Control

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti produces a distinctly mixed set of results in Control. The data indicates a system capable of smooth 1080p gameplay at high settings, but one that struggles to maintain playable framerates at 4K with maximum quality presets. The combination of a modern 10-core CPU with an older, high-bandwidth Pascal GPU creates a bottleneck profile that shifts dramatically depending on resolution and settings.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Control?*

A: Based on the measured data, 1920x1080 is the only resolution where all tested settings presets achieve an average of 73 FPS or higher. At 2560x1440, the Ultra preset drops to 55 FPS, while at 3840x2160, even the High preset averages only 43 FPS.

Q: How much performance does the Ultra preset cost compared to Low at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, the average framerate drops from 101 FPS on Low to 55 FPS on Ultra. This represents a significant 46 FPS reduction, or roughly 45% lower performance, indicating that the Ultra preset's additional graphical demands heavily tax the GTX 1080 Ti.

*Q: Is the GTX 1080 Ti sufficient for 4K gaming in Control?*

A: The data shows that at 3840x2160, the highest average framerate achieved is 68 FPS on the Low preset. The Medium preset averages 48 FPS, and the High preset averages 43 FPS. Only the Low preset approaches a consistently smooth 60 FPS experience.

Q: How does the CPU's multi-threaded performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Core Ultra 5 225's average benchmark score of 36938 is essentially tied with the AMD Ryzen 5 5600F, which scores 36945. It is also within 0.5% of the AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D and Intel Core i9-12900T, showing very similar overall processing power.

Q: What is the GTX 1080 Ti's percentile ranking among all GPUs?

A: The GTX 1080 Ti falls into the 58th percentile of all GPUs based on its average benchmark score. Its closest rival in average score is the AMD Radeon R9 M380, which is 0.2% faster, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060, which is 1.7% slower.

Q: Does the game rely more on the CPU or GPU at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, the framerate scales inversely with the graphics preset, from 133 FPS on Low to 73 FPS on Ultra. This indicates the GPU becomes the primary limiting factor as settings increase, though the substantial FPS ceiling on Low suggests the CPU is capable of feeding the GPU well beyond what the Ultra preset demands.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti is built on the Pascal architecture with a GP102 chip manufactured on a 16 nm process. It carries 11 GB of GDDR5X memory across a 352-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 484.4 GB/s. This substantial bandwidth is a critical asset for Control, a game known for its heavy use of textures and visual effects. The GPU’s 3584 shading units and 88 ROPs, running at a base clock of 1481 MHz and a boost clock of 1582 MHz, deliver a theoretical FP32 performance of 11.34 TFLOPS.

In the measured frames, the GPU's role is dominant. The core clocks and memory bandwidth are the primary drivers of performance differences between presets. When moving from Low to Ultra settings at any given resolution, the average framerate drops significantly, directly reflecting the increased load on the GPU's shading units and memory subsystem. For example, at 2560x1440, the average FPS falls from 101 on Low to 55 on Ultra. This is a clear indication that the GTX 1080 Ti is being pushed to its limits by the higher visual fidelity presets, and its 11 GB frame buffer is sufficient for the settings tested, as no errors or stutters are reported in the data.

The GPU's performance percentile of 58 places it in the lower half of modern graphics cards, but its high memory bandwidth allows it to remain competitive in texture-heavy scenarios. The data shows that the GTX 1080 Ti is the limiting factor at higher resolutions and presets, as the framerate scales almost entirely with the GPU workload.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a predictable but steep decline in performance as resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. At the High preset, the average framerate drops from 84 FPS at 1080p to 64 FPS at 1440p, and finally to 43 FPS at 4K. This represents a 49% reduction in performance from 1080p to 4K, which is typical for a game that is heavily pixel-bound.

Examining the Medium preset provides a clearer picture of the scaling. The average FPS at 1080p is 95, at 1440p it is 72, and at 4K it is 48. The drop from 1440p to 4K is 24 FPS, while the drop from 1080p to 1440p is 23 FPS. This near-linear scaling indicates that the GTX 1080 Ti is consistently the limiting component across these resolutions, as the pixel throughput demand increases proportionally with the number of pixels rendered.

The Low preset shows a similar trend, with averages of 133 FPS at 1080p, 101 FPS at 1440p, and 68 FPS at 4K. Even at the lowest settings, the 4K resolution proves to be a significant challenge for the GPU. The fact that the framerate at 4K Low (68 FPS) is lower than the framerate at 1080p Ultra (73 FPS) underscores how much the resolution impacts the GTX 1080 Ti's ability to maintain high frame rates. This scaling behavior confirms that Control is a GPU-intensive title, and the CPU is not the primary constraint at resolutions above 1080p.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the Core Ultra 5 225 and GTX 1080 Ti combination delivers its best performance. The Low preset achieves an average of 133 FPS. The Medium preset averages 95 FPS, with a minimum of 80 FPS and a maximum of 109 FPS. The High preset averages 84 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 73 FPS. All presets at this resolution are comfortably playable, with even the most demanding setting staying above the 60 FPS threshold.

Moving to 2560x1440, performance begins to show strain. The Low preset averages 101 FPS, maintaining high fluidity. The Medium preset averages 72 FPS, with a minimum of 61 FPS and a maximum of 82 FPS, which is adequate for most displays. The High preset averages 64 FPS. The Ultra preset drops to an average of 55 FPS, indicating that the visual quality gains come at a direct cost to smoothness, falling below the 60 FPS target.

At 3840x2160, the GTX 1080 Ti is clearly overburdened by the higher settings. The Low preset averages 68 FPS, which is the only setting at this resolution to provide a near-60 FPS experience. The Medium preset averages 48 FPS, with a minimum of 41 FPS and a maximum of 56 FPS, showing noticeable dips. The High preset averages 43 FPS. The Ultra preset averages 37 FPS, which results in a choppy experience that is not suitable for fast-paced action. The data clearly shows that 4K gaming is only viable at the Low preset for this hardware combination.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 225 is a 10-core, 10-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, manufactured on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It has a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.90 GHz. The CPU features a 20 MB shared L3 cache and supports dual-channel DDR5 memory with a bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s. Its integrated graphics are the Arc Xe-LPG Graphics 16EU, though the discrete GTX 1080 Ti handles all rendering in this benchmark.

In Control, the CPU's role is to feed the GPU with draw calls and manage game logic. The Core Ultra 5 225's single-threaded performance is strong, as indicated by a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3655. This is sufficient to prevent the CPU from being a bottleneck at lower resolutions and settings. At 1080p on Low, the average FPS of 133 suggests the CPU can handle a very high frame rate, and the limiting factor is likely the GPU's ability to render frames that quickly.

However, the CPU's multi-threaded performance is moderate. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 25891 and Passmark multithread score of 30459 are solid but not exceptional. The data shows that as resolution increases and the GPU becomes more heavily loaded, the framerate drops in a way that is independent of CPU performance. This suggests that the CPU is not the primary bottleneck at 1440p or 4K. The bottleneck shifts entirely to the GTX 1080 Ti, as the CPU has ample headroom to process the game's simulation at those lower frame rates. The 10-core configuration ensures that background tasks do not interfere with game performance, but the game's engine does not appear to scale with the higher core count, given the similar performance to rivals with different core configurations.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal experience for this hardware combination depends heavily on the user's target resolution and preference for visual fidelity versus framerate.

For 1920x1080, the High preset is the recommended choice. It delivers an average of 84 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay, while providing a significant visual upgrade over the Medium preset. The Ultra preset is viable at 73 FPS, but the jump from High to Ultra may not be worth the 11 FPS loss for the marginal visual improvements in Control. For users with high refresh rate monitors, the Low preset at 133 FPS offers the best chance of hitting 120+ FPS, but sacrifices most of the game's atmospheric lighting and effects.

For 2560x1440, the Medium preset is the best balance. It averages 72 FPS and maintains a minimum of 61 FPS, ensuring a mostly stable experience. The High preset at 64 FPS is also acceptable, but the Medium preset provides a safer margin above the 60 FPS target. The Ultra preset at 55 FPS is not recommended, as the sub-60 FPS average will be noticeable during intense combat sequences.

For 3840x2160, the only viable option is the Low preset, which averages 68 FPS. This setting allows for a playable 4K experience, but the visual quality is significantly reduced, with many of the game's advanced effects disabled. The Medium preset at 48 FPS is a poor choice for a game like Control that requires precise timing and awareness, as the low framerate will hamper responsiveness. Users prioritizing visual quality at 4K would need more powerful hardware than the GTX 1080 Ti.

How This Combo Ranks

The Core Ultra 5 225 and GTX 1080 Ti combination ranks 1585th out of 2888 tested combos in Control. This places it in the 55th percentile of all systems tested, indicating that it performs slightly better than the median setup but is far from the top tier. This ranking is consistent with the hardware's specifications: the CPU is strong, but the GPU's 58th percentile ranking among all GPUs holds the combo back.

The ranking reflects the GPU's inability to handle the highest settings at high resolutions. While the combo excels at 1080p, its performance at 1440p and 4K drags its overall ranking down. The data shows that this is a mid-range configuration that is best suited for 1080p gaming at high settings or 1440p at medium settings. It is not competitive with high-end systems that can maintain 60+ FPS at 4K with maximum quality presets. The high CPU performance ensures that the system is not held back by processing power, but the GTX 1080 Ti's age is evident in its scaling behavior at higher resolutions. This ranking suggests that users with this combo should prioritize lowering resolution or settings to achieve a smooth experience, rather than pushing for maximum visual fidelity.