Control

Control, the 2019 action-adventure title, is a demanding showcase for any hardware pairing. The data for the Intel Core Ultra 7 265K and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER combination reveals a system that is consistently capable across all tested settings and resolutions, though its performance profile shifts predictably as the workload changes. The measured results indicate a pairing that favors high-refresh-rate 1440p play but remains entirely playable at 4K, with the CPU proving more than sufficient to feed the GPU in most scenarios.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drops from 1080p to 4K are steep and consistent, indicating that the rendering load scales heavily with pixel count. At High settings, the average frame rate falls from 136.7 FPS at 1920x1080 to 105.3 FPS at 2560x1440, a reduction of 31.4 FPS. Pushing further to 3840x2160 yields an average of 70.9 FPS, which represents a 65.8 FPS drop from the 1080p baseline. This scaling behavior is classic for a GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions; the RTX 4070 SUPER’s 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 192-bit bus are being tasked with filling progressively more pixels.

The pattern is even more pronounced at the lowest settings. At Low, the system achieves 216.3 FPS at 1080p, which is an exceptionally high frame rate that suggests the CPU is still capable of keeping up. However, this drops to 162.9 FPS at 1440p and then to 110.4 FPS at 4K. The 105.9 FPS difference between 1080p Low and 4K Low is the largest absolute gap in the entire dataset. This large spread at Low settings is significant because it suggests that even when the graphical load is reduced to its minimum, the GPU’s fillrate and memory bandwidth become the primary limiting factors as resolution increases. The CPU is not the bottleneck here; the GPU is being saturated by the sheer number of pixels.

At the highest quality preset, Ultra, the scaling tells a slightly different story. The frame rates are lower across the board, starting at 119.5 FPS at 1080p and descending to 88.1 FPS at 1440p and 57.5 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1440p to 4K is 30.6 FPS, a significant 34.7% reduction. This indicates that at Ultra, the game’s more complex visual effects, likely involving ray tracing or advanced post-processing, place an even heavier burden on the GPU. The result is that 4K Ultra dips below the 60 FPS threshold, making 1440p Ultra the more sensible target for a locked high frame rate. The data clearly shows a system where the limiting component is the GPU as resolution climbs, a typical and expected characteristic for a high-end pairing.

How This Combo Ranks

Within the database of tested combinations for Control, this specific pairing holds a strong position. The combo ranks 258th out of 1636 total tested combinations, placing it in the top 15.8% of all systems. This is a solid result that reflects the overall capability of the Core Ultra 7 265K and RTX 4070 SUPER working in tandem. It is not an absolute top-tier configuration, but it sits comfortably above the vast majority of other pairings.

The rank suggests that while the CPU is a high-percentile part, the GPU, which is ranked in the 84th percentile of all GPUs, sets the ceiling for this combo’s overall position. The CPU’s own benchmark percentile is 97, meaning it is a top 3% processor, but the GPU’s slightly lower standing pulls the combined result down from the very top. This is not a negative assessment; rather, it highlights that the pairing is balanced around the GPU’s capabilities. The 258th rank means there are 257 other combinations that achieve higher average frame rates in this specific title, likely featuring more powerful GPUs like the RTX 4080 or 4090 class parts.

The delta between this combo and the top performers is not directly shown, but the rank itself is the key indicator. A rank of 258 out of 1636 is a strong performance, placing it ahead of roughly 84% of all tested systems. For a player targeting high-refresh-rate 1440p or smooth 4K gameplay in Control, this combo is demonstrably well-suited, ranking far above the median system. The data reinforces that this is a high-end pairing, even if it doesn’t claim the top spot.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K is a 20-core, 20-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture. Its role in Control is to provide a stable platform for the GPU, and the data confirms it does so without becoming a bottleneck. The CPU’s boost clock of 5.50 GHz is a key asset for gaming, as Control’s engine relies on strong single-thread performance for game logic and physics.

Benchmark results for the CPU reinforce its high-end positioning. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 50009 and single-core score of 7060 are indicative of a processor that offers both immense multi-threaded throughput and excellent single-threaded speed. In the context of Control, the single-core strength is more relevant than the multi-core might suggest. The 97th percentile ranking among all CPUs shows it is a top-tier part, and its nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core i9-14900KF and AMD EPYC 7413, have average scores that are within 1.2% of it, showing the 265K is in elite company.

The measured FPS data corroborates the CPU’s sufficiency. At 1080p with Low settings, the system pushes 216.3 FPS. This high frame rate in a CPU-sensitive scenario demonstrates that the processor is capable of feeding the GPU enough data to reach over 200 FPS. The fact that the frame rate drops to 119.5 FPS at 1080p Ultra, a 96.8 FPS reduction, is almost entirely attributable to the increased GPU load, not a CPU limitation. If the CPU were the limiting factor, the frame rates would be much closer across different settings at the same resolution. The 20 threads and 30 MB of shared L3 cache provide ample resources for the game’s background tasks and asset streaming, ensuring that the GPU is never starved of work. The processor’s role is to enable the GPU to operate at its full potential, and the data shows it does exactly that.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a complete picture of performance across three resolutions and four settings levels. At 1920x1080, the system is exceptionally fast. Low settings yield 216.3 FPS, Medium 152 FPS, High 136.7 FPS, and Ultra 119.5 FPS. The differences between these are substantial, showing how much headroom the GPU has at this resolution. The 96.8 FPS gap between Low and Ultra is entirely due to the increased graphical demands of the higher preset.

Moving to 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but begin to compress. Low settings produce 162.9 FPS, which is still excellent for competitive play. Medium settings deliver 118.8 FPS, while High and Ultra produce 105.3 FPS and 88.1 FPS, respectively. The gap between Low and Ultra narrows to 74.8 FPS, indicating that the GPU is becoming more of a limiting factor as the pixel count increases. All settings at 1440p are above the 60 FPS threshold, making this resolution the sweet spot for this combo, especially when aiming for high refresh rates on a 144Hz or 165Hz monitor.

At 3840x2160, the system is still capable, but the GPU is clearly the primary constraint. Low settings average 110.4 FPS, which is playable, but Medium drops to 76.9 FPS, High to 70.9 FPS, and Ultra to 57.5 FPS. The drop from Low to Ultra is 52.9 FPS. While Low and Medium settings provide a smooth experience, High is borderline, and Ultra falls below the 60 FPS target for a consistently fluid feel. This data suggests that for 4K, players will need to adjust settings to maintain a high frame rate. The RTX 4070 SUPER’s 12 GB of VRAM and 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth are sufficient for these loads, but the GPU’s compute power is stretched at this resolution, particularly with the higher-quality presets.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture and features 7168 shading units, 56 RT cores, and 224 tensor cores. Its role in Control is the dominant one, as the game’s visual fidelity is a significant drain on GPU resources. The GPU’s boost clock of 2475 MHz helps it maintain high throughput, but its performance is ultimately defined by its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit bus, providing 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth.

The GPU’s benchmark results place it in the 84th percentile of all GPUs, with its Passmark G3D score of 29995 being a strong indicator of its rasterization performance. Its nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA RTX A6000 and AMD Radeon RX 7650 GRE, have average scores within a fraction of a percent, showing it is a well-positioned part in the mid-to-high-end segment. In the measured FPS data, the GPU’s influence is clear.

At 1080p, the GPU has significant headroom, but it is still the component that scales the performance with settings. The jump from Low (216.3 FPS) to Ultra (119.5 FPS) is a 96.8 FPS reduction, which is caused by the GPU processing more complex shaders and effects. At 4K, the GPU’s limitations become apparent. The 57.5 FPS at Ultra is the only result below 60 FPS in the entire dataset, highlighting that the GPU is being pushed to its absolute limit. The 110.4 FPS at 4K Low shows that even with minimal settings, the GPU’s pixel fillrate is a constraint. The 220 W TDP and dual-slot design are appropriate for this level of performance, but the data makes it clear that the GPU is the determining factor for the overall experience. It is a capable card for 1440p and even 4K with adjusted settings, but it is not a 4K Ultra powerhouse in this title.