Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2 with the Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER presents a fascinating case of extreme hardware pairing. The benchmark data indicates a system where the GPU is massively overqualified for the task at 1080p, but the tables turn as resolution increases. The measured FPS shows that this combination is a 1080p and 1440p powerhouse, while 4K Ultra represents the only scenario where the GPU is truly challenged, with the CPU becoming the limiting factor at lower resolutions.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a clear shift in system bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the combo produces 506.7 FPS, which drops to 445.5 FPS at 1440p (a 12% reduction) and then to 249.8 FPS at 4K (a 51% reduction from 1080p). This pattern is consistent across all settings, with the scaling becoming more aggressive as settings increase. For instance, at Ultra settings, the drop from 1080p (326.2 FPS) to 1440p (212.4 FPS) is 35%, and to 4K (118.9 FPS) is 64%.

This data suggests that at 1080p, the CPU is heavily limiting performance. The difference between 1080p Low (506.7 FPS) and 1440p Low (445.5 FPS) is relatively modest, indicating that the Intel Core i5-10400F cannot feed the RTX 4080 SUPER fast enough to maintain the same frame rate as resolution increases. However, the transition from 1440p to 4K shows a much steeper drop-off, implying the GPU begins to take over as the primary constraint at 4K. The 4K High result (156.7 FPS) is still exceptionally high, but the 4K Ultra figure (118.9 FPS) is the only measurement in the entire set that falls below the 1440p High result (276 FPS) by a significant margin.

The scaling behavior indicates that the RTX 4080 SUPER is underutilized at 1080p and 1440p. The data shows a 21% performance gap between 1080p High (418 FPS) and 1440p High (276 FPS), which is a larger relative drop than the 25% gap between 1440p High (276 FPS) and 4K High (156.7 FPS). This is counterintuitive for GPU-bound scenarios, confirming that the CPU is the bottleneck at lower resolutions. The sweet spot for this combo appears to be 1440p, where the GPU is more engaged but still delivers ludicrously high frame rates.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER is an absolute monster of a GPU, and the benchmark results reflect that. With 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, it offers 736.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The clock speeds are high, with a base of 2295 MHz and a boost of 2550 MHz. This hardware is clearly designed for 4K gaming, and the data confirms it is more than capable of handling Counter-Strike 2 at that resolution.

The GPU's massive compute resources—10240 shading units, 320 TMUs, and 112 ROPs—allow it to push 285.6 GPixel/s and 816.0 GTexel/s. This translates to 52.22 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. In game, the GPU's role is most evident at 4K. The jump from 4K Medium (209.1 FPS) to 4K High (156.7 FPS) is a 25% reduction, and then to 4K Ultra (118.9 FPS) is another 24% reduction. This shows that as settings increase, the GPU is being progressively more taxed, with Ultra settings finally bringing the frame rate down to a level where the GPU is clearly the limiting factor.

At 1080p, the GPU is effectively coasting. The difference between 1080p Low (506.7 FPS) and 1080p High (418 FPS) is only 18%, suggesting that the GPU has plenty of headroom. Even at 1080p Ultra (326.2 FPS), the GPU is not breaking a sweat. The data implies that the RTX 4080 SUPER's VRAM and bandwidth are not being fully utilized at this resolution, and the frame rate is being capped by the CPU. The GPU's 88th percentile ranking among all GPUs reinforces its top-tier status, and its average benchmark score of 53610 puts it 0.2% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT and 2.9% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-10400F is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Comet Lake architecture. It has a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. This is a solid mid-range CPU, but it is clearly the weak link in this combination. The data shows that the CPU is the primary bottleneck at 1080p and 1440p, preventing the RTX 4080 SUPER from reaching its full potential.

Evidence for this is found in the 3DMark benchmarks. The single-thread score is only 688, and the 2-thread score is 1350. Multi-threaded scores are more respectable, with 8-thread at 3929 and max-thread at 4735. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 10297 and single-core score of 1453 further illustrate the CPU's capabilities. While these are decent numbers, they are not in the league of the GPU. The CPU's 73rd percentile ranking among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 14168, places it 1.1% behind the Intel Core i5-8500 and 0.4% ahead of the AMD EPYC 7552.

The impact of the CPU is most visible in the scaling from 1080p to 1440p. At Low settings, the FPS drops from 506.7 to 445.5, a 12% reduction. This is a relatively small drop, indicating that the CPU is still the limiting factor. If the GPU were the bottleneck, we would expect a much larger drop, as the pixel count increases by 78% from 1080p to 1440p. The fact that the frame rate does not drop proportionally confirms the CPU is holding the system back. The CPU's 12 MB of shared L3 cache and dual-channel DDR4 memory support (42.7 GB/s bandwidth) are adequate but not exceptional, further reinforcing that this is a mid-range processor paired with a top-tier GPU.

Settings Recommendations

The benchmark data provides clear guidance on optimal settings. For 1080p, the data suggests that Low settings are the best choice for competitive play, as they yield 506.7 FPS, which is 17% higher than Medium (476.6 FPS) and 21% higher than High (418 FPS). The jump to Ultra (326.2 FPS) is not worth the visual upgrade for most players, as the frame rate is still high but the reduction is significant.

At 1440p, the recommendation shifts. Low settings (445.5 FPS) and Medium (371.1 FPS) are both excellent, but High (276 FPS) offers a better balance. The data shows that 1440p High (276 FPS) is still far above the refresh rate of most monitors, and the visual improvement is substantial. Ultra (212.4 FPS) is also viable, but the 23% drop from High is noticeable. For 4K, the choice is more constrained. High (156.7 FPS) is the sweet spot, as it is nearly 32% faster than Ultra (118.9 FPS) while still looking excellent. Medium (209.1 FPS) is also a strong option if pure frame rate is the priority, but the visual fidelity loss may not be worth the 33% FPS gain over High. Low (249.8 FPS) at 4K is likely overkill, as the game will look severely dated, but it shows the GPU's raw power.

FAQ

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-10400F a bottleneck for the RTX 4080 SUPER in Counter-Strike 2?

A: Yes, the data indicates the CPU is the limiting factor at 1080p and 1440p. The FPS difference between 1080p Low (506.7) and 1440p Low (445.5) is only 12%, which is far less than the 78% increase in pixel count, proving the CPU cannot keep up.

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo?

A: 1440p High provides the best balance, with 276 FPS. This is substantially above 4K High (156.7 FPS) and still offers high visual fidelity. For pure competitive play, 1080p Low (506.7 FPS) is the fastest option.

Q: How does the RTX 4080 SUPER compare to its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT?

A: The RTX 4080 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 53610, which is 0.2% higher than the RX 6900 XT's 53489. The GPU also sits in the 88th percentile of all GPUs.

Q: Does the CPU's 6-core, 12-thread configuration matter for this game?

A: The benchmark data shows the CPU is not a major factor in frame rate at 4K, but it is at lower resolutions. The 3DMark max-thread score of 4735 and single-thread score of 688 suggest that the CPU's single-thread performance is the key constraint.

Q: What is the highest FPS recorded in the data?

A: The highest average FPS is 506.7, achieved at 1920x1080 with Low settings.

Q: How does the Ultra setting impact performance compared to High?

A: The impact is significant. At 4K, Ultra (118.9 FPS) is 24% slower than High (156.7 FPS). At 1440p, the drop is 23% (from 276 to 212.4 FPS), and at 1080p, it is 22% (from 418 to 326.2 FPS).

Measured FPS Breakdown

The data provides a complete matrix of performance across resolutions and settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 506.7 FPS, Medium 476.6 FPS, High 418 FPS, and Ultra 326.2 FPS. Moving to 2560x1440, the numbers are 445.5 FPS (Low), 371.1 FPS (Medium), 276 FPS (High), and 212.4 FPS (Ultra). At 3840x2160, the performance drops to 249.8 FPS (Low), 209.1 FPS (Medium), 156.7 FPS (High), and 118.9 FPS (Ultra).

The scaling pattern is consistent: the gap between Low and Medium is generally small (6% at 1080p, 17% at 1440p, and 16% at 4K), while the gap between High and Ultra is larger (22% at 1080p, 23% at 1440p, and 24% at 4K). The most dramatic difference is between 1440p High (276 FPS) and 4K High (156.7 FPS), a 43% reduction. This suggests that 4K High is the most demanding scenario, while 1080p Low is the least demanding. The data confirms that this combo can handle any setting at 1080p or 1440p with ease, and even 4K is playable at all presets.

How This Combo Ranks

This specific combination of the Intel Core i5-10400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER ranks 159th out of 1632 tested combos in Counter-Strike 2. This places it in the top 10% of all configurations. The high ranking is primarily due to the GPU's immense power, despite the CPU being a potential bottleneck.

The ranking implies that while the combo is not the absolute best, it outperforms the vast majority of systems. The data suggests that a higher-end CPU would likely push this combo higher in the rankings, as the RTX 4080 SUPER is capable of much more at lower resolutions. The 159th rank out of 1632 is a strong showing, indicating that this system is well-suited for high-refresh-rate gaming, particularly at 1440p. The GPU's 88th percentile ranking, combined with the CPU's 73rd percentile, shows an unbalanced pairing, but the overall result is still a top-tier gaming experience. The ranking confirms that the RTX 4080 SUPER dominates the system's performance profile, and the CPU is the only factor preventing an even higher placement.