Downfall

The AMD Ryzen 5 2600 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 in Downfall presents a clear picture of a system where the graphics card is the dominant force in determining frame rates, with the CPU providing a capable but secondary foundation. The measured FPS data across three resolutions and four settings levels reveals a performance curve that responds sharply to GPU load, indicating that this combination is well-balanced for high-refresh-rate 1080p gaming but begins to show its limits as resolution increases.

Resolution Scaling

The scaling of average FPS from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 provides a direct look at where the bottleneck lies in this system. At the High preset, the average frame rate drops from 161 FPS at 1080p to 115 FPS at 1440p, a reduction of 46 FPS, and then further down to 72 FPS at 4K, another 43 FPS drop. This pattern shows a consistent, substantial performance penalty as pixel count increases, which is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario. The rendering workload grows faster than the CPU’s ability to feed the GPU, so the Radeon RX 7700 becomes the limiting component.

The Low preset tells an even more telling story. At 1080p, the system achieves 240 FPS, but this falls to 171 FPS at 1440p and then to 107 FPS at 4K. The absolute frame rates are higher, but the percentage drop from 1080p to 4K is still severe, with the 4K figure being less than half of the 1080p number. This indicates that even with reduced graphical fidelity, the GPU is still the primary constraint at higher resolutions. The CPU is not holding the system back in a way that would flatten the curve; rather, the GPU’s fill rate and shading power are exhausted by the increased pixel load.

Looking at the Medium preset, which is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values, the data shows a similar trend. The average goes from 196 FPS at 1080p to 140 FPS at 1440p, and then down to 87 FPS at 4K. The minimum FPS values also scale down, from 167 at 1080p to 119 at 1440p and 74 at 4K. This consistency across all settings levels confirms that resolution scaling is the dominant factor in performance variation, and the limiting component is undoubtedly the GPU. The CPU, with its six cores and twelve threads, appears to have enough headroom to keep up with the GPU’s demands at 1080p, but the GPU’s workload becomes the wall as resolution climbs.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 is the star of this pairing, and its specifications directly explain the measured results. Featuring 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, the card offers a substantial memory bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s. This is more than sufficient for Downfall at any of the tested settings, and it explains why the game can run at 4K High with an average of 72 FPS without running into memory capacity issues. The generous frame buffer likely prevents stutter and texture thrashing, even at Ultra settings where the average drops to 45 FPS.

The GPU’s clock behavior is also relevant. Its base clock is 1900 MHz, with a game clock of 2041 MHz and a boost clock of 2459 MHz. This boost headroom means the card can dynamically increase its speed under load, which helps maintain higher frame rates in less demanding scenes. The measured data shows that the GPU is working hard, as the FPS drops are steep and consistent with a component that is hitting its compute limits. The RDNA 3.0 architecture, with 2560 shading units and 40 ray tracing cores, provides the raw processing power needed to drive Downfall’s horror visuals, but the 4K Ultra figure of 45 FPS indicates that the most demanding settings push the card to its edge.

The GPU’s benchmark scores place it in the 58th percentile of all GPUs, and its average benchmark score is 15852. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 9060, which scores 16014, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, which scores 16129. This means the RX 7700 is competitive with those cards, being only 1% and 1.7% behind them respectively. In practice, this translates to the card being a solid 1440p performer that can handle 4K with some settings compromises. The data shows that at 1440p Medium, the card delivers 140 FPS, which is excellent, but at 4K Ultra, it falls to 45 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for a smooth experience.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen 5 2600 is a 6-core, 12-thread processor from the Zen architecture, running with a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 3.90 GHz. Its role in this system is to feed the GPU with enough data to keep it busy, and the benchmark results suggest it does this adequately. The CPU’s performance, as measured by its average benchmark score of 21484, places it in the 75th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core Ultra 5 228V, which scores 21440, and the AMD EPYC 9454, which scores 21223, showing that the 2600 is right in line with those processors.

In Downfall, the CPU’s impact is most visible at 1080p where the GPU is not the sole bottleneck. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 240 FPS, which is a very high frame rate that requires a capable CPU to process the game logic and draw calls. The fact that the system can hit 240 FPS indicates that the Ryzen 5 2600 is not a severe limitation at this resolution. However, the lack of a higher frame rate ceiling suggests that the CPU is working near its limit. The boost clock of 3.90 GHz is modest by modern standards, and for a horror game like Downfall, which may have complex scenes and AI, the CPU is doing its part without being a star.

The CPU’s 16 MB of L3 cache is shared across all cores, which helps with data sharing, but the single-thread performance is what matters most for gaming. The Geekbench single-core score of 1154 and the Passmark single-thread score of 2239 are moderate figures, and they align with the observation that the CPU can push high frame rates but not the absolute highest. The data shows that at 4K, the CPU is largely irrelevant, as the GPU is so heavily loaded that the FPS is determined by the graphics card’s performance. The CPU’s role is to ensure the GPU is never starved for data, and the consistent scaling of FPS with resolution changes suggests this is happening.

How This Combo Ranks

In the grand scheme of tested hardware combinations, this pairing of the Ryzen 5 2600 and the Radeon RX 7700 ranks 1308 out of 2928 combos for Downfall. This puts it in the upper-middle tier of all systems tested, which is a reasonable position given the age of the CPU relative to the newer GPU. The combo is ranked higher than many systems that use older or less powerful components, but it is not near the top of the list, which would be dominated by the latest flagship CPUs and GPUs.

The ranking of 1308 out of 2928 means that this system outperforms roughly 55% of the tested configurations. This is a solid result, especially when considering that the CPU is from 2018 and the GPU is from 2025. The GPU’s strength is what boosts the combo, as it provides the majority of the raw performance in the measured FPS data. The CPU does not drag the system down to the bottom of the rankings, but it also does not push it into the top tier. The delta between the CPU and its rivals is small, with the biggest difference being only 1.2% from the AMD EPYC 9454, so the CPU is not a significant outlier in either direction.

The measured data is marked as true, meaning these are actual results and not estimates. This adds credibility to the ranking, as it is based on real-world performance in Downfall. The combo’s position suggests that it is a viable option for playing the game at high settings, but users who want to max out the game at 4K with Ultra settings may find the performance lacking, as the 45 FPS figure indicates. For those targeting 1440p or 1080p, the combo is well-suited, with the data showing strong frame rates at those resolutions.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this combo can achieve in Downfall?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 240, which occurs at 1920x1080 resolution with the Low settings preset.

Q: How does the combo perform at 4K with Medium settings?

A: At 3840x2160 with Medium settings, the combo produces an average FPS of 87, with a minimum of 74 and a maximum of 100.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: At 1080p, the GPU is still the primary limiter, but the CPU is more involved. The FPS drops from 240 at Low to 161 at High, showing the GPU’s workload increases with settings, while the CPU handles the frame rate ceiling.

Q: What is the combo’s rank compared to other tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 1308 out of 2928 tested combinations for Downfall, placing it in the upper-middle tier of all systems.

Q: Does the GPU have enough memory for 4K gaming?

A: Yes, the GPU has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory with a 256-bit bus, which is sufficient to handle the game at 4K without memory capacity issues, as evidenced by the playable frame rates at High settings.

Q: What is the average FPS at 1440p with High settings?

A: At 2560x1440 with High settings, the average FPS is 115, which is a smooth experience for most players.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate. For 1080p gaming, the High preset is the best choice, as it delivers an average of 161 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold and provides a good balance between visual quality and performance. The Ultra preset at 1080p drops to 101 FPS, which is still playable, but the jump from High to Ultra costs 60 FPS, which is a significant loss for a small visual gain. The Low preset at 1080p achieves 240 FPS, which is excessive for most displays and sacrifices too much visual fidelity.

For 1440p, the Medium preset is the recommended choice, as it delivers an average of 140 FPS with a minimum of 119 FPS, ensuring a smooth experience. The High preset at 1440p drops to 115 FPS, which is still good, but the Medium preset offers a better safety margin for demanding scenes. The Ultra preset at 1440p drops to 72 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for a horror game where smooth motion is important. The Low preset at 1440p delivers 171 FPS, but the visual quality is compromised.

For 4K, the High preset is the best option, as it delivers an average of 72 FPS, which is right at the edge of playability. The Medium preset at 4K drops to 87 FPS, which is actually better than High, but the data shows that Medium is the only 4K preset with recorded min and max values, indicating it is a stable choice. However, the High preset’s average of 72 FPS is more consistent with the visual quality expected at 4K. The Ultra preset at 4K drops to 45 FPS, which is too low for a smooth experience, and the Low preset at 4K delivers 107 FPS, but it sacrifices too much visual detail. The recommendation is to use High at 4K for a balanced experience, or Medium if a higher frame rate is preferred.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following data represents the exact measured average FPS values for the AMD Ryzen 5 2600 and AMD Radeon RX 7700 combination in Downfall.

1920x1080

• Low: 240 FPS average
• Medium: 196 FPS average, with a minimum of 167 and a maximum of 226
• High: 161 FPS average
• Ultra: 101 FPS average

2560x1440

• Low: 171 FPS average
• Medium: 140 FPS average, with a minimum of 119 and a maximum of 161
• High: 115 FPS average
• Ultra: 72 FPS average

3840x2160

• Low: 107 FPS average
• Medium: 87 FPS average, with a minimum of 74 and a maximum of 100
• High: 72 FPS average
• Ultra: 45 FPS average

These figures show a clear performance hierarchy, with 1080p Low being the fastest and 4K Ultra being the slowest. The Medium preset is the only one with full min/max data, and it shows a consistent pattern across all resolutions. The data indicates that the combo is best suited for 1080p and 1440p gaming, where it can achieve high frame rates, while 4K gaming is possible but requires a compromise on settings to maintain playable performance.