Dave The Diver

Dave The Diver, a 2023 adventure title, presents a unique workload that stresses both the CPU and GPU in distinct ways. This analysis examines the measured performance of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050, using only the provided benchmark data. The combo ranks 1725th out of 2867 tested combinations, placing it in the 60th percentile of all systems tested for this specific game. The following sections break down the GPU and CPU roles, scaling behavior, and provide specific recommendations based on the measured FPS data.

FAQ

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

A: The measured average FPS at 1920x1080 with Ultra settings is 136 FPS. This is the most demanding setting at the lowest resolution, and the system maintains a high refresh rate experience.

Q: How does the performance at 4K High compare to 1080p High?

A: At 3840x2160 High, the average FPS is 77. This represents a significant drop from the 154 FPS average seen at 1920x1080 High, indicating a strong resolution scaling impact.

Q: What is the best-performing preset at 1440p based on the data?

A: The Low preset at 2560x1440 yields the highest average FPS at 155. The Medium preset yields 129 FPS, High yields 116, and Ultra yields 102, showing a clear performance hierarchy.

Q: Does the CPU or GPU appear to be the primary bottleneck at 4K?

A: At 4K, the frame rate drops significantly compared to lower resolutions, indicating the GPU is the limiting component. The RTX 5050's 8 GB VRAM and 320.0 GB/s bandwidth are likely being saturated at this high pixel count.

Q: What is the percentile ranking of the RTX 5050 GPU compared to all other GPUs?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 is in the 66th percentile of all GPUs. Its average benchmark score is 21035, which places it slightly below the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL in the nearest rivals list.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the Intel Core Ultra 7 265?

A: The launch MSRP for the Intel Core Ultra 7 265 is $394. This is a desktop processor with 20 cores and 20 threads.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 is the central component for rendering Dave The Diver's visuals. Its role is defined by its 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 320.0 GB/s. The GPU's base clock is 2317 MHz and it boosts to 2572 MHz. These specifications are directly reflected in the measured FPS, particularly at higher resolutions where memory bandwidth and VRAM capacity become critical.

The RTX 5050's benchmark scores, such as a Passmark G3D score of 17326 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2502, provide a baseline for its compute capabilities. In Dave The Diver, the GPU shows a clear scaling trend with settings. At 1080p, the difference between Low (206 FPS) and Ultra (136 FPS) is 70 FPS, a 34% reduction in performance. This gap widens at 4K, where the Low preset averages 104 FPS and the Ultra preset averages 68 FPS, a 36 FPS difference. This indicates that the GPU is heavily taxed by the higher visual fidelity presets, especially at higher resolutions.

The GPU's nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL, has an average score only 0.6% higher, which is a negligible performance difference. However, the RTX 5050 is 1.6% faster than the AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT, showing it sits in a competitive mid-range tier. The data suggests that for Dave The Diver, the GPU is the primary driver of frame rate changes when moving between graphics presets. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is sufficient for the game's requirements, but the bandwidth becomes a limiting factor at 4K, as evidenced by the 27 FPS drop from High to Ultra at that resolution.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a clear and consistent pattern of performance degradation as resolution increases. Starting at 1920x1080, the system achieves high frame rates across all settings, with a maximum average of 206 FPS on Low. Moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS across all presets drops by approximately 25-33%. For instance, High settings fall from 154 FPS at 1080p to 116 FPS at 1440p, a 24.7% decrease.

The scaling from 1440p to 4K is even more pronounced. At 3840x2160, the High preset yields an average of 77 FPS, which is a 33.6% drop from the 116 FPS at 1440p. Similarly, Ultra settings drop from 102 FPS at 1440p to 68 FPS at 4K, a 33.3% reduction. This steep decline indicates that the GPU's fill rate and memory bandwidth are becoming the primary bottlenecks at 4K, as the number of pixels to render quadruples from 1080p to 4K.

This scaling behavior has important implications for the system's limiting component. At 1080p, the CPU likely plays a more significant role, as the GPU is not fully saturated. However, as resolution increases, the load shifts to the GPU. The 4K results, particularly the 68 FPS average on Ultra, suggest that the RTX 5050 is nearing its limit. The 27 FPS difference between High and Ultra at 4K is larger than the 18 FPS difference at 1440p, highlighting how the GPU's performance headroom diminishes at higher pixel counts. In summary, the data shows a classic GPU-bound scenario at 4K, while 1080p and 1440p offer more balanced performance.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 combination ranks 1725th out of 2867 tested combos for Dave The Diver. This places the system in the 60th percentile, meaning it outperforms 60% of all tested configurations in this specific game. While this is a respectable position, it is not a top-tier ranking, suggesting the combo is well-suited for mainstream gaming but not for pushing the absolute highest frame rates.

The CPU itself is a strong performer, sitting in the 93rd percentile of all CPUs. Its average benchmark score of 64640 is nearly identical to its nearest rival, the AMD EPYC 4464P, which is only 0.3% faster. This indicates that the processor is not a limiting factor in most scenarios. The GPU, however, is less exceptional, ranking in the 66th percentile of all GPUs. This disparity between the CPU's high percentile and the GPU's mid-range percentile suggests that the GPU is the performance ceiling for this combo.

The ranking of 1725 is a direct result of the GPU's capabilities. While the CPU can easily feed the GPU with data, the RTX 5050's 8 GB VRAM and 13.17 TFLOPS FP32 performance cap the overall frame rates. In a game like Dave The Diver, which is not particularly demanding on CPU resources, the combo's rank is almost entirely determined by the GPU. The data shows that this configuration is a balanced mid-range system, capable of handling the game well at 1080p and 1440p, but it will struggle to maintain high frame rates at 4K with maximum settings.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across all major resolutions and presets. At 1920x1080, the system delivers excellent performance across the board. The Low preset averages 206 FPS, Medium averages 172 FPS with a minimum of 146 and maximum of 198, High averages 154 FPS, and Ultra averages 136 FPS. These numbers indicate that 1080p gaming is a smooth experience on any setting, with even the most demanding preset staying well above 60 FPS.

At 2560x1440, performance remains strong but begins to show the GPU's limitations. The Low preset averages 155 FPS, Medium averages 129 FPS (min 110, max 149), High averages 116 FPS, and Ultra averages 102 FPS. The frame rates are still very playable, but the gap between Low and Ultra has narrowed to 53 FPS, compared to 70 FPS at 1080p. This suggests that the GPU is becoming a more significant bottleneck as the pixel count increases.

At 3840x2160, the performance drops are substantial. The Low preset averages 104 FPS, Medium averages 87 FPS (min 74, max 100), High averages 77 FPS, and Ultra averages 68 FPS. While the system remains technically playable at all settings, the Ultra preset is now below the 70 FPS threshold, and the High preset is approaching it. The minimum FPS of 74 on Medium is noteworthy, as it indicates that even in the most demanding scenes, the system maintains a playable frame rate. The data clearly shows a linear progression of performance loss with each step up in resolution and settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings depend heavily on the target resolution and refresh rate. For users with a 1080p 60Hz or 144Hz monitor, the Ultra preset at 136 FPS is the best choice, as it provides the highest visual quality without sacrificing smoothness. The High preset at 154 FPS is also an excellent option for those who prefer even higher frame rates, but the visual difference between High and Ultra is often minimal in this type of adventure game.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset at 129 FPS offers the best balance between visual fidelity and performance. The High preset at 116 FPS is also acceptable for 60Hz displays, but the Medium preset's higher frame rate and lower minimum of 110 FPS make it the safer recommendation for ensuring consistent smoothness. The Ultra preset at 102 FPS is still playable, but the 27 FPS drop from Medium to Ultra may not be worth the visual gains for most users.

At 3840x2160, the data suggests that the Medium preset at 87 FPS is the sweet spot. The High preset at 77 FPS is still playable, but the Ultra preset at 68 FPS is borderline for a smooth experience. The Low preset at 104 FPS is the best for maintaining high frame rates, but it sacrifices significant visual quality. For 4K gaming, the Medium preset is recommended as it offers a balanced experience, with a minimum FPS of 74 ensuring that even demanding scenes remain fluid. In general, the Medium preset appears to be the most versatile option across all resolutions, offering a good compromise between image quality and performance.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265 plays a supporting role in Dave The Diver, as the game's performance is primarily GPU-bound at higher resolutions. The CPU features 20 cores and 20 threads, with a base clock of 2.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. This high core count and boost clock are more than sufficient for the game's logic and AI systems, which are unlikely to saturate even a fraction of the CPU's capabilities.

The CPU's benchmark scores confirm its strength. A Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 42216 and a single-core score of 5960 indicate excellent multi-threaded and single-threaded performance. The Passmark multi-thread score of 49682 and single-thread score of 4689 further solidify its position as a high-end processor. The CPU's 30 MB of shared L3 cache and support for DDR5 memory with a bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s ensure that data can be fed to the GPU without creating a bottleneck.

In the context of Dave The Diver, the CPU's role is to ensure that the GPU is never starved of data. The data shows that at 1080p, where the GPU is less taxed, the CPU's performance is more relevant. However, the frame rates at 1080p (136-206 FPS) are already exceptionally high, suggesting that the CPU is not a limiting factor even in this scenario. At 1440p and 4K, the GPU becomes the clear bottleneck, and the CPU's ample headroom means it has no impact on the measured FPS. The CPU's 93rd percentile ranking, compared to the GPU's 66th percentile, underscores that the processor is not the performance constraint in this combo.