Control

Control, Remedy’s 2019 Action Adventure title, presents a demanding workload that scales significantly with both resolution and graphical presets. For the configuration of an Intel Core i5-14600KF paired with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Ti 8 GB, the measured data reveals a system capable of high-refresh-rate 1080p gaming, solid 1440p performance, and playable 4K only when settings are moderated. The benchmark results indicate that the RTX 4060 Ti is the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions, while the i5-14600KF provides ample headroom to avoid CPU bottlenecks even at lower settings.

Resolution Scaling

The performance drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial and clearly demonstrates the GPU-bound nature of Control at higher resolutions. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 104 FPS at 1920x1080 to 77.2 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 26.8 FPS. Pushing further to 3840x2160 yields just 52.2 FPS, which is exactly half of the 1080p result. This pattern indicates that the rendering load is scaling heavily with pixel count, placing increasing strain on the RTX 4060 Ti's 8 GB memory buffer and 128-bit memory bus.

The scaling becomes even more pronounced when examining the Low preset. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 162.9 FPS, which drops to 122.7 FPS at 1440p and then plummets to 81.2 FPS at 4K. The fact that the 4K Low result is still lower than the 1080p High result (81.2 vs 104 FPS) shows that raw resolution alone imposes a massive cost regardless of visual complexity. This is a clear sign that the GPU's compute throughput and memory bandwidth, rated at 288.0 GB/s, are the limiting components. The CPU, with its boost clock of 5.30 GHz, is not the constraint here, as evidenced by the consistent frame rate drops that track almost perfectly with pixel count increases.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate achievable with this hardware combination?

A: The maximum measured average FPS is 162.9, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: Can this system maintain 60 FPS at 4K?

A: Yes, but only with Low settings, which produce an average of 81.2 FPS. Medium settings at 4K yield 61.8 FPS, while High and Ultra fall below 60 FPS at 52.2 and 48.9 FPS respectively.

Q: How does the Ultra preset compare to High at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset averages 65.9 FPS, which is 11.3 FPS lower than the High preset's 77.2 FPS. This suggests Ultra adds significant visual effects that tax the GPU heavily.

Q: Is the RTX 4060 Ti 8 GB sufficient for 1080p gaming in Control?

A: Yes, the data shows that all presets at 1920x1080 exceed 90 FPS, with Low reaching 162.9 FPS, Medium at 115.3 FPS, High at 104 FPS, and Ultra at 90.9 FPS.

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

A: The gap is 72 FPS, with Low averaging 162.9 FPS and Ultra averaging 90.9 FPS. This represents a 44% reduction in frame rate when moving from the lowest to the highest preset.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU at any measured setting?

A: The data does not indicate a CPU bottleneck. The frame rate scales consistently with resolution, and the i5-14600KF's strong single-thread performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4643) suggests it can keep up with the GPU's output.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Ti 8 GB is the decisive factor in this game's performance profile. Its specifications, including 4352 shading units, 136 texture mapping units, and 48 raster output pipelines, define its raw throughput. The GPU's boost clock of 2535 MHz and base clock of 2310 MHz provide the execution speed, but the 8 GB GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus with 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth is the critical constraint at high resolutions and settings.

The benchmark results show that Control's memory usage and bandwidth demands scale aggressively with settings. At 4K Ultra, the GPU manages only 48.9 FPS, which is the lowest measured result in the entire dataset. This indicates that the 8 GB frame buffer is likely saturated, causing the GPU to struggle with texture streaming and memory allocation. The GPU's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2913 places it in the 17th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rival in that test is the RTX 4060 Ti 16 GB with a deltaPct of 0.2, showing that the 8 GB variant trades blows with its larger-memory sibling in synthetic tests but may differ in real-world memory-heavy scenarios.

The Ada Lovelace architecture, built on a 5 nm process with 22,900 million transistors, provides modern features like DirectX 12 Ultimate support, but the raw performance in Control is limited by the memory subsystem. The 128-bit bus width is narrow for a card in this class, and the 18 Gbps effective memory speed, while fast, cannot compensate for the limited capacity when the game demands more than 8 GB of video memory at Ultra settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the RTX 4060 Ti demonstrates strong performance across all presets. Low settings produce 162.9 FPS, which is ideal for high-refresh-rate monitors. Medium settings drop to 115.3 FPS, still comfortably above 100. High settings yield 104 FPS, and Ultra trails at 90.9 FPS. The step from Low to Medium is a 47.6 FPS drop, while the step from Medium to High is only 11.3 FPS, and from High to Ultra is 13.1 FPS. This suggests that Low to Medium is a significant visual quality jump, while the higher presets are more incremental in their demands.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance curve flattens somewhat. Low settings average 122.7 FPS, which is still very playable. Medium settings produce 90.2 FPS, and High drops to 77.2 FPS. Ultra settings fall to 65.9 FPS, which is close to the 60 FPS threshold but still above it. The relative scaling from 1080p shows a 24.7% reduction for Low, a 21.8% reduction for Medium, a 25.8% reduction for High, and a 27.5% reduction for Ultra. This consistent drop of roughly 20-27% indicates that the GPU is handling the increased pixel load uniformly across presets.

At 3840x2160, the limitations become apparent. Low settings achieve 81.2 FPS, which is respectable. Medium settings drop to 61.8 FPS, just above the 60 FPS target. High settings fall to 52.2 FPS, and Ultra bottoms out at 48.9 FPS. The reduction from 1440p to 4K is severe: Low drops by 41.5 FPS, Medium by 28.4 FPS, High by 25 FPS, and Ultra by 17 FPS. The diminishing gaps between presets at 4K suggest that the GPU is becoming pixel-bound rather than shader-bound, meaning the memory bandwidth is the primary constraint.

Settings Recommendations

For the best experience on this hardware, the data suggests prioritizing 1440p with High settings. This combination yields 77.2 FPS, which balances visual fidelity with smooth gameplay. The High preset at 1440p offers a 11.3 FPS advantage over Ultra, and the visual difference between High and Ultra is often negligible in fast-paced action sequences. If a higher frame rate is desired, dropping to 1440p Medium increases the average to 90.2 FPS, a 13 FPS improvement that may be worth the reduced shadow and texture quality.

At 1080p, the recommendation is to use High settings for 104 FPS or Ultra for 90.9 FPS, both of which are well above the 60 FPS standard. The 1080p Medium preset at 115.3 FPS is a good middle ground for esports-style play, but High offers a better visual experience for only an 11.3 FPS cost. For 4K users, the data clearly shows that Low settings are the only viable option for consistent 60+ FPS gameplay, as Medium falls to 61.8 FPS and High drops below 60. The 4K Low result of 81.2 FPS is a strong showing, but the visual compromise is significant.

The optimal preset depends on the user's display resolution. For 1440p displays, High is the sweet spot. For 1080p displays, Ultra is achievable without sacrificing too much performance. For 4K displays, Low is the only playable preset, and even then, the 52.2 FPS at High is borderline for a game like Control that benefits from smooth motion.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-14600KF plays a supporting role in Control, providing more than enough processing power to feed the RTX 4060 Ti. With 14 cores and 20 threads, this Raptor Lake Refresh processor has a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32889 and single-core score of 4643 place it in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs, indicating top-tier performance. The nearest rival, the Intel Core i5-14600K, scores 49166 in the average benchmark suite with a deltaPct of 0.4, showing that the KF variant is essentially identical in performance to its integrated-graphics-equipped counterpart.

In Control, the CPU's role is to handle game logic, physics, and draw calls. The game is not particularly CPU-intensive compared to strategy titles, and the i5-14600KF's high single-thread performance ensures that no frame rate drops are attributed to processor limitations. The measured FPS data shows no signs of CPU bottlenecking: frame rates scale smoothly with resolution and settings, which would not be the case if the CPU were struggling. For example, at 1080p Low, the system achieves 162.9 FPS, which is a high enough frame rate to stress many CPUs, yet the i5-14600KF keeps up. The 24 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel memory support further ensure that the CPU can quickly access game data.

The processor's architecture, built on Intel's 10 nm process with a die size of 257 mm², provides a strong foundation for gaming. Its passmark single-thread score of 4273 and multithread score of 38697 confirm that it excels in both lightly-threaded and heavily-threaded workloads. In Control, this means the CPU will never be the limiting factor, allowing the GPU to be the sole determinant of frame rate. The data confirms that this configuration is well-balanced for the game, with the GPU being the primary constraint at all resolutions above 1080p Low.