Control

Control is a 2019 action-adventure title that pushes both CPU and GPU hard, but the benchmark data for the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile reveals a system that is clearly GPU-bound at higher resolutions. The measured frame rates across four presets and three resolutions tell a story of a capable mobile platform that can deliver smooth 1080p gameplay but struggles to maintain high refresh rates at 4K. The data suggests that this combination is well-balanced for its intended mobile market, with the CPU's strong multi-threaded performance ensuring it never becomes a bottleneck in this particular title.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core Ultra 9 185H is a 16-core, 22-thread processor based on the Meteor Lake architecture, built on Intel's 7 nm process. It features a base clock of 3.90 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz, with a 45 W TDP that is typical for high-end mobile parts. The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 112 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and a shared 24 MB of L3 cache, which is substantial for a laptop chip. Control is known for its physics-heavy gameplay and destructible environments, which can put a significant load on the CPU, but the benchmark results indicate this processor handles it with ease.

In synthetic benchmarks, the Core Ultra 9 185H achieves a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 17984.5 and a single-core score of 1810.5, placing it in the 85th percentile of all CPUs tested. This multi-threaded strength is relevant because Control can use multiple cores for its physics simulation and AI routines. The PassMark multithread score of 29376 further confirms the CPU's ability to manage parallel workloads. However, the game's performance at 1080p, where the CPU is most likely to be a limiting factor, shows that this processor provides ample headroom. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 137 FPS average, and at 1080p Ultra, it still manages 75 FPS. These numbers suggest that even at the lowest settings, the CPU is not holding back the GPU, as the frame rates scale more with resolution and preset than with any obvious CPU constraint.

The processor's nearest rival in average benchmark score is the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350, which scores 35719 compared to the Core Ultra 9's 35670, a negligible 0.1% difference. The Intel Core 7 250H is similarly close at -0.2%. This indicates that in raw processing power, the Core Ultra 9 185H is competitive with other high-end mobile and even some desktop parts, but its real-world impact in Control is secondary to the GPU's performance. The data shows that at 4K, the frame rates drop dramatically regardless of CPU capability, which points to the GPU being the primary bottleneck in this configuration.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile ranks 2056 out of 3720 tested combos in Control. This places it in the middle of the pack, which is surprising given the high-end nature of both components. The rank suggests that while this is a solid mobile setup, there are many other configurations that achieve higher frame rates in this specific game. The percentile for the CPU alone is 85, and for the GPU it is 75, but the combined rank of 55th percentile (2056/3720) indicates that Control's performance is more demanding than average, or that other combos with similar component scores are better optimized for this title.

Analyzing the nearest rivals of the GPU provides context. The RTX 5070 Mobile's average benchmark score is 29928, which is nearly identical to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti at 29945 (a 0.1% difference) and the RTX 2080 Ti at 29783 (0.5% difference). The AMD Radeon RX 6800 is slightly higher at 30095, a 0.6% gap. In Control, this GPU performance translates to playable frame rates at 1080p and 1440p, but the combo's mid-pack ranking implies that other CPU-GPU pairings may extract more performance from similar hardware. The data does not specify what those other combos are, but the rank alone suggests that this pairing is not in the top tier for this game, possibly due to thermal constraints or driver maturity at the time of testing.

The CPU's nearest rivals also show how close the processing power is. With a delta of -0.1% against the Ryzen AI 7 PRO 350 and -0.2% against the Core 7 250H, the Core Ultra 9 185H is effectively tied with these alternatives in synthetic tests. Yet, in Control, the overall combo rank of 2056 indicates that the specific interaction between this CPU and GPU does not produce top-tier results. It is a middle-of-the-road performer, which is a notable finding for a chip with a 85th percentile CPU score. This suggests that Control may be more sensitive to GPU memory bandwidth or specific architectural features than to raw CPU compute.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The resolution scaling in Control with this combo is dramatic and clearly demonstrates a GPU-bound scenario. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at High settings, the average FPS drops from 87 to 66, a 24% decrease. From 1440p to 4K at High, the FPS falls from 66 to 44, another 33% drop. The overall drop from 1080p High to 4K High is from 87 to 44, a 49% reduction. This halving of frame rates when doubling the pixel count (from 2.07 million to 8.29 million pixels) is a classic sign that the GPU is the limiting factor, as the CPU's workload does not scale proportionally with resolution.

At Low settings, the scaling is even more pronounced. From 1080p to 1440p, the FPS drops from 137 to 104, a 24% decrease. From 1440p to 4K Low, it goes from 104 to 70, a 33% drop. The total reduction from 1080p Low to 4K Low is 49%, again confirming that the GPU is the bottleneck. If the CPU were limiting, we would expect the frame rates at low settings and low resolutions to plateau, but they continue to rise as resolution decreases, indicating that even at 1080p, the GPU is doing most of the work.

The data also shows that the gap between Low and Ultra settings at each resolution is significant. At 1080p, the difference between Low (137 FPS) and Ultra (75 FPS) is 62 FPS, or 45%. At 4K, the gap narrows to 31 FPS (70 vs 39), but the percentage difference is similar (44%). This consistent percentage gap across resolutions suggests that the GPU's rendering workload is scaling proportionally with both resolution and settings, with no CPU-induced ceiling. The frame rate drops are smooth and predictable, which is characteristic of a system where the GPU is fully utilized at all times.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

At 1920x1080, the system delivers its highest frame rates. With Low settings, the average FPS is 137, which is excellent for competitive or fast-paced play. Medium settings reduce this to 98 FPS, with a minimum of 83 and a maximum of 112, indicating some frame time variance but still smooth overall. High settings yield 87 FPS average, and Ultra drops to 75 FPS. These numbers show that at 1080p, the RTX 5070 Mobile can handle Control at high refresh rates on a 144Hz display, with even Ultra settings remaining playable.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance becomes more moderate. Low settings achieve 104 FPS average, which is still very smooth. Medium settings drop to 74 FPS, with a min of 63 and max of 85, showing a tighter range than at 1080p Medium. High settings produce 66 FPS, and Ultra falls to 57 FPS. At 1440p, the system can maintain 60+ FPS on High settings, but Ultra requires dropping below that threshold. This makes 1440p High a sweet spot for a 60 Hz monitor, while 1440p Medium is better for higher refresh rates.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly overburdened. Low settings achieve 70 FPS average, which is surprisingly playable for 4K. Medium settings drop to 50 FPS, with a min of 42 and max of 57, showing significant frame drops in demanding scenes. High settings produce only 44 FPS, and Ultra dips to 39 FPS. These 4K numbers indicate that the RTX 5070 Mobile is not designed for high-refresh 4K gaming in Control, but it can manage 60 FPS on Low settings if the player is willing to sacrifice visual quality.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Mobile is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a GB206 chip, manufactured on TSMC's 5 nm process. It features 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 384.0 GB/s. The GPU has a base clock of 907 MHz and a boost clock of 1425 MHz, with memory running at 1500 MHz (24 Gbps effective). With 4608 shading units, 144 texture mapping units, and 48 ROPs, the RTX 5070 Mobile is a substantial mobile GPU, but its 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit bus may be limiting factors in a game like Control, which can use over 8 GB of VRAM at high settings and 4K resolution.

The GPU's benchmark scores place it in the 75th percentile of all GPUs. Its PassMark G3D score is 20355, and its Geekbench OpenCL score is 122238. The nearest rival is the RTX 3070 Ti, with an average score of 29945 versus the RTX 5070 Mobile's 29928, a 0.1% difference. The RTX 2080 Ti is 0.5% behind, and the RX 6800 is 0.6% ahead. This puts the RTX 5070 Mobile in the same performance class as previous-generation high-end desktop cards, which is impressive for a mobile part.

In Control, the GPU's role is clearly dominant. The 4K Low settings achieving 70 FPS suggests that the GPU can handle the workload when texture quality and effects are reduced, but the drop to 44 FPS at 4K High indicates that the 8 GB VRAM might be insufficient, leading to texture swapping or reduced memory bandwidth. The 128-bit bus, while fast with GDDR7, may also struggle with the high-resolution textures in Control. The boost clock of 1425 MHz is relatively low for a modern GPU, but the Blackwell architecture's efficiency helps mitigate this. The data shows that the GPU is the primary driver of performance in Control, with the CPU playing a supporting role.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo achieves in Control?

A: The highest average FPS is 137, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: Can this system run Control at 4K with playable frame rates?

A: Yes, at 4K Low settings, the average FPS is 70. However, at 4K High settings, it drops to 44 FPS, and at Ultra, it falls to 39 FPS.

Q: How does the RTX 5070 Mobile compare to its nearest GPU rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 5070 Mobile has an average benchmark score of 29928, which is 0.1% lower than the RTX 3070 Ti (29945) and 0.5% higher than the RTX 2080 Ti (29783). The AMD RX 6800 is 0.6% higher at 30095.

Q: Is the CPU a bottleneck in Control at any resolution?

A: The data suggests no. The frame rates scale consistently with resolution and settings, indicating the GPU is the limiting factor. The CPU's high multi-core scores (Cinebench R23 multi-core 17984.5) provide ample headroom.

Q: What is the difference in FPS between 1080p and 4K at Medium settings?

A: At 1080p Medium, the average FPS is 98, while at 4K Medium, it is 50. This is a 49% decrease.

Q: What is the combo's rank among all tested systems in Control?

A: The combo ranks 2056 out of 3720 tested combos, placing it in the middle of the pack.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings for this combo depend on the player's resolution and refresh rate goals. For 1080p gaming, the system can handle Ultra settings at 75 FPS, which is smooth for most players, but those with a 144Hz display may prefer High settings at 87 FPS or Medium at 98 FPS for a higher frame rate. Low settings at 137 FPS are overkill for most monitors, but would be ideal for competitive play on a 240Hz panel.

At 1440p, High settings provide 66 FPS, which is just above the 60 FPS threshold for most monitors, making it the best balance of visual quality and performance. Medium settings at 74 FPS offer a smoother experience with a slight visual compromise, while Ultra at 57 FPS may cause noticeable stuttering on a 60Hz display. For 1440p, High is the recommended preset for the best experience.

At 4K, the system is severely GPU-limited. Low settings at 70 FPS are the only way to achieve a consistently smooth experience, but this sacrifices most visual effects. Medium settings at 50 FPS are borderline playable, but the minimum FPS of 42 indicates potential stutters. High and Ultra settings are not recommended at 4K, as they fall below 45 FPS. For 4K gaming, players should use Low settings if they prioritize frame rate, or consider dropping to 1440p for a better overall experience with High settings. The data clearly shows that this combo is best utilized at 1080p or 1440p, where it can deliver high frame rates with high visual fidelity.