Barony

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 delivers a remarkably strong performance profile in Barony, a roguelike title that scales dramatically across resolutions and settings. The benchmark data shows this combination is capable of extreme frame rates, even at 4K, making it a top-tier choice for high-refresh-rate displays. The measured results consistently place this combo in the top tier of tested configurations, with a combo rank of 193 out of 2935 recorded combinations, placing it in the top 6.5% of all tested systems. This analysis breaks down the specific performance characteristics, focusing on optimal settings, component roles, and resolution scaling.

Settings Recommendations

The performance data across the three resolutions (1080p, 1440p, and 4K) reveals clear tiers of playability. At 1920x1080, the average frame rates are exceptionally high, ranging from 284 FPS at Ultra settings to a staggering 622 FPS at Low settings. For most players with standard 60Hz or 144Hz monitors, the Ultra preset at 1080p provides an excellent experience, delivering 284 FPS on average, which is far beyond what typical displays can even show. However, for competitive play or use with very high refresh rate monitors (240Hz or more), the High preset at 397 FPS offers a smoother experience with minimal visual compromise compared to Ultra. The Medium preset at 462 FPS is a strong middle ground, but the jump from Medium to High is relatively small in frame rate cost, suggesting that High is the sweet spot for esports-level responsiveness.

Moving to 2560x1440, the system still produces impressive numbers. The Ultra preset averages 180 FPS, which is more than sufficient for high-refresh-rate 1440p gaming. The High preset at 250 FPS is exceptional and provides a noticeable improvement in smoothness for 240Hz monitors. The data indicates that the 1440p High setting is arguably the best overall balance for this combo, offering a 250 FPS average with the visual fidelity of High settings. The Medium preset at 292 FPS is very fast, but the visual quality difference may not justify the extra 42 FPS over High. For those with 360Hz panels, the Low preset at 392 FPS would be the only way to fully utilize such a display, but the graphical compromise is significant.

At 3840x2160 (4K), the performance picture changes. The Ultra preset yields 94 FPS on average, which is playable but not ideal for high-refresh-rate 4K monitors. The High preset is the most practical choice for 4K gaming, delivering 131 FPS on average. This is a substantial jump from Ultra and provides a much smoother experience, especially when considering the min FPS data from the Medium preset. The Medium preset at 4K averages 152 FPS, with a minimum of 130 FPS and a maximum of 175 FPS, which is the best balance for high-refresh-rate 4K displays. The performance drop from Medium to Ultra is significant (from 152 to 94 FPS, a 38% decrease), indicating that the visual enhancements in Ultra are very costly. The recommendation is clear: for 4K, use the High preset for a stable 131 FPS average, or the Medium preset if you have a display capable of 144Hz or higher and prefer smoother motion over maximum visual effects.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 is the primary driver of the high frame rates observed in these benchmarks. With 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 960.0 GB/s, the GPU has ample resources for Barony's texture-heavy environments and particle effects. The memory clock runs at 1875 MHz (30 Gbps effective), and the GPU's boost clock is rated at 2617 MHz. These specifications translate into real-world performance, as evidenced by the benchmark scores: the GPU achieves a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 8637 and a Passmark G3D score of 36565. The GPU's percentile rank versus all GPUs is 87, placing it well above average.

The data shows that the GPU is not a bottleneck at lower resolutions. At 1080p, the frame rates are so high (e.g., 622 FPS at Low) that they far exceed typical display refresh rates, indicating that the CPU is likely the limiting factor in these scenarios. However, as resolution increases to 4K, the GPU's workload becomes more demanding, and the frame rates drop to more reasonable levels. The difference between 1080p High (397 FPS) and 4K High (131 FPS) is a 67% reduction, which highlights how the RTX 5080's rendering load scales with pixel count. The GPU's nearest rivals in average benchmark score are the AMD Radeon 8060S (0.6% higher) and the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (0.7% higher), but the RTX 5080's performance in Barony is clearly sufficient to push high frame rates at all tested settings. The 16 GB VRAM capacity is more than adequate for this game, even at 4K Ultra, ensuring no memory-related stutters are likely.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals how the system's performance is partitioned between the CPU and GPU. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 397 at 1080p to 250 at 1440p (a 37% decrease) and then to 131 at 4K (a 48% decrease from 1440p). This pattern shows a significant performance hit at each resolution step, which is characteristic of a GPU-bound workload. If the CPU were the primary bottleneck, we would expect the frame rates to remain more consistent across resolutions, as the CPU's workload does not change much with resolution. Instead, the steady decline with increasing pixel count indicates that the RTX 5080 is the limiting component at 1440p and especially at 4K.

At Low settings, the scaling is even more pronounced. The average FPS goes from 622 at 1080p to 392 at 1440p (a 37% drop) and then to 205 at 4K (a 48% drop from 1440p). The fact that the percentage drop is similar between High and Low settings suggests that the rendering resolution is the dominant factor, and the GPU's compute and memory bandwidth are being fully utilized. The 4K Low setting (205 FPS) is still faster than the 1080p Ultra setting (284 FPS), which shows that the GPU's raw power can overcome some graphical complexity, but resolution is the ultimate limiter. The data indicates that for this combo, the transition from 1080p to 1440p is a manageable 37-38% performance loss, but the jump to 4K is more punishing at 47-48% loss, emphasizing that 4K gaming is where the RTX 5080's limits are tested.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested configurations for Barony, this specific combination of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 achieves a rank of 193 out of 2935 total combos. This places it in the top 6.6% of all tested systems, which is an excellent result and indicates that this is a high-performing pairing for this game. The rank is likely influenced by the high average FPS across all settings and resolutions, particularly the ability to maintain over 130 FPS at 4K High settings. When compared to other combinations, this system's performance is mostly limited by the GPU at higher resolutions, as the CPU is powerful enough to keep up with the GPU's output at 1080p and 1440p.

The CPU's nearest rivals in terms of average benchmark score are the AMD EPYC 4464P (0.3% lower score) and the Intel Core Ultra 7 265F (0.3% higher score), which shows that the CPU is very competitive in its class. The GPU's nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon 8060S (0.6% higher score) and the AMD Radeon RX 6750 GRE 12 GB (0.7% higher score), but in Barony, the RTX 5080's performance is clearly sufficient. The combo's rank of 193 suggests that while there are faster systems, this one is a high-end performer that will not disappoint in this title. The data shows that this combo is better than 93.4% of all tested systems, making it a safe bet for high-refresh-rate gaming at all resolutions.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is a 20-core, 20-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. It has a 30 MB shared L3 cache and supports dual-channel DDR5 memory with a bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s. The CPU's benchmark scores are strong, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42216 and a single-core score of 5960. Its Passmark single-thread score is 4689, and its percentile versus all CPUs is 93, indicating it is a top-tier processor for both multi-threaded and single-threaded tasks.

In Barony, which is a roguelike game that may not be heavily multi-threaded, the CPU's single-core performance is crucial. The high single-core score of 5960 in Cinebench R23 suggests that the CPU can handle the game's logic and physics calculations efficiently, preventing it from becoming a bottleneck. The data supports this: at 1080p Low settings, the system achieves 622 FPS, which is likely close to the CPU's maximum frame rate output for this game. The fact that the frame rate drops significantly at 4K (e.g., 205 FPS at Low) while the CPU's workload remains similar points to the GPU being the limiting factor at higher resolutions. The CPU's 20 cores and 20 threads provide ample headroom for background tasks and streaming, but for Barony, its high boost clock and strong single-thread performance are what matter most. The CPU's average benchmark score is 64640, placing it near the AMD EPYC 4464P (64823) and the Intel Core Ultra 7 265F (64438), confirming it is a well-rounded performer.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across all settings and resolutions.

At 1920x1080, the results are:

• Low: 622 FPS average
• Medium: 462 FPS average, with a minimum of 393 and a maximum of 532
• High: 397 FPS average
• Ultra: 284 FPS average

The 1080p results show that the system is massively overkill for this resolution. Even at Ultra settings, the frame rate is well above 240 FPS, making it ideal for competitive gaming. The jump from Ultra to High (284 to 397 FPS) is a 40% improvement, which is significant for players with 360Hz monitors. The Medium and Low presets offer even higher frame rates, but the visual quality trade-off is substantial.

At 2560x1440, the results are:

• Low: 392 FPS average
• Medium: 292 FPS average, with a minimum of 248 and a maximum of 336
• High: 250 FPS average
• Ultra: 180 FPS average

The 1440p results are excellent for high-refresh-rate gaming. The High preset at 250 FPS is perfect for 240Hz monitors, while the Ultra preset at 180 FPS is still suitable for 165Hz panels. The Medium preset offers a good balance, but the High preset's 250 FPS is a better choice for most users, as the visual upgrades are worth the 42 FPS loss. The Low preset at 392 FPS is reserved for extreme competitive play where every frame counts.

At 3840x2160, the results are:

• Low: 205 FPS average
• Medium: 152 FPS average, with a minimum of 130 and a maximum of 175
• High: 131 FPS average
• Ultra: 94 FPS average

The 4K results show that the RTX 5080 is powerful enough to handle 4K gaming well, but not all settings are equal. The Ultra preset at 94 FPS is playable but may not be smooth enough for 120Hz+ displays. The High preset at 131 FPS is the recommended choice, providing a good balance of visual fidelity and smoothness for 120Hz monitors. The Medium preset at 152 FPS is even better for 144Hz displays, but the visual difference from High is noticeable. The Low preset at 205 FPS is impressive for 4K, but the graphical compromises are severe and not recommended for a game like Barony, where visual clarity can be important for spotting items and enemies.