Dave The Diver

# Dave The Diver — Intel Core Ultra 7 265 + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060

FAQ

Q: What is the average FPS at 1080p Ultra settings for this combo?

A: At 1920x1080 with Ultra settings, the configuration achieves an average of 117 FPS, which is comfortably above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 2060 scores 15,290 in the average benchmark score, sitting within a tight cluster: it is 0.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon 680M, 0.6% ahead of the RTX 3050 OEM, and 0.8% ahead of the RX 7600, while matching the GTX 580 exactly.

Q: What is the CPU's percentile ranking among all tested processors?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 ranks in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs, indicating it outperforms the vast majority of processors in the database.

Q: Does the CPU have a significant advantage over its nearest rival?

A: The Core Ultra 7 265 scores 64,640 on average, which is 0.3% behind the AMD EPYC 4464P (64,823) and 0.3% ahead of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265F (64,438). The differences are minimal across the board.

Q: What is the combo's overall rank in Dave The Diver?

A: This CPU-GPU combination ranks 2,242 out of 2,867 tested combos in this game, placing it in the lower-middle portion of the database.

Q: Is the 6 GB VRAM sufficient for 4K gaming in this title?

A: The measured data shows that at 3840x2160 with Ultra settings, the average FPS drops to 59, and at High settings it reaches 67 FPS, suggesting the 6 GB frame buffer is a limiting factor at the highest resolutions.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is built on the Turing architecture with a TU106 chip manufactured on a 12 nm process. It features 1,920 shading units, 120 texture mapping units, and 48 raster output units. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1365 MHz and a boost clock of 1680 MHz, with memory running at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) across a 192-bit bus. This configuration yields a memory bandwidth of 336.0 GB/s, which is critical for feeding the 6 GB GDDR6 frame buffer.

In Dave The Diver, the GPU's performance is directly tied to its VRAM capacity and bandwidth. At 1080p, the 6 GB buffer is sufficient, allowing the card to deliver high frame rates across all settings. However, as resolution increases to 1440p and 4K, the memory pressure grows. At 3840x2160 Ultra, the average FPS drops to 59, just below the 60 FPS target, indicating that the GPU is struggling to maintain fluidity at the highest settings. This is consistent with the GPU's 58th percentile ranking among all GPUs, showing it is a mid-range part by modern standards.

The RTX 2060's pixel rate of 80.64 GPixel/s and texture rate of 201.6 GTexel/s are adequate for this adventure title, which is not particularly demanding on geometry or shading. The card's FP32 throughput of 6.451 TFLOPS provides sufficient compute headroom for the game's rendering workload. The 30 RT cores and 240 tensor cores are present but unused in this non-ray-traced title, meaning the GPU's rasterization performance is the primary determinant of frame rates.

The measured data shows the GPU scales predictably with settings. At 1080p Low, the card achieves 178 FPS, while at 1080p Ultra it drops to 117 FPS, a reduction of 34%. This scaling suggests the GPU is not the bottleneck at lower settings, but becomes more significant as the workload increases. At 4K, the gap between Low (90 FPS) and Ultra (59 FPS) narrows to 34%, indicating that the GPU is increasingly limited by its memory bandwidth and processing power at higher resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of the optimal settings for this configuration. At 1920x1080, all presets deliver playable frame rates, but the best experience balances visual quality with performance. Ultra settings at 1080p yield an average of 117 FPS, which is smooth, but High settings at 133 FPS offer a better margin while retaining most visual fidelity. For players seeking maximum fluidity, Low settings at 178 FPS are an option, but the visual compromise is substantial for a game with this art style.

At 2560x1440, the situation changes. High settings produce 100 FPS average, which is excellent for a 1440p experience, while Ultra drops to 88 FPS—still playable but with less headroom. Medium settings at 112 FPS provide a strong middle ground, offering a 12% improvement over High with a minor visual penalty. For the best balance at this resolution, High settings are recommended, as they maintain a comfortable frame rate above 100 FPS.

At 3840x2160, the choices become more constrained. Ultra settings average 59 FPS, which is borderline for smooth gameplay, and the lack of a reported minimum FPS suggests potential stuttering. High settings at 67 FPS are more stable, providing a 14% improvement over Ultra. Medium settings at 75 FPS with a minimum of 64 FPS offer the safest experience for 4K, ensuring that frame times remain consistent. Low settings at 90 FPS are the most performant but sacrifice significant visual quality.

The data indicates that the best experience for this combo is at 1440p High settings, where the average FPS of 100 provides a smooth gameplay experience with minimal visual compromise. For 1080p users, High or Ultra both work well, with the latter offering the full visual package at 117 FPS. At 4K, Medium settings are the pragmatic choice, delivering a consistent 75 FPS average with a 64 FPS minimum, which keeps the game playable without requiring the lowest preset.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data for this configuration spans three resolutions and four quality presets, providing a comprehensive view of performance.

At 1920x1080, the results are as follows: Low settings achieve an average of 178 FPS, Medium reaches 149 FPS with a minimum of 127 FPS and a maximum of 171 FPS, High delivers 133 FPS, and Ultra produces 117 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra represents a 34% drop in frame rate, which is relatively modest and indicates the GPU has ample headroom at this resolution. The Medium preset's minimum FPS of 127 is notably high, suggesting consistent frame pacing throughout gameplay.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance decreases predictably. Low settings average 134 FPS, Medium achieves 112 FPS with a minimum of 95 FPS and a maximum of 129 FPS, High delivers 100 FPS, and Ultra produces 88 FPS. The drop from 1080p to 1440p at the same settings ranges from 20% (Low: 178 to 134) to 25% (Ultra: 117 to 88). This consistent scaling indicates that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at this resolution, with the CPU providing adequate support.

At 3840x2160, the performance falls further. Low settings average 90 FPS, Medium achieves 75 FPS with a minimum of 64 FPS and a maximum of 86 FPS, High delivers 67 FPS, and Ultra produces 59 FPS. The drop from 1440p to 4K is more pronounced, ranging from 33% (Low: 134 to 90) to 33% (Ultra: 88 to 59). This uniform decline highlights the GPU's memory bandwidth limitations at 4K, as the 336.0 GB/s bandwidth is insufficient to maintain higher frame rates at extreme resolutions.

The Medium preset at each resolution shows the most complete data, with minimum and maximum FPS values. At 1080p, the range is 127-171 FPS (span of 44 FPS), at 1440p it is 95-129 FPS (span of 34 FPS), and at 4K it is 64-86 FPS (span of 22 FPS). The narrowing range at higher resolutions suggests that frame times become more consistent as the GPU approaches its performance limits, reducing the variability in frame delivery.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals important characteristics about the limiting component in this system. At Low settings, the frame rates are 178 FPS at 1080p, 134 FPS at 1440p, and 90 FPS at 4K. This represents a 25% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 33% drop from 1440p to 4K. The total reduction from 1080p to 4K is 49%, which is less than the pixel count increase (4x), indicating that the GPU is not fully saturated at lower resolutions and that other factors, such as CPU performance, are playing a role.

At Ultra settings, the scaling is similar: 117 FPS at 1080p, 88 FPS at 1440p, and 59 FPS at 4K. The percentage drops are 25% from 1080p to 1440p and 33% from 1440p to 4K, matching the Low preset's scaling pattern. This consistency across settings suggests that the GPU is the primary limiting factor at all resolutions, with the CPU providing sufficient headroom even at 1080p Ultra.

The fact that the frame rate does not halve when moving from 1080p to 4K (which would be expected if the GPU were purely pixel-bound) indicates that the game's rendering workload is not solely dependent on resolution. Dave The Diver's art style and gameplay mechanics, which include 2D sprites and relatively simple 3D environments, mean that the CPU's role in physics, AI, and game logic becomes proportionally more significant at lower resolutions.

This scaling behavior points to the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 as a capable partner for the RTX 2060. At 1080p, the CPU's strong single-threaded performance (Cinebench R23 single-core score of 5,960) prevents it from bottlenecking the GPU, allowing the graphics card to reach its maximum frame rates. As resolution increases, the GPU becomes more dominant in determining performance, and the CPU's influence diminishes, as evidenced by the nearly identical scaling patterns across all presets.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is a 20-core, 20-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, manufactured on a 3 nm process by TSMC. It features a base clock of 2.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The CPU includes 30 MB of shared L3 cache and 3 MB of L2 cache per core, providing ample cache for game logic and asset streaming. Its dual-channel DDR5 memory support with 102.4 GB/s bandwidth ensures the GPU receives data without bottlenecking.

In Dave The Diver, the CPU's role is primarily in handling game logic, AI routines for NPCs and sea creatures, and the physics of underwater exploration. The game is not heavily threaded, so the Core Ultra 7 265's high single-core performance is more valuable than its multi-core capabilities. The Cinebench R23 single-core score of 5,960 places it in the top tier of processors, ensuring that the game's main thread runs efficiently without becoming a bottleneck.

The CPU's multi-core performance is also strong, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42,216 and a Passmark multithread score of 49,682. While these scores are not directly utilized by Dave The Diver's rendering engine, they contribute to smooth background tasks, such as asset loading and streaming, which can cause hitches if the CPU is overwhelmed. The 20 cores and 20 threads provide ample parallelism for any auxiliary workloads the game may spawn.

The CPU's 93rd percentile ranking among all processors indicates it is a high-end part, and its nearest rivals include server-class chips like the AMD EPYC 4464P and EPYC 9124. The fact that the Core Ultra 7 265 is within 0.7% of these enterprise processors in average benchmark score demonstrates its strong performance per dollar, though pricing is not a factor in this analysis. The CPU's boost clock of 5.30 GHz is particularly beneficial for this game, as it allows the processor to reach high frequencies when single-threaded performance is needed.

At 1080p Low settings, the CPU's influence is most apparent, as the GPU is not fully utilized and the game's frame rate is likely limited by CPU performance. The 178 FPS average at this setting suggests that the Core Ultra 7 265 is capable of driving very high frame rates, though the exact CPU limit is not directly measured. As resolution increases, the GPU becomes the limiting factor, and the CPU's role diminishes, as shown by the consistent scaling patterns across resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 combined with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 ranks 2,242 out of 2,867 tested combos in Dave The Diver, placing it in the 22nd percentile of configurations. This rank reflects the GPU's mid-range performance relative to the broader database, as the RTX 2060's 58th percentile ranking among all GPUs is a key determinant of the combo's overall position.

The CPU's high performance (93rd percentile) does not significantly boost the combo's rank, because the game's frame rates are predominantly GPU-limited at higher resolutions. At 1080p, where the CPU has more influence, the combo achieves frame rates of 117-178 FPS, which are competitive with many higher-ranked configurations. However, at 4K, the GPU's limitations become apparent, with the combo falling to 59-90 FPS, which drags down its overall standing.

The combo's rank of 2,242 out of 2,867 suggests that there are many configurations with more powerful GPUs that achieve higher frame rates, particularly at 4K. The RTX 2060's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks (GTX 580, Radeon 680M, RTX 3050 OEM, and RX 7600) all score within 0.8% of the 2060, indicating that this GPU is at the lower end of modern gaming performance. In contrast, the CPU's nearest rivals (EPYC 4464P, Core Ultra 7 265F, EPYC 7343, EPYC 9124) are all within 0.7% of the 265, showing that the CPU is competitive with much more expensive processors.

The combo's rank is also influenced by the fact that Dave The Diver is not a demanding title, meaning that even mid-range GPUs can achieve high frame rates at 1080p and 1440p. This allows the combo to perform reasonably well at lower resolutions, but its lack of VRAM and memory bandwidth limits its 4K performance. The combination of a high-end CPU with a mid-range GPU creates a system that excels at 1080p and 1440p gaming but falls short at 4K, which is reflected in its overall rank of 2,242 out of 2,867.