Control

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 produces a heavily GPU-bound experience in Control, where the 24-core CPU far outpaces the graphics card’s capabilities. The data indicates that this combo ranks in the 17th percentile of tested configurations, with the GTX 1070 acting as the primary bottleneck across all resolutions. This pairing delivers playable frame rates at 1080p with adjusted settings, but struggles to maintain smooth performance at higher resolutions, making it a suitable match only for 1080p gaming.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus is a 24-core, 24-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake Refresh architecture, built on a 3 nm process. It operates with a base clock of 3.70 GHz and a boost clock of 5.80 GHz, supported by a 36 MB shared L3 cache. This CPU is a top-tier performer in synthetic benchmarks, placing in the 96th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 84003. Its nearest rival, the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, scores 83807, a delta of 0.2%, indicating near-identical performance. The AMD EPYC 4584PX trails by 1.1%, and the AMD EPYC 9135 by 1.2%, while the AMD EPYC 7F72 is 1.3% ahead.

In the context of Control, the CPU’s massive thread count and high boost clock ensure that it is never the limiting factor. The game’s engine, which relies heavily on physics and AI calculations, can utilize multiple threads, but the GTX 1070 will saturate before this CPU reaches its limits. Benchmark results from Cinebench R23 show a multi-core score of 51731 and a single-core score of 7303, demonstrating exceptional headroom for any game workload. PassMark data further reinforces this, with a multithread score of 60860 and a single-thread score of 4823, placing it far above the requirements of a 2019 action-adventure title.

The data suggests that the CPU’s role in this combo is to provide a stable foundation, ensuring that frame time spikes from CPU bottlenecks are essentially non-existent. Even at lower resolutions where the GPU load decreases, the CPU’s single-core performance, with a Cinebench R20 single-core score of 3067, is sufficient to feed the GTX 1070 without causing stutters. The 24 threads handle background tasks and game logic simultaneously, but the measured FPS deltas between settings are almost entirely attributable to GPU workload changes, confirming the CPU is not a constraint. For this game, the processor is operating well below its capacity, leaving performance on the table that a more powerful GPU could exploit.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 is a Pascal-architecture card with 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 256.3 GB/s of bandwidth. It features 1920 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, with a base clock of 1506 MHz and a boost clock of 1683 MHz. The card’s memory runs at 2002 MHz, effectively 8 Gbps. This GPU holds a 47th percentile ranking among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 9780. Its nearest rivals are closely matched: the AMD FirePro W5000 is 0.2% ahead, the NVIDIA Quadro M2000M is 0.5% ahead, while the NVIDIA Tesla M10 and Tesla C2070 trail by 0.6% and 0.7%, respectively.

In Control, the GTX 1070 is the decisive component. The game is graphically intensive, with heavy use of particle effects, destructible environments, and advanced lighting, all of which place significant strain on the GPU. The 8 GB VRAM is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p, but the card’s raw compute power, rated at 6.463 TFLOPS FP32, limits its ability to maintain high frame rates at higher settings. The measured FPS shows a clear pattern: at 1080p Ultra, the average is 53 FPS, which drops to 27 FPS at 4K Ultra, demonstrating a steep performance cliff as resolution increases.

The GTX 1070’s 150 W TDP and PCIe 3.0 x16 interface are standard for its generation, but its age relative to the game’s 2019 release means it lacks modern features like hardware ray tracing, which Control can utilize. The card’s DirectX 12 support is present (12_1), but the implementation is basic compared to newer architectures. The data indicates that the GPU’s pixel rate of 107.7 GPixel/s and texture rate of 202.0 GTexel/s are the limits for this combo, as the CPU can easily outpace these figures. The 47th percentile ranking highlights that this is a mid-range GPU by current standards, and its performance in Control reflects that positioning, with playable results only achievable through lower settings or resolutions.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drops from 1080p to 4K are substantial, and the data clearly shows the GTX 1070 as the limiting component. At High settings, the average FPS falls from 61 at 1080p to 46 at 1440p, a decrease of 15 FPS, and then to 31 at 4K, a further drop of 15 FPS. This represents a 49% reduction from 1080p to 4K. The pattern is consistent across all settings, indicating a purely GPU-bound scenario where the CPU’s performance remains constant.

At Low settings, the scaling is less severe in percentage terms but still significant: 97 FPS at 1080p drops to 73 at 1440p and 49 at 4K. This is a 49% drop from 1080p to 4K as well, showing that even with reduced graphical load, the GPU cannot maintain frame rates at higher resolutions. The Medium settings show a similar trend, with 69 FPS at 1080p, 52 at 1440p, and 35 at 4K. The Ultra preset, the most demanding, yields 53 FPS at 1080p, 40 at 1440p, and 27 at 4K.

The data reveals that the GPU’s memory bandwidth and fill rate are insufficient for 4K, where the pixel count quadruples compared to 1080p. The 256.3 GB/s bandwidth becomes a bottleneck, and the 64 ROPs struggle to keep up with the rasterization demands. The CPU’s 115.2 GB/s memory bandwidth and dual-channel DDR5 support are irrelevant here, as the GPU is the sole arbiter of performance. The scaling from 1440p to 4K shows a consistent proportional drop, confirming that the GPU is saturated at all resolutions. For this combo, 1080p is the only resolution where the GTX 1070 can deliver consistently smooth gameplay across most settings, while 1440p requires lower presets, and 4K is only viable at Low settings with compromised visual quality.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS, the optimal balance of visual fidelity and performance for this combo is the Medium preset at 1080p, which delivers an average of 69 FPS with a minimum of 58 and a maximum of 79. This provides a smooth experience above the 60 FPS threshold for most of the gameplay, while still offering a moderate level of graphical detail. The High preset at 1080p achieves 61 FPS, which is also playable, but the Medium preset offers a larger safety margin against frame drops during intense combat sequences.

At 1440p, the Medium preset averages 52 FPS, which is below the ideal 60 FPS mark but still playable for a slower-paced action-adventure game. The Low preset at 1440p averages 73 FPS, which is smoother but sacrifices significant visual quality. The High preset at 1440p averages 46 FPS, which may lead to noticeable stuttering in fast-paced scenes. The data suggests that for a consistent experience, 1080p Medium is the sweet spot, as it provides a 16% improvement over High at the same resolution, with a 12% FPS increase, while the visual difference between Medium and High is less impactful than the performance gain.

For 4K, the Low preset averages 49 FPS, which is the only viable option for this resolution, but it comes with a major visual downgrade. The Medium preset at 4K averages 35 FPS, which is below the threshold for comfortable gameplay, and the High and Ultra presets are effectively unplayable at 31 and 27 FPS, respectively. The recommendation is to prioritize 1080p Medium for the best experience, as it balances the game’s atmospheric visuals with responsive controls. If the user insists on higher resolutions, lowering settings to Low is necessary, but the data indicates that the visual compromise is steep and the performance gain is modest.

How This Combo Ranks

This combination of the Intel Core Ultra 9 290K Plus and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 ranks 2395 out of 2888 tested combos in Control, placing it in the bottom 17% of configurations. This low ranking reflects the significant mismatch between the high-end CPU and the mid-range GPU. The CPU’s performance, which sits in the 96th percentile, is wasted on this game with this GPU, as the measured FPS is entirely dictated by the graphics card’s capabilities.

The ranking indicates that most other tested combos, even those with weaker CPUs, achieve higher frame rates in Control because they are paired with more capable GPUs. The delta between this combo’s performance and the top-ranking systems is substantial, as the GTX 1070’s 47th percentile GPU ranking drags down the overall result. The data shows that the CPU’s strength cannot compensate for the GPU’s limitations in a GPU-bound title like Control. This pairing is a stark example of how a balanced system is more important than having a single high-end component.

For context, if the CPU were paired with a modern high-end GPU, the combo rank would likely be in the top percentile, but the GTX 1070 caps the potential. The 2395th rank suggests that users with this combo are experiencing performance similar to systems with much older CPUs but comparable or better GPUs. The data implies that upgrading the GPU would yield a massive improvement in Control, while upgrading the CPU would yield almost no measurable gain. This rank serves as a cautionary tale about component pairing, where the weakest link determines the overall experience.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this combo is as follows, broken down by resolution and settings:

1920x1080 (1080p):

• Low: Average 97 FPS
• Medium: Average 69 FPS, Minimum 58, Maximum 79
• High: Average 61 FPS
• Ultra: Average 53 FPS

2560x1440 (1440p):

• Low: Average 73 FPS
• Medium: Average 52 FPS, Minimum 44, Maximum 60
• High: Average 46 FPS
• Ultra: Average 40 FPS

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: Average 49 FPS
• Medium: Average 35 FPS, Minimum 30, Maximum 40
• High: Average 31 FPS
• Ultra: Average 27 FPS

The data shows a clear progression: at 1080p, the GTX 1070 can handle all presets, with even Ultra averaging above 50 FPS. The Medium preset offers the best balance, with a minimum of 58 FPS ensuring no major dips. At 1440p, the performance drops are noticeable, with only Low and Medium presets providing averages above 50 FPS. The Ultra preset at 1440p averages 40 FPS, which is below the playable threshold for many users. At 4K, the GPU is clearly overburdened, with only the Low preset achieving an average above 45 FPS, while all other presets fall below 36 FPS.

The minimum and maximum FPS values for Medium settings at each resolution show the variance in performance. At 1080p, the range is 58 to 79, indicating a 21 FPS swing. At 1440p, the range is 44 to 60, a 16 FPS swing. At 4K, the range is 30 to 40, a 10 FPS swing. This narrowing range at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU is consistently pegged at its limit, with less headroom for variation. The data confirms that this combo is best suited for 1080p gaming, with acceptable performance at 1440p only when settings are lowered. The 4K results are marginal, even at the lowest settings, reinforcing the conclusion that the GTX 1070 is the definitive bottleneck in this configuration.