Minimum

Measured FPS Breakdown

The recorded measurements for this combination of Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 in Minimum show a clear pattern: the game becomes progressively harder on the GPU as resolution climbs, and preset selection matters more at 4K than at lower resolutions.

At 1920x1080, the combo is thoroughly comfortable. Low settings produce an average of 155 FPS, which is the highest recorded figure across the entire test matrix. Medium settings drop to 119 FPS average, with a minimum of 101 FPS and a maximum of 137 FPS. High settings yield 100 FPS average. Ultra settings still deliver 76 FPS average, which remains above the 60 FPS playability threshold. No minimum or maximum figures were recorded for Low, High, or Ultra at this resolution, but the averages alone indicate headroom.

At 2560x1440, performance steps down noticeably. Low settings average 100 FPS, which is still excellent. Medium settings average 77 FPS, with a minimum of 65 FPS and a maximum of 88 FPS. High settings average 64 FPS, barely above the 60 FPS threshold. Ultra settings fall to 49 FPS average, which is below playable. The min/max data for Medium shows that even the worst frame dips stay above 60 FPS, so the Medium preset is stable at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the picture changes entirely. Low settings average 54 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. Medium settings average 41 FPS, with a minimum of 35 FPS and a maximum of 47 FPS. High settings average 35 FPS. Ultra settings average 26 FPS. No preset at 4K reaches 60 FPS average, and the Medium min/max data confirms that frame times are not consistent enough for smooth play. The step from Low to Medium at 4K costs 13 FPS on average, while the step from Medium to High costs 6 FPS, and High to Ultra costs 9 FPS.

Across all resolutions, the scaling is consistent: Low to Medium costs roughly 25-30% of the average FPS, Medium to High costs another 15-20%, and High to Ultra costs another 20-25%. The only preset with full min/max data is Medium at each resolution, and those numbers show that the gap between minimum and maximum FPS widens as resolution increases: 36 FPS spread at 1080p, 23 FPS at 1440p, and 12 FPS at 4K. This suggests that at lower resolutions the CPU is able to drive higher peak frame rates, while at 4K the GPU becomes the limiting factor and frame rates compress into a narrower, lower band.

Best Settings per Resolution

The database's playability threshold is 60 FPS average. Using that standard, the verdict is straightforward.

At 1920x1080, the best settings that stay at or above 60 FPS are Ultra, with an average of 76 FPS. This is the highest preset that remains playable, and it leaves 16 FPS of headroom above the threshold. Since Ultra is the maximum preset available, there is no higher setting to test, so this is the definitive answer for 1080p.

At 2560x1440, the best settings that stay at or above 60 FPS are High, with an average of 64 FPS. Ultra falls to 49 FPS, which is below the threshold, so High is the ceiling. The 64 FPS average is only 4 FPS above the playability line, which means there is minimal headroom. If frame pacing is a concern, dropping to Medium (77 FPS average) would provide a more comfortable margin, but the data shows High is technically playable.

At 3840x2160, no preset reaches 60 FPS average. Low is the closest at 54 FPS, but that is still 6 FPS short. Medium averages 41 FPS, High averages 35 FPS, and Ultra averages 26 FPS. The database lists no playable settings for 4K, and no best setting is recorded. For practical purposes, this combo cannot run Minimum at 4K with a playable frame rate on any preset.

The pattern across resolutions is clear: 1080p allows maximum settings, 1440p allows high settings with a slim margin, and 4K is not viable at any setting. This is a classic GPU-bound scaling curve, where the RTX 2060's 6 GB memory and 192-bit bus become insufficient as pixel count rises.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database's tested combinations for Minimum, this pairing of Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 ranks 2929 out of 3712 combos. That places it in the lower 21% of all tested pairings for this game, which is a meaningful signal: despite the extremely capable CPU, the GPU drags the overall ranking down.

The rank is driven almost entirely by the GPU's position. The RTX 2060 sits at the 58th percentile among all GPUs in the database, which is below average for modern titles. The CPU, by contrast, sits at the 96th percentile among all CPUs, which is near the top of the field. When a 96th-percentile CPU is paired with a 58th-percentile GPU, the combination's rank will be limited by the weaker component. The data confirms this: at 1080p the combo performs well, but at 4K it fails the playability threshold entirely, which is the GPU's responsibility.

Compared to all 3712 combos, this rank of 2929 means there are 783 other combinations that perform worse. That is not a small number, but it also means the vast majority of tested combos (about 79%) outperform this pairing in Minimum. The GPU's 58th percentile is the anchor: it is a mid-pack card, and the game's rendering demands at higher resolutions expose its limits.

The ranking also reflects the game's age. Minimum released in 2014, and its engine is not particularly demanding by modern standards. A 58th-percentile GPU can handle it at 1080p and 1440p with the right presets, but 4K is beyond the card's capabilities. The CPU, meanwhile, is massively overqualified: at 1080p Low, the combo hits 155 FPS, which suggests the CPU is not the bottleneck at all.

Similar Performance Alternatives

For the CPU, the nearest rivals in the database are all within a narrow band of average benchmark scores. The Intel Core Ultra 9 285K scores 83807, which is 0.2% lower than the 290K Plus's 84003. The AMD EPYC 4584PX scores 83090, 1.1% lower. The AMD EPYC 9135 scores 82980, 1.2% lower. On the other side, the AMD EPYC 7F72 scores 85072, which is 1.3% higher than the 290K Plus. These deltas are all within 1.3%, meaning any of these CPUs would behave nearly identically in Minimum at the resolutions tested. The 290K Plus's 24 cores and 24 threads are far beyond what this game needs, so swapping to any of these rivals would produce no measurable difference in FPS.

For the GPU, the nearest rivals are even closer. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 scores 15283, which is 0% different from the RTX 2060's 15290. The AMD Radeon 680M scores 15270, 0.1% lower. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM scores 15199, 0.6% lower. The AMD Radeon RX 7600 scores 15171, 0.8% lower. All of these are within 0.8% of the RTX 2060's average benchmark score, so in practice they would produce the same FPS ranges in Minimum at every resolution and preset. The GTX 580 is an older card, but its score is essentially identical, which suggests that for this particular game, the RTX 2060's newer architecture does not provide an advantage over older high-end parts.

The practical takeaway: if a system has any of these rival CPUs or GPUs, the measured FPS for this combo would be a reliable estimate. The CPU rivals are all within 1.3% in average score, and the GPU rivals are all within 0.8%, so the game's performance would be statistically indistinguishable.

CPU and GPU Roles

The data shows a clear division of labor between the CPU and GPU in Minimum. The CPU is the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus, a 24-core, 24-thread part with a 96th-percentile ranking. The GPU is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060, a 58th-percentile part. These two components are wildly mismatched in capability, and the game's performance reflects that.

At 1920x1080, the GPU is the bottleneck only at higher presets. Low settings hit 155 FPS, which is high enough that the CPU's single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 7303) could be the limiter. Medium drops to 119 FPS, High to 100 FPS, and Ultra to 76 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra is 79 FPS, which is a 51% drop. This is consistent with a GPU that is being increasingly loaded as preset quality rises. The CPU has enough headroom to push 155 FPS, but the GPU cannot maintain that at higher presets.

At 2560x1440, the GPU's role becomes more dominant. Low settings average 100 FPS, which is a 35% drop from 1080p Low. Medium averages 77 FPS, High averages 64 FPS, and Ultra averages 49 FPS. The gap between 1080p and 1440p at the same preset is 55 FPS for Low, 42 FPS for Medium, 36 FPS for High, and 27 FPS for Ultra. This increasing gap as preset quality rises shows that the GPU is the primary constraint. The CPU is not struggling: it can deliver 155 FPS at 1080p Low, so the 100 FPS at 1440p Low is purely a GPU limitation.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is the sole bottleneck. Low settings average 54 FPS, which is below the playability threshold. Medium averages 41 FPS, High averages 35 FPS, and Ultra averages 26 FPS. The CPU is essentially idle relative to its capacity: it can push well over 100 FPS in CPU-bound scenarios, but the GPU cannot render even Low settings at 60 FPS. The scaling from 1440p to 4K at the same preset is 46 FPS for Low, 36 FPS for Medium, 29 FPS for High, and 23 FPS for Ultra. These are massive drops, all attributable to the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth.

The verdict is unambiguous: for Minimum, the GPU is the limiting factor at every resolution above 1080p Low. The CPU's 96th-percentile ranking provides no benefit because the game does not demand that much processing power. Swapping to a weaker CPU (like one of the EPYC rivals, which are all within 1.3% in average score) would not change FPS. Swapping to a stronger GPU would immediately improve FPS at 1440p and 4K. The data does not include a stronger GPU test, but the scaling pattern is clear: the RTX 2060's 58th-percentile standing is the ceiling for this combo.

FAQ

Q: Can this combo run Minimum at 60 FPS on 1080p?

A: Yes. All four presets are playable at 1920x1080. Low averages 155 FPS, Medium averages 119 FPS, High averages 100 FPS, and Ultra averages 76 FPS. The best playable setting is Ultra at 76 FPS.

Q: Can this combo run Minimum at 60 FPS on 1440p?

A: Yes, but only up to High settings. Low averages 100 FPS, Medium averages 77 FPS, and High averages 64 FPS. Ultra falls to 49 FPS, which is below the 60 FPS threshold. The best playable setting is High at 64 FPS.

Q: Can this combo run Minimum at 60 FPS on 4K?

A: No. No preset reaches 60 FPS at 3840x2160. Low averages 54 FPS, Medium averages 41 FPS, High averages 35 FPS, and Ultra averages 26 FPS. The database records no playable settings at this resolution.

Q: Which component is more important for this game?

A: The GPU. The RTX 2060 sits at the 58th percentile among all GPUs, and its limitations are visible at every resolution above 1080p Low. The CPU sits at the 96th percentile and is not the bottleneck in any tested scenario. The FPS drops from 1080p to 1440p to 4K are all consistent with GPU scaling, not CPU scaling.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations?

A: It ranks 2929 out of 3712 combos for Minimum, placing it in the lower 21% of all tested pairings. The GPU's mid-pack standing (58th percentile) drags the overall rank down despite the CPU's top-tier standing (96th percentile).

Q: What other GPUs would perform similarly?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 has an average benchmark score within 0% of the RTX 2060. The AMD Radeon 680M is 0.1% lower, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM is 0.6% lower, and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 is 0.8% lower. Any of these would produce near-identical FPS in Minimum at all resolutions and presets.