Minimum

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 produces a system that is overwhelmingly capable of running Minimum at every tested setting and resolution. The dataset shows a uniform pattern: this combination never drops below the 60 FPS playable threshold, even under the heaviest load at 4K Ultra. The measured results indicate a headroom so large that the primary limitation shifts from raw performance to display refresh rates.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data covers three resolutions and four quality presets, providing a clear picture of scaling behavior. At 1920x1080, the system delivers exceptional frame rates across the board. The Low preset averages 403 FPS, which is the highest recorded value in the entire dataset. Moving to Medium, the average drops to 309 FPS, with a minimum of 262 FPS and a maximum of 355 FPS. High settings produce an average of 259 FPS, while Ultra still maintains a robust 197 FPS average. The gap between Low and Ultra at this resolution is 206 FPS, showing that the GPU has ample bandwidth to handle even the most demanding preset without approaching any performance ceiling.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain elevated but begin to show the influence of increased pixel count. The Low preset averages 260 FPS, nearly identical to the 1080p High result. Medium settings yield 199 FPS average, with a minimum of 169 FPS and a maximum of 229 FPS. High settings produce 167 FPS average, and Ultra drops to 127 FPS. The transition from 1080p to 1440p costs roughly 35% of the average FPS across all presets, which is expected given the 78% increase in pixel area. The data shows that even at 1440p Ultra, the system maintains a minimum frame rate well above the 60 FPS threshold, although min/max data is only available for the Medium preset.

At 3840x2160, the system finally encounters a workload that reduces frame rates to more moderate levels. The Low preset averages 140 FPS, which is still more than double the playable threshold. Medium settings produce 107 FPS average, with a minimum of 91 FPS and a maximum of 123 FPS. High settings yield 90 FPS average, and Ultra drops to 69 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the only recorded average below 100 FPS, but it remains 9 FPS above the 60 FPS threshold. The scaling from 1440p to 4K costs roughly 46% of the average FPS across presets, reflecting the 2.25x pixel count increase.

The Medium preset is the only configuration with complete avg/min/max data across all three resolutions. At 1080p, the spread between minimum and maximum is 93 FPS; at 1440p, the spread is 60 FPS; at 4K, the spread narrows to 32 FPS. This tightening spread at higher resolutions indicates that the GPU becomes more consistently loaded, reducing frame time variance even as average FPS declines.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo holds rank 80 out of 3,712 tested combinations in Minimum. This places it in the top 2.2% of all tested systems, which aligns with the measured frame rates that never approach the playable threshold. The percentile data reinforces this: the CPU sits at the 89th percentile among all processors, and the GPU sits at the 92nd percentile among all graphics cards. The combination of two high-percentile components produces a system that outperforms the vast majority of tested hardware.

The rank of 80 is particularly notable because it indicates that only 79 other combinations produce higher frame rates in this game. Given that the game is from 2014 and the hardware is from 2025, this result is unsurprising. The data shows that this combo is not merely adequate but positioned at the extreme high end of the performance distribution. The gap between this combo and the median tested system is substantial, though the dataset does not provide explicit percentile values for the combo itself.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The nearest rivals for the CPU provide context for systems that would behave similarly. The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 has an average benchmark score of 46,030, which is 0.1% lower than the Core Ultra 5 235's 46,062. The Intel Core i9-13900HX scores 46,098, a 0.1% delta in the opposite direction. The AMD EPYC 4364P and EPYC 7303 score 45,970 and 45,960 respectively, with deltas of 0.2%. These four processors are effectively performance-equivalent in synthetic benchmarks, meaning any system built with one of these CPUs would yield nearly identical frame rates in Minimum.

For the GPU, the nearest rivals show a similar clustering. The NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB scores 79,605, which is 0.3% lower than the RTX 5090's 79,842. The Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB scores 79,396, a 0.6% delta. The AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78,940, a 1.1% delta. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X scores 80,959, which is 1.4% higher than the RTX 5090. These deltas are all within 1.5%, indicating that any of these GPUs paired with the Core Ultra 5 235 would produce frame rates within a few percentage points of the measured results. The practical difference between the RTX 5090 and its nearest rival, the Pro Vega 64X, would be less than 2 FPS at 4K Ultra, which is imperceptible.

The Verdict

The verdict is unambiguous: this system can run Minimum at all tested resolutions and presets with frame rates well above the 60 FPS threshold. The verdict data confirms that every single setting combination is playable. At 3840x2160, the Ultra preset maintains an average of 69 FPS, which clears the threshold by 9 FPS. At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset averages 127 FPS, more than double the threshold. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset averages 197 FPS, over three times the threshold.

The best settings at each resolution are Ultra, with the average FPS at those settings being 69, 127, and 197 respectively. The system does not merely clear 60 FPS; it clears it by a substantial margin at every resolution. Even the most demanding configuration, 4K Ultra, leaves enough headroom for frame time spikes without dropping below playability. The only scenario where this system would fail to hit 60 FPS is if the user were to add external factors like background tasks or uncapped frame pacing, which are outside the scope of the measured data.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data reveals how the CPU and GPU share the workload across resolutions. At 1920x1080, the system achieves 403 FPS on Low settings, which suggests that the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU at extremely high frame rates. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 1080p is 206 FPS (403 to 197), indicating that the GPU is the primary bottleneck once settings increase. The CPU's single-thread score of 2,085 in Cinebench R23 and multi-thread score of 14,769 provide the foundation for these high frame rates.

At 2560x1440, the scaling from Low to Ultra is 133 FPS (260 to 127), which is a smaller absolute drop than at 1080p. This indicates that the GPU load is increasing, but the CPU still has headroom. The 1440p Low result of 260 FPS is nearly identical to the 1080p High result of 259 FPS, showing that the system is equally capable of handling either combination. The CPU's influence diminishes as resolution increases because the GPU spends more time on pixel shading.

At 3840x2160, the scaling from Low to Ultra is 71 FPS (140 to 69), the smallest absolute drop of any resolution. This confirms that the GPU is the dominant factor at 4K, as the pixel throughput requirements outpace the CPU's ability to generate frames. The 4K Low result of 140 FPS is less than half of the 1080p Low result of 403 FPS, demonstrating that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth (1.79 TB/s) become the limiting factors. The CPU, with its 14 cores and 14 threads, never appears to be the constraint at any resolution, as even the lowest GPU-bound frame rate of 69 FPS is far below the CPU's maximum frame generation capability.

Best Settings per Resolution

The most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra at every resolution. At 1920x1080, Ultra delivers 197 FPS average. At 2560x1440, Ultra delivers 127 FPS average. At 3840x2160, Ultra delivers 69 FPS average. Since the playable threshold is 60 FPS, and the Ultra preset is the highest quality setting available, there is no reason to drop below Ultra for playability reasons.

The margin above the threshold is substantial in all cases. At 1080p, the margin is 137 FPS; at 1440p, the margin is 67 FPS; at 4K, the margin is 9 FPS. The 4K Ultra result is the only configuration where the margin is narrower than the frame time variance seen in the Medium preset (which had a 32 FPS spread between min and max). This suggests that at 4K Ultra, occasional dips could approach the 60 FPS threshold, though the average remains above it. For users who prioritize absolute frame rate stability over visual fidelity, the High preset at 4K provides an average of 90 FPS, a 21 FPS improvement over Ultra.

FAQ

Q: Can this system run Minimum at 4K Ultra?

A: Yes. The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 Ultra is 69, which is 9 FPS above the 60 FPS playable threshold.

Q: What is the highest frame rate recorded for this combo?

A: The highest average FPS is 403, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: How does the Core Ultra 5 235 compare to its closest CPU rivals?

A: The Core Ultra 5 235 has an average benchmark score of 46,062. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, scores 46,030 (0.1% lower), while the Intel Core i9-13900HX scores 46,098 (0.1% higher).

Q: How does the RTX 5090 compare to its closest GPU rivals?

A: The RTX 5090 has an average benchmark score of 79,842. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X scores 80,959 (1.4% higher), while the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB scores 79,605 (0.3% lower).

Q: Is there any setting where this system drops below 60 FPS?

A: No. The lowest recorded average is 69 FPS at 3840x2160 Ultra. All other settings and resolutions produce higher averages.

Q: Which component is more important at 4K resolution?

A: The GPU. The scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K is 71 FPS (140 to 69), and the frame rates are significantly lower than at 1080p, indicating the GPU is the primary bottleneck. The CPU's influence diminishes as resolution increases.