Minimum

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 delivers an exceptional gaming experience in Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter. The measured frame rates across all tested resolutions and settings indicate that this combination is massively overqualified for the game's demands. The data shows that even at the most demanding preset and resolution, the system sustains frame rates well above the 60 FPS playability threshold, positioning this combo in the top tier of tested hardware configurations.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 3840x2160 (4K), the system demonstrates substantial headroom across all presets. The Ultra preset yields an average frame rate of 67 FPS, which is the lowest measured average for this resolution but still clears the 60 FPS threshold with a small margin. The High preset improves performance to 88 FPS average, while the Medium preset reaches 105 FPS average with a recorded minimum of 89 FPS and a maximum of 120 FPS. The Low preset is the fastest at 4K, producing an average of 137 FPS. The scaling from Ultra to Low at this resolution represents a doubling of performance, going from 67 FPS to 137 FPS.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates increase substantially across the board. The Ultra preset averages 124 FPS, which is roughly 85% higher than the 4K Ultra result. High settings produce 163 FPS average, while Medium delivers 194 FPS with a minimum of 165 FPS and a maximum of 223 FPS. The Low preset at 1440p reaches 254 FPS average, demonstrating that the system has significant performance reserves even at this elevated resolution.

At 1920x1080, the performance becomes extreme. The Ultra preset averages 193 FPS, which is 126 FPS above the 60 FPS playability threshold. High settings produce 253 FPS average, while Medium reaches 301 FPS with a minimum of 256 FPS and a maximum of 347 FPS. The Low preset at 1080p tops out at 394 FPS average, highlighting the extraordinary capability of this hardware combination. The frame rate deltas between resolutions are consistent: dropping from 4K to 1440p yields roughly 85% higher frame rates at each preset, while dropping from 1440p to 1080p adds another 55-65% performance.

Similar Performance Alternatives

The CPU benchmarks place the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus in the 96th percentile among all tested processors, with an average benchmark score of 93,785. The nearest rivals show remarkably similar performance profiles. The Intel Xeon 6520P scores 93,786, a delta of 0%, making it a direct performance equivalent. The AMD EPYC 4564P scores 95,183, which is 1.5% higher, while the AMD EPYC 9175F scores 95,615, a 1.9% advantage. The AMD EPYC 4565P leads the group with 95,764, representing a 2.1% delta. These differences are within benchmark noise, indicating that any of these processors would deliver effectively identical gaming performance in this title.

For the GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 holds the 88th percentile among all tested graphics cards, with an average benchmark score of 60,347. The nearest rival is the Intel Arc Pro A60 with 60,326, a 0% delta. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 scores 60,140, just 0.3% lower, while the AMD Radeon Pro W6600M reaches 61,896, which is 2.5% higher. The AMD Radeon PRO V710 trails at 58,657, a 2.9% deficit. These comparable GPUs would produce nearly identical frame rates in Minimum, as the game's rendering demands are well below the capabilities of any of these cards.

CPU and GPU Roles

The benchmark data reveals that GPU performance dominates the frame rate equation at every resolution and preset in Minimum. The RTX 4090 is the primary driver of the measured FPS, as the game's visual workload scales directly with resolution and graphics settings. The CPU's role is secondary, providing sufficient processing power to feed the GPU without bottlenecking, as evidenced by the consistently high frame rates even at 1080p Low where the system achieves 394 FPS average.

The scaling between resolutions indicates GPU-bound behavior. At 4K Ultra, the system produces 67 FPS, while at 1080p Ultra it reaches 193 FPS — a 2.88x improvement that aligns closely with the pixel count reduction from 8.3 million pixels to 2.1 million pixels. This near-linear scaling confirms that the GPU is the limiting factor, with the CPU contributing minimal overhead. The difference between presets at the same resolution further isolates GPU workload: at 4K, moving from Low to Ultra reduces frame rates by 51%, from 137 FPS to 67 FPS, which is consistent with increased pixel shading and texture complexity.

The CPU's capabilities, including its 24 cores and 24 threads with a boost clock of 5.50 GHz, are more than sufficient for this title. The game's multi-threading requirements are modest, and the processor's strong single-thread performance — evidenced by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 2,439 — ensures that draw calls and game logic are handled without introducing frame pacing issues. At higher resolutions, the CPU becomes even less relevant, as the GPU's rendering workload dominates the frame time budget.

The Verdict

This system can run Minimum at every resolution and preset combination tested, with all configurations clearing the 60 FPS playability threshold. At 1920x1080, the Ultra preset achieves an average of 193 FPS, providing a substantial margin above the 60 FPS target. The 2560x1440 Ultra preset delivers 124 FPS average, maintaining excellent smoothness. Even the most demanding scenario — 3840x2160 Ultra — holds an average of 67 FPS, just 7 FPS above the threshold but still playable.

The verdict by resolution confirms that all settings are playable at every resolution. At 4K, the best settings for maximum visual quality are Ultra with 67 FPS average. At 1440p, Ultra delivers 124 FPS average, and at 1080p, Ultra reaches 193 FPS average. The system has enough performance headroom at lower resolutions that users could enable additional enhancements without falling below the 60 FPS target, though the data does not include such measurements.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 ranks 126th out of 3,712 tested combinations in Minimum, placing it in the top 3.4% of all configurations. This ranking reflects the extreme performance ceiling of the RTX 4090, which is the dominant component in this pairing. The high rank is consistent with the benchmark scores: the CPU sits in the 96th percentile and the GPU in the 88th percentile, creating a balanced system that excels in this game.

The rank of 126 out of 3,712 indicates that only 125 combinations perform better, which likely include higher-tier CPUs paired with the same GPU or multi-GPU configurations. The delta between this combo and the top-ranked systems is not quantified in the data, but the frame rates achieved suggest minimal practical difference, as all playable settings exceed 60 FPS by significant margins at 1080p and 1440p.

Best Settings per Resolution

At 3840x2160, the most demanding preset that stays at or above 60 FPS is Ultra, which maintains an average of 67 FPS. This is the recommended configuration for maximum visual fidelity at 4K, though users seeking higher frame rates could drop to High for 88 FPS or Medium for 105 FPS.

At 2560x1440, Ultra remains the best settings choice, delivering 124 FPS average. This provides both high visual quality and a frame rate that exceeds the 60 FPS threshold by more than double, making it the optimal balance for 1440p displays.

At 1920x1080, Ultra is again the recommended preset, achieving 193 FPS average. This configuration offers maximum visual quality while maintaining a frame rate that is over three times the playability threshold, ensuring smooth gameplay even during intense action sequences.

FAQ

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

A: Yes, the 3840x2160 Ultra preset averages 67 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS playability threshold. The minimum recorded FPS for this configuration is not provided, but the average indicates consistent playability.

Q: What is the highest frame rate achieved by this combination?

A: The highest measured average is 394 FPS at 1920x1080 with Low settings. The Medium preset at 1080p reaches 301 FPS average with a maximum of 347 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 4090's benchmark score compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The RTX 4090 has an average benchmark score of 60,347. Its nearest rival, the Intel Arc Pro A60, scores 60,326 with a 0% delta. The AMD Radeon Pro W6600M is 2.5% higher at 61,896, while the AMD Radeon PRO V710 is 2.9% lower at 58,657.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more important for this game's performance?

A: The GPU is the primary performance driver, as evidenced by the frame rate scaling with resolution and settings. At 4K Ultra, the system produces 67 FPS, while at 1080p Ultra it reaches 193 FPS, a 2.88x improvement that correlates with pixel count reduction.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between 4K and 1440p at Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 Ultra, the average is 67 FPS. At 2560x1440 Ultra, the average is 124 FPS, representing an 85% improvement when lowering resolution.

Q: Does this combo rank highly among all tested configurations?

A: Yes, the combination ranks 126th out of 3,712 tested combos, placing it in the top 3.4% of all systems tested for Minimum. The CPU is in the 96th percentile and the GPU in the 88th percentile.