Minimum

FAQ

Q: Can the Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB run Minimum at 1080p?

A: Yes. At 1920x1080, the combination is playable at all four tested presets. Low averages 122 FPS, Medium 94.6 FPS, High 78.8 FPS, and Ultra 61.5 FPS, with the playable threshold set at 60 FPS.

Q: What is the best playable setting at 2560x1440?

A: Medium is the best setting that remains at or above 60 FPS at 1440p, delivering an average of 60.7 FPS. Low is also playable at 76.6 FPS, but High drops to 48.6 FPS and Ultra to 37.9 FPS.

Q: Is this PC capable of 4K gameplay in Minimum?

A: No. At 3840x2160, none of the tested presets reach 60 FPS. The closest is Low at 45 FPS, followed by Medium at 32 FPS, High at 25.8 FPS, and Ultra at 20.4 FPS.

Q: How does the CPU compare to nearby alternatives in the database?

A: The Intel Core i5-9400 has an average benchmark score of 2254. The Intel Core i7-1068NG7 scores 2259, which is 0.2% higher. The Intel Core i3-10305 scores 2264, also 0.4% higher than the i5-9400. The AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 scores 2246, and the Intel Core i7-10710U scores 2248, both slightly lower.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low averages 122 FPS while Ultra averages 61.5 FPS. That is a difference of 60.5 FPS, meaning Ultra delivers roughly half the average frame rate of Low while still staying above the 60 FPS playability threshold.

Q: Does the GPU have any benchmark data in the database?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB has no recorded benchmark scores in its entry, and its nearest rivals list is empty. Its percentile rank among all GPUs is 50. The performance data for this combo comes from measured in-game frame rates.

CPU and GPU Roles

The recorded data for Minimum shows a clear pattern: the graphics card is the dominant constraint at higher resolutions, while the CPU becomes relatively less relevant as resolution drops. At 3840x2160, the frame rate falls sharply across preset tiers. Low averages 45 FPS, Medium drops to 32 FPS, High to 25.8 FPS, and Ultra to 20.4 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K is a reduction of 24.6 FPS, which is a 54.7% loss in average frame rate. This steep gradient indicates that pixel throughput is the limiting factor at 4K, and the RTX 3050 4 GB cannot keep up with the shader and memory demands of higher presets.

At 2560x1440, the same pattern persists but with more headroom. Low averages 76.6 FPS, Medium 60.7 FPS, High 48.6 FPS, and Ultra 37.9 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra is 38.7 FPS. The transition from 4K to 1440p improves all settings substantially, with Low gaining 31.6 FPS and Medium gaining 28.7 FPS. This improvement is larger than what would be expected from a purely CPU-bound scenario, reinforcing that the GPU is doing the heavy lifting in this game.

At 1920x1080, the frame rates are high across the board. Low averages 122 FPS, Medium 94.6 FPS, High 78.8 FPS, and Ultra 61.5 FPS. The drop from Low to Ultra is 60.5 FPS, which is the largest absolute spread of any resolution. Even so, all presets clear the 60 FPS threshold. The fact that Ultra at 1080p still holds 61.5 FPS while Ultra at 1440p falls to 37.9 FPS shows that resolution scaling is steep, and the GPU is the primary factor behind that scaling.

The CPU role is harder to isolate because the database does not provide separate CPU-only or GPU-only frame rate measurements. However, the CPU's benchmark scores offer context. The Intel Core i5-9400 has a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 6629 and a single-core score of 935. Its Geekbench multicore score is 5141 and single-core is 1389. These are mid-range results, with the CPU sitting at the 47th percentile among all CPUs in the database. For a 2018 game like Minimum, the i5-9400 is likely sufficient to feed the GPU at 1080p, since frame rates reach 122 FPS on Low. At 4K, the frame rates are so low that the CPU is almost certainly not the bottleneck; the GPU is.

The evidence from resolution scaling suggests that the GPU matters more at every resolution, but the margin narrows at 1080p. At 4K, the GPU is clearly overwhelmed. At 1440p, the GPU still dictates whether a preset is playable. At 1080p, the GPU is still the main limiter, but the CPU has enough headroom to allow frame rates above 100 FPS on lower presets. The i5-9400's six cores and six threads, with a boost clock of 4.10 GHz, are adequate for this title. The RTX 3050 4 GB, with 2048 shading units and 192.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth, is the component that determines whether Minimum can run at higher settings.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database, this specific combination of the Intel Core i5-9400 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB ranks 3240 out of 3712 tested combos for Minimum. That places it in the lower portion of the rankings, roughly in the 13th percentile of tested combinations. The rank reflects the measured frame rates across all resolutions and presets, and it aligns with the fact that the combo cannot achieve 60 FPS at 4K on any setting.

The rank is not surprising given the GPU's position in the market. The RTX 3050 4 GB has a percentile rank of 50 among all GPUs in the database, meaning it sits exactly at the median. The CPU's percentile rank is 47, just below the median. When two median-tier components are combined, the result tends to land in the lower half of the overall combo rankings, especially in a game that scales heavily with GPU load.

The combo ranking also reflects the fact that the 4K results are poor. At 3840x2160, the best average frame rate is 45 FPS on Low, which is below the 60 FPS playability threshold. At 1440p, only Low and Medium are playable. At 1080p, all presets are playable, but Ultra barely clears the threshold at 61.5 FPS. This uneven performance profile across resolutions drags the overall rank down, because the database likely weights performance across the full range of tested conditions.

Relative to other combos, the i5-9400 and RTX 3050 4 GB are not a high-end pairing. The CPU's nearest rivals all have average benchmark scores within a narrow band: the Intel Core i7-1068NG7 at 2259, the Intel Core i3-10305 at 2264, the Intel Core i7-10710U at 2248, and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 at 2246. These are all close to the i5-9400's 2254, within a range of roughly 0.4% either direction. The GPU has no recorded rivals in the database, but its 50th percentile rank suggests it is an average performer. The combination of an average CPU and an average GPU results in a below-median overall rank in this game because Minimum's demands, particularly at higher resolutions, exceed what this hardware can deliver smoothly.

The Verdict

The Intel Core i5-9400 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB can run Minimum, but the experience depends heavily on resolution and settings. At 1920x1080, the combination is fully playable at every preset. Low averages 122 FPS, Medium 94.6 FPS, High 78.8 FPS, and Ultra 61.5 FPS. All of these are at or above the 60 FPS playable threshold. The best setting at 1080p is Ultra, with an average of 61.5 FPS.

At 2560x1440, the combo is partially playable. Low and Medium both clear 60 FPS, with averages of 76.6 FPS and 60.7 FPS respectively. High and Ultra do not clear the threshold, averaging 48.6 FPS and 37.9 FPS. The best playable setting at 1440p is Medium, with an average of 60.7 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the combo cannot run Minimum at a playable frame rate on any tested preset. Low averages 45 FPS, Medium 32 FPS, High 25.8 FPS, and Ultra 20.4 FPS. None of these reach the 60 FPS threshold. The verdict is straightforward: this PC is a 1080p machine for Minimum, with limited 1440p capability at medium settings, and no viable 4K performance.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The database does not list any nearest rivals for the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB, so direct GPU comparisons cannot be made from the recorded data. The CPU, however, has several close alternatives based on average benchmark scores.

The Intel Core i7-1068NG7 has an average score of 2259, which is 0.2% higher than the i5-9400's 2254. In practical terms, a system using this CPU with the same GPU would likely produce nearly identical frame rates in Minimum. The Intel Core i3-10305 scores 2264, 0.4% higher, and would also behave similarly. On the lower side, the Intel Core i7-10710U scores 2248, 0.3% lower, and the AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 scores 2246, 0.4% lower. These differences are minimal, within a fraction of a percent, so any of these CPUs paired with the RTX 3050 4 GB should yield essentially the same measured frame rates as the i5-9400 in this game.

The i5-9400 itself has an average benchmark score of 2254, which is the reference point. The nearest rival, the i7-1068NG7, is only 5 points higher, and the i3-10305 is 10 points higher. The i7-10710U is 6 points lower, and the Ryzen 5 PRO 1500 is 8 points lower. These are all within a narrow band, so users moving between these CPUs should not expect any meaningful change in Minimum's performance when paired with the same GPU.

Since the GPU has no nearest rivals listed, the only comparable hardware discussion is on the CPU side. For the purposes of this combo, the CPU is not the limiting factor at higher resolutions, so swapping the i5-9400 for any of these alternatives would not change the verdict at 1440p or 4K. At 1080p, the frame rates are high enough that any of these CPUs would still allow the GPU to be the primary constraint.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, there is no best playable setting because none of the tested presets reach 60 FPS. The highest average frame rate is 45 FPS on Low, which is below the playable threshold.

At 2560x1440, the best setting that stays at or above 60 FPS is Medium, with an average of 60.7 FPS. Low is also playable at 76.6 FPS, but Medium offers a higher visual quality while still clearing the threshold. High and Ultra are not playable at this resolution.

At 1920x1080, the best setting that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, with an average of 61.5 FPS. This is the highest preset tested, and it clears the 60 FPS threshold by a small margin. All other presets are also playable at 1080p, with Low at 122 FPS, Medium at 94.6 FPS, and High at 78.8 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160, the measured average frame rates are as follows: Low averages 45 FPS, Medium averages 32 FPS, High averages 25.8 FPS, and Ultra averages 20.4 FPS. The database does not record minimum or maximum frame rates for these runs, so only the average values are available.

At 2560x1440, Low averages 76.6 FPS, Medium averages 60.7 FPS, High averages 48.6 FPS, and Ultra averages 37.9 FPS. Again, no minimum or maximum values are recorded.

At 1920x1080, Low averages 122 FPS, Medium averages 94.6 FPS, High averages 78.8 FPS, and Ultra averages 61.5 FPS. The absence of minimum and maximum frame rates means the data reflects only sustained average performance, not frame time variance. The recorded averages show a consistent pattern: each step up in preset costs a meaningful amount of frame rate, and the cost grows with resolution. At 4K, the jump from Low to Medium costs 13 FPS, from Medium to High costs 6.2 FPS, and from High to Ultra costs 5.4 FPS. At 1440p, the jumps are 15.9 FPS, 12.1 FPS, and 10.7 FPS respectively. At 1080p, the jumps are 27.4 FPS, 15.8 FPS, and 17.3 FPS. The largest absolute cost between any two adjacent presets is from Low to Medium at 1080p, which drops from 122 FPS to 94.6 FPS. The smallest is from High to Ultra at 4K, which drops from 25.8 FPS to 20.4 FPS. This breakdown confirms that the RTX 3050 4 GB is the deciding factor in Minimum, and the i5-9400 provides enough CPU performance to keep the GPU as the bottleneck at every resolution and preset combination tested.