toward very high refresh rates at maximum settings.

At 1920x1080, Ultra is again the best setting, with an average of 125.9 FPS. This is more than double the playable threshold, leaving substantial headroom for demanding scenes. High averages 163.5 FPS, Medium 200.8 FPS, and Low 259.4 FPS. The data indicates that even the most demanding preset is far above the 60 FPS floor, so the combination is effectively unconstrained at 1080p. For owners of high-refresh monitors, dropping to Medium or High would unlock very high frame rates, but for a standard 60 FPS target, Ultra is the clear recommendation.

CPU and GPU Roles

The measured FPS scaling across resolutions and presets reveals how the workload shifts between the Intel Core i5-9400 and the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT. At 1920x1080, the frame rate is extremely high across all presets, from 125.9 FPS at Ultra to 259.4 FPS at Low. The gap between Low and Ultra is 133.5 FPS, which indicates that the GPU is doing most of the work, but the CPU is not limiting the frame rate even at Low where the GPU load is lightest.

Moving to 2560x1440, the same pattern holds but with lower absolute numbers. Low delivers 166.8 FPS, while Ultra drops to 82 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra is a reduction of 84.8 FPS, or roughly half the Low value. This is consistent with a GPU-bound scenario where increasing pixel count and settings raises the GPU load proportionally. The CPU still appears to have headroom, since even the lowest preset at this resolution produces frame rates well above the playable threshold.

At 3840x2160, the GPU becomes the dominant constraint. Low averages 88.3 FPS, Medium 70.5 FPS, High 59.7 FPS, and Ultra 43.8 FPS. The spread from Low to Ultra is 44.5 FPS, and the progression is nearly linear as settings increase. This is the signature of a GPU-bound workload. The CPU's role is reduced at 4K because the GPU is saturated by the pixel and shading workload, so the i5-9400's six cores do not become a bottleneck at any preset.

The data suggests that at 1080p and 1440p, the RX 6800 XT is the primary driver of performance, but the i5-9400 keeps up without dragging down the average. At 4K, the GPU is clearly the limiting factor, and the CPU has ample capacity. The scaling between resolutions also supports this: moving from 1080p Ultra (125.9 FPS) to 1440p Ultra (82 FPS) is a drop of 43.9 FPS, and moving to 4K Ultra (43.8 FPS) is a further drop of 38.2 FPS. This steep decline with resolution is typical of a GPU-limited configuration.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the recorded averages are as follows: Low 259.4 FPS, Medium 200.8 FPS, High 163.5 FPS, Ultra 125.9 FPS. The step from Low to Medium is a drop of 58.6 FPS, from Medium to High a drop of 37.3 FPS, and from High to Ultra a drop of 37.6 FPS. The frame rate remains above 120 FPS at every preset, so the combination is highly capable at this resolution.

At 2560x1440, the averages are: Low 166.8 FPS, Medium 125.9 FPS, High 107.7 FPS, Ultra 82 FPS. The largest single step is from Medium to High at 18.2 FPS, followed by High to Ultra at 25.7 FPS. Low to Medium drops 40.9 FPS. All presets remain above 80 FPS, which is sufficient for smooth gameplay on most displays.

At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low 88.3 FPS, Medium 70.5 FPS, High 59.7 FPS, Ultra 43.8 FPS. The step from Low to Medium is 17.8 FPS, Medium to High is 10.8 FPS, and High to Ultra is 15.9 FPS. Only Low and Medium stay above the 60 FPS threshold. High falls just below it at 59.7 FPS, and Ultra is significantly below at 43.8 FPS. The min and max FPS values are not recorded in the database for any resolution or preset, so the analysis relies on average frame rates.

The pattern across all resolutions shows a consistent decline as settings increase, with the steepest relative drop occurring at 4K Ultra. The 1080p and 1440p results show that this pairing is powerful enough to handle high refresh rates, while the 4K results indicate that only Medium settings provide both visual quality and a playable frame rate.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The Intel Core i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2254, placing it at the 47th percentile among all CPUs. Its nearest rivals in the database are extremely close in score. The Intel Core i7-1068NG7 scores 2259, which is 0.2% higher. The Intel Core i7-10710U scores 2248, 0.3% lower. The AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 scores 2246, 0.4% lower. The Intel Core i3-10305 scores 2264, 0.4% higher. These deltas are all within a fraction of a percent, meaning any of these CPUs would behave nearly identically in this game when paired with the same GPU. The choice among them would not produce a meaningful difference in the measured FPS.

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT has an average benchmark score of 48477, placing it at the 85th percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are also tightly grouped. The NVIDIA RTX A1000 Mobile scores 47743, which is 1.5% lower. The Intel Arc A550M scores 49737, 2.5% higher. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti scores 49957, 3% higher. The AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 scores 50001, 3% higher. These deltas mean the RX 6800 XT is within a small margin of these alternatives. A user upgrading from an RX Vega 64 would see a similar frame rate in Minimum, within about 3%. The RTX 5070 Ti and Arc A550M would also produce nearly the same results, with the RTX 5070 Ti being slightly faster on average.

For the combined system, the CPU and GPU are both well matched to their immediate rivals. The i5-9400's performance is indistinguishable from the i7-1068NG7 or i3-10305 in this context, and the RX 6800 XT's performance is close enough to the RTX 5070 Ti that the game would feel the same in practice. The database does not record any rival-specific FPS measurements for Minimum, so the comparison is based on the aggregate benchmark scores, which strongly correlate with the measured results.

FAQ

Q: Can this combination run Minimum at 60 FPS on a 4K display?

A: Yes, but only at Medium settings or lower. Medium averages 70.5 FPS, and Low averages 88.3 FPS. High falls to 59.7 FPS, just below the 60 FPS threshold, and Ultra drops to 43.8 FPS.

Q: What is the best setting at 2560x1440?

A: Ultra is the best setting, with an average of 82 FPS. High, Medium, and Low are also playable, averaging 107.7 FPS, 125.9 FPS, and 166.8 FPS respectively.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its closest rivals?

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2254. The Intel Core i7-1068NG7 is 0.2% higher, the Intel Core i7-10710U is 0.3% lower, the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 is 0.4% lower, and the Intel Core i3-10305 is 0.4% higher. These differences are negligible.

Q: How does the GPU compare to its closest rivals?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT has an average benchmark score of 48477. The NVIDIA RTX A1000 Mobile is 1.5% lower, the Intel Arc A550M is 2.5% higher, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti is 3% higher, and the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 is 3% higher.

Q: Is the GPU or the CPU more important at 3840x2160?

A: The GPU is the dominant factor at 4K. The frame rate scales steeply with settings, from 88.3 FPS at Low to 43.8 FPS at Ultra, which indicates the RX 6800 XT is the limiting component. The i5-9400 does not bottleneck at this resolution.

Q: What frame rate can be expected at 1920x1080 on Ultra?

A: Ultra averages 125.9 FPS at 1080p. Lower presets are faster: Medium averages 200.8 FPS, High 163.5 FPS, and Low 259.4 FPS.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT ranks 1199 out of 3712 tested combinations in the database for Minimum. This places it in the upper third of all tested systems, roughly at the 68th percentile. The rank reflects the overall capability of the pairing across all resolutions and settings, not just the best case.

The ranking is driven primarily by the GPU's strong performance. The RX 6800 XT sits at the 85th percentile among all GPUs, which is a much higher position than the CPU's 47th percentile. This imbalance means the GPU is carrying most of the performance weight in this pairing. The i5-9400 is a mid-range processor by the database's metrics, but it does not drag the system down in Minimum, as evidenced by the high frame rates at every resolution.

Compared to the full field of 3712 combinations, a rank of 1199 means there are 2513 systems that perform worse and 1198 that perform better. The systems above this rank likely pair the RX 6800 XT with a stronger CPU, or pair a similarly strong GPU with a faster processor. Systems below this rank may use weaker GPUs or CPUs that bottleneck the GPU at lower resolutions.

For the specific goal of running Minimum at 60 FPS, this rank is more than sufficient. The combination achieves playable frame rates at all resolutions except 4K Ultra, and even at 4K it handles Medium at 70.5 FPS. The database records this as a measured configuration, not an estimate, so the results are directly comparable to other entries in the ranking. The rank of 1199 out of 3712 indicates a solid mid-to-upper tier system that will handle the game with ease at 1080p and 1440p, and with moderate settings at 4K.